5 for 5 Pre-Season watch: 5. WRs

This is my 5 points for 5 days thing. As of now, its for pre-season. I hope to keep this running for as long as I can, so let's begin with the #5 watch: The WRs

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Who is the 4th WR? How will Chad Ochocinco play? How will Price and Tate be? Will Edelman return kickoffs, or is it Price? Is there any chance to see one of our young WRs take the #2 spot the next pre-season game?

* Who is the 4th WR?

The 4th WR spot is being fought by 3, by the names of Price, Tate, and Edelman. Who do you think is the likeliest choice? the only odd man out I could think of is Edelman, who missed most of last season with an Injury, and had not really bounced back since he "recovered" (he made a few good punt returns). With Ocho, Branch, and Welker likely taking the first 3 spots, this pretty much leaves tate and Price battling for the #4 spot.

This is a tough choice because both have performed well in camp. With the help of Marima, Greg, and patriots.com, I found that Price has displayed crisp route running skills, and seems to have built up a chemistry with Brady in a way. Tate as far as I know, has looked solid in camp, but maybe not as flashy as Price. They both had their ups, and downs throughout the camps, and both had about the same experience in the system. This is a battle worth taking a look into.

*How will Chad Ochocinco play? How will Price and Tate be?

We have all read that the WRs in camp, including Ocho, have performed well. Not necessarily great, but well, with some drops here and there from pretty much anyone(besides welker, and maybe branch). With the new addition of Ochocinco through a trade, giving up a couple late round draft picks, the pats look to receive a dynamic, jack-of-all-trades route runner that is 6'1" and quick with good hands. He and Belichick had a very good relationship it seems, dating back to when both Ocho (once known as Chad Johnson, which he said he'll change his name back to) and Brady were both in the pro bowl I believe in 04 (if not 03). They both always had a good respect for each other. 

So the main watch with out WR core will probably be the connection with Brady and Ocho. Or just how well Ocho can get open, and change the game with his versatility. Whether it be Hoyer, Brady, or Mallet, I hope to see Ocho make a difference out there. 

The secondary watches will probably be Price and Tate. Many were disappointed with Tate last season, but I thought it was a good year for him. So with Tate, we should be able to see how well he developed his route running, and how well he may have improved overall from last year. With Price, many are ITCHING to see what he can do. He held a lot of promise with how he did in camp this year, and how well he looked against miami in the last game of the season last year. Price is our wildcard WR, who we don't know too much about, other than his potential. It will be nice to see how he does.

*Will Edelman return punts, or is it Price?

I don't think we'll see Tate returning punts, and I think welker will be sitting out this year. Edelman and Price have been getting many reps at the punt returns in camp, so I think these two will be the primary candidates. I wouldn't discount welker, but I think Edelman and Price may be the rising candidates for punt returns.

Im not sure on Price because I haven't seen him return punts yet. Edelman, however, had good amount of punt returns with us, and showed he can be a playmaker there. At times, he can be reckless, and get tackled for a loss. At other times, it pays off nicely, and returns the punt for a big gain. It will be interesting to see who will win the starting punt return job. The front runner would be Edelman imo, but don't sleep on Price either.

*Is there any chance to see one of our young WRs take the #2 spot the next pre-season game?

Chance? Maybe. Likely? Most likely not. The main rotation is likely all set with Ocho being our #1/#2, Branch being our #2/#1, and welker being our slot guy. Or heck, maybe Welker can play as the #2 guys, and Branch as our #3 guy. In any case, those are most likely our 3 main guys. What I CAN say is that maybe Price or Tate will be in a rotation at the #1 and #2 spots. I already talked about who will be in the #4 spot, and it seems if there is any chance that one of them can steal the #2 spot it would be slim. 

Brady has a resume with welker and branch, and the pats look to have ocho increase their WR core's potential. In terms of rotation though, look to how Price and tate perform with Brady this pre-season to see who will win that battle in the main WR rotation. heck maybe welker would come out on a few plays for edelman or price or tate to fill in as well.