Bill Belichick-coached New England Patriots endured a tough outing in the NFL last year. The 6-time Super Bowl winners finished third in their division with a 7-9 record.
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They struggled in the absence of the legendary Tom Brady. 2015 NFL MVP winner Cam Newton took some time to find his feet in his debut season with the Pats. A busy offseason saw New England go on a rare free-agent signing spree. They brought in TE Hunter Henry, TE Jonnu Smith, WR Nelson Agholor, and WR Kendrick Bourne, amongst others.
USA Today via Reuters
Dec 10, 2020; Inglewood, California, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Cam Newton (middle) looks on from the sidelines with head coach Bill Belichick (right) after being replaced in the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports
The ongoing COVID-19 crisis is causing all sorts of problems to teams across the league. NFLPA members sent out an official memo stating that they do not condone the fact that players are being asked to attend offseason training drills, amidst the ongoing pandemic.
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However, that did not stop the Patriots from going ahead with the preseason preparations.
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New England Patriots not taking a backseat during offseason
Jonnu Smith, Cam Newton, Jakobi Meyers, Trent Brown and Kendrick Bourne hanging out in NYC this week. (via Brown and Bourne’s IGs) pic.twitter.com/1lzgpHEQFx
— Zack Cox (@ZackCoxNESN) April 22, 2021
A little less than 2 weeks ago, Bill Belichick’s New England Patriots announced that many of their players won’t be attending ‘voluntary workouts’ ahead of the upcoming 2021 NFL season. However, ESPN reporter Mike Reiss confirmed that a group of New England players did train together on the weekend.
The participants included QB Cam Newton, T Trent Brown, TE Jonnu Smith, WR Jakobi Meyers, DB Jalen Mills, and WR Kendrick Bourne. Some of these guys even took to social media in order to mark the start of their 2021 NFL campaign.
“It was a reminder that one of the primary values of offseason programs is the chance to build in-person camaraderie,” Reiss wrote in his report.
Bill Belichick is facing a tough season ahead. Brady or no Brady, coach Belichick hatest to lose. They have a lot of work to do this summer. In fact, if reports are to be believed New England might even draft a quarterback later this month.
Someone like Justin Fields or Mac Jones will give Newton motivation to work harder behind the scenes. Is this the year the Patriots get back to the Super Bowl? Tom Brady better watch out, coach Belichick is coming for his throne.
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