5 bold predictions for the New England Patriots in 2018

FOXBOROUGH, MA - JUNE 5: New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick stands on the field as quarterback Tom Brady work on a passing drill at rear right during Patriots minicamp at the Gillette Stadium practice facility in Foxborough, MA on June 5, 2018. (Photo by John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) /

2 of 5

FOXBOROUGH, MA – MAY 31: New England Patriots wide receiver Jordan Matthews (80) walks to the field during New England Patriots OTA on May 31, 2018, at the Patriots Practice Facility in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

4. Jordan Matthews will break 1,000 yards receiving

Somebody at wide receiver is going to have to step up and catch passes from Tom Brady. Cooks and Amendola are gone and Julian Edelman will be suspended for the first four games. That’s going to give Jordan Matthews a massive opportunity to become the team’s number one wideout.

The former Vanderbilt star’s career got off to a hot start with three productive years in Philadelphia. Injuries and erratic quarterback play really caused his production to suffer in Buffalo last season. He couldn’t have picked a better spot than New England to get his career back on track.

Matthews 6-foot-3 frame gives him a very large catch radius. When you combine that with Brady’s amazing accuracy it’s easy to see that Matthews isn’t going to need to run perfect routes to get open. What he’ll need to do is make sure he’s able to make tough catches in traffic.

Ultimately, the bet here is that Jordan Matthews can outperform Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell and Cordarrelle Patterson as the top receiver on the roster. You have to like his chances to do that. If he emerges as Brady’s number one option on the outside, getting to the 1,000 yard mark should be pretty straightforward. This may be a prediction that turns out to be too conservative.

Home/New England Patriots