Nine to watch
By Maureen Mullen / USA Today Sports Special Edition
ROB GRONKOWSKI
Tight end Rob Gronkowski, a second-round pick (42nd overall) in 2010, is one of several key players the Patriots are looking to get back healthy this season.
Health has been an issue for Gronkowski.
In the past two seasons, he has played in a combined 18 games, 17 starts. Last season, he was limited to six starts (seven games) because of assorted injuries, including a broken arm and subsequent infections, a back injury and finally a torn ligament in his right knee Dec. 8, followed by surgery in January.
With Gronkowski last season, the Patriots averaged 32 points per game; without him that mark fell to 21.6, including the playoffs.
While he may be known for his off-field antics it is his on-field performance the Patriots rely on. Gronkowski, though, has not played a full season since 2011, when he set an NFL record for receiving yards (1,327) and touchdowns by a tight end in a season, led the league with 17 receiving touchdowns, was second with 18 touchdowns overall and was the first tight end in history to lead the conference in scoring, earning the first of two straight Pro Bowl selections.
In 2012, he was the first tight end in league history with three consecutive seasons of 10 or more touchdowns.
Both the Pats and Gronkowski have remained mostly mum about his prospects for this season.
But, he’s optimistic.
“You just have to go in and work hard every day,” Gronkowski said.
“If you give it all you got when you’re at work in the weight room or out on the field, then you can’t really be disappointed. Every single day, every single week, you just got to keep on grinding and to get better.
“Just taking it week by week and day by day from here on out. So, we’ll see what happens and we’ll see where I’m at when it all starts.”
It’s possible Gronkowski’s knee will be ready during training camp, but the Patriots are targeting the start of the regular season for his return.
JULIAN EDELMAN
Wide receiver Julian Edelman was not expected to make a big impact last year. That changed, though, after Wes Welker went to Denver in free agency and Danny Amendola was limited to 12 games, with six starts, by injuries and inconsistencies.
Setting career highs by 16 games with 11 starts, Edelman led Patriots receivers with 105 catches, 1,056 receiving yards and six touchdowns.
Not only were the latter three marks career highs for Edelman, they surpassed the cumulative totals of his previous four seasons since being drafted by the Patriots in the seventh round in 2009.
His reception total ranked fourth in the league, and he had four games of more than 100 yards.
Edelman and Amendola, who was in his first season with New England after four with St. Louis, were part of a young, inexperienced group of receivers last season. They were joined by Josh Boyce, Aaron Dobson and Kenbrell Thompkins – all rookies.
Edelman signed a four-year deal in the offseason worth up to $19 million. He will be counted on this season not only to make an impact in the receiving corps -- which has grown to include Brandon LaFell, Matthew Slater and Jeremy Gallon – but to be a leader.
“Julian, he’s certainly a guy that’s a leader for us on and off the field,” offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said. “He’s a tireless worker and a guy that we can do a lot of things with. He’s very unselfish, doesn’t care what we ask of him. He’s willing to do whatever to help the team.
“I think his presence, the way he works, his ethic, how he studies and prepares for OTA’s and games and practices and the way he keeps his body in great condition, I think he’s been a great example for all of our players on offense and defense to look to and kind of model themselves after.”
Edelman is eager to take advantage of being quarterback Tom Brady’s primary target by again playing in all 16 regular-season games.
“That’s a great objective. Being on the field is priority No. 1 because durability’s better than ability,” Edelman said.
“This is a tough game and it’s a grind. But definitely trying to be on the field for 16 games will be on that list.”
VINCE WILFORK
As important as quarterback Tom Brady is to the Patriots offense, tackle Vince Wilfork is equally important to the defense.
In his 142 career regular-season games over 10 seasons, the Patriots are 111-31 (.782). The Patriots defense has finished in the top 10 in points allowed in eight of his 10 seasons, and he made the Pro Bowl five times.
So, after Wilfork suffered season-ending torn right Achilles tendon in Week 4 last season, his absence was sizable. And with contract negotiations contentious with the Patriots at times this offseason, there was no guarantee Wilfork would be back. But, he was re-signed in March, and was back on the field for workouts this spring.
The contract issues are in the past, he said. He feels good, with no limitations, and is ready to go.
“If I approach it differently, I may as well walk away from it,” Wilfork said. “I only know how to play this game one way, that’s hard and fast and tough. That’s it. That’s how I expect to play. If I can’t do that, it’s time for me to retire. And I don’t think it’s time for me to retire right now.
“[Surgeon] Thomas Gill with the surgery and everything, everything went well and healed up fine. So it’s just knocking the rust off. I’ve been away from football for a long time so any time you look back at doing something you love it’s always a positive.”
In the offseason, Wilfork and his wife, Bianca, teamed up to lose weight together.
“My wife, trust me, we did a lot of stuff,” he said. “We worked our tails off. I’ve been in training camp for a long time, put it that way. I just so happen to get in with the team and put the pads on, but my training camp began a long time ago in March. There’s a reason I feel good. She’s the reason I have the confidence.”
BRANDON BROWNER
When cornerback Brandon Browner joined the Patriots as a free agent in March, he carried with him to New England a certain amount of baggage: a four-game suspension that was reduced from his original one-year suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy.
Browner will be paired with Darrelle Revis when he is done serving his suspension. The Patriots brought in the 6-4, 221-pound Browner as a complement to the 5-11, 198-pound Revis.
“Looking forward to seeing them on the field and letting them compete with some of the other players,” coach Bill Belichick said on Sirius XM radio. “We’ll see how it goes.”
While Browner and Revis were brought in as necessary upgrades to the secondary, their presence has the added bonus of improving the Pats receivers by playing against them in workouts.
“Very challenging,” wide receiver Kenbrell Thompkins said. “Brandon Browner, he’s a tremendous athlete, long arms and everything like that. It’s just great competition to have those guys out there and competing for the ball. It’s a great challenge for us at the wide receiver position, but it’s our job to come down with (the ball).”
Even though Browner won’t be available until Week 5 at the earliest, the Patriots want to try numerous preseason pairings.
“I think it’s a combination of trying to get everybody to work together,” cornerbacks coach Josh Boyer said. “We’re going to ask guys to do different things. We’ll move guys around, ask them to do different techniques, different spots. So there’s going to be numerous groups of guys in and out. You’ve always got to be ready because if a guy’s not there, then you got to play with somebody else.”
STEVAN RIDLEY
The Patriots had a dominant running game in the playoffs last season behind LeGarrette Blount.
But Blount is with the Pittsburgh Steelers, opening the door for Stevan Ridley to regain the starting job that he lost last season in Week 13 after he fumbled three times in three games.
Ridley led the Patriots in rushing with 773 yards on 178 carries with seven touchdowns, but his playing time will be directly related to his ability to avoid turnovers.
He also is in a contract year, and reports indicate he and the Patriots have not discussed a long-term extension. Ridley’s ball-security issues were a story last year at this time and remain so.
“All you can do is really squeeze it high and tight. I can’t really sit on it too much,” Ridley said. “I think that was a lesson I had to go through, and hopefully I won't have to go through it again.”
He said his goal is to be a 1,000-yard rusher, a mark he achieved in 2012 with 1,263 yards. That was the most for a Patriots running back since Corey Dillon gained 1,635 yards in 2004.
If Ridley can’t stay on the field, the Patriots could turn to another fourth-year man, Shane Vereen, who is also in a contract year.
Vereen was limited by injuries to eight games last season but has been a valuable receiving outlet. He had 47 receptions for 427 yards and three touchdowns.
The duo also could grow into one of the more effective tandems in the league, given their complementary skills – as long as Ridley holds on to the ball.
SEBASTIAN VOLLMER
Tom Brady was sacked 40 times last season, the most since his first season as a starter in 2001.
The return of Sebastian Vollmer at right tackle should be a big help in keeping Brady upright. Vollmer was limited to eight games when a grisly leg injury against the Miami Dolphins on Oct. 29 ended his season.
Before the injury, Vollmer had allowed only two sacks, one quarterback hit and 13 pressures, according to Pro Football Focus.
Vollmer was back with his teammates during organized team activities in the spring and conceded he was not 100 percent healthy. He is expected to fully take part in training camp, though that will depend on how his body responds.
“Whenever you get hurt or miss some games, you’re excited to be back,” he said. “You go through rehab and try to get your body right, so it’s definitely exciting for me.”
Vollmer, who signed a four-year, $27 million extension before last season, has played 16 games once in his career, in 2010, so finding a way to stay on the field will be key.
Vollmer, left tackle Nate Solder and left guard Logan Mankins will be the cornerstones of the line. Center Ryan Wendell and right guard Dan Connolly fared well in the run game but graded poorly in pass protection.
Getting the unit back together will fall to new offensive line coach Dave DeGuglielmo. He replaced Patriots legend Dante Scarnecchia, who retired.
AARON DOBSON
Wide receiver Aaron Dobson is another of the injured Patriots unsure of what this season will bring for him.
The Patriots second-round (59th overall) pick out of Marshall in 2013 appeared in 12 regular-season games, with nine starts, catching 37 passes for 519 yards and four touchdowns. He set a franchise record for receiving yards by a rookie in coach Bill Belichick’s tenure and had the team’s two longest receptions, including an 81-yeard touchdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
But he had surgery in March to repair a stress fracture in his left foot and was not able to participate in the on-field portion of the team’s offseason program. Instead, he was inside, watching film.
“It’s frustrating,” Dobson said. “But, I’m just trying to stay humble and do what I can do to stay fresh on everything. Still thinking about plays, upper body lifting, core, everything that I do that can help me benefit on the field while I was down. I’m just trying to get better every day.”
It wasn’t easy, though, coming off his rookie year and not being able to participate.
"It was tough having to watch it, you know, not being able to be a part of my team and being able to practice," he said.
The initial timetable of two to three months might turn out to be overly optimistic. He was able to being running in July, but the Patriots have been cautious about having him start to change directions.
DOMINIQUE EASLEY
The Patriots took Florida defensive tackle Dominique Easley with their first pick (29th overall) this year.
It was a somewhat risky pick, given that Easley was limited to just three games because of injury. In a September practice with Florida, he tore an anterior cruciate ligament and was done for the season. It was the second ACL tear he suffered, one in each knee.
"The way the board ended up, we felt very good about Dominique being available at 29,” coach Bill Belichick said. “He’s been a very good player in a real good program. They’re well coached down there with coach [Will] Muschamp. You can see him playing against a lot of good players in that conference. I thought Dominque played very well. He’s a versatile guy that’s played different positions along the defensive line.”
Belichick downplayed any concern the team might about Easley’s two ACL injuries in less than two years.
“We feel like he’ll be alright,” Belichick said.
Easley was not ready for the start of training camp, but his rehab appeared to be on track.
Easley started 26 of the 32 games in which he appeared for Florida, recording 72 tackles with 5 ½ sacks for minus 26 yards, 18 tackles for loss and nine quarterback pressures.
He was a consensus preseason All-Southeastern Conference last season.
Where he’ll play for the Patriots remains to be seen. After drafting him, Belichick cited Easley’s versatility.
“He’s played everywhere along the defensive line,” Belichick said. “It depends on where you put him. I’ll say you don’t see a lot of guys who do that – who play, I mean, he lines up on the nose, he lines up on the guard, he lines up on the tackle, and he lines up out wide at times. You can see him playing all those spots. “He does a lot of things well. He’s a smart guy, he’s very instinctive. He’s got a great motor, works hard. Football is very important to him. He’s an all-in guy. There’s not much to not like about him.”
ROB NINKOVICH
Defensive end Rob Ninkovich did not take the most orthodox route on his way to becoming a Patriots stalwart.
A fifth-round pick by New Orleans, he was waived four times by the Saints and Dolphins before joining the Patriots just before the start of the 2009 season – after trying to make the Saints as a long snapper.
Last season, though, he was named a Patriots captain for the first time. In five seasons with the Patriots, he has played in all but one game and started all but 12.
In each of the last two seasons, he recorded career highs of eight sacks – the first Patriots player to reach that mark in back-to-back seasons since Willie McGinest in 1995 and 1996.
“Anything they ask me to do, I’m going to go out there and play hard and do to the best of my ability. So, if that’s playing defensive end or being a linebacker, then that’s what I’ll do,” said Ninkovich, who has played both for New England. “And it helps to have experience doing both."
That doesn’t mean shifting between the two is easy.
"You just have to flip a switch,” he said. “It’s definitely two different positions when you’re going from an attack mode to a coverage mode. So, really, it's just knowing how to change mentally.”
