New England Patriots: 5 players with the most to prove in the 2022 season

The New England Patriots have a lot to prove in the 2022 NFL season. After unexpectedly making it to the playoffs in their first season of the Mac Jones era, the Pats will be on a mission to prove that last season wasn’t a fluke, and that they are going to be a playoff team for quite some time.

Of course, there are a lot of players on New England’s roster that have a lot to prove heading into this season too. No matter the reason, if these players can use their proverbial “chip on the shoulder” mentality, the Patriots will stand to benefit from it. Here are the five players on the Patriots that have the most to prove in the 2022 NFL season.

New England Patriots player with most to prove No. 5: Cole Strange

Ever since he was drafted, Cole Strange has had something to prove, and that’s that New England made the right call selecting him with the 29th overall pick of the 2022 NFL Draft. Considering how Strange is going to have to replace one of the best guards in the NFL in Shaq Mason, who was traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earlier this offseason, it may be a tall task.

Strange wasn’t expected to be selected until Day 2 of the draft, which is why he has so much to prove despite it being just his first season in the league. With a first-round selection being attached to his name, Strange is going to be thrown into the fire right off the bat as the team’s starting left guard, and the expectation is that he will succeed immediately.

Those are pretty lofty expectations, but considering how Bill Belichick has turned supposedly undervalued draft prospects into stars, he may be able to do the same with Strange here. But the rookie is going to enter the league with a lot to prove the second he takes the field, and the success of New England’s offensive line may depend on him.