Everything I've seen about the new kickoff rules (assuming teams don't just kick it into the endzone) makes it seem like the play is more of a punt return than an actual kickoff return. Since many of the roster predictions seem to take Reagor's return ability into account for him making the team, does that throw that out of the window and make it more about his actual receiving? - Chris K.

I think you might be on to something, especially with Marcus Jones back in the mix. Reagor has also been part of the kickoff return crew but I agree that his breakaway speed might've been more of a factor with the old kickoff rules. Now it seems like the punt return types are the favored players to return kicks under the new rules. Jones said as much on Monday, that it reminds him more of a punt return than a kick return. That said, I think Reagor is very much in the mix as a receiver, though at this particular moment, I'd put him slightly behind Tyquan Thornton as the top outside X receiver. Reagor has had a pretty consistent camp and his speed on the outside is certainly a plus that I only really see him and Thorton possessing. The biggest unknown for the offense right now, assuming the line comes together, is how to stretch the field vertically. I think both Thornton and Reagor will be involved on offense early in the year. Perhaps one of them emerges and wins the job outright, but even in a receiver room that could run seven players deep, Reagor has shown some unique value. - Mike Dussault

Once the season starts how many reps will Drake get since they need to get Jacoby most of the reps? What will the coaches do besides classroom work to get Drake ready for NFL. - Thomas Gasbarro

I wouldn't be too concerned about Drake's reps assuming he's the backup entering the season. There's plenty of practice time to give a young quarterback quality work even while you're trying to get a starter ready to compete. Plenty of teams have followed this path before, with a veteran leading the way while a rookie develops behind the scenes. It will be frustrating not to be able to watch practices like we have in August. It's been encouraging to see Maye's progress, especially since being under siege by the Eagles starters. All summer long we've seen quality downfield throws from Maye but they've been somewhat sporadic and mixed with some head scratching moments. But over the last few practices, Maye looks a lot more consistent and calm as the quarterback. It's been great to see and provides optimism that the 21-year-old will be able to put it all together, even if he takes backup reps early in the regular season. - Mike Dussault

Hello, I am closely watching David Wallis. Will he see more playing time? He seems to be a bright spark on the team. - Janet Dutcher

He's stuck in a room that is loaded with personnel and questions but I wouldn't totally rule him out as a practice squad addition. There's always a receiver or two that make it to the practice squad, and Wallis has shown enough speed and shimmy that he could have some potential in the slot should anything happen to DeMario Douglas. In that respect, Wallis is a bit unique in the Patriots receiver room. He hit over 20 MPH on his kickoff return against the Eagles, showing that he possesses real speed. It's just hard to find a role with so many receivers on the roster, including two rookies who are roster locks. One of the bigger questions coming up is whether or not Kendrick Bourne starts the year on PUP. Numbers are already tight and if Bourne returns that would be another roster lock spot eaten up by a receiver. Bourne has been around practice all summer and seems like he's close to being a full go. - Mike Dussault

Boutte appears to be the odd man out for final cuts. Do you think he has more upside than Reagor, Thornton or Osborn? Would Boutte over Osborn be too much of a youth movement? - John Swift

It's really hard to figure out how they will all fit together. In my mind the two rookies are obvious locks while Tyquan Thornton and K.J. Osborn have put together solid camps. Osborn is the most experienced pro receiver in the room and I think that counts for a lot. Boutte has fantastic hands, a trait that has really flashed throughout the summer. Reagor has a bit more speed. I've talked myself into keeping everyone, seven receivers with Bourne opening on PUP. But as mentioned above, a healthy Bourne could push someone off. It's hard enough to see seven receivers on the roster, it's even tougher to see a whopping eight, many of whom like Polk, Baker, Boutte, Thornton and Bourne don't really have a special teams role. Each player at least has a trait worth considering, but you wonder if places like the offensive line and cornerback could take up more roster spots that usual with their respective needs for depth. - Mike Dussault

Guys - as a huge Patriots fan from Wisconsin, I love reading the mailbag every week. My question revolves around future free agents. The team has done a great job inking key young players to contract extensions this off-season. Specifically, do you feel there are any guys that the team should still look to extend? Seems to me they got all the biggies. Am I missing someone? Are any bigger names coming up in the next year or so? Thanks! - Mason Drzadinski

Jonathan Jones tops the list of upcoming 2025 free agents and after him it's a lot of unknown depth pieces that should have a chance to emerge this season. Daniel Ekuale and Austin Hooper top that list as two players who have been really active in training camp. Ekuale is an early candidate to see a major spike in snaps without Christian Barmore in the mix. Josh Uche and Raekwon McMillan are two other role players who could make a splash this year, as are Jaylinn Hawkins and Chuks Okorafor. As you can see there are some interesting names but at this point it's hard to say exactly how big their roles will truly be this year. Last but not least is Jacoby Brissett. We'll see how his season goes, but even if Drake Maye takes over, I think we'd all welcome Brissett back as a veteran backup. - Mike Dussault

I have a simple question. Is the defense showing too much in the pre-season with all the blitzes and such in games that don't count? - David Fogg

I think all their showing is that they're going to be aggressive and spin the dial from down-to-down, whether it's sending the house or dropping eight players into coverage. Without obvious players who have historically won one-on-one matchups the Patriots defense might have to be heavily scheme dependent to get sufficient pressure on the quarterback. In previous years, they would just send four or five guys during the preseason before getting more crazy in the regular season. New DC DeMarcus Covington hasn't been afraid to show that he's going to be sending multiple rushers early and often. It's a message I'm happy to receive, as the Patriot front should test the communication and synchronicity of opposing offensive lines with well-choreographed rushes. - Mike Dussault

Having watched the preseason games and listened intently to the coverage of practice what is your gut feeling about the kicking battle? Would it be beyond the realms of possibility that the Pats have 2 kickers active on game days? It seems like Ryland is very accurate with anything inside 40 and Slye has the edge from 45+. This has kind of been Bourne out on their duties in preseason games. Ryland gets extra points while Slye has been long-rangekicker. – Shane O'Brien

I have a hard time seeing them keep two, but I don't think it's out of the question to have one on the active roster and the other on the practice squad so the competition can continue and there's an established level of safe depth. Of course the big question there is if you could get Slye or Ryland through to the practice squad. Teams are always looking for kickers, especially a young one like Ryland. If I had to give a slight edge to this point it would be Slye, but Ryland still has a lot going for him and it's not easy to just give up on a draft pick from last season. Kickoff ability could also come into play as well as a factor we're not considering enough of. It seems like the kicking competition will ramp up even further this week. Sunday was a really competitive back and forth. -Mike Dussault

Would you trade Brissett for a 6th-round pick to a QB2 needy team, trade Thornton and 5th-round pick for Dotson, Zappe on PS, and find/trade for LT who won't have Maye see the dirt often? - Ken K.

Ken, I wish we could pull something like this off but I just don't see how to execute a plan to get an elite left tackle in the building at this point of the season. Dotson might get cut and Brissett could've signed with anyone this offseason so I'm not sure how you get a 6th-rounder for him to be a team's back-up quarterback. More realistic is to wait until next week when cutdown day arrives and try to grab a tackle there. But they were in the same pickle last year and had to trade for Vederian Lowe and Tyrone Wheatley Jr.. That's the kind of deals you're looking at if you're desperate. We might think they're desperate but based on what the coaching staff and front office have said, I don't believe they think they are. We'll see… - Mike Dussault

Eliot Wolf said at his Sunday press conference that he was "excited" about the offensive line. I think appalled or horrified come closer to the truth. You see practice every day. So.…what say you? - Paul Oleksak

They've improved but they're still a ways off from all coming together. To be honest, even in years we weren't really worried about the offensive line it could be choppy into September before they came together. Yes, the Eagles made them look bad but the Eagles will do that to a lot of lines this year. The important thing to me is that they've shown signs of development. The second preseason game was better than the first. Will it be good enough? Hard to say, but with a couple weeks still left before the regular season there are still strides to be made. To me Caedan Wallace and Layden Robinson are the wild cards. Wallce's ascension could help settle at least one tackle spot for the long term. That would be huge. But I'm not going to sugarcoat it and say that everything will just be fine. It's an area that needs to take major strides forward for this offense to get out of the basement it was in last year. I just don't think it's the abject disaster that everyone else assumes it will be when they open against the Bengals. - Mike Dussault

Would you agree with me that if there were a medal for having and displaying mental toughness and the ability to overcome setbacks Raekwon McMillan would win it without question and also that he is looking good and will be a very welcome and important part of this new brand of football in New England? - Marc Saez

McMillan was fun to watch this summer and you could tell how grateful he is to be back on the field and making plays. While he was reserved to mostly special teams work in his one healthy season with New England, McMillan's ability to play inside and outside could be part of what offsets the loss of Matthew Judon. Sione Takitaki should be back soon and bring some similar elements to the defense. You have to love the energy that McMIllan is bringing and hopefully it serves as a greater spark for the whole team. - Mike Dussault

DISCLAIMER: The views and thoughts expressed in this article are those of the writer and don't necessarily reflect those of the organization. Read Full Disclaimer