The New England Patriots had high hopes for Michigan edge rusher Chase Winovich when they picked him in the third round of the 2019 draft. After a preseason in which the 6-foot-3, 250-pound pass-rusher lead the team with 2.5 sacks, expectations rose even higher.
But, as Winovich quickly learned, the NFL is hard business, especially for an unproven rookie. That's not to say that the former Michigan star wasn't successful in his first season with the Patriots. In fact, Winovich managed to record 26 tackles and 5.5 sacks without starting a single game.
However, in an interview with Mike Dussault of Patriots.com, the 25-year-old spoke on the mental and physical challenges of his rookie season with the Patriots.
“It was challenging is the best way I can put it, just in a different way,” Winovich reflected on his first season. “Just the competition's really high and there's the amount of information and just the learning curve that comes with the transition is inevitable. And I'm just fortunate that I had a great cast of teammates and coaches just surrounding me and constantly providing insight and guidance so they could help to make it as smooth as possible.
While Winovich appeared in all 16 games for the Patriots last season, the rookie sat behind the more experienced Deatrich Wise Jr. on the team's depth chart.
“I tried to compartmentalize each thing of my life and just break it down. When I got to the Patriots, I realized, especially going through training camp, I didn't feel like it was quite enough. So I kind of went on a quest to ready myself and improve.”
Going into year number two, expectations are once again high for the Michigan product as Winovich's production in limited snaps has fans and coaches excited for the future with the Patriots.
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