Bill Belichick impressed with strong work ethic of first-rounder Cole Strange

Bill Belichick is pleased with the development of Cole Strange

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick is pleased with the progress of offensive tackle Cole Strange as training camp gets underway.

Strange was the team’s first-round selection in April’s draft. Strange has shown promise over the past couple of weeks, and looks to be in a good position to become the team’s starter, as they aim to stabilize the line.

Strange has also shown a strong work ethic, as Belichick alluded to on Thursday during media availability. The work ethic is certainly encouraging, as the Patriots need him to play a big part in the line for now and the foreseeable future.

“Cole’s worked really hard,” Belichick said. “He’s one of the first guys in the building every day, last to leave. He’s done a good job on his assignments. I think he’s shown a lot of maturity in the situations that we put him in. But you know, it’s a long way to go, obviously everybody in this league has talent. It comes down to production and consistency, and we will find out over a period of time how that is.

New England focused on adding depth to the line in the draft as they added center Chasen Hines and guard Andrew Stueber. New England may need to make the line a focus in development, with the team’s current group getting older. Strange is poised to be a major piece of it.

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