Patriots Finalize 53-Man Roster, Practice Squad, LeBron Playing Past 40? | Breaking Brad Ep. 17

[Transcript]Welcome to Breaking Brad, cooking up only the hottest of takes for you this evening.The New England Patriots have a 53-man roster. But perhaps more importantly, some of the surprise players that were waived by Bill Belichick, have been signed to the practice squad. Will go over that in just a minute. But first, let’s go over the full roster.At quarterback, no major surprises. Mac Jones, obviously, followed by Brian Hoyer and Bailey Zappe. Hoyer looked great in the preseason, has more zip on his throws than in year’s past. And Bailey Zappe is a rookie, a bit of a work in progress, but reminds me a lot of Mac Jones. He’ll likely be the eventual backup.Thank you for reading Breaking Brad. This post is public so feel free to share it.At running back, Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson top the list. Ty Montgomery will be a strong third down back. We hope his ankle injury isn’t very serious. But that’s also what Pierre Strong Jr. is for, he was drafted by New England in the 4th round this year.Pats are very deep at wide receiver, even without an obvious No. 1. Jakobi Meyers back in the slot, followed by DeVante Parker who should have a huge impact. Nelson Agholor, hope he has a bounce back year as a speedy vertical threat. Then Kendrick Bourne, a pleasant surprise last season. And lastly, Tyquan Thornton, arguably the fastest receiver to ever enter the league, set a record in the 40 yard dash at the Combine this year. He just underwent shoulder surgery, so you hope to see him sometime before midseason.Just two at tight end: Hunter Henry, who had an incredible year last year. Could be a fantasy sleeper, potentially a 10 touchdown guy. And Jonnu Smith, a bit of a disappointment last year, but you hope he bounces back after a full year learning the system in New England.The offensive line isn’t a big surprise, with Trent Brown, Cole Strange, the rookie left guard drafted in the first round, David Andrews at center, Mike Onwenu, Isaiah Wynn (who rumor has it is on the trade block), Justin Herron, Yodny Cajuste (had a great camp), and Chasen Hines who earned that last spot.Now, shifting to the other side of the ball.Over on the defensive line, look at that depth, with Christian Barmore and Davon Godchaux, who both improved by leaps and bounds this offseason. Lawrence Guy, Deatrich Wise, Carl Davis and Sam Roberts.The linebacker positions look even better, which is a big deal after that pathetic performance in Buffalo during the playoffs. On the edge, Matt Judon is obviously a Pro Bowler, Josh Uche shows a lot of promise, and Anfernee Jennings had a tremendous camp as well. DeMarcus Mitchell is also on the list, he’ll help more in the kicking game.On the inside, perhaps the greatest improvement in speed, after Ja’Whaun Bentley you have Raekwon McMillan and Mack Wilson, both players can sprint sideline-to-sideline with the best of them. Jahlani Tavai also another special teams guy, who may contribute on defense if any of the above go down.At corner, the loss of J.C. Jackson hurt, but the Pats now have a ton of depth, so much they didn’t even need Terrance Mitchell on the roster. He was expected to start at the beginning of Training Camp, but rookies like Jack Jones and Marcus Jones are showing a lot of promise. They made the roster, in addition to Jalen Mills, Jonathan Jones who will go up against Tyreek Hill in Week 1, Myles Bryant and Shaun Wade.And finally, the deepest position on the roster, safety, the Patriots bring back captain Devin McCourty, Kyle Dugger who’s really begun to move into a leadership role. Adrian Phillips, Jabrill Peppers, a veteran who was added this offseason, and Josh Bledsoe covering the slot in year two of his career. Looks like he dropped off the page.Overall, while there’s nobody there that really jumps off the page as a superstar beyond maybe Matt Judon, that’s never been the Patriots. And once again, Bill Belichick has filled his 53-man roster with a lot of value and depth. Plenty of guys who can step up when somebody goes down. This is as deep a roster as I can remember. The question is, can they implement their new offense in time for Week 1 against Miami? Or perhaps they go back to the old way of doing things. We will find out very soon, but this should be a good team if those growing pains aren’t too bad.Okay, moving on.We have a 53-man roster now, and yesterday we went over some of the players cut or waived by Bill Belichick. Many big surprises, like Lil’Jordan Humphrey and J.J. Taylor. Luckily those guys are coming back, signing with the practice squad.And I’m very happy they weren’t snagged by another team. Let’s take a look:Three offensive linemen top the list: Bill Murray, a defensive lineman last year who just transitioned to guard. Big achievement for him to make the practice squad. Kody Russey is an undrafted rookie, has spent a lot of time playing center. We could see him if David Andrews goes down. And James Feretnz, who was basically downgraded to the practice squad after a rough training camp and preseason. He’s played in 27 games over the last four seasons with the Pats.J.J. Taylor is thankfully still around. If Ty Montgomery remains injured heading into the season, expect him to play that third down, James White role at running back. Kevin Harris, had a few impressive carries in the preseason. He was drafted in the 6th round this year.Then at receiver, Matt Sokol has been a frequent practice squad player for the Pats over the last three seasons, so he’s back there. Tre Nixon, had a strong summer, dominated many practices at training camp, but just was not consistent enough to make the team. That said, I would expect to see him with Tyquan Thornton out. Either Nixon, or the final guy, Lil’Jordan Humphrey, who dominated during the three preseason games. Arguably New England’s best player this preseason. I’m amazed he wasn’t snagged by another team. He’ll be back, and could fill in as a third string tight end too if needed.On defense, you have defensive tackle LaBryan Ray who had a great mini camp. Jeremiah Pharms, can play a number of different positions, had a couple run stuffs against the Raiders in the preseason. That was good enough to make the team. And then Harvey Langi, a linebacker that’s played 38 career games, will add a veteran presence to the squad.Happy to see Cameron McGrone is back. He would have been one of the top linebackers in the 2021 NFL Draft out of Michigan, but an ACL injury dropped him quite a bit. He sat on the sideline last year, and is still looking to get back on track. This is a guy to watch out for, a potential star if he can get healthy and stay on the right track.Brad Hawkins, an undrafted safety also out of Michigan, has picked up a spot. A lot to contend with at the safety position on the Patriots, so this just adds even more depth.And last, but certainly not least, veteran Terrance Mitchell, arguably one of the more expensive practice squad players on a roster. He was expected to be New England’s No. 1 corner at the beginning of Training Camp, but the development of the young guys dropped him way down. But looks like he’s sticking around. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see him back real soon. Mitchell has a history of being a solid lockdown defender, who forces a lot of fumbles.So, the Pats got nearly everyone back that they waived, except for tight end Devin Asiasi, who signed with the Bengals. He was underwhelming for the Pats in two seasons, despite being a third round draft pick.This is a good practice squad. A lot of these guys are going to contribute this year. Once again, the Pats don’t have many stars, but they check all the boxes in the depth department.Okay, last story for today.We all know the plan for LeBron James is to play another couple seasons with the Lakers, see where his son Bronny is drafted when he enters the league, and then join that team, wherever that may be.A pretty good 2-for-1 deal if you ask me. Even if Bronny isn’t the No. 1 prospect, he’ll likely go No. 1 with teams knowing LeBron comes with him.But that would mean LeBron would turn 40 his first season playing with his son. But a la Tom Brady, it doesn’t sound like LeBron wants to retire anytime soon after that.According to Sports Illustrated, LeBron doesn’t just want to play with his 17-year-old son, Bronny. He also wants to play with his 15-year-old son, Bryce.LeBron was asked about playing with Bryce and said: “I feel like I could play for quite a while. It’s all up to my body, but more importantly, my mind. If my mind can stay sharp and fresh and motivated, then the sky’s not even a limit for me. I can go beyond that. But we shall see.”LeBron going beyond the sky, through the ozone layer, all the way to outer space, to face the Martians.So, does that mean LeBron will sign another two-year contract to play with Bronny? Then, become a free agent, and sign a contract with Bryce’s team? Also, will Bryce and Bronny even be good enough? These are all questions that will need to be answered.But I would not be surprised to see LeBron James play, not just at age 40, but well into his 40s. With all the advances in sports and nutritional science, and all the hard work he continues to put in, I think he can do it.Now, do I think he’ll reach Tom Brady status and play at 45 and beyond? Probably not. He relies on his athleticism much more than Brady. Those physical traits tend to break down greatly for folks in their 40s, if they haven’t already in their 30s.Alright, that’s it for today’s episode. Be sure to like this video and click the subscribe button. Will be back tomorrow. Until then, this is Breaking Brad.Breaking Brad is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit patscast.substack.com