New England Patriots 2020 NFL Draft: Cam Akers fits profile of new offense

Zeroing in on best fits for the New England Patriots in the 2020 Draft.

New England Patriots fans who share my viewpoint that adoption of a multi-flex offense a la Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes should brace for impact: the draft is only a week away.

Also, they should be prepared for a great letdown, unless something truly miraculous happens. The Patriots will likely stay the course post-Tom Brady with a Brady-like offense without Brady. That makes little sense. No one is like Tom Brady but Tom Brady, so why try to emulate his offense?

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Thus, I have predicated much of my commentary on the draft as though the Patriots will take the road less traveled, at least for them, and advance in a new direction on offense into the 2020s NFL.

But is their majordomo, Bill Belichick willing to attempt this transformation?

I have spoken before how this new offense might be constructed from top to bottom.  Suffice it to say here, it would be a dramatic shift from a static to a mobile offense.

Many suggested draft options in these pages have profiled players in the 2020 draft who might just fit this new, dynamic, flexible 2020 Patriots’ offense. It is my opinion this would shock and perplex NFL defenses and provide an altogether different challenge to them.

Cam Akers, a versatile, tough back who might just fit in New England

I have commented previously that backs who have versatility and power are requirements for the New England Patriots. No question. One back who just may fit the bill is Florida State’s, Cam Akers.

Cam’s numbers are off the charts. Akers is 5’10” and 217 pounds. Very near my “big back” requirement of 220 pounds. Akers also ran a 4.47 40-yard dash and had a 35.5″ vertical leap. As the all-time great sportswriter and commentator Bob Ryan would say, he’s an “ath-a-lete”.

Akers strengths include being able to shed tackles, experience as a quarterback, tough enough to block and can make his way to the end zone,

He seems to be everything Sony Michel is not. And, again, he’s on the cusp size-wise of that big back I’ve suggested. The play here is to trade Sony for a second or third-round pick and draft Akers.

Akers is a back who may be able to fill a plethora of New England Patriots needs, aka versatile, without having to expend multiple picks to do so. Very intriguing. Akers should be a definite consideration for the New England Patriots next week.

The draft commences in less than a week. This will be interesting. This is what I would call a defining draft. The Patriots, post-Brady have to define themselves. The definer is Bill Belichick.

They can define themselves as what they have been for 2 decades and try to fit what’s left of that team to that old model with a new Brady-like quarterback.

Or, conversely, the all-time best NFL coach can redefine his team, create a new version, with a completely transformed offense to try to go on to win big in the new NFL landscape, without No. 12.

Which will it be? Brady’s offense without Brady? Or a dynamic multi-faceted new offense built to win in the 2020’s? We’ll know better in one week. It may very well define the team for the next decade and Bill Belichick’s future legacy, as well.