Just about a year ago at this time, New England Patriots fans were ready and excited for Brandin Cooks to join Tom Brady and the Super Bowl winning offense. Cooks was coming off back to back 1,000 yard seasons in New Orleans and many expected his production to get even bigger playing with Tom Brady, despite the fact that in New Orleans he was playing with perhaps the best deep ball thrower in the NFL in Drew Brees.

It’s raining. Almost nine in the morning on the west coast and the University of San Diego players are preparing for their pro day. However, the player everyone is there to see never went to USD. The only connection he has with San Diego is that he was drafted by the San Diego Padres, whom he never ended up playing for. That player is of course, Johnny Manziel. Manziel had been working out with NFL hopeful USD wide receivers and they asked him if he would throw to them on their pro day to help impress NFL scouts. A nice gesture, but one that may have cost them some attention, as all eyes would be focused on Manziel.

The Patriots have filled a lot of their holes already in free agency signing Jeremy Hill and Adrian Clayborn and trading for Danny Shelton and Jason McCourty, but there’s still plenty more work to be done. Here are 5 names that the Patriots could still be targeting as free agency begins to wind down.​

When free agency began, the #1 priority for the Patriots around Boston was made clear: re-sign Nate Solder. With Tom Brady turning 41 before next season, the idea of letting their starting left tackle walk with no clear replacement in sight seemed too risky of a proposition for most. Solder, after all, was the top tackle on the market and the drop off from him to the next best available tackle, Chris Hubbard, was a steep one. Hubbard, who got a 5-year, $36 million dollar deal from the Browns, graded out as a below average tackle last season according to Pro Football Focus.

The New England Patriots, and mainly Bill Belichick, have been under fire lately.  Individuals in the media, fans in the area, and many others are claiming this is the downfall of the team.  To some degree that is true.  Tom Brady is not getting younger, Rob Gronkowski is clearly considering retirement, and players are leaving and signing elsewhere (like Danny Amendola). That said, there is no reason to think they won't be dominant for at least a couple more seasons. The 'downfall' won't be immediate.

Dear Danny Amendola, thank you for all the things you have done for the New England Patriots and the fan base that has grown so close to you over the years.

​As we are under 50 days from the 2018 NFL Draft, the Super Bowl runner up Patriots have some serious holes to fill. Here I’ll examine the Patriots team needs, and what prospects could be the fix for each need throughout the draft. 

This does not include every Philadelphia fan in the world, it just targets those who cannot watch a football game or have a beer without destroying the city or dumping their beer on people’s heads. 

Earlier today, Malcolm Butler tweeted a response to the media frenzy that ensued following his benching during New England's loss in Super Bowl LII to the Philadelphia Eagles.

In any Super Bowl, especially ones played by the Patriots, one play can make all the difference. The Eagles and Patriots rosters both pose a number of different intriguing matchups that could swing the game for either team. Here are the 5 matchups that will decide Super Bowl 52: