Tag: Conor McDermott

75 days till Patriots season opener: Every player to wear No. 75 for New England

Here’s a list of every Patriots player to wear the No. 75 jersey number.

There are 75 days left before the New England Patriots’ regular season opener at Gillette Stadium against the Philadelphia Eagles.

We’re celebrating at Patriots Wire by counting down the days and listing every Patriots player to ever wear the jersey number of that particular day.

That puts us at No. 75 today.

It’s hard not to think of legendary nose tackle Vince Wilfork when it comes to the No. 75 jersey. He was a unicorn in the NFL both in talent and personality. There weren’t many players standing at 6-foot-2 and 325 pounds that could move like Wilfork, who finished his career with two Super Bowl victories, four All-Pro nods and five Pro Bowls.

But of course, he wasn’t the only standout to wear the number. Here’s a list of every Patriots player to wear the No. 75 for New England:

5 takeaways from Day 2 of Patriots’ mandatory minicamp

The Patriots defense is firing on all cylinders, and the offense looks improved.

It was another strong day for the New England Patriots in their second official outing at mandatory minicamp. The offense wasn’t a catastrophe, and the defense looked like a potential juggernaut in the making.

As far as attendance is concerned, it wasn’t much better on Tuesday, but most of the players were accounted for on the practice field.

Veteran defensive tackle Lawrence Guy, who is believed to be holding out for contract reasons wasn’t on the field, and the team was also still missing offensive guard Michael Onwenu, along with wide receivers JuJu Smith-Schuster and Tyquan Thornton.

The list of absences are as follows:

  • WR JuJu Smith-Schuster
  • WR Tyquan Thornton
  • G Michael Onwenu
  • WR Kayshon Boutte
  • EDGE Keion White
  • DT Justus Tavai
  • CB Quandre Mosely

The Patriots have one more minicamp practice remaining on their schedule before the team breaks until training camp in late July. Here are five takeaways from Tuesday’s practice:

Could Trent Brown be out in New England?

Could Trent Brown be a surprise cut for the Patriots?

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With the New England Patriots still looking into options to fill their tackle depth with the tryout of former first-round draft pick D.J. Fluker, there are questions as to what it might mean for Trent Brown.

I wrote in a previous article this spring that Trent Brown could be a cap casualty, and if Fluker signs with New England, it could be more realistic. Fluker will likely be depth, as the Patriots would have Riley Reiff and Calvin Anderson to fill the two starting tackle slots, but his signing could be noteworthy.

At times last season, Brown looked like he checked out and was part of the offensive line issues overall. Better play could have potentially saved the season, but there was likely issues with the former offensive line coach and offensive coordinator, Matt Patricia. It also wouldn’t be the first time that Patricia rubbed veteran players the wrong way.

Just ask Darius Slay.

Fluker could be a veteran addition for a team still looking for answers at their two starting tackle slots. Brown being cut could save the team around $8 million, which when paired with a potential cut of DeVante Parker ($ 6.2 million saved) in a DeAndre Hopkins scenario would ideally allow the Patriots to keep their operating costs for the 2023 season, while giving Hopkins whatever he asks.

If Brown is truly checked out, which is likely with his absence at OTAs, then Bill Belichick, who has let players go for less, would cut ties and start anew. Now that Adrian Klemm is the offensive line coach in New England, there is optimism they could patch together a tackle group with Anderson, Reiff, Conor McDermott, Fluker, Andrew Stueber, or even Sidy Sow.

Belichick and crew are likely trying to change perspectives on the operation from 2022 and could cut ties with an unhappy camper who has skipped OTAs and performed poorly in 2022 to save the team cap.

If the team feels the drop-off between Brown to Reiff/Anderson isn’t major, then they could move on. It wouldn’t be the first time they’ve moved on from Brown. They did so back in 2019, when he signed a massive deal with the Oakland Raiders.

If they did it before, they could certainly do it again.

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ESPN analyst points out one big weakness for Patriots heading into 2023

Will this position be the weak link for the Patriots in 2023?

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The New England Patriots were ranked in the middle of the pack in ESPN’s Bill Barnwell’s latest team offseason rankings, landing at No. 16 on the list.

New England has had a busy offseason, as they added pieces on both sides of the football. They also changed out some names on their coaching staff as well in hopes of bouncing back from an 8-9 regular season record in 2022. On top of that, the divisional talent around them got even better.

Barnwell cited the Patriots’ coaching moves, as well as the departure of coaches Matt Patricia and Joe Judge within the offense. The additions of tight end Mike Gesicki and wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster were also a big selling point for Barnwell.

The Patriots offense should look different, as offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien will now be taking charge. With that said, quarterback Mac Jones needs to have a bounce-back year, and O’Brien could help with that.

As far as weaknesses are concerned, Barnwell pointed out one particular positional group that may be cause for concern this year:

Offensive tackle is going to be a problem. Can the Patriots make it through the entire season with Trent Brown and Riley Reiff? The two combined to play 32 games last season, but Brown had missed 24 contests over the prior three seasons with injuries, while Reiff hadn’t played a full season since 2015 and was mostly a special-teamer for the first six weeks of 2022 with the Bears.

Of course, we won’t know anything until the games are played. Even still, the offensive line group will be one worth watching. A struggling offensive line could make everything else struggle as well.

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Details of Patriots OT Conor McDermott’s new contract revealed

Here’s what Conor McDermott’s new contract with the Patriots looks like.

The New England Patriots fortified their offensive line depth on Sunday by agreeing to a new deal with offensive tackle Conor McDermott, who started for the team in the last six games of the season.

On Wednesday, ESPN’s Field Yates revealed the contents of the contract being a two-year, $3.6 million extension with a max value of $5.1 million, including incentives.

It’s a much-deserved deal for McDermott, who was plucked off the New York Jets’ practice squad during the season and thrown into the fire of an offensive line coached by former defensive coordinator Matt Patricia. Yet, he never backed down from the challenge and even held his own as a solid depth option for a Patriots team that desperately needed it.

They’ll need even more help in 2023 with Isaiah Wynn set to enter free agency. There are also questions surrounding the future of Trent Brown on the roster.

The Patriots will need to add more pieces, either through free agency or the draft. But McDermott is a worthy placeholder, who could improve under offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien and expected offensive line coach Adrian Klemm.

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Patriots’ top 10 highest-graded offensive players in 2022, per PFF

Taking a look at the top 10 highest-graded offensive players for the Patriots in 2022, per PFF.

Most would rather forget about the New England Patriots’ disastrous offensive season, but doing so would take away from the obvious bright spots the unit showed as well.

Running back Rhamondre Stevenson went from running in the shadows of Damien Harris to breaking out as one of the best do-it-all backs ever drafted in the Bill Belichick era.

Offensive guard Michael Onwenu’s stock shot through the roof, DeVante Parker proved he can be a legitimate deep threat option in New England and Marcus Jones showed he’s more than just a threat on defense and special teams.

Of course, the good was overshadowed by the bad offensive play-calling, and that all falls back on Belichick swiping right when he should have swiped left on Matt Patricia as the play-caller. But I digress.

Here are the top 10 offensive players for the Patriots in the 2022 season, according to Pro Football Focus.

Patriots’ top 10 offensive players from Week 17, according to PFF

These are the top 10 offensive players for the Patriots, per Pro Football Focus.

The New England Patriots are as good offensively as they’ve been all season heading into Sunday’s road game against the Buffalo Bills. And most of those improvements can be attributed to things they’ve shown in recent outings, particularly their Week 17 matchup with the Miami Dolphins.

Rhamondre Stevenson, who clearly had the weight of the world on his shoulders as the do-it-all running back, finally got a breather with Damien Harris returning and splitting the reps.

Harris was back to being the hammer coming out of the backfield, and coupled with Stevenson’s ridiculous versatility, the duo made a solid one-two punch for the Patriots.

But the real story of the Dolphins game on the offensive side of the ball was the emergence of rookie wideout Tyquan Thornton.

The second-round draft pick finally showcased the blistering speed and deep ball threat talent that initially caught the Patriots’ eye. Thornton’s ability to develop into a true No. 1 receiver could reshape the face of the offense for years to come. Granted, there’s still a long way to go to get to that point, but there were major positive flashes of what he could be in the future.

Let’s take a look at the top-10 offensive players for the Patriots, according to Pro Football Focus, from Week 17.

You won’t guess what Patriots player Bill Belichick compared to Baker Mayfield

Who did Bill Belichick compare to Baker Mayfield?

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick clearly had his eye on Baker Mayfield’s improbable comeback win over the Las Vegas Raiders in his regular season debut in a Los Angeles Rams uniform.

The former Carolina Panther completed a 98-yard game-winning touchdown drive on Thursday night, two days after being claimed on waivers.

Belichick was obviously blown away by how quickly Mayfield was able to pick up the offense. On Friday, he even went as far as comparing one of his own players, offensive tackle Conor McDermott, to the veteran quarterback.

“About as good as you could expect for a player coming in like this,” said Belichick, via NESN’s Zack Cox. “Maybe Mayfield, but it’s still pretty good.”

McDermott was recently signed off the New York Jets’ practice squad in an effort to add depth to the Patriots’ banged up offensive line. It isn’t his first rodeo in New England, either.

He was actually selected by the team in the sixth-round of the 2017 NFL draft. Belichick waived him the same year he was drafted in hopes he’d pass through waivers without being claimed, but the Buffalo Bills swooped in and snatched him up.

Fast forward five years later, McDermott is once again a Patriot with another chance to make a name for himself, just like Mayfield did in Los Angeles.

“…He picked up things quickly. He’s a smart kid,” said Belichick. “He’s picked up things quickly, and [he has] a lot of familiarity with teams in the division that we’ve played and that kind of thing. That’s all played pretty favorably.”

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Patriots reunite with former draft pick for offensive line depth

A familiar face could provide a nice boost for the Patriots’ offensive line.

The New England Patriots announced they have signed offensive tackle Conor McDermott off the New York Jets practice squad on Tuesday.

McDermott was drafted by the Patriots in the sixth round of the 2017 NFL draft. He appeared in Sunday’s game against New England and recorded only one snap. This could be an important signing for the Patriots with the team currently dealing with depth issues at offensive tackle.

Marcus Cannon is already on injured reserve, and things did not get better for the team at the position on Sunday, as Isaiah Wynn suffered an injury during the win over the Jets. New England will face the Minnesota Vikings in a primetime Thanksgiving matchup, making this week a quick turnaround.

McDermott could play on the line this Thursday, as a result of Wynn’s injury and the shortened week.

Injuries are piling up as the season goes deeper, but the Patriots are clearly doing everything possible to bolster the offensive front and keep the unit from imploding down the stretch.

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Patriots pluck Conor McDermott from Jets practice squad

Patriots pluck Conor McDermott from Jets practice squad

First, the Patriots swipe a win from the Jets with just seconds to play. Now, they’ve swiped a player from the Jets’ practice squad.

The Patriots signed offensive lineman Conor McDermott off of the Jets’ practice squad, per ESPN’s Field Yates. McDermott actually returns to the Patriots as he was originally drafted by the team in the sixth round of the 2017 NFL Draft.

McDermott played one snap on special teams against the Patriots in Week 11 after being elevated for the third time from the practice squad. If the Jets wanted to bring him up from the practice squad again, they would have had to (re-)sign him to the 53-man roster.

Instead, he will join the 53-man roster of the Patriots. The Jets signed defensive lineman Marquiss Spencer to replace McDermott on the practice squad. Spencer is in his second year in the NFL. He was originally drafted by the Denver Broncos in the seventh round of the 2021 NFL Draft, appearing in one game for the team and recording a tackle in Week 17 against the Chargers.