Tag: Kevin Harris

3 unexpected Patriots players who could make a big impact in 2023

Here are three Patriots players you should be keeping an eye on in 2023.

There is still hope that the New England Patriots will add to their wide receiver core by signing former All-Pro wideout DeAndre Hopkins, as they have been long linked to him since rumors first began on his availability.

Whether that’s a mere dream or reality is up for debate. But one thing we do know is there are some under-the-radar players currently on the roster that could end up making a big impact in 2023.

These players aren’t being talked about enough, and that could all change at some point this season. A breakout showing from any of the players on this list would do wonders for the Patriots and their playoff chances.

Patriots salary cap: Tracking New England’s $18 million in dead money

Here’s where the Patriots’ dead money situation stands ahead of the 2023 season.

The New England Patriots have made it past June 1, which means the team’s salary will be less impacted by any trades or contract releases for the 2023 season.

When it comes to dead money, the Patriots are sitting at the middle of the pack in the NFL, mostly due to all of the money they had tied up in former tight end Jonnu Smith’s contract.

Dead cap is money or any guaranteed salary still being paid to players that were moved from the roster. The Patriots are currently sitting at $18,174,272 in dead money, per Over The Cap.

Here are nine former Patriots players eating up a portion of the team’s salary cap ahead of the 2023 season:

Regular season rookie grades for Patriots’ 2022 draft class

How did the Patriots’ rookies do this season? Patriots Wire’s Cam Garrity is handing out end-of-season grades to the 2022 draft class.

As the season comes to a close, there’s a full body of work now to look at just how well the New England Patriots’ 2022 draft class panned out.

Even though it is too early to make determinations on the entire class, we can see the potential of each player and piece together the reasons they were ultimately drafted by the team.

Were they hits or misses in their rookie seasons?

We’ll take a look at multiple things with the players, including their 2022 stats and PFF grade. And then they’ll be receiving a letter grade for the season when taking into account their total body of work.

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 list seven inactives, including four starters, for Sunday’s game vs Dolphins

The Patriots will be dangerously thin at the cornerback position.

The New England Patriots will be dangerously thin at the cornerback position when heading into a must-win game against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

Even without Tua Tagovailoa under center at quarterback, the Dolphins will still have the luxury of Teddy Bridgewater throwing to elite speedsters at receiver with Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. Meanwhile, the Patriots will be without Jalen Mills and Marcus Jones.

It’s a big problem considering rookie cornerback Jack Jones went on injured reserve on Saturday.

The good news for the Patriots is they’ll be getting running back Damien Harris back. So they’ll have their two-headed monster in the offensive backfield with the former University of Alabama product and Rhamondre Stevenson carrying the ground load.

The Patriots will also catch a break with the Dolphins missing multiple key players as well.

Along with Tagovailoa, both tackles Eric Fisher and Terron Armstead have been ruled out for the game. The team will also be without veteran pass-rusher Bradley Chubb and defensive standout Xavien Howard.

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Patriots update Damien Harris’ status ahead of Raiders game

The Patriots might be thin at running back in Week 15.

It could be another rookie showcase for the New England Patriots at the running back position with Damien Harris now officially ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

Harris has been working his way back from the thigh injury he suffered back on Thanksgiving Day in the Patriots’ Thursday night game against the Minnesota Vikings. With Rhamondre Stevenson currently listed as questionable to play in Week 15, the team could be forced to lean on the first-year duo of Pierre Strong Jr. and Kevin Harris to lead the offensive backfield.

Kevin Harris is a powerful runner with the ball in his hands and a legitimate sledgehammer on the ground, which he was able to show off in multiple angry runs against the Arizona Cardinals.

Meanwhile, Strong gives the Patriots a nice change-of-pace option with receiving abilities and tremendous straight line speed. The duo combined for 96 yards and two touchdowns against the Cardinals.

So although it isn’t ideal for the Patriots to possibly be missing both Stevenson and Damien Harris on the field, the two rookies have already shown they’re ready and willing to handle the workload.

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The Morning After: Did Week 14 win change season outlook for Patriots?

Leftover notes from the Patriots’ 27-13 win over the Cardinals.

The Morning After is here, and the New England Patriots find themselves sitting at 7-6 after a 27-13 primetime victory over the Arizona Cardinals on Monday night.

Throughout the early portion of the game, Patriots fans, including myself, fell into the “here we go again” mindset, as the Patriots struggled heavily against a lackluster Cardinals team.

Colt McCoy pulling out an upset looked like it was going to be the latest storyline, as he stepped up admirably for the injured Kyler Murray. Not only was he able to make some good throws, but the Patriots had no answer for running back James Connor early on.

At halftime, the game was tied 13-13, and then the Patriots made the necessary adjustments that seemingly sealed the game, shutting out the Cardinals in the second half.

One thing is for sure: The Patriots are still on thin ice offensively, and things need to change if they hope to go on a run in these last four games against tough opponents.

Things are still at a standstill after last night, but let’s get into this week’s leftover notes.

Patriots rookie RBs Kevin Harris, Pierre Strong Jr. step up big vs. Cardinals

After losing multiple running backs to injury, the Patriots got huge contributions Monday night from a pair of rookies

The New England Patriots were already without running back Damien Harris for Monday night’s game against the Arizona Cardinals, and then they lost starter Rhamondre Stevenson to injury.

That left them with a pair of untested rookies in Kevin Harris and Pierre Strong Jr. to finish out the night in the offensive backfield, and the early returns have been impressive.

Both Harris and Strong have scored their first career NFL touchdowns in the game, while Strong showed off his big-play ability with a huge run:

WATCH: Patriots rookie Kevin Harris run angry for first NFL touchdown

Patriots rookie RB Kevin Harris is running angry against the Cardinals.

The New England Patriots are taking on the Arizona Cardinals Monday night in a physical battle.

Rookie Kevin Harris scored the first touchdown of the game for the Patriots in angry fashion to put the team ahead early in the game.

Harris took the place of running back Rhamondre Stevenson, who left the game near the end of the first quarter with an injury. The rookie made an impact immediately, taking the ball 16 yards for a touchdown.

It was quite the introduction to the NFL end zone for Harris, who found the end zone plenty of times during his college career at South Carolina, scoring 23 touchdowns for the Gamecocks.

This touchdown might have big implications on the game, as New England and Arizona have both had trouble finding their footing offensively.

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Midseason rookie grades for Patriots’ 2022 draft class

Grading the 2022 Patriots draft class and their performance after nine games.

The New England Patriots needed their 2022 draft class to have some playmakers and/or role players after a draft lull until 2020.

After nine weeks, it’s still too early to grade the player or selection as developing and adjusting to the NFL game is certainly no easy task.

But we’re going to do it anyway.

Instead of grading the selection and the value, let’s take a look at each player from the draft class and give them a grade for their performance thus far in 2022.