New England Patriots Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Patriots WR Kendrick Bourne will open the regular season on the physically unable to perform list, according to multiple reports. That means Bourne will miss at least the first four games while continuing to work back from last October's ACL tear.

Patriots QB Drake Maye has outplayed QB Jacoby Brissett according to HC Jerod Mayo. With Brissett suffering a right shoulder injury in yesterday's preseason along with Maye outplaying Brissett, the Patriots appear close to having Maye start the season as the starter.

Patriots WRs Ja'Lynn Polk and Tyquan Thornton appear headed to starting roles for the start of the regular season. Polk has been working with the top offensive unit throughout the week, while Thornton continues playing the X WR role with that same first team.

Patriots HC Jerod Mayo said after Thursday night's preseason game that "the competition isn't over" for the starting QB job. Mayo added that QB Drake Maye has made strides but that the operation still needs to be faster with the rookie, per Evan Lazar of the team's official website.

According to beat reporter Doug Kyed, Patriots QB Drake Maye had an “up and down camp overall.” Maye will make his preseason debut in tonight’s game against Carolina.

Patriots rookie WR Ja'Lynn Polk has impressed over his first week of training camp. NESN's Sean T. McGuire praised Polk's work across multiple drills and situations Tuesday, adding that the rookie "continues to stack [good] days."

Patriots QB Drake Maye struggled throughout the first day with contact at training camp. QB Jacoby Brissett drew rave reviews and continues to lead the QB competition.

The Patriots on Sunday activated RB Antonio Gibson off the non-football illness list. He missed less than a week of training camp.

Patriots DT Christian Barmore was diagnosed with blood clots this weekend and treated at Massachusetts General Brigham Hospital, the team announced Sunday.

The Patriots are finalizing a three-year extension with S Jabrill Peppers, according to ESPN's Field Yates. The deal will pay $24 million, with a max value of $30 million.

The Patriots have placed RB Antonio Gibson on the non-football injury list for the start of training camp. We've seen no indication yet of what ailment has Gibson sidelined. New England can activate him as soon as he passes a physical.

The Athletic’s Chad Graff believes there’s only a 35% chance of Pats QB Drake Maye starting Week 1. Graff notes that “most” of the rookie’s offseason reps came with the third-string offense – and none with the starters.

The Patriots agreed this week to a three-year extension with LB Jahlani Tavai that will pay him at least $15 million and as much as $21 million, according to ESPN. That locks in a starting LB who was set to enter the final season of his existing contract.

ESPN's Mike Reiss posited this week who the early favorites might be to lead the Patriots at WR. "Former Viking K.J. Osborn ... has positioned himself as an early leader among Patriots receivers," Reiss wrote. "Second-year slot receiver DeMario Douglas appears as quick as ever. Add in [rookie Ja'Lynn] Polk, and that could be the team's top three targets if everyone is healthy." That assessment came amid a longer intro that focused on Polk's work. The second-round pick has reportedly impressed with his work in practice. He -- and the others -- face a seemingly wide-open fight for jobs in a WR corps that stunk last year and didn't spend much on adding to it this offseason.

Chad Graff of The Athletic says Patriots WR Demario Douglas had an impressive spring. "Douglas was by far the Patriots’ best and most explosive playmaker in practice this spring," Graff says. "Every time he got the ball in his hands, good things seemed to happen for the offense."

The Patriots have agreed to a four-year, $36 million extension with RB Rhamondre Stevenson, according to multiple sources. The pact includes $17 million in guarantees, indicating he'll play through at least two years of it. The extension also gives Stevenson the seventh-highest annual average salary among RBs, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Chad Graff of The Athletic says Patriots rookie QB Drake Maye "is going to have to be the obvious winner" over Jacoby Brissett in their training-camp competition to take the starting job at the beginning of the season. "If the competition between them is even close, Brissett is probably under center in the opener."

Patriots new RBs coach Taylor Embree has been impressed by RB Rhamondre Stevenson's passing-game skills so far this offseason. Stevenson has averaged 4.8 targets and 3.7 catches per game over the last two years, although he's been just average in terms of efficiency. Stevenson ranked 18th among 43 qualifying RBs in yards per route in 2022 and then sunk to 27th out of 43 last year.

The Patriots added Florida State TE Jaheim Bell in Round 7. Bell broke out as a 2021 sophomore at South Carolina, leading that Gamecocks team with five receiving TDs and ranking second in both catches (30) and receiving yards (497). His numbers took a step back in 2022 (25-231-1), but Bell rebounded this past year after transferring to Florida State. He ranked third on the Seminoles behind only WRs Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson with 39 catches and 503 yards. Bell’s 1.97 yards per route beat Coleman and ranked 13th among 81 qualifying TEs. He’s undersized at 6’2, 241 pounds. But Bell clocked a 4.61-second 40 time at the Combine and earned an 8.45 Relative Athletic Score. He projects as a catch-first TE in the NFL. Bell joins a Patriots TE room led by Hunter Henry, who’s under contract through 2026. Henry turns 30 in December, though. We’ll see if Bell can build any momentum this summer. He’s just a flier in dynasty rookie drafts.

The Patriots selected UCF WR Javon Baker in Round 4 of the NFL Draft. Baker’s college journey began at Alabama, where he arrived as a four-star recruit. Meaningful production simply didn’t follow. From 2020-2021, the Georgia native tallied only 9 catches (19 games). He entered the transfer portal in January of 2022 and landed at UCF that June. Right away, he led the Knights in yards (796) while finishing second in catches (56) and TDs (5). Baker’s production hit new highs last fall (52-1,139-7) as he played more of a downfield role. His aDOT finished at 17.1, while he also averaged 7.2 yards after catch per reception. Baker’s 3.21 yards per route run should also open eyes. That ranked eighth among 78 WRs with 80+ targets. Baker doesn’t always show plus speed on tape, but at 6’1, 207, he does a nice job in contested situations. We’ll just have to keep an eye on his hands. For his career, Baker dropped 15 passes for an 11.4% drop rate. The rookie joins a rebuilding Patriots offense that’s also added QB Drake Maye and WR Ja’Lynn Polk so far in this draft. There’s certainly opportunity for Baker to earn a 2024 role, although he’s only worth a shot in deep best-ball drafts for now. Longer term, he could develop into a top-2 option for New England.