Patriots fans worst nightmares have come true, star wide receiver Julian Edelman is officially out for the season after completely tearing his ACL during a non-contact play in the first quarter of last nights preseason victory.
It’s a tough pill to swallow for New Englanders who follow the reigning Super Bowl Champs. Edelman who was a huge piece to last years Championship run and Tom Brady’s go-to receiver has gone down during a useless preseason game, and will not be able to help the teams chase for #6.
That being said, its not the end of the world for the Patriots. There are two needs that need to be filled after Edelman’s injury, 1) Who will be Brady’s go-to man. and 2) Who’s going to be in the slot. They have plenty of internal options to pick from without having to go out on the market. With a deadly attack of Gronk, Allen, Hogan, Cooks, Mitchell, Amendola, Lewis, Burkhead, White and Gillislee, it seems that there is a plethora of possibilities for the team to look at for Bradys go to man. If yesterdays first quarter showed us anything it’s that Brady and Hogan made a good connection with two early touchdowns, possibly a go-to threat for the 40 year old Quarterback. It has also been said the Hogan is way ahead of his time and has improved greatly from last year. Another would be Brandin Cooks, the speedy receiver the Patriots acquired from New Orleans, who could quickly turn into one of Brady’s favorite targets both short and deep.
Now with their recieving corp being so deep they will use their cliche “Next Man Up” in hopes to find some one who can produce decently in the slot. The biggest person to look at to fill the slot role is Danny Amendola, who has seen time in that area in the past and has shown he is capable of playing that role, Amendola is certainly looking for a spot on the team as well, given how many receivers they are carrying right now Amendola has been a huge piece to the last two Superbowls for the Patriots and is a very reliable guy for Brady to lean on in a slot situation, and really any situation.
Also look at the possibility of running back Rex Burkhead to be more of a passing back and could see his production increase significantly coming off the line.
Long story short, it will be hard to replace the man who is one of the best slot receivers in the league, but there is certainly no need for the Patriots or their faithful fans to worry quite yet. With their receiving corp being so deep there will still be a lot of options for Tom Brady to pick from. But the biggest questions are, Who will be the slot receiver and Who will be his go-to guy.
