CLNS Media’s Taylor Kyles and Mike Kadlick take a look at New England’s special teams unit and determine sleepers, surprise cuts, trade candidates, and more.
New England’s special teams squad is going to have much more on their plate than during past seasons.
“This Patriots special teams unit really over the course of the last 20 plus years has been like the cornerstone unit for the Patriots,” said CLNS Media’s Mike Kadlick.
Despite other areas of the team lacking such as the offensive line, New England has produced some of the best special teams players in the NFL over the years.
Players like former Patriots placekickers Adam Vinatieri, Stephen Gostkowski and Nick Folk have all excelled in the Patriots special teams unit in the past.
One aspect that Taylor Kyles and Mike Kadlick discuss is how losing players in the special teams unit will impact the Patriots as a whole. Players who are already on the roster could be potential standouts in the special teams unit.
Amongst those players is linebacker Marte Mapu and cornerback and Isaiah Bolden. Jerod Mayo has mentioned previously that players like Bolden could be put into special teams positions this upcoming season.
“I feel like in year two once he’s a little more familiar and comfortable in the scheme, obviously we don;t know how its going to carry over to special teams necessarily, but he’s someone who’s gonna go after the ball. You can see that when he’s really locked in. So, when it comes to special teams being able to make those game changing plays, I think Mapu is someone I don’t want people to kinda sleep on,” said Taylor Kyles.
Timeline:
0:00 Intro
1:56 – Evolution of Patriots’ Special Teams
3:26 – Potential standout players
4:53 – Dark horse candidates
6:16 – Isaiah Baldwin impact
8:45 – Marte Mapu’s contribution
10:02 – Mapu’s special teams potential
14:59 – Training camp progress
16:49 – Nick Folk comparison
19:49 – Potential surprise cut
21:50 – Trade candidate discussion
23:45 – Special Teams roster projection
25:15 – Specialists roster breakdown
26:50 – Special teams grade assessment
29:08 – Upcoming linebacker preview
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