By: Phil Shore, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
The New England Patriots were dealt a huge blow Tuesday as cornerback Leigh Bodden was placed on injured reserve with a shoulder injury.
Bodden played 15 games last season as a starting defensive back. He was the Patriots’ most productive player on the weakest unit of a defense that struggled.
He registered 55 tackles and a team-high five interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown. New England rewarded him this past offseason with a four year, $22 million contract.
Bodden had missed most of training camp with a knee injury. He had returned to practice last week and played in Thursday’s preseason game against the Saint Louis Rams.
Without Bodden, a seven-year NFL veteran, the Patriots’ already thin defensive backs unit will rely on several young corners that have yet to prove themselves.
The injury means that the starting positions will be handed to Darius Butler, projected to start alongside Bodden, and first-round draft pick Devin McCourty.
The second-year Butler played in 14 games last season, five as a starter, and picked off three passes, one for a touchdown. The Patriots felt confident in Butler as a prospect and were ready to let him, although inexperienced, earn a starting [...]

By: Jess Lander, YawkeyTalkies Editor
It’s Back!!
Yeah I know, it’s just a preseason game, but football is finally here. Take a break from the literally broken Red Sox, because I don’t know about you, but they are giving me some serious “Can we catch the wildcard?” anxiety.
Try to forget the last time we saw our Patriots in action. I know I don’t remember shit having drunk myself back to a time when we were the kind of team that doesn’t let the freaking Baltimore Ravens man handle us. So, grab some beer, some wings, and sit back and enjoy the beginning-of-a-new-year-anything-is-possible-bliss.
Lucky for our boys, their first competition is none other than the Saintly SuperBowl Champs. This might seem rather unlucky, but the fact is that these games don’t matter. So, even if Drew and his team breezes (I’m feeling quite pun-ny today) by the Patriots, it’s okay because it doesn’t mean anything. All it means, is we got to play against some good competition to help us prepare for the games that count.
Now, I know these games are hard to watch, especially by third when you don’t recognize any of our players on the field. But, exhibition matches will give us [...]

By: Phil Shore, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
With the start of training camp comes the start of a new NFL season. It’s a bit cliché, but every team starts 0-0 and with optimism that they could pull everything together and win the Super Bowl.
Some teams can be more optimistic than others. The New England Patriots are one of them. The Patriots have the talent and organization to be set up to win now.
That said, they are far from a perfect squad. The team is undergoing a youth movement on the defensive side of the ball, have some early injury concerns, and still have some off-field business matters to take care of.
Here are some of the Patriots’ biggest questions that need to be answered for the team to have a successful season.
1. Who will start at cornerback opposite Leigh Bodden?
Leigh Bodden’s five interception season earned him a new contract with the Patriots, but who will the team partner with him?
The two leading candidates are second-year corner Darius Butler and first-round draft pick Devin McCourty.
Butler played in 14 games last season, registering 33 tackles and three interceptions, including returning one for a touchdown.
McCourty is extremely versatile and could play a big role on special [...]

By Phil Shore, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
Throughout the New England Patriots’ dynasty that encompassed the first ten years of the new millennium, one thing that was never stable was the running back situation.
The team got production from the position, whether it be Antowain Smith, Corey Dillon, or Kevin Faulk. However it was also the most inconsistent position. There was a rotating door of running backs due to spotty performances and an unbelievable amount of injuries.
Between the uneven play of the running backs and the star-studded quarterback the team has, the Patriots have evolved into a very pass-happy team, but the fans and coaches would like to add a little more balance to the attack.
Coming into the new decade, the team has found no complete answer. Players have shown flashes of brilliance, but then wound up benched because of turnovers or injuries. Who will the Patriots be able to depend on in 2010, an extremely pivotal season for the franchise?
Here is a look at the running backs on the roster.
Laurence Maroney: Maroney is arguably the most perplexing player on the Patriots roster. Drafted number 21 overall in 2006, he was the first running back New England selected in the first round since Robert [...]

By: Jess Lander, YawkeyTalkies Editor
This picture made me smile more than anything else this week. A friend of mine saw Wes Welker at an event he was working. He sent me this picture, but FAILED to get me an autograph, or pass him my phone number. Still, while Wes may not be on a football field running touchdowns, seeing him standing, smiling, and not looking like he had the kind of surgery that could result in him not being the same Wes we love ever again, somehow made me feel really reassured, because I don’t know about you, but:
Last Season +Wes getting hurt = me a very nervous Patriots fan.
Furthermore, this picture says little compared to what pictures of him this week at practice a Patriots uniform doing exercises and drills before going inside to work with a trainer. The fact that Wes put himself out there for the media and all of New England to see shows that he’s confident in his progress and his chances for being on the field when the season comes around.

By: Phil Shore, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
Possibly the biggest news in the NFL recently has been that the 2014 Super Bowl will be played at New Meadowlands Stadium, the brand-new, $1.6 billion home of the New York Giants and Jets.
Not only did it make headlines because it will be played in the New York media market for the first time (the stadium is actually in East Rutherford, NJ), it also marks the first time the Super Bowl will be played outdoors in a cold weather city.
With New York having such a strong sports rivalry with Boston, Patriots fans were left saying, “Why not Gillette?”
While many—even Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft himself—agree that a Super Bowl in New York would be a special event, the Bostonians believe that if it’s successful they should be able to host it as well.
Quite frankly, though, it just is not a realistic expectation.
The first problem is the sheer size of the stadiums. Gillette has a large capacity of 68,756. However, the New Meadowlands seats nearly 14,000 more people. That results in a higher sold out crowd which means more money for the league.
As new stadiums are being built, more seats are being put in. Cowboys Stadium, which [...]

By: Phil Shore, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
Two players will forever be tied together in their NFL careers as two teammates in college playing the same position were selected back-to-back in April’s NFL Draft.
Their link may not be as popular as Peyton Manning and Ryan Leaf (though not teammates in college they were two heralded quarterbacks that went first and second in the draft and are constantly compared) but Jermaine Cunningham and Carlos Dunlap will now forever be linked together in terms of their football experiences.
Cunningham, a senior, and Dunlap, a junior, were both members of the Florida Gators defensive line from 2007-2009. Both are naturally gifted athletes and were big pieces on a National Championship team. Both also have checkered pasts that have come into question.
While they will answer many questions throughout their rookie year, the New England Patriots will have one big question to answer: which of these two was actually the better pick?
The Patriots took Cunningham with the 21st pick in the second round (53rd overall), while the Cincinnati Bengals made Dunlap the very next selection.
New England’s biggest need was pass rushing, from both the outside linebacker and defensive end positions. Many outsiders wonder if Cunningham will make the [...]