Tag: Mohamed Sanu

An early fantasy football outlook for Patriots WR Mohamed Sanu

Mohamed Sanu is an interesting fantasy option as his value depends on the direction the New England offense wants to go in.

Mohamed Sanu was acquired by the New England Patriots during last year’s trade deadline. Coming to New England in exchange for a fourth-round pick, Sanu would go on to record 26 catches for 207 yards and a touchdown in eight games played. Out of those eight games, he started six of them.

Sanu heads into the 2020 season as one of the only veterans on a young Patriots wide receiving group. As far as fantasy football is concerned, he could be a late-round option on a team that is going to have to rely on its veterans heavily on offense.

ADP on Fantasy Pros: #227
Where we think you should take him: 13th round
ESPN’s projected stats: 55 receptions, 568 yards, three touchdowns

Our projected stats: 65 receptions, 625 yards, six touchdowns

If the Patriots decide to pass the ball, I would figure that Stidham would rely on Sanu heavily. If they focus establishing more of a run game, that could take his fantasy value away completely. Nevertheless, I would consider him a depth piece and a late-round addition. He may end up being a focal point in the New England offense, but with the uncertainty surrounding the unit as a whole, it may be better to look somewhere else for depth.

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PFF: Patriots have 3rd worst receiving corps in the NFL

An unimpressive 2019 season and no reinforcements of note.

Jarrett Stidham may not have the supporting cast he needs, according to the digital scouting service Pro Football Focus. Whoever is at the helm of the New England Patriots offense, whether Stidham or Brian Hoyer, he will be carrying a group of receivers who were unimpressive in 2019.

PFF ranked the Patriots’ wideouts at 29th, ahead of just the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Washington Redskins. New England’s group in 2020 is likely to be comprised of Julian Edelman, Mohamed Sanu, N’Keal Harry, Damiere Byrd, Jakobi Meyers, Gunner Olszewski and Marqise Lee, among others. The top three will likely be Edelman, Sanu and Harry.

Here’s what they wrote about New England’s receiving unit:

“While many will point to Tom Brady’s numbers last season, the big problem with the Patriots’ offense was that they just didn’t have receivers who could separate downfield. Julian Edelman remains one of the more reliable slot options in the short and intermediate range, but Mohamed Sanu added very little after he was acquired by the Patriots midseason (57.1 overall grade post-trade) and N’Keal Harry’s rookie campaign was a disappointment headlined by an injury that sidelined him for a large portion of the season. The two tight ends New England picked up in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft should see playing time, given the lack of options in front of them on the depth chart, but neither is likely to really solve the issue as a rookie. The Patriots’ biggest hope for the year will be that Harry takes a big step forward in a healthy sophomore campaign.”

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This offseason, the Patriots did little to upgrade the position, with signings of Lee and Byrd, both getting roughly the veteran minimum. And then New England elected not to draft a receiver in what appeared to be a historically deep class. Bill Belichick explained he felt he’d made sizable investments in the position by drafting Harry at 32nd overall in 2019 and by trading a 2020 second-round pick to the Atlanta Falcons for Sanu during last season.

If those two investments show more upside than they did last year — and Harry, in particular, should improve in a big way in 2020 — then perhaps the Patriots will move up this ranking.

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6 Patriots that should take a major step forward in 2020

Here are six Patriots that should take a major leap forward this season.

The New England Patriots suffered some major losses this offseason.

Tom Brady, Kyle Van Noy, Jamie Collins and Danny Shelton lead the list of departed players. Bill Belichick didn’t make aggressive moves in free agency to replace these players — he didn’t make any moves at all to replace Brady. New England replenished the linebacker position in the NFL draft and even grabbed two tight ends to address that dire need.

Fortunately for the Patriots, Belichick always finds players to step up and replace the ones they lost. This year won’t be any different and here are six players who could take major leaps in 2020.

Chase Winovich, DE

(Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)

One of biggest steals of the 2019 NFL Draft was Chase Winovich out of Michigan. He was selected with the No. 77 pick in the third round and fit the Patriots’ mold perfectly. He’s a pass-rushing monster who has endless energy and craftiness that can’t be taught. Winovich played all 16 games last season — while recording 26 tackles, 10 quarterback hits and 5.5 sacks.

Van Noy and Collins accounted for 13.5 sacks last season and that void will give Winovich the opportunity to take over. The 6-foot-3, 250-pound edge-rusher has extremely good odds of grabbing a starting role and doubling his sack total in 2020.

Jarrett Stidham, QB

(Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Jarrett Stidham is an obvious candidate to take a giant leap forward. He’s likely gonna go from a 2019 fourth-round pick to the quarterback who replaces Brady after two decades of dominance. Belichick proved his confidence in Stidham by deferring to draft a quarterback or select one in free agency.

Stidham had one of the best rookie preseasons under Belichick for a quarterback and he’s earned praise from people all around the league. Brady’s shoes could arguably the biggest to fill in NFL history, but Stidham has some experienced coaches around to guide him through.

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Report: Patriots WR Mohamed Sanu out of boot, started rehab from ankle injury

Here’s some encouraging news about the Patriots’ receiving corps.

New England Patriots wide receiver Mohamed Sanu is one step closer to being healthy for the 2020 season.

The eight-year veteran was traded to New England last season for a second-round pick from the Atlanta Falcons. He pulled in 26 catches and 207 yards with one touchdown in eight games played. His production was criticized because of the value of his trade — but an underlying ankle injury became problematic.

Sanu suffered the injury during a Week 9 matchup against the Baltimore Ravens and went ahead with the surgery in March. He now has his boot off and has begun rehabbing, according to NFL media’s Mike Giardi.

Sanu was coming off a 2018 campaign where he recorded 66 catches for 838 yards and four touchdowns. His 6-foot-2, 215 pound stature gives New England an outside threat who also is slippery in the slot. Sanu will be an asset for the Patriots this season if he can remain healthy.

The Patriots’ receiving depth consists of Julian Edelman, Sanu, N’Keal Harry, Damiere Byrd, Marqise Lee and Jakobi Meyers currently. Jarrett Stidham will likely be the quarterback to start and he’ll need any help possible to attempt to fill the shoes of Tom Brady.

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9 Patriots who need to step up for Jarrett Stidham next season

It needs to be a big year for N’Keal Harry.

The next New England Patriots quarterback is going to need help. Heck, Tom Brady needed help in 2019. He was struggling to keep the team’s offense afloat, particularly later in the season when defenses seemed to crack the code on how to defend New England.

So when someone else takes over for Brady, who joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in free agency this offseason, that quarterback is going to need increased support from the cast around him. Presumably, the next quarterback is Jarrett Stidham, though he’ll be in competition with veteran Brian Hoyer. And there’s no ruling out a possible late addition to the mix this offseason.

There’s not much more Julian Edelman can do for the offense, so we omitted him from this list. Here are the players who need to step up in 2020.

RB James White

He was one of Brady’s favorite targets. Can he be the same for Stidham (or another quarterback) in 2020? White managed 72 receptions for 645 yards and five touchdowns last season, which was down from his career year in 2018. But the 28-year-old has plenty of gas left. It will be interesting to see how White transitions to his next quarterback and whether he’ll maintain his production — or perhaps even elevate it — in the next chapter for the Patriots.

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Bill Belichick addresses why the Patriots didn’t draft a receiver

Bill Belichick decided not to select a receiver in the 2020 NFL Draft.

The New England Patriots receiver position wasn’t stellar in 2020. In fact, their struggles seemed to frustrate Tom Brady, who ultimately left the team for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this offseason.

And though the 2020 NFL Draft offered one of the deepest receiving crops with a record 13 wideouts in the top two rounds, New England was not one of the teams that made a pick at the position (in any round).

Does that indicates he has faith in the youngsters currently on the roster?

“I’m sure all our young players will improve in year two. Got a first-round pick on N’Keal last year, second round pick on [Mohamed] Sanu. That was really off this draft,” Belichick said. “Obviously have Julian [Edelman] and a number of other young players. I think that will be a very good group. There’s a lot of different ways and times to build your team. The draft is one of them. As I mentioned, whether it’s Sanu or free agents signing like [Damiere] Byrd, whatever the case might be, there’s multiple ways to build your roster, and this is one of them.”

Belichick’s suggestion is that, essentially, the Patriots did take a wideout in this year’s draft. It’s Sanu. Maybe New England didn’t make a pick at receiver, but the team surrendered one.

And that trade came after New England made a first-round investment in Harry. With so much capital going into the position over the last two seasons, the Patriots seem content to see how Sanu and Harry improve over the coming months. Surely, 2019 was a rough season for both catchers. But Sanu was dealing with an ankle injury, which required surgery, and Harry was dealing with normal rookie issues (playbook and press coverage). Perhaps they can turn things around in 2020.

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AFC East offseason: Patriots WR Mohamed Sanu to have surgery

Buffalo Bills’ rival, the New England Patriots, will see WR Mohamed Sanu have surgery.

The Patriots made a mid-season move during the 2019 season and it didn’t really pay dividends.

According to Patriots Wire, there’s a reason perhaps why.

The Patriots sent a second-round pick to the Falcons for receiver Mohamed Sanu. Patriots Wire reports via ESPN’s Adam Schefter that the 30-year-old wideout will have surgery to repair the high-ankle sprain he suffered last season. Sometimes rest will do the job, but clearly the injury was much more serious than anticipated.

Sanu only missed one game with the Pats, but after the Week 11 injury, he only had 12 catches the rest of the season and only had one catch for 11 yards in the playoffs.

Of course, much of Sanu’s potential successes next season will have to do with his health, and the Patriots’ QB situation. There are many questions circulating around about Tom Brady currently.

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Report: Patriots WR Mohamed Sanu set to undergo ankle surgery

Patriots wide receiver Mohamed Sanu will have surgery on high-ankle sprain.

It appears as though Mohamed Sanu’s 2020 campaign, his first full season with the Patriots, will come after some recovery. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the 30-year-old wideout will have surgery to repair the high-ankle sprain that clearly affected him last season. The injury held him out from one game during the 2019 season, a Week 12 matchup with the Dallas Cowboys.

Sanu was traded from Atlanta to New England in exchange for a second-round pick in the upcoming draft. Just three games into his Patriots career in a Week 11 game against the Eagles, he suffered this ankle injury that hampered him for the remainder of the season. Prior to that, he was making impact plays, recording 14 targets for 10 receptions in the Baltimore game.

Following that injury, Sanu had only 12 receptions in the remainder of the regular season, finishing his first nine games in New England with 26 receptions, 207 yards and a single touchdown. And, in the playoffs, he brought in only one catch for 11 yards. If Sanu was never hurt, he may have been the addition that Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the rest of the Patriots thought they were getting to right the struggling ship that was the offense.

The wide receiver should recover fully, and if he’s able to produce at the level he had in the past, he could be a solid No. 2 option at receiver. His health and a second-year jump from N’Keal Harry could make the Patriots wide receiver group a formidable one. However, Sanu’s $6.5 million cap hit is something to watch as well.

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Grading Patriots’ wide receivers from 2019 season

How did the Patriots wideouts fare throughout the 2019 campaign?

In 2019, the Patriots passing game was held under a magnifying glass for the entire season. Pundits questioned whether or not they’d ever reach their full potential while fans pined for the days when they were going full throttle.

Week 1 against the Steelers looked like a completely different team than the one that took the field every week following, and in the end, they didn’t have enough to make a deep run.

It didn’t help that there were multiple factors that hampered the receiving corps. Julian Edelman spent the whole season dealing with a shoulder injury. Josh Gordon was placed on injured reserve before eventually being cut, signed by Seattle, and then suspended. N’Keal Harry missed the first nine games of the season. Defensive back turned punt returner and wide receiver, Gunner Olszewski missed half the year with multiple leg injuries.

Oh, and who could forget Antonio Brown’s tumultuous 11-day Patriots tenure that’s still negatively affecting the club to this day.

The wide receiver group was one of the most interesting to follow this season. How did they grade out?

Julian Edelman

Grade: A

At 33, Edelman proved, once again, that his name deserves to be up there with some of the best wide receivers in the game. Fighting through injuries, he put up 1,117 yards and six touchdowns on 100 receptions. He also threw for a touchdown. Without him, this offense was going nowhere.

Phillip Dorsett

Grade: C+

Dorsett had his most productive year in New England in 2019. His fifth season saw him produce 397 yards and five touchdowns on 29 receptions. He did a decent job filling in as that third and even second option for stretches of the season, but it’s clear he’s not suited to be an every day WR2.

Mohamed Sanu

Grade: C

Sanu was acquired midseason in a trade from the Atlanta Falcons. He was expected to come in to make a quick impact. However, after his second game in New England where he had 10 receptions, Sanu was mostly underwhelming. He finished his half-season with the Patriots with 207 yards and one touchdown on 26 receptions. A few timely drops hurt his reputation, but he was learning on the fly, so a full offseason should help him become a solid contributor in 2020.

N’Keal Harry

Grade: C

Harry’s rookie campaign didn’t get off to the best start when he went down in training camp with an ankle injury. It wouldn’t be until Week 10 that the Patriots got to see their first-round pick in action. The former Sun Devil ended the year with 12 receptions for 105 yards and two touchdowns. He flashed a bit, but he also had some rookie mistakes like his effort on a pass that got intercepted against Houston that left him on the bench for the remainder of the game.

Josh Gordon

Grade: C-

It was a surprise to most that Gordon got to play at all in 2019 after another suspension cut short his 2018 season. He never really lived up to the projection of being the second wide receiver, but he still had the athleticism and some semblance of production that endeared him to fans. His last play was him giving maximum effort to trying to chase down a defender following a turnover. At the end of the day, he was cut after an injury just six games into the season after putting up 287 yards and a touchdown on 20 catches.

Jakobi Myers

Grade: C-

Myers produced well for a rookie wide receiver in New England, never mind the fact that he was an undrafted rookie. His 26 receptions for 359 yards were respectable. It was evident that he had some skill after leading the whole NFL in yards and receptions during the preseason. Some of that carried over into the regular season, but it was obvious that he was still at the bottom of the depth chart. If these grades were scaled upon expectations, Myers would certainly move up.

Gunner Olszewski

Grade: D

As just a wide receiver, Olszewski had a lot of room to grow and learn. However, his season was cut short just halfway through. He only brought in two receptions for 34 yards as the literal last guy on the roster. If he’s to make the team in 2020, he’ll likely make it as the punt returner again.

Antonio Brown

Grade: F

Brown has to be looked at as a whole. He was paid $10 million to be in New England, and he lasted 11 days. The Patriots cut him after he faced allegations of sexual assault and separate accusations of sexual harassment and sending intimidating text messages. While he looked impressive on the field in his one game against Miami, he was nothing more than a waste of money and energy.

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