Patriots: Which players had the biggest impact on 2018 season?
Julian Edelman
No list of Patriots who made a tremendous impact on the 2018 season is complete without No. 11, Julian Edelman, topping said list.
Despite missing a full quarter of the regular season as he served a suspension for PEDs, Edelman returned back better than ever. He finished the year as the team’s most productive wide receiver with 74 catches for 850 yards and six touchdowns. It was the fourth-highest yardage total of his 10-year NFL career, and the second-most touchdowns he’s ever had in a season as well.
In the playoffs he was even better, reeling in 26 catches over three postseason games for another 388 yards – all career highs. The zenith of his season (and perhaps his NFL career as a whole) was Super Bowl 53, wherein Edelman caught 10 passes for 141 yards en route to being named the game’s MVP.
Edelman is the perfect Patriot: selfless, tough, versatile, and resilient. Anyone who’s ever watched a New England football game this past decade has to marvel at the bone-jarring hits this 5’10 receiver regularly takes while flying across the middle of the field; and then marvel even more at how quickly and confidently Edelman springs up onto his feet, jogs back to the huddle, and goes back to work the very next play like nothing happened.
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99% of the guys with his stature, background, and skill set would never have made it to the NFL – let alone made it to so many Super Bowls – and yet Edelman keeps right on defying the odds, just like his hero and best buddy Tom Brady. Ex-Patriots cornerback Darrelle Revis used to refer to Edelman as the “Energizer Bunny” because he “never quits;” today, the nickname applies more than ever, when considering everything the Kent State alum had to overcome in 2018.
He is indeed one of the most impactful players on the Patriots’ current roster, and arguably was its most important one when evaluating the 2018 season for this team.