New England Patriots Wide Receivers Shaping Up as Best Battle in Training Camp
By Hal Bent
Taking stock of the New England Patriots’ wide receiver position.
The New England Patriots have beefed-up on offense at tight end this offseason adding the charismatic Martellus Bennett and solid-if-unspectacular tight end/H-back Clay Harbor to add quality veteran depth behind Rob Gronkowski. However, the Patriots have quietly upgraded their wide receiver grouping as well.
With projected starters Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola still recovering from offseason surgery, the rest of the cast has had a chance to shine in the first week of training camp. While Amendola and Edelman both are projected to return to practice in the next few weeks, they have been joined by free-agent signing Chris Hogan on the sidelines after he injured his shoulder in a blocking drill and had to have minor surgery.
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Hogan came back to practice after missing less than a full week, but his time on the field will likely be managed by the coaches and training staff. A shoulder injury for a wide receiver is never truly minor as arm strength is vital for catching and holding onto the ball. In addition, the wide receiver in the quick-hit New England offense often has to catch the ball with defenders coming downhill at them and absorb a hit to the shoulder area or land on it.
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Hogan, Edelman, and Amendola are all expected to be on the field for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in week one. That leaves intense competition between the rest of the receivers on the roster for the remaining roster spots. With only a few openings at wide receiver, New England has a number of strong contenders for the playing time while the top three receivers are sidelined in training camp. Read on to review the camp battles and who the standouts are at wide receiver in Foxborough, MA:
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