Tuesday Patriots Notebook 5/14: News and Notes

Some Patriots news and notes on this Tuesday:

Key Returning Players in 2024

The New England Patriots saw its fair share of injuries last season, seeing some key names go down, which left the club in rough shape for much of the 2023 campaign.

It now has a surprisingly long list of players who will make this team a little more formidable than people might think, and here’s a quick rundown:

LB Matthew Judon – Judon is obviously coming off his elbow injury that sidelined him for the majority of last season.  The veteran suffered the injury during Week 4 against Dallas and appeared on the injury report over the next two weeks as a non-participant, before the club finally placed him on injured reserve.  He had gotten off to an incredible start, totaling 4 sacks and 9 QB hits, as well as 5 tackles for a loss, along with a safety before his season was cut short.

CB Christian Gonzalez – The rookie looked terrific in what little time we saw him in 2023, with a shoulder injury in Week 5 against the Saints ending his season as he was seemingly just coming into his own.  To that point, Gonzalez had totaled 17 tackles, along with a sack, an interception, and three passes defended.

OT Calvin Anderson – Anderson is a player who has been talked about a lot recently thanks to a terrific piece from The Boston Globe’s Christopher Price where we learned that the veteran dealt with malaria ahead of last preseason.  Despite that, Anderson still played in 100% of the snaps over the first two weeks of the season, before a hit to his chest caused him to suffer a heart contusion, which saw him end up on injured reserve.  Anderson has made it clear he plans on making an impact, and seeing him emerge at left tackle would certainly be a great story.

LB Raekwon McMillan – McMillan is a player who saw time on defense in 2022, playing in every game except for Week 3 (inactive), while being relegated to just special teams in Week 4.  He didn’t get to build on that after he missed all of 2023 after tearing his Achilles in OTAs last offseason, which is unfortunate because there were high expectations for him heading into last season.

DT Daniel Ekuale – The veteran defensive lineman was having an absolutely terrific season to begin 2023, before a torn biceps he suffered in Week 3 saw him end up on injured reserve.  He was disruptive up front in what few games he played, finishing with three tackles including two solo.  He’s quietly going to be a player to watch up front this preseason.

CB Marcus Jones – The second-year defensive back went down with a shoulder injury in Week 2 following a tackle of receiver Jaylen Waddle, which saw his sophomore season stopped short after he suffered a torn labrum.  Jones had looked good up to that point, totaling 5 tackles while giving New England’s defensive backfield some much-needed speed.  One interesting factor is the fact that Jones also quietly provided an unbelievable change of pace on offense, which with this new group of players should now really make things interesting.  If he gets out there on offense this time around, he will absolutely help them create mismatches, given how much more additional speed they have on offense this season.

CB Isaiah Bolden – Bolden was off to a solid preseason before a scary injury at the end of the club’s preseason meeting in Green Bay saw his season come to an abrupt end.  Bolden suffered a head injury following a collision with teammate Calvin Munson, who came in low to put a hit on receiver Malik Heath and instead collided with Bolden, striking him in the head with his shoulder as he closed in.  That left Bolden motionless on the field in what was a frightening scene.  Fortunately, he avoided anything significant and after having nearly a full year to recover, it appears the second-year defensive back is poised for a return this season.

Overall, there are positions that will receive quite a boost on both sides of the football, which is another storyline to follow as training camp continues to creep closer.  Improvement will be the key thing everyone will be hoping for this season, and they’re fortunately at least getting some help from guys who are already in-house heading into 2024.