The New England Patriots game plan when it comes to the run seems pretty straight forward. According to Kevin Duffy of the BostonHerald.com, they've made it very clear what they plan on doing. Give the ball to Sony Michel.

“There isn’t much mystery regarding the Patriots running game, though.

The preseason has made this much clear: The Pats are going to feed Sony Michel the ball early and often.”

The New England Patriots selected Sony Michel in the first-round (31st overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft. They proceeded to use him heavily in his rookie year.

In just 13 games, Michel ran the ball 209 times for 931 yards (4.5 yards per carry) and six touchdowns. The Patriots weren't afraid to run Michel last year.

Not only does it appear like that's the plan in 2019, but it could be even more ramped up.

Last season Sony Michel proved he's an incredibly talented running back and someone who can put up big numbers in the NFL.

That combined with the Rob Gronkowski retiring and Tom Brady not getting any younger, and the Patriots wanting to run Michel often makes a lot of sense. Getting pressure off Brady should be a priority as it could help to lengthen his career.

At the same time, though, this isn't just a move thinking about Brady's future. Michel has all the tools to be a legitimate star at the running back position. There's no reason to believe the Patriots can't continue their dominance with the offense suddenly tailored more around Michel then anything else.

For now, though, we'll have to wait until week 1. The plan for the New England Patriots right now could be to run Sony Michel a lot, but stuff happens.

If we've learned anything over the years, it's that Bill Belichick can make changes at the last second and won't commit to certain positions (Jonas Gray once ran for 200 yards in a game and wasn't even feature a few weeks later). It always works out best for the Patriots though.