PatsPropaganda

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Opinion

A Bill? But can we Digg it?

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Picture this if you will, a passionate Patriots fan who whilst is an advocate for the o-line and definitely a tight end kind of girl, she knows the need for wide receiver cannot be ignored.

And so, during the early days of free agency the Patriots picked up a guy, decent, WR3-4-5 perhaps? Can play on special teams, is said to be a great locker room presence and has a quirky personality. But… He was previously a Buffalo Bill. 

For this die hard Pats fan it was a tough pill to swallow. But it’s something we have to get used to as players are traded, selected, cut and picked up. But seriously a Bill…?!?

Perks were sought out, nerves were tempered and former Patriot Devin McCourty told the wonderful Karen Guregian of Mass Live, that he loved the signing and that Mack Hollins has an attitude that he believes will be really good for the team, so I can get on board. 

A veteran of 8 NFL seasons with several teams including Miami, and most recently Buffalo, the 6-foot-4, 221-pound wide receiver was a Philadelphia fourth round draft pick in 2017, and remained with the team until 2019. 

Hollins has a resume of 112 regular season games, playing his last in Buffalo with 13 starts, 31 receptions and 5 touchdowns. And can apparently, and let me quote the lovely McCourty twin here, “block the hell out of you in the run game.” Hmm, nice!

So they you go, he was a Bill and now he’s a Patriot. Okay I can cope, let’s go!

But wait… 

The wide receiver position is still an area of need, Hollins is a good piece, and whilst probably more productive last season than any Patriots WR, he isn’t that top pass catcher fans are pounding the table for. 

Okay so perhaps the draft? Let’s get Drake Maye that rookie wide out that can grow in the fold. We shan’t dwell on the fact that Chris Godwin stayed in Tampa Bay, or that DK Metcalf would rather freeze in Pittsburgh than Massachusetts and whilst Brandon Aiyuk may still be a possibility, his injury situation means he may not be a starter for 2025…

Hold up you lovely lot. 

Not content with challenging my venom for the Bills, the Patriots (rather inconveniently for this England resident as it was kind of late at night!) announced they were signing Stefon Diggs.

The former Houston Texan (and before that, Buffalo Bill!) had been to New England and spent time with Mike Vrabel. Not only that folks, Diggs had suddenly followed Drake Maye on Instagram! (If you can’t hear the sarcasm dripping in my tone there, there is no hope for you and I.)

But alas, the wide receiver headed home last week with no deal, and possibly with the hope of some Patriots fans fading in his wake. 

And yet! Those delicious Patriots decided to test me once more and here we have a new dawn and a new day with, gulp, another ex Bills player. 

Now before I get my butt kicked, I do know that Diggs had the majority of success and start of his career, in Minnesota as a Viking and was kinda Justin Jefferson before they drafted Justin Jefferson, but this Pats fan knows Diggs mostly as the Buffalo Bill spending four seasons from 2020 beating their defense!

2025 will be Diggs’ eleventh season in the NFL and he is 31 years old coming off a right knee ACL tear but, according to ESPN this six foot, 182 pound wide receiver is ranked 7th in the NFL since 2020 for touchdowns, so theres that. 

I’m guessing many fans are happy with these signings as ultimately the wide receiver room has potential for 2025 to be vastly improved, and I don’t disagree it’s just, Bills? Really? 

But I know how it is folks, we have to move on with what’s best for the team, and I wholeheartedly believe that and am excited to have some potential pizazz on this offense! So I can confidently say when these guys, and other free agency signings, suit up in Patriots colours I shall be all good, excited, passionate and positive, and I hope you will be too!

Even so, I may never forgive Coach Bill for trading away Ryan Izzo for a seventh round pick… sometimes folks, emotions just gotta win out. 

Go Pats!

This article is dedicated to John (aka CatManDude) who is heroically fighting cancer once again but is still a ray of sunshine in many people’s days. You’ve got this John! 

If you wish to delve into the list of free agents the Patriots have signed a little further, full list below, why not check out the latest episodes of Pats Procrastination on the Pats Propaganda Youtube channel! Episodes 56 and 57 are available now and should give you a good laugh in the process! (Links below). 

ED Harold Landry III: Signed (3 years, $43.5M)

LB Robert Spillane: Signed (3 years, $33M)

CB Carlton Davis III: Signed (3 years, $54M) 

OT Morgan Moses: Signed (3 years, $24M)

DL Milton Williams: Signed (4 years, $104M)

DT Khyiris Tonga: Signed (1 year, $2.1M) 

QB Joshua Dobbs: Signed (2 years, $8M) 

WR Mack Hollins: Signed (2 years, $8.4M) 

ED K’Lavon Chaisson: Signed (1 year ($TBA)

OL Wes Schweitzer: Signed (1 year ($TBA)

S Marcus Epps: Signed (1 year, $2.025M)

C Garrett Bradbury: Signed (2 years, $12M max)

LB Jack Gibbens: Signed (1 year, $TBA)

WR Stefon Diggs: Signed (3 years, $69M max)

The future is bright! But is it tight? Tight endage that is…

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Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Whilst it’s no secret that the Patriots are in dire need of some wide receiver talent, it appears that my most favoured position may be falling a little under the radar, but is perhaps a sneaky need of address on this Patriots offense. 

As we head into the 2025 NFL season the tight ends signed to the Patriots are a touch on the lopsided. 

The magnificent Hunter Henry (okay, some mild bias here) signed a three-year $27 million contract extension that takes him up until 2026 as possibly the Pats TE1. So that’s all great and good. He was a binky for Mac Jones and put up career high numbers back in 2021 under Josh McDaniels, and appeared to be a go to for the rookie Drake Maye in 2024 with 66 receptions, 694 yards and 2 touchdowns. Not earth-shattering I’ll grant you, but solid, sturdy, dependable, available… all those buzzwords that aren’t exciting but that I will take in many of my team’s players every day and twice on Sundays. 

Seventh round draftee Jaheim Bell is signed through to 2027 and spent virtually all of his rookie season as TE3 behind the aforementioned Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper – more on him later. Bell only registered 2 passes for 20 yards, but as is quite usual for a later round draft pick rookie, he spent the majority of his time on special teams. 

Two names you may not be familiar with signed through the 2025 season, are Jack Westover and Giovanni Ricci. Westover, a rookie free agent, arrived on the practice squad in October 2024 and played only three games, mostly on special teams and registered no statistics. It wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to believe if he sticks around that he will be more of a practice squad addition than much else. 

Ricci has a little more substance to his story and brings five NFL seasons experience to the team with 36 games, as well as some whispers of positional flexibility. 6 foot 4, 195 pounds Ricci has lined up as both a tight end and a fullback. There’s the F word that gives some of you tingles, and with the return of the Mc…Daniels, someone who has been known to favour a fullback on his offense, Ricci could be a more flexible TE3 on the active roster. 

So, from that we could glean that the Patriots have Mr TE1 in Hunter Henry, and whilst it’s one of those long shot type things, there are two candidates for TE3 in Ricci or Bell. But what about that second tight end needed for all that sexy 12 personnel that McDaniels is going to run? (Okay, okay, that I hope he runs).  

It feels that the re-signing/extending of 6 foot 4, 254 pound Austin Hooper should be a no-brainer. A veteran who was a starter-level contributor, Hooper built a good connection with rookie quarterback Drake Maye, and completed the season as one of the Patriots most productive pass catchers; 45 receptions for 476 yards and 3 touchdowns.

The downside in the (possibly) top two guys of Henry and Hooper, is that they are both 30 years old, and whilst I feel ridiculous saying 30 is old, it’s getting up there when it comes to the versatility and physicality of the position of tight end. So, whilst an investment in Hooper is necessary now, in my humble opinion of course, the investment in some youth from a stacked tight end draft this year is also imperative to create that future success the Patriots should now be chasing. Whilst I don’t regret the pickup of the awesome Christian Gonzalez, 2023 was stacked with tight endage and the Patriots missed… all of them. 

So, whilst the onus should definitely be upon securing that offensive line, finding that top wide receiver, and making the defense strong again, the future of the tight end should still be on the radar!

Don’t forget those exclusive Tight endage design t-shirts only available here at Pats Propaganda!

Tight Endage!! Unisex T-Shirt

Pats Procrastination – YouTube show Episode 52 – the beginning of a new era

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Join Clazzy Clare and Chudders as they celebrate the dawn of a new era, the introduction of the new head coach of the New England Patriots – Mike Vrabel!

Clazzy Clare and Chudders bring you a little Patriots chat, in a casual and light hearted show that (hopefully) has you feeling like you’re sitting back and having a laugh with some fellow Patriots buddies!

Pats Procrastination – YouTube show Episode 51 – 2024 season finale vs the Bills

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Catch up with Clazzy Clare and Chudders as they percolate (and debate!) all the goings on in the NEP camp after the win at home against the Bills and the release of Jerod Mayo.

Clazzy Clare and Chudders bring you a little Patriots chat, in a casual and light hearted show that (hopefully) has you feeling like you’re sitting back and having a laugh with some fellow Patriots buddies!