Chowder and Champions
Fansided

New England Patriots: 5 players who need to step up post-Tom Brady

By Sam Minton

FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS - JANUARY 04: Julian Edelman #11 of the New England Patriots celebrates his touchdown with teammates against the Tennessee Titans in the second quarter of the AFC Wild Card Playoff game at Gillette Stadium on January 04, 2020 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS - JANUARY 04: Julian Edelman #11 of the New England Patriots celebrates his touchdown with teammates against the Tennessee Titans in the second quarter of the AFC Wild Card Playoff game at Gillette Stadium on January 04, 2020 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 6
Next
New England Patriots
Sony Michel (Photo by Billie Weiss/Getty Images) /

Sony Michel

Last season was a disaster for Sony Michel. After an impressive rookie season that ended with Michel being a major reason New England won the Super Bowl, He took a step back.

Michel did put up similar numbers to his rookie season but one stat shows why it was so disappointing.

More from New England Patriots

Anyone with eyes saw how Michel continued to get stuffed at the line. He rarely broke off for big gains and more routinely was only gaining a yard or two. Michel averaged less than 4 yards a carry. It’s hard to move the ball when your runningback is putting up those numbers.

This season we will see Michel get the ball more. The Patriots offense will be much more balanced. The days of throwing the ball 60-70 percent of the time are long gone. Expect Michel to carry the ball 20 times a game at the minimum.

If Michel is getting stuck at the line again the Patriots offense will be in trouble. You could even see Rex Burkhead take over the starting job.

So in 2020, we need to see a much improved Sony Michel running the ball.

Home/New England Patriots