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EPISODE 34 - The Patriots are Back!! OTAs!
276 Plays3 months ago
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Transcript
Introduction and Podcast Context
00:00:00
Savage Boston
All right, guys, welcome back to the Savage Boston podcast. We are here. It is May 20th at 8.30 p.m.
00:00:05
Bret
Thank
00:00:07
Savage Boston
Normal Tuesday recording time.
Patriots' OTAs: Media Access and Key Observations
00:00:10
Savage Boston
Uh, weren't going to have a ton of, ton of juice today. Nothing new. Uh, you know was going to be more scheduled talk, but then today was kind of the, the media got full, full availability for OTAs, OTAs day two for the Patriots. So, um,
00:00:25
Savage Boston
It's awesome that awesome they got to get in there and and and actually get their eyes on the players. um And kind of what I want to start with, which is the thing that made just a little bit of noise today. Ultimately, it really doesn't fucking matter.
00:00:38
Savage Boston
But it was interesting from a stat perspective is, ah you know, Drake May began the OTAs with eight passes and through four of them were interceptions.
00:00:49
Savage Boston
So is this a big deal? No. No, it's not a big deal. Four people flip out. I just brought it up earlier. I was like, oh, that's that's that's interesting. He threw four picks and eight passes. Like, that's interesting to me.
00:01:01
Savage Boston
um Obviously, maybe doing some new stuff. Maybe just – doesn't have a feel for the new scheme, whatever it may be. But um yeah, I thought it was an interesting tidbit from, from a new OTA.
00:01:11
Savage Boston
So I don't know. What do you guys, what do you guys think about the, ah the Drake may um OTA stat line?
00:01:14
Bret
ah
00:01:17
Savage Boston
Is that an absolute nothing burger?
Focus on Drake May: Performance and Mechanics
00:01:20
Snooty
Yeah, I mean, it's the first, I mean, at least first media session for OTAs. Like, look, he threw four picks, and I go, one of them was on like a bobbled or a tip pass. One he threw high.
00:01:33
Snooty
One Gonzalez made a great play, which, you know, something like that.
00:01:36
Bret
Absolutely.
00:01:36
Snooty
A, that's an all-pro level player making a play like that, peeling off zone coverage. And then the other is, like, you're going to scheme that, you're going to know, You know, the tendencies of the of the defense and things like that. Like, who gives a shit?
00:01:50
Snooty
It's the first fucking day of practice. Like, the offense is always behind the defense.
00:01:53
Savage Boston
second
00:01:54
Snooty
It is what it is. My bigger takeaway from this is I was pumped that Will Campbell reportedly got virtually all the reps at left tackle. That's awesome. Don't fuck around. He's your left tackle.
00:02:06
Snooty
Just sit him in there and get the kid as many reps as you can possibly get.
00:02:10
Savage Boston
Yeah, true.
00:02:10
Snooty
That was my...
00:02:10
Bret
Yeah. Yeah, I mean, i I have to agree from the standpoint nothing burger. I love... We go from a speculation city when it comes to like draft and free agency.
00:02:22
Bret
And now we go into like hype city where that goes in like ah basically both directions, right? It's either like Drake Mays, a ruined guy and he's never going to produce.
00:02:34
Bret
He's still like raw. And then to like, Oh my God, this guy flashes is going to be all pro. Right. I mean, think about like Javon Baker coming out. We were like, this guy's going to be great. And then all of a sudden it was like, we got nothing.
00:02:44
Savage Boston
Yeah.
Fan Reactions: Speculation and Hype Dynamics
00:02:46
Bret
I think the biggest one that I took away that was, i wouldn't say concerning, but it just kind of raised the hesitation was the fact that it seemed like some reports out there were that May had his hitch back or his kind of like...
00:03:02
Bret
ah sort of hesitancy in the throw where he kind of has like a little bit of a a hitch in his throw mechanically that he kind of smoothed out. And i don't know if you guys recall that came up last year.
00:03:13
Bret
It started off this season in the off season. They're like, he's got kind of this weird hitch and then it slowly evolved and it got better with it. And it seemed like it started with this one. I think the thought behind that is, you know, he's got a bunch of new players and,
00:03:27
Bret
He's basically learning a new system with a new offensive coordinator, and it's like getting the rust out. So I think it's kind of where he falls back into this spot where if he's thinking too much, he does something mechanically that throws it off.
00:03:42
Bret
So we'll see how that develops. That's probably the one thing that I looked at based on the notes that I read on May where I'd say, okay, let's see how that progresses. Throwing four picks, yeah, not great, but i I care very little about the number of picks and throws for touchdowns and completions and what they look like in gym shorts, you know?
00:04:00
Savage Boston
Yeah, i didn't I didn't read much about the hitch thing. I don't know where you saw that. I didn't see much on that today. um couple of the notes I was reading were or just more about the you know messy start and he finished like seven of eight. But it's just more, you know, I think it just struck a chord with people who are like, hey, he threw too many picks last year.
00:04:18
Savage Boston
You know what i mean? And then immediately you hear first practice like, hey, Drake may through four picks in the first eight passes. And like most everyone's like, yeah, it's OTAs. Who cares? Like they're going to – they're doing all sorts of weird stuff.
00:04:30
Savage Boston
yeah You know what I mean? Like most people – because it really is a nothing burger compared to the regular season. But it's true. It's a bigger point of like how do people respond to stuff. Like you know I post something like, oh, Drake threw bunch of picks and people are like, delete your tweet.
00:04:45
Savage Boston
you know, blah, blah. Like, i was like, i don't get like the fandom. you You're allowed to be like objective with fandom. You don't have to just be relentless hype. As you said, it goes from being a negativity and questioning to like pure hype, which we talk about J Javon Baker all the time. You know, we're like hype, hype, hype. And then one catch this year. So,
00:05:05
Savage Boston
Let's take it with a grain of salt. Like Kyle Williams, I think he's going to be really good. And he had like a, I guess a fair day, right? he He didn't catch too many balls. Right. But I think he's going to be a really great receiver. So I just think it's the, the weird hype stuff to me is interesting with, with the
Patriots' Fan Evolution: Negativity to Positivity
00:05:21
Savage Boston
fandom. I don't know how you guys feel.
00:05:23
Snooty
No, I mean, it's like we're talking about this with Jerry Thornton. Like, they we were so relentlessly negative for so long, and then we were so hyper-positive for so long when Brady was here because, like, we were we were incredibly defensive, right?
00:05:39
Snooty
Like, mean, literally defend the wall. But, like,
00:05:41
Savage Boston
Yeah, because he was the guy.
00:05:42
Snooty
but
00:05:42
Savage Boston
You knew you had the guy.
00:05:42
Snooty
Right, of course.
00:05:43
Savage Boston
Yeah.
00:05:44
Snooty
Of course. so But then like you get you go from there to all of a sudden, like, ah, we suck again. Like, you know, okay, you get to be negative again. But then but like some people... There are is a large segment of Patriots fans that they only grew up on the good times.
00:05:58
Snooty
They've only really experienced the good times. So when we're like... yeah, you know, like, well, this isn't great. Like, you know, this happened or whatever. They're like, what the fuck is wrong with you? And you're like, okay, like its it's called, you can be objective about this.
00:06:09
Snooty
Like it's okay to be critical and negative
OTA Performance: Importance of Reps Over Highlights
00:06:12
Snooty
if it merits it.
00:06:12
Savage Boston
It's hard with ah Twitter. Twitter doesn't really allow you to be, you know, you either are a negative person or a positive person. Like Twitter is ah the ultimate polarizing environment. Yeah.
00:06:22
Bret
Well, even like you said you basically like Drake may through four picks on eight passes today And then you do like a mojo where it's like questioning people like you're horrible. You're like I just stated a fact why
00:06:35
Savage Boston
Yeah, just ready he threw had eight passes. Four of them got picked. That's interesting. That's like an interesting thing that happened today.
00:06:41
Bret
And then people basic
00:06:42
Savage Boston
yeah like we got We're in a dead zone of football, and like there's a dead zone. i'm just Any tidbits, it's OTAs. We're like, oh, cool football. Here's the most interesting thing from practice. Everyone's like, fucking delete this. I was like, Jesus.
00:06:55
Bret
Yeah, I mean, the biggest thing that always look at for minicamps, and like I said, there's a lot hyperbole around like how they perform. I care probably less about how they perform and more to what Snooty just said, where it's like, who's getting the reps?
00:07:09
Bret
What position are they getting the reps in? and schematically, like what does it kind of look like? like It seemed like ah From defense, I mean, everything's basic right now. We're just getting going, right? But, like, they're just running a lot of man situations and kind of going through. There's a lot of zone blocking schemes that they're trying to work in.
00:07:27
Bret
So, like, those are the things that you look at from a minicamp and really OTAs as they get going into they ah in the offseason when you get up to – um you know, preseason that you look at and say, okay, who's getting the reps, where are they getting the reps, and schematically what does it look like?
00:07:42
Bret
The whole, like, what what who's making plays in these situations, I don't think that really carries much weight into the season as the other
Patriots' Defense: Strengths and Needs
00:07:51
Bret
stuff.
00:07:51
Snooty
The other thing that was coming along that you heard a lot about today was Barmore.
00:07:52
Savage Boston
It's like, yeah.
00:07:55
Snooty
He looked very, very active, which, like again, like performance, like you know I don't really care, but like the fact that he's active and participating and looks like he's in good shape is it just an awesome sign.
00:07:57
Savage Boston
Mm-hmm.
00:08:08
Snooty
like On a personal level, the fact you know the health and health scare that he went through last year, but then like from a football perspective, like that's fucking awesome that he's that far where he is at this point right now.
00:08:10
Savage Boston
Very good news.
00:08:16
Bret
Well, even ah even something that I know we didn't touch on, but like like the press conference. like What did you guys think about the press conference coming out and Milton and him talking about like we're trying to race each other to get into the locker room to who gets who who gets here first?
00:08:32
Bret
Like what were your thoughts on him just on that side?
00:08:33
Savage Boston
yeah I mean, those two guys. So, you know, if you have those two guys healthy and not to mention someone like Josh Farmer, right, who just got drafted, who can cycle in.
00:08:45
Savage Boston
Like you got you got two. Those two are really dynamic D tackles. I mean, you're going to generate. mean, Barmore is an all-world player when he's healthy. All world. Like 2023, he was all world.
00:08:56
Savage Boston
And Milton Williams was an absolute force pass rushing too. So I think if you get those two in the interior, you're you're set. um Especially on third and long situations, like watch out, dude. Like that that's going to be dangerous.
00:09:08
Savage Boston
You know, the one thing though we mentioned before um was like the edge roll, the edge roll edge position. There's a need there. Like Keon White, really like Keon, but he's more of like – that He's more of a Belichick guy.
00:09:21
Savage Boston
Belichick drafted him. right He's like a William McGinnis. He can kind of do it all. Three down guy, can play the run, set the edge, rush the passer a bit. But like there is a need for a guy in this NFL who's going to be a real third down true pass rusher, 10 plus sack guy.
00:09:37
Savage Boston
And that's like one of the few holes they have on the defense. And I'm just hoping you got lucky with Braden Swinson. in like the fifth round and that he can fill the edge rusher role.
00:09:49
Savage Boston
That's kind of how I feel about it.
00:09:51
Snooty
Well, I mean, they have...
00:09:51
Bret
Well, and then you... well I was just going to say, yeah that's where I also get curious is how are they going to play White?
00:09:53
Snooty
Sorry.
00:09:58
Bret
you know Where are they going to play White? Because white White was all over the line last year. So it's like, how do they start to utilize him?
00:10:03
Savage Boston
Yeah.
00:10:05
Bret
It kind of tells you where it's at because you're right. You pretty much are... i you never have enough guys on the D line. They should be fresh legs, rotating them in like constantly, right?
00:10:15
Bret
But like on the interior, you look pretty good.
00:10:16
Savage Boston
Yeah.
00:10:19
Bret
It's the outside that you're like, we got to fill that in. So I think White needs to stay on the outside, but how does he play it? You know?
00:10:25
Snooty
they They're going to throw numbers at it. Like, you have Landry, you have Jennings, you have Swinson, you have White. Like, you have... four or five legit NFL guys, as long as Swinson, you know, projecting is as we project him to be.
00:10:38
Snooty
Like, you have numbers where you can rotate guys in to keep people fresh, to keep people going. It's not going to be, you don't have the, like, you know, home wrecker at the end. But if you're getting as much pressure as you think you're going to get interior, or if they're going to, like, require that much attention on the interior, it is going to force them to be one-on-one on the outside lot, which is good.
00:10:56
Bret
you
00:10:59
Savage Boston
They're going to have to double bar more. I mean, primarily bar more because he's he's a a wrecker. So like you're going to have to double bar more and then Milton Williams is going to have opportunities to be in single.
00:11:10
Snooty
Yep.
00:11:10
Savage Boston
And then you know that frees up. you know Maybe who they leave a tight end in. to to block or maybe the back chips on one edge on on the side. But like, you know, six on four, like you might still be able to generate pressure with four, even if they're blocking with six. And
Hype vs Reality: Managing Expectations
00:11:25
Savage Boston
that's how you win.
00:11:25
Savage Boston
I mean, that's the Eagles right there. Like we talk about how is Rabel going to win? How's the defense going to win? That's the design of the defense. It's something where last year they had horrible pressure.
00:11:36
Savage Boston
Like Barmore's hurt all year. Keon White's getting doubled. They didn't have another good pass rushing DT or an edge rusher. Like they have to generate pressure on the quarterback. um And on the mention, like no one's mentioned, like no one talks about Carlton Davis.
00:11:51
Savage Boston
Carlton Davis signed for big money.
00:11:51
Snooty
Yeah. I
00:11:53
Savage Boston
He's your cornerback too. You got all pro on one side. Another like top 15 corner on the other side. I don't, the defense is fairly loaded in my opinion. I think they're going to be really good.
00:12:05
Bret
It's the linebackers, I think, where it's the biggest question mark.
00:12:05
Snooty
we
00:12:07
Savage Boston
Yeah.
00:12:08
Bret
You know, we'll see. And I'm curious to see what they do with Woodson, the the safety they drafted, and what that looks like, because we do need that center fielder. So I would say X-X.
00:12:18
Savage Boston
He hit a pick today.
00:12:19
Bret
and
00:12:19
Savage Boston
He hit a pick today.
00:12:21
Bret
Yeah, yeah. No, and I've heard he's done pretty well, you know, but if we look at defense, it's it's our linebacker and our center fielder is our our weakest spots on defense, which um aren't ideal. I mean, there's never good to have a ah ah gap, right?
00:12:36
Bret
But I would say, like, if you're really strong in the D line and you have solid cornerback play, you can schematically kind of mirror some of the deficiencies elsewhere.
00:12:47
Snooty
Yeah, you can make up for – if you're going to have a hole, those are two of the better places. I mean, there's no good place to be to be lacking on defense.
00:12:55
Savage Boston
Yeah.
00:12:55
Bret
Yeah.
00:12:56
Snooty
But, like, if you have a good D-line and your linebacker core is only okay, but and you if you you good corners but your you know deep safety play is only okay, like, that's you you're going to be in good shape at that point.
00:13:07
Snooty
If you have two guys who can lock down on the outside, man coverage, man press coverage in Gonzalez and Davis, then, you know, that should help. That should give the D line a little bit extra time to, to get to the, you know, to get pressure up front, particularly if you're getting in, in the middle, that moves a quarterback off his spot and that should eliminate half the field right there.
00:13:28
Snooty
So I know this is all pie in the sky. We just talked about how we don't, you know, all these superlatives that we hurt, we hurl on the team. And all of sudden we're like, we're like, yeah,
00:13:35
Savage Boston
like We're anti, this is an anti-hype podcast, but this is the greatest defense ever assembled.
00:13:40
Snooty
this is, this will rival the 85 bears, you know,
00:13:41
Bret
I mean, yeah. I mean, we we also talked about how we're going to be – we're going to basically be undefeated at home next year, and we just have a gridiron team that's going to lock it in.
00:13:44
Savage Boston
to
00:13:51
Savage Boston
yeah
00:13:54
Bret
So – Yeah, I mean, again, it's hype season. This is when you get all hyperbole around everything, which is fun. It's fun to play into, and and especially after what we just went through with the the draft, because I think and we're all pretty high on how the draft went, and we're getting a lot of hype from it. But I'll throw this one out.
00:14:16
Bret
Do you guys get concerned about we're getting too much hype? Like there's just too much enthusiasm and that we're just inevitably going to fall short?
00:14:23
Savage Boston
I... For what? The the season or like from the draft?
00:14:27
Bret
see Well, the draft into the season. like
00:14:30
Savage Boston
but Yeah.
00:14:30
Bret
Draft is too early to tell, right? I mean, we've all agreed that one year in is not a good sample size to say, well, this guy's a bust and this guy's going to be an all-pro player. But like A, these draft players being making an impact on the roster, and then B, how that translates into like the successful season.
00:14:48
Bret
like Do you feel like there's probably too high too much hype?
00:14:49
Savage Boston
I would say... Well, I would say um just from the draft, touching in the draft really quick, I'm I think there's a couple of players in there, especially, you know, you start with Will Campbell to me is a noughtonist player just at, you don't know the position, right? Like the worst case scenario for him is he's your 10 year starter guard, like loose worst case, you know what i mean? Barring injury.
00:15:14
Savage Boston
Like, so to me, he's going to be, he's a dog. He's going to be playing hard nose football somewhere. So still like the Will. I like the Will Campbell pick. I wish there was obviously a guy who you're like, no, he's your definite tackle.
00:15:26
Savage Boston
And I'm still, I hope Will Campbell's that guy. Again, don't don't write him off. Like, I hope he's that guy. He's going to start this year at left tackle. Cross my fingers. Would love that, right? I think Travion Henderson to me is also like, just can't miss. Like he's a can't, like I don't, he's, his ceiling is so ridiculously high and he's so crazy talented.
00:15:46
Savage Boston
Can't miss on that guy. He's just at a running back position. Right. And then you can go down and like, I like everything they did. i just, then it starts to be like, you can't actually pick who is your, you know, ah can't miss guy.
00:15:55
Bret
Thank you.
00:15:58
Savage Boston
Like, of course I love the Kyle Williams pick, but we've loved every pick. We even hyped up Jalen Polk last year. And by all metrics, he was probably the, he was, he was the worst rookie wide receiver in football bar none.
00:16:11
Savage Boston
so um So, yeah, that's that's just on the draft. And for the season, I don't want to go too long with with the take, but for the season, is there too much hype? Depends on who you talk to.
00:16:21
Savage Boston
Half the people are like, ah, they're going 8-9, they're going to miss the playoffs. like there's hat like I think Andy Hart on the radio was like had that. Or Taylor Kyles, who, love you, Taylor, but he had their prediction at thirteen and four I'm like, hey, man, i don't know I just don't know how you can make that prediction.
00:16:38
Savage Boston
Like, I get you love the team, just but thirteen and four dude, that's like crazy to say that on paper. That's like prime Brady Belichick prediction. So anyway, you guys go for it. That's kind of my thoughts on it.
00:16:50
Snooty
I think normally I would say the team that wins the offseason does very poorly the next year relative to expectations. um The reason I don't think that would be the case is this is a really, on paper, at least for now, really, really shitty schedule that they're playing.
00:17:00
Bret
Thank
00:17:05
Savage Boston
Mm-hmm.
00:17:06
Snooty
Um, they seem like to me, the classic, they're going to win 10, 11 games, make the playoffs. And everyone's going to say, oh, they're back. Here we go. And then the next year they'll win eight or nine games, probably be a better team, but they'll have a worse record because they're playing a better schedule.
00:17:24
Snooty
Like, it's almost like they got there a year too early. You what I mean? Like, instead of going eight and nine, then 11 and five, they're going to go 11 and five this year because they play a bunch of dog shit teams. Like, they don't really play that many good quarterbacks.
00:17:36
Snooty
It's only a handful. Admittedly, the ones they play are very, very good. And, you know, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow, but, you know, three of the top five quarterbacks or whatever. But they don't play – they play the Saints, who literally don't have a quarterback. They play the Steelers, who, as of this moment, until they sign Rodgers, don't have a quarterback.
00:17:53
Snooty
They play the Browns, who don't have a quarterback. They play the Giants, who very well may not have a quarterback. We're starting the kid from fucking Ole Miss, right?
00:18:01
Bret
It's...
00:18:02
Snooty
Like, they they play a really, really bad schedule. So I could see them overachieving this year, taking a step back now taking a step back next year, but still being on the right track and still kind of working to grow there.
00:18:17
Snooty
So that's the only reason I think they'll be – The optimism is merited, but I mean, 13 and four is, that's a lot.
00:18:26
Savage Boston
That's a lot.
00:18:28
Bret
i do love I do love how Snooty slowly is building his win totals up. Like, he slid in an 11 there. i mean, last week last week he was pretty solid.
00:18:36
Snooty
yeah
00:18:36
Savage Boston
yeah
00:18:37
Bret
He was like, yeah, that's probably win. That's probably a win. And then he's like, we're 7-0 at home. Or we win seven games at home. And then he's, like, flipping the other ones around. So he's like, he's like, maybe 10 wins.
00:18:49
Bret
And then now he's like, and know, 10 or 11 wins. You know, they they could sneak a 12th in there. It's like... ah I always get nervous with the hype because you can't win in the offseason, and it inevitably comes down. And maybe that's just the pessimist in me that just thinks the worst with how these things are going to play out. Because, yeah, you you look at the Jalen Polk, and it kind of goes through.
Mac Jones and Patriots' Offseason Moves
00:19:13
Bret
I mean, i was that guy that was like...
00:19:16
Bret
Trying to quell all of the mindset around Mac Jones being like, no, no, I know he's got all these deficiencies at a quarterback, but the guy's just got it in his head. And, you know, Brady was the same way coming out, and he got all these bad raps on, like, his draft review because he wasn't physically there, but he had it in his head.
00:19:35
Bret
But then you see Mac Jones, like, nope, the guy sucks. So I think there's – the hype is warranted from the standpoint that, like, We're all pretty confident about the moves that they did this offseason through free agency, through the draft where we address needs. And I think a lot of us feel very happy about the direction they went with the guys.
00:19:58
Bret
And then the other big, big elephant that they moved here is we got a competent coaching staff, like like guys that actually know how to do it. and have done it before and have shown to have success that we've now bring them in now it's it's a new grouping but like last year we were looking at being like what the fuck are we gonna get from mayo like we got alex van pelt who's like you know What are we doing? like What's he going to do from an OC standpoint? And then I forget the guy they promoted on defense, but like that was a train wreck. So at least from a coaching standpoint, everything's stacked up. So I love the hype because I love being excited about the team, and um i feel like they're making the right moves. i just
00:20:39
Bret
I get as a pessimist, we like there's too much hype. I don't want to let myself down. We're going to...
00:20:44
Savage Boston
But you got to take away a couple games off your prediction. You know what i mean? Like if you really think they're going to win 11 games, just say, all right, that's going to be nine. You know what I take a couple like hype, because you know they're going to lose a couple they shouldn't.
00:20:56
Savage Boston
I looked at though, this is random, but like actually, the 2026 schedule is actually like some of the opponents are determined already and it already feels harder than 2025.
00:21:02
Bret
Thank you.
00:21:07
Savage Boston
Like just, I know this is random, but like do the away teams in 2026 that are already confirmed. These are just away games. Bills, Bears, Lions, Chiefs, Chargers. Don't love that.
00:21:18
Savage Boston
Anyway, total tangent.
00:21:18
Snooty
Right.
00:21:20
Savage Boston
But, like, basically, long story short, the the schedule is favorable this season. And this is, like, a great opportunity where you've got to have a lot of growth. Like, there's going to be a ton of growth this year. That's why, like, from Drake, you know, obviously right
Offensive Line: Current Setup and Future Potential
00:21:33
Savage Boston
now they're fucking around. But, like, you're going to get to training camp and you are going to learn stuff.
00:21:36
Savage Boston
like you're gonna When they're in true joint, like whether it's joint practices against the Commanders or Vikings or just 11-on-11 periods, like he's going to have to obviously look like he's growing and improving. and like you know They put them in tough situations. I get it. like They're trying to make it tough on Drake. They're going to try to make a challenge just like they did with Brady. right you like You create situations to make it hard on purpose to the player.
00:22:01
Savage Boston
so that they can overcome it and they can improve, right? And that's what practice is for. So um the whole season, the whole thing hinges on Drake's development, period.
00:22:12
Bret
The franchise.
00:22:12
Snooty
Yeah, I mean, larger.
00:22:13
Bret
The whole franchise.
00:22:15
Savage Boston
Yeah, like if he like it's true it's like one guy, you know, and the coaching is, as you said, is going to be really ah tremendously improved. like I love that.
00:22:25
Savage Boston
and even like Even the line, yeah we saw today at practice, I think, and Sanir, you can give me his take on this, obviously. i think the line today was Campbell at left tackle, Cole Strange at left guard, um Garrett ah Bradbury at center, right the guy from the Vikings, and then it was Nwenu and Morgan Moses at w right guard and right tackle.
00:22:40
Snooty
Right for it.
00:22:47
Savage Boston
like To me, Man, at least just that you know left tackle, right guard ah right guard, and right tackle. like Man, that's that's some solid stuff. like Especially that that right side. That's some beef, dude, with Unwano and Moses. like oh my God.
00:23:01
Snooty
That's a beefy old line. um And supposedly Strange has gotten a little bigger.
00:23:05
Savage Boston
Good.
00:23:05
Snooty
um Yeah, in the offseason, supposedly he looked pretty big relative to where he was before. um I wouldn't write Strange off at left guard yet. He played... an okay left guard um when, but you know, be pre-injury. He was okay. That, that last year he was coming back off the injury. So he's little rusty, um but he started to settle in. He started to do okay.
00:23:29
Snooty
I wouldn't write him off at left guard yet. I'm not saying the favorite or anything like that. Bradbury fine. He's like a holdover. Hopefully Wilson can come in and, and you know, play that Wilson may could play left guard this year. He could just take a, not a red shirt year, but a learning year.
00:23:43
Snooty
to kind of acclimate to the NFL.
00:23:44
Bret
What's
00:23:45
Snooty
But it, this is the other reason that gives me like reason to believe that they'll be okay is they had inarguably the worst offensive tackle grouping ah in the NFL last year.
00:23:45
Savage Boston
Yeah.
00:24:01
Savage Boston
yeah
00:24:02
Snooty
They had sub NFL caliber players at right tackle, and they had probably the worst left tackle in the league. I feel comfortable at least at at best bottom three tackle in the NFL, left tackle.
00:24:16
Savage Boston
Mm-hmm.
00:24:17
Snooty
You've replaced that with a higher ceiling, higher floor player in Will Campbell at left tackle, the number four pick. And you have a seasoned veteran who is stable and at least competent at right tackle.
00:24:32
Snooty
Like that, that is so, so much better than where you were last year. You know mean? and you have an offensive coordinator who's fucking capable of helping out offensive tackles in his offensive line that are struggling.
00:24:44
Snooty
Something that ah Van Pelt had real fucking problems with. Part of the reason why Drake May got killed so much. So I think that alone should elevate you to where you're like a functional offense.
00:24:56
Snooty
You know barring injuries and, of course, but that's a
00:24:58
Savage Boston
This is why exists, know?
00:24:58
Bret
Yeah, don't...
00:25:00
Savage Boston
exists you know
00:25:01
Snooty
No, no, but I'm saying that's what gives me confidence that there's like, all right, you're not going to be a fucking train wreck like you were last year.
00:25:07
Bret
Yeah, do you gotta...
00:25:08
Snooty
So a lot of those games where it was like somewhat close, you're like, okay, but at least you have some functionality on the offensive line where you can, maybe you can run the ball a little bit, you know, where you literally couldn't for large stretches of last year.
00:25:20
Bret
Surprised you didn't throw a bone out for your boy Doug Marone over there, the O-line guru. But, hey, I would have been surprised. I mean, I'm glad we got Doug Marone coaching the O-line as well ah to go along with it. But, yeah, I mean, i again, I'm excited about what they're doing on the O-line. I think they're making the right moves. Let's see how they progress.
00:25:41
Bret
I'm still a bit skeptical on Campbell. I love the dude's attitude. And, you know, Savage, like you said, it's like, well, At worst, we're probably looking at a solid 10-year starter at left guard.
00:25:54
Bret
And it's not like the end of the world if it doesn't go that way. So I was okay after the fact with the pick. I did think there might have been some other guys. But, I mean, I could have been wildly wrong. I will say I love, love, love, love the freaking kid's attitude.
00:26:09
Bret
And, like, helping for the cultural shift we need and where those goes.
00:26:10
Savage Boston
Yeah.
00:26:13
Bret
But if those big boys can help keep Drake May upright, You know, we we just got to protect the franchise. And Rabel talked about it right at the beginning. We got to win in the trenches. And looking at how they approach the offseason, I mean, they made a concerted effort there for sure.
00:26:29
Savage Boston
Let me throw this out there because this is a random stat, but, um you know, like when you're watching the game, the seasons last couple of years and, know, you know, your eyes
Defensive Challenges: Historical Comparisons
00:26:38
Savage Boston
don't deceive you. And you're like, this is some of the worst product, you know, we've ever seen, right? Like, you're like, I don't, this is like unrecognizable because of how good this team has been for so long.
00:26:49
Savage Boston
um But just, and this is, um you know, like last season, I made a tweet the other day about this. I'm hopefully you guys didn't see it, but it was, you know, do you know, do you know how many points they gave up last year?
00:27:02
Savage Boston
you want to guess how many points they gave up?
00:27:04
Snooty
four seventeen
00:27:04
Bret
Like per game or total?
00:27:06
Savage Boston
Yeah. Total. So, soon he's right. They gave up 417 points against last season. That is the, I believe the third highest total in the history of the team.
00:27:20
Savage Boston
Um, the only, the last time they give up more was in the infamous rust season, which they gave up for 46 only scored one 81. They one 15 and had negative 265 differential. That was in 1990, which
00:27:33
Savage Boston
i was in nineteen ninety s which is
00:27:34
Snooty
And that's that's that's not even a seventeen game schedule.
00:27:37
Savage Boston
That is insane how bad that is. I mean, there's a reason why people say that's the worst team they've ever had.
00:27:41
Bret
Thank you.
00:27:43
Savage Boston
And that's true. That is statistically the worst team they've ever had. Right. But like last year, man, like the last two seasons, and this is with Belichick in 2023. They only scored 36 that season Jones, 36, two 36, with mac jones two thirty six right And they gave up 366. So they had a negative 130.
00:28:02
Savage Boston
Last season, they scored 289. They gave up 417. So you know it really, yeah, Drake needs to step up. But man, the defense really actually does have to be a lot better because you can't give up 400 points.
00:28:16
Savage Boston
ah you You can't do that. You can't have that kind of like pressure on May. So that's where I think they will improve on defense a ton, which will make a big difference for the team. um And last, while I'm looking at the stats, do you want to guess, I'm sure you know the year, but want to guess the best Patriots point differential.
2007 Patriots: Offensive Success Recap
00:28:35
Savage Boston
I'm sure you know the year.
00:28:35
Bret
2007. 500. It's probably absurd. Yeah, 589.
00:28:36
Savage Boston
2007.
00:28:37
Snooty
Yeah, it's to be 07.
00:28:37
Savage Boston
Do you want to guess what the point differential was?
00:28:37
Snooty
Uh... Nah,
00:28:40
Savage Boston
No.
00:28:42
Snooty
probably 3...
00:28:42
Bret
five hundred it's probably absurd
00:28:46
Snooty
Probably like or something.
00:28:48
Savage Boston
So it was 315. They scored 589 and gave 274, which just scoring 589 insane. They did in 2011. This with Bill think.
00:28:53
Snooty
yeah
00:28:53
Bret
um
00:28:54
Savage Boston
But 2010, they scored 518. 2011, they scored 513.
00:28:55
Bret
yeah fire you know
00:28:55
Savage Boston
2012, they scored 557. is insane they did in twenty you let this is with bill o'brien i think but twenty ten they scored five eighteen twenty eleven they scored five thirteen twenty twelve they scored five fifty seven which is just goofy stuff.
00:29:13
Savage Boston
Goofy, goofy stuff. Anyway, not to full tangent there, but, uh, but I love, I love going through the stats and seeing like your eyes, your eyes aren't playing tricks on you. Like they've been horrible. Um,
00:29:23
Bret
I mean, they they're averaging over 30 points a game for like, what, three, four years there? That's just absurd.
00:29:32
Savage Boston
Yeah, I mean, their number... I think they averaged in 2007, they averaged, I think, 37 a game or something about, which is impossible. Genuinely impossible. But...
Season Predictions: Win-Loss Expectations
00:29:42
Savage Boston
um So, ah do we do we get actual, like... Did you guys give an official prediction? Like, what's your actual win-loss record? Because I don't think we did a scheduled pod. It's like, what what's...
00:29:52
Savage Boston
You know, my my official prediction on paper, I've said a million times, I think they're going to go 10-7. That is optimistic. I could say nine and eight but I'm going to 10-7, and I think they sneak in last week of the year into the wild card.
00:30:06
Savage Boston
That's my prediction.
00:30:09
Snooty
I'll be overly optimistic and just say 11 and 6 just to be that guy. just to be that guy
00:30:15
Bret
Yeah, we all know. Don't worry. Next pod, you're going to be like, I'm going to go ahead and retract my previous prediction. They're going 12-5. I
00:30:24
Savage Boston
Yeah, these are set in stone predictions.
00:30:24
Bret
ah
00:30:25
Savage Boston
This is May 20th.
00:30:27
Bret
i know.
00:30:27
Savage Boston
This is like prime offseason, set in stone.
00:30:30
Bret
Let's stamp it. I'm going nine wins, so nine and eight. And I think I said that last pod.
00:30:34
Savage Boston
I feel like that's a safe.
00:30:35
Bret
Last pod, I think I said that. We were talking about where the wins go, and I went with Vegas. I was like, what do they have it at? Like nine wins, and it was an eight and a half line. So i would I would say nine wins take the over, ah just barely.
00:30:47
Savage Boston
Did they make the playoffs or no?
00:30:48
Bret
Ooh,
AFC Playoff Contenders: Predictions and Challenges
00:30:51
Snooty
Not with nine.
00:30:51
Bret
I'd have to look at other AFC players.
00:30:54
Bret
Schedules. I mean, well well, let's just put it this way. Bills are in, right? ah You're probably looking at Ravens in.
00:31:00
Savage Boston
Yeah.
00:31:02
Bret
So there's those two teams. I would assume the Chiefs just because they're the fucking Chiefs. So you got those three. um
00:31:12
Savage Boston
The Chargers.
00:31:14
Bret
Maybe. I mean, Chargers, Broncos, I think, are in that conversation for sure.
00:31:19
Savage Boston
Mm-hmm.
00:31:20
Bret
ah That could make a run and make something, some noise. Who else is going to make some noise on the AFC, though? Like,
00:31:29
Snooty
Houston or Jacksonville?
00:31:31
Bret
maybe Houston.
00:31:32
Savage Boston
Jacksonville is kind of interesting.
00:31:32
Bret
Maybe.
00:31:33
Savage Boston
i I just don't believe in Jacksonville, like the organization.
00:31:37
Bret
Yeah.
00:31:38
Savage Boston
you know what I mean? I don't believe in the organization. So it's like – I mean, the AFC, know, Buffalo obviously is going to make it. Baltimore is going to make it. Pittsburgh is going to be – if Rodgers doesn't sign with them, I don't know where they're at, man.
00:31:49
Bret
They're going bad.
00:31:51
Savage Boston
Offensively, I just don't – I don't know where they're at anyway. Again, I don't really get the team building there. They've been just mediocre for – I don't know, 15 years.
00:32:00
Bret
Well, and it's amazing.
00:32:01
Savage Boston
It's been a while.
00:32:02
Bret
It's amazing how they're like contempt with just basically like theyre theyre they're okay with basically saying we're going to do everything for Aaron Rodgers and if it doesn't happen, like what's plan B?
00:32:13
Savage Boston
Yeah.
00:32:14
Bret
Like you don't have plan B.
00:32:14
Savage Boston
I mean, I think that, you know, think the chargers are going to be pretty good. um
00:32:18
Bret
Yeah.
00:32:20
Savage Boston
People know was the Chiefs snuck in the Super Bowl last year, but they only had it they had a plus 59 point differential. like They only scored 385 and gave up 326. like That to me is just, I don't know how they just get that playoff magic, that voodoo they had last year, but like they were not the best team in the AFC last year.
00:32:36
Bret
Oh my God. And you know how many games did they go for a stretch where they had them like play down to the wire on games where they're like went down to the wire with the fucking Raiders?
00:32:42
Savage Boston
Yeah. Yeah.
00:32:45
Bret
Like when I, I'm trying to think of another bum team that they went down to the wires with, but I feel like they went down.
00:32:51
Snooty
The Broncos.
00:32:53
Bret
Well, Broncos are pretty, they're pretty strong too.
00:32:53
Snooty
The Broncos. Yeah, but they had a fucking block field goal to win a game at the end.
00:32:59
Bret
Yeah, I do.
00:32:59
Bret
Yeah. I remember that.
00:32:59
Snooty
They don't let a fluking shit like that happen.
00:33:00
Savage Boston
And, uh,
00:33:01
Bret
Yeah, they were they if they if the Broncos kicked a field goal and made it, which was a makeable field goal, they would won it. So, yeah, I mean, Kansas City's had a horseshoe up their ass for a long time. I mean, that's going to eventually fall off the track, but it's just not yet. So, yeah, I'd say i'd say the locks that are going to be in there are going to be – Bills, Ravens, Kansas City.
00:33:22
Bret
And then, yeah, I think you're probably looking at Chargers, Houston. and Well, I don't know. going to say Chargers and Broncos is really going a toss-up. And then you get Houston.
00:33:33
Savage Boston
you know the the Lions score the lion scored last year is 564 points?
00:33:39
Snooty
Yeah.
00:33:40
Bret
Well, we'll see.
00:33:40
Savage Boston
That's a fuck ton. Plus 222 differential.
00:33:44
Bret
Let's see what your boy Ben Johnson can do in Chicago. I'm still, I think that's where everyone goes to die.
00:33:47
Savage Boston
Dude, honestly, like, him and Caleb... Well, there was that huge story, Seth Wickersham's story, obviously not getting into that, where Caleb Williams was really trying to get out of there as as hard as possible. He just didn't want to get stuck in Chicago.
00:34:02
Savage Boston
And he was pretty right. I mean, they were fucking around with him last year. They're just lucky that Ben Johnson just decided he's going to pick Chicago. You know what mean?
00:34:09
Snooty
i think
00:34:10
Savage Boston
Like Ben Johnson could have gotten any job he wanted except for New England, um where, you know, Mike Vrabel was the premier choice. um But Ben Johnson could have gotten a lot of different jobs and he chose Chicago because of Caleb.
00:34:22
Bret
both
00:34:23
Savage Boston
But like something about that organization in the quarterback position, man, they just can't they just can't figure it out.
00:34:29
Snooty
I think my favorite tweet was when the new Pope was elected, they said Chicago got ah got a Pope before it got a 4,000-yard passer.
00:34:30
Bret
Well,
00:34:37
Bret
that was epic.
00:34:37
Savage Boston
yes Yeah, it's so bad.
00:34:39
Bret
Yeah. yeah
00:34:41
Savage Boston
yeah
00:34:42
Bret
I'm going to still stand by my prediction when I said I don't think Caleb willeb Williams is going to pan out to be the quarterback everyone thinks he's going to be. And I also i wasn't like super high on Ben Johnson because I understand he's like an offensive guru, but like can he run a freaking team as a head coach? There's a big difference. Yeah.
00:35:03
Bret
i don't know. He's not a prove-it guy yet, which is why I was more leaning towards Vrabel than Ben Johnson on the hire. So I'm glad we got Vrabel.
00:35:10
Savage Boston
yeah
00:35:10
Bret
I thought we always would. But like I also think when it comes to Ben Johnson, like I wouldn't be surprised if that guy just flames out.
00:35:17
Savage Boston
Well, I get the idea behind the hire, though, from the Ben Johnson truthers out there. And there's there's a lot of them. There was a lot of Ben Johnson truthers that were like, you know, you never have to be afraid that the offensive coordinator is going to leave.
00:35:30
Savage Boston
That's period. Like you can have a great offense and the guy keeps staying in the systems. It's just like with Andy Reed, you know, and like some of these guys, like the system stays the same. Right. um So you have that thing, you know, does that mean he knows how to build a defense and hire well and and do the full job? No, doesn't. And it's not always guaranteed. Just like Mike McDaniel is now really fizzling hard.
00:35:51
Savage Boston
You know, like it eventually fizzles out. But I think he's a he's a bright guy. ah
Conclusion and Future Football Events
00:35:58
Savage Boston
Let's see. Let's see how it looks. But um anyway, I want to finish up here just so we can keep it under our kind of normal time time constraints. That would buy really fast. See what happens when the Patriots come back. Do you have any football news? Things i things things keep turning. So OTAs will be happening in the next, I think, what, three, four weeks, something like that.
00:36:19
Savage Boston
And then maybe we'll reach the true dead zone of June where – It's just Red Sox, if they continue to suck, hopefully they don't. And um the Celtics had whatever they had.
00:36:30
Savage Boston
So fun times, but football is kind of back. So, all right, we'll catch you guys next time. Peace.
00:36:37
Bret
Peace.
00:36:37
Snooty
Yep.