The New England Patriots will head into the 2023 NFL season with a lot on the line for the storied franchise as legendary head coach Bill Belichick could be coaching for his job while quarterback Mac Jones tries to return to form as one of the promising young quarterbacks in the league.
Fortunately for New England, it seems like some of the major issues from last season have been corrected or, at the very least, have been addressed moving forward.
Last season, the Patriots thought it was wise to head into the season without an offensive coordinator, as they didn’t replace Josh McDaniels, who chose to become the new head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.
That was one of the franchise’s worst moves in the team’s history, as the Patriots were a mess offensively and almost jeopardized Jones’ future in the league, as he seemed to take two steps back without McDaniels’ guidance and play-calling.
Along with hiring Bill O’Brien to be the new offensive coordinator, New England upgraded the receiving corps with the addition of JuJu Smith-Schuster, which has provided some confidence offensively, resulting in these comments by wide receiver Kendrick Bourne via NBC Sports Boston.
"I think we're going to be a group that is going to shock a lot of people." @BournePoly11 talks chemistry with #Patriots WRs including relationship with @TeamJuJu pic.twitter.com/d8tKWpAb2v
— NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSBoston) August 30, 2023
As Bourne points out, he believes the receiving corps in New England is improved and will surprise some people this season, but he also says that they’re moving forward with the mindset of always getting better rather than being content.
It seems as though the Patriots are on the right track and could be on the verge of doing something special while flying under the radar in a tough AFC East division.
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