Patriots: Christian Barmore, Rhamondre Stevenson spark excitement

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New England Patriots Rhamondre Stevenson (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images) /

Why Barmore and Stevenson could be important cogs for the New England Patriots

Both rookies, Christian Barmore, a second-round pick, and Rhamondre Stevenson a fourth-rounder could very well be called upon to be contributors in their first season in New England.

Barmore is a potentially game-changing defensive tackle probably with the most potential impact since Vince Wilfork with a propensity to sack the quarterback even more than Vince did.

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When Barmore is focused, as he was in the FBS Championship game against Ohio State, he is a force to be reckoned with, game-planned for, and a wrecking ball of an inside disruptor.

He not only is a force against the run but his eight sacks in 2020 are indicative of his pass-rushing prowess. From a raw talent perspective, he just may be the most talented interior lineman on the team.

For those reasons, he needs to be on the scene since the Patriots were poor run-stoppers and had difficulty sacking the quarterback lasts season, as well. The opportunity is there for Barmore to step right in and contribute in 2021 for New England. We’ll see.

Stevenson has been hyped in this space early and often both before and since the draft. It is not often in many years of Patriots draft-watching that the club actually settles on a player this writer had suggested. It has not been often at all, to put it mildly.

But, the red, white, blue, and silver did this time and Stevenson could be a real find, especially in the fourth round no-less. It was suggested in this space that if he were there in the third round it would be fine. To land him in the fourth was a possible coup for the home team.

Seeing him on the field rather than on tape has afforded coaches and observers alike to realize what this big back could bring to the team.

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