New England Patriots links 2/14/24 – Up from the ashes: Spotlight on WR, LB and Safety

Daily news and links for Wednesday

TEAM TALK

• Mike Dussault tackles this week’s Patriots Mailbag: A pivotal Patriots offseason arrives.
• Paul Perillo’s NFL Notes: KC, Mahomes Super once again; The Chiefs still have a long way to go to catch the Patriots, but Kansas City and Patrick Mahomes are worthy successors to their throne.
• NFL announces 2024 NFL Draft first round order.
• Patriots Unfiltered: Super Bowl recap, best SB commercials, Mahomes vs. Brady debate. (2 hours)

LOCAL LINKS

• Michael Hurley warns, with examples, that some of the offseason Patriots content will be both painful and stupid.
• Doug Kyed suggests offseason fixes for the Patriots: No. 3: Fixing the receiver group should be a top priority for the Patriots this offseason. Here’s how they can do it. [Free]
• Mark Daniels spotlights the safety position: Current roster, contract situation, 2023 review, the future; More.
• Mark Daniels examines the Linebackers: The Patriots have three LBs in need of new contracts. They could add another pass rusher to help Matthew Judon
• Alex Barth talks about how the draft strategy will change post-Bill Belichick. A big hint about that comes from Jonathan Jones of CBS, that the Patriots will be “transitioning” their grading system for players in the offseason, including draft prospects.
• Justin Leger highlights Tom E. Curran and Phil Perry discussing what the ideal QB room should look like for New England in 2024.
• Phil Perry says the lesson the Pats can learn from the Chiefs is that they should draft a quarterback. The outcome of Super Bowl 58 came down to one team had Mahomes. One didn’t. /Patriots already learned that lesson, lol.
• Mark Daniels says it’s clear that the Patriots must draft a QB with their top pick.
• Steve Atkinson (TeamNBSMedia) The San Francisco 49ers are a perfect fit for Mac Jones.
• Lauren Campbell highlights draft expert Lance Zierlein providing his take on the 2024 wide receiver class. ‘The Patriots can absolutely find talent at WR outside of Day 1.’
• Matt Dolloff ranks the top-10 free-agent wide receivers of 2024.
• Phil Perry makes the case for the Patriots signing one of five big-name wide receivers who could revive the offense.
• Alex Barth mentions the Cincinnati Bengals are expected to franchise tag WR Tee Higgins, who was viewed as a target for New England.
• Mike Kadlick’s Patriots Mailbag: Could Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs’ success spark a Tom Brady return?
• Karen Guregian talks with draft evaluator Lance Zierlein about how Eliot Wolf is a ‘breath of fresh air.’ “I can tell you Eliot Wolf is a big believer…at finding the best players. Go get good players to put on your roster, and don’t worry about the positions, because good players help you win championships.”
• Matt Dolloff mentions how people around the NFL are really pumping Eliot Wolf’s tires.
• Mike D’Abate tells us ex-Patriots tight ends coach Will Lawing will join Bill O’Brien at Boston College.
• Mike D’Abate says the Pats are set to bring in ex-Jets coach Taylor Embree as their new RBs coach. Also, Mike Reiss reported that the majority of Jerod Mayo’s coaching hires reported for work together on Tuesday, signifying a “notable step and progression” toward building staff chemistry and devising strategy for 2024 plans.
• Richie Whitt points out how ESPN snubbed Brady-Belichick in its dynasty rankings. /Rewriting history.
• Chad Finn previews ‘The Dynasty’ on Apple TV+: It is nearly perfect, just like the Patriots dynasty it reveals. [Free]
• Geoff Magliocchetti posts the two Super Bowl commercials with Tom Brady, that both received favorable reviews.
• Nick O’Malley offers a mock draft that has New England trading down. Pats trade No. 3 to the Falcons for a No. 8 and a first-rounder in 2025. Pats pick Penn State OT Olumuyiwa Fashanu at No. 8.
• Pats Procrastination podcast: Clare and Chudders discuss all the moving and shaking in Foxborough, as the coaching personnel moves start to stack up. (30 min.)

NATIONAL NEWS

• Albert Breer (SI) Super Bowl Notes: After 2024 Super Bowl, Patrick Mahomes is the mountain the rest of the NFL has to scale.
• Adam Schein (NFL.com) Big-picture takeaways from Super Bowl LVIII: Chiefs are a dynasty, Kyle Shanahan isn’t stupid and more.
• Nora Princiotti (The Ringer) The Chiefs reached Dynasty status. Now comes the hard part.
• Jarrett Bailey (TouchdownWire) The Kansas City Chiefs are the bogeyman the NFL can’t kill. /Just for the hyperbole.
• Jeff Kerr (CBS Sports) Five NFL teams poised to take a major leap in 2024. No Pats.
• Logan Ulrich (NFLTR) NFL announces 321 player invitations to the 2024 Scouting Combine.
• Chad Reuter (NFL.com) Three-round NFL mock draft: Patriots deal for Justin Fields in one of five first-round trades.
• Frank Schwab (Yahoo! Sports) NFL Power Rankings, way too early edition. Patriots 31st. Jerod Mayo could be a wonderful head coach but this is a really hard first gig. First, he’s taking over for a legend in Bill Belichick. Also, the Patriots are as talent poor as any team in the NFL. Getting a new quarterback with the third pick would presumably help, but the Patriots are probably getting the third-best QB in the draft. It’s a difficult spot for a rookie head coach.
• Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk) Source: XFL kickoff rule is not likely to get to 24 votes.
• David Fucillo (SB Nation) The NFL’s playoff rules are close to perfect, and we need them in the regular season.