The New England Patriots are embarking on a new era. They drafted their franchise quarterback in Drake Maye and look to hand the reins to him sooner rather than later. That could happen as soon as Week 1 if he performs well in the training camp and the preseason.
Maye isn't the only Patriots player who needs a strong performance in the NFL preseason. JuJu Smith-Schuster and Chad Ryland are a couple more players who need to stand out to make the Patriots' 53-man roster for the 2024 NFL season.
Time to move on from JuJu Smith-Schuster?
JuJu Smith-Schuster has had one of the weirdest careers in NFL history. He started it off with a bang by racking up 917 yards and seven touchdowns as a rookie. The next year, Smith-Schuster really established himself with a monster breakout season. He brought in 111 receptions and turned those into 1,426 yards and seven more scores playing alongside Antonio Brown with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Things took a turn after that. Injuries, poor quarterback play, increased competition at the position and Smith-Schuster himself not playing to that level all played a role in him fizzling out of Pittsburgh. In the three years after his 1,426-yard sophomore season, Smith-Schuster combined for 1,512 yards. He eventually made his way to the Kansas City Chiefs where he enjoyed a solid bounce-back year.
He then parlayed that into a three-year $25 million contract he signed with the Patriots in 2023. The early returns on that deal, however, were not exactly fruitful. Smith-Schuster played in just 11 games and caught only 29 of the 47 passes thrown his way. He accrued a meager 260 yards and scored just once last season.
Now, Smith-Schuster has competition this preseason not just to earn a role on this team but to also make the Patriots' 53-man roster for the 2024 NFL season. The team drafted two receivers in Ja'Lynn Polk and Javon Baker in April. DeMario Douglas flashed as a rookie and led the team in receiving yards a year ago (561). New England also signed KJ Osborn in the offseason. It's a crowded wide receiver room.
Smith-Schuster is still only 27 years old with a history of production in the NFL. He can still play. But, he'll have to show he's still got it in the preseason to make this Patriots' roster.
Will Chad Ryland win the kicker competition?
Another position competition going on in Foxborough is at kicker. Chad Ryland was the Patriots' kicker last year, but he'll need a strong preseason to hold that position again for the 2024 NFL season. Ryland was inconsistent in his first year in the league. He made just 64% of his field goal attempts, with seven of his misses coming from beyond 40 yards out.
But a less-than-stellar rookie season doesn't mean the Patriots should move on from Ryland. He missed just nine field goals in his final three seasons in college. He also did have his fair share of highlights. The most notable of those came in Week 16 when he hit a 56-yard game-winning field goal to beat the Denver Broncos.
Ryland is competing with veteran Joey Slye in the preseason to earn the Patriots' starting kicker job for the 2024 NFL season. He should hold off Slye, who has bounced around the league and has hit just 82.3% of his field goal attempts in his career. Ryland is the favorite but has to perform well in camp and the preseason to keep his starting gig. He will be someone to watch closely before the regular season arrives.
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