FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Patriots' 2023 rookie draft class hasn't really done much actual football work roughly a month into their professional careers, but their head coach has liked what he's seen so far.
Bill Belichick was asked about numerous members of the Patriots' 12-player draft class ahead of Tuesday's organized team activities (OTA). When asked about sixth-round rookie receiver Kayshon Boutte, he gave a general assessment of how he feels about the rookies so far and used an interesting analogy on what it's like to be a rookie during this time period.
“All the rookies, they’ve all been good. They’ve got a lot to learn. They’re trying,” Belichick said. “It’s like drinking through a fire hose, but that’s what it is for rookies coming in the NFL. But they all put in extra time. They’re trying. They’re overwhelmed, but they’re still afloat, still swimming, treading water. Eventually, it’ll sort itself out, but no issues with any of them really. They’re all working hard. It’s a lot.”
The obvious headline of the Patriots' rookie class is first-round pick Christian Gonzalez. New England selected the Oregon corner with the No. 17 overall pick, but he wasn't present at the first OTA made available to the media last week.
Belichick certainly doesn't view Gonzalez as a special exception to the rest of the rookies, noting that he's also in the same phase as his draft classmates. But he likes what the rookie corner brings to the team.
“A lot of what we're doing is teaching. So, the evaluations will come in training camp and they'll really be able to go out there and compete against each other,” Belichick said. “But he's a smart kid. He's got good skill. He's got a pretty good level of experience with what he did at Colorado and Oregon. He's learning out there every day, like they all are.”
Gonzalez has also impressed his teammates so far. Following Tuesday's practice, safety Kyle Dugger noted that Gonzalez is “athletic,” making a smirk as if to emphasize just how much he's been impressed by his physical skills.
“He's pretty effortless [in what he does],” Dugger said of Gonzalez.
Dugger’s first impression of #Patriots first-round pick Christian Gonzalez?
“[He’s] athletic,” Dugger said with a smirk.
“He’s pretty effortless in [what he does],” Dugger added on Gonzalez.#ForeverNE
— Conor Roche (@ConorRoche27) June 6, 2023
If Gonzalez is the headliner of the rookie class, possibly the most intriguing rookie on the Patriots' roster is someone they didn't even select. Louisville quarterback Malik Cunningham joined the team as an undrafted free agent, signing a contract that had $200,000 in guaranteed money, which is one of the biggest for an undrafted player in the league.
Cunningham likely won't play much quarterback in the NFL, if at all. Early in his Patriots tenure, Cunningham has played exclusively at wide receiver during practice.
Belichick seemed confident that Cunningham can make the potential switch to receiver.
“He played quarterback at Louisville. We’re giving him some work at receiver. We’ll see how it goes,” Belichick said. “He’s an athletic kid. Smart. He’s able to learn two spots.”
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