It’s game week for the New England Patriots.
After 13 training camp practices and a joint practice with the Indianapolis Colts, the Patriots will play their first preseason game of the year Thursday night at Gillette Stadium.
While the plan for Drake Maye and the starters are yet to be known, the preseason opener will provide a first look at New England’s rookie class in a true game setting.
Among the group, Patriots fans are most excited to watch one in particular. In the results of the latest SB Nation
Reacts survey, 47% of participants said that was tight end Eli Raridon.
The comment section, however, was largely split between two choices:
SlotMachinePlayer
Gotta be TE. We have Henry who’s close to retirement, Raridon who’s the hopeful replacement and Arkin chipping in with the blocking. No other position group is relying so heavily on rookies. If Henry gets dinged up, we’re 100% rookie at TE. Even last year’s O-line wasn’t invested so heavily in rookies.
Mark_P
i picked jacas but i can see why people picked raridon as well
NMPatsfan
TE is a sneaky position of need. HH won’t play much longer, hoping Raridon can improve his blocking and be the future #1 TE
Maye The Force Be With You
Barring injury elsewhere, Raridon is the one that is going to play a lot this season, so a good pre-season performance will be big for the team.
XGhost-PepperX
Jacas and a close 2nd Raridon
BFI
I opted for Jacas, because the pass rush is still a big question mark. I might have gone with Obiazor, if he was available on the list, since LB is another area of concern.
All in all, this week’s survey results look as follows:
It’s been a strong start to the summer for Raridon, who was drafted in the third-round out of Notre Dame. The tight end has regularly been repping as the second tight end behind Hunter Henry, and even has shared the field with the veteran leading to multiple receptions from Drake Maye.
Elsewhere in the class, pass rusher Gabe Jacas was the clear second choice receiving 36% of the votes. After a turbulent first few months with the team, Jacas has upped his participation level in recent practices and physically looks like the Patriots best pass rusher off the edge. He’ll now truly get to get after opposing quarterbacks.
First-round pick Caleb Lomu, who has repped at both left and right tackle, received 7% of the votes. While UDFA tight end Tanner Arkin and fifth-round cornerback Karon Prunty each received 4%.
Barring injury, Raridon and Jacas currently project to play the biggest roles for New England this season. The Patriots are hoping the depth at tight end and juice off the edge can help them get back to the Super Bowl, where they currently have the fifth-highest odds on FanDuel Sportsbook to win the AFC.
