New England Patriots links 12/14/23 – Demario Douglas practices; MORE Belichick ‘reports’!

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NFL: OCT 29 Patriots at Dolphins
Demario Douglas | Photo by Peter Joneleit/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Daily news and links for Thursday

Good news! Demario Douglas was limited, but back at practice on Wednesday. Or is that bad news? Douglas’ presence will help the Patriots’ goal of beating the Chiefs this Monday night Sunday afternoon at Gillette Stadium. The 8-5 Chiefs are 8.5 point favorites for good reason, and the Patriots are still committed to playing hard every week. Ultimately I don’t think it will matter. If the Chiefs lose to the Patriots after losing to the Bills last week they have much bigger problems than the officials they’ve been complaining about all season. I’m hoping the Patriots put on a good show. Obviously a loss would help the team more in the long run than the satisfaction of embarrassing the Chiefs. But still…

Obnoxious news: The Bill Belichick reports keep multiplying. Tom E. Curran’s initial report that Robert Kraft has already decided Belichick will be let go after the season, was picked up and carried by almost every NFL outlet. Those outlets have their own opinions and their own unnamed sources — which conflict with other outlets’ unnamed sources.

Curran himself backtracked a little bit, saying “things could still change,” but that didn’t seem to sway anyone. His story merely provided the springboard for other reports speculating on what will happen after Belichick leaves, what people ‘are hearing’ on Robert Kraft’s succession plan —including Jerod Mayo being or not being next in line, trading for Mike Vrabel, and more.

Tom E. Curran’s source could be legitimate or he could be taking a calculated gamble. Curran played it well, hedging his bet while he made the rounds on all the sports-talk shows, just in case.

Meanwhile, the people that do know aren’t talking. They’re on to Kansas City or busy getting ready for Sunday or just not interested in satisfying the media’s demand for answers. The ball is in Robert Kraft’s court and he’s not playing.

TEAM TALK

LOCAL LINKS

  • Matt Geagan’s Patriots-Chiefs Week 15 news, notes, and fun facts.
  • Mike Kadlick identifies three crucial clashes Sunday vs. Chiefs. 1. Patriots O-line vs. Chief’s pass rush.
  • Jason Ounpraseuth says the Pats should keep an eye on Travis Kelce’s wild lateral play that didn’t count last week.
  • Chris Mason says the good news is the Patriots get exciting rookie Demario Douglas (concussion) back. The bad news is they are still missing Rhamondre Stevenson (high ankle sprain).
  • Geoff Magliocchetti (Patriots Country) ‘Play football’ vs. tank for draft? Several prominent players had blunt, firm words for anyone demanding that they throw their final four games.
  • Zack Cox highlights Ezekiel Elliott on how he feels about possibly re-signing with the Patriots. Elliott signed a one-year contract with New England in mid-August and has proven to be a solid addition to the backfield.
  • Keagan Stiefel points out Patriots’ punter Bryce Baringer leads the team and position in Pro Bowl voting.
  • Keagan Stiefel notes despite New England having their worst season in three decades, there is still talent on the roster: Kyle Dugger, Trent Brown, Mike Onwenu, Hunter Henry and Josh Uche are expected to hit unrestricted free agency this offseason, and Pro Football Focus’ Brad Spielberger believes they’re all among the best in the class.
  • Andrew Callahan is on the ‘Fire Belichick’ bandwagon ‘while Jerod Mayo waits in the wings’. But he also suggests ‘perhaps all of Robert Kraft’s bluster is performative.’
  • Dakota Randall discusses more ‘shit on the wall’ reports: Greg Bedard reported Mike Vrabel could “force” his departure from Tennessee. And on Wednesday, ESPN’s Dan Graziano named Vrabel as a possible Patriots target in a wide-ranging piece on Belichick’s future in New England. “Multiple sources in and around the building say (Jerod) Mayo taking over next year is the most likely outcome, though others are no longer certain that’s the way Kraft will go.” /Glad that clears things up. [insert eye-roll emoji here]
  • Andy Hart assumes the reports are true and now wants everyone to play nice and show respect for Bill Belichick over his last four weeks with the team after bashing him all season.
  • Justin Leger highlights The Ringer’s Nora Princiotti on how Bill Belichick is not the right coach for the rebuilding Patriots. She suggests Dallas as a landing spot. /With Jerry Jones? Lolz.
  • Mark Daniels notes that a new report from ESPN states that Robert Kraft might be reconsidering Jerod Mayo as his Bill Belichick succession plan. /Report: Throwing shit against the wall and calling it a report is not journalism.
  • Alex Barth highlights Bill Belichick explaining why Malik Cunningham chose to sign with the Ravens. “I think they sold him on the opportunity, the offense, he and Lamar [Jackson]. Certainly their offense suits Malik better than probably any other offense in the league does, as a quarterback.”
  • Karen Guregian suggests the Pats had no plan for Malik Cunningham after outbidding a lot of teams to sign him.
  • Phil Perry questions whether the Patriots squandered a golden opportunity with Malik Cunningham.
  • Alex Barth reports top offensive tackle prospect, Notre Dame’s Joe Alt, officially declares for 2024 NFL Draft

NATIONAL NEWS

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