The New England Patriots picking Cole Strange in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft was a shocking move. The Chattanooga offensive lineman was projected to be selected a round -- maybe even two or three rounds -- later.
Nonetheless, Strange was considered one of the best linemen in the 2022 class and will look to bring a boost to New England's o-line next season and beyond. The 6-foot-5, 305-pounder will be worth keeping tabs on during Patriots training camp, which officially got underway on Wednesday.
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Our Phil Perry was in attendance to watch Strange and the Patriots in action. On a new episode of the Next Pats Podcast, he asked Dan Koppen -- a two-time Super Bowl champion lineman with New England -- how we'll be able to tell whether Strange is NFL-ready.
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"Yeah, I think you're going to be able to tell probably more in team drills. Depending on your vantage point for 1-on-1s, I think they're a great indicator where a guy is coming from college physically," Koppen said. "Mentally, you know what's going to happen. You're going to get the mental reps from the team side of it. But physically, those 1-on-1s, the 9-on-7 drills that they're doing, are going to tell you where he is physically.
New England Patriots
"Practice isn't easy. When you go in those 1-on-1 reps, those defensive linemen have two minutes to think about what rush move they're going to pull next. They're not thinking about pass, they're not thinking about run, they're not thinking about play-action. They have nothing else to do and they usually have a two-way go on you, so those 1-on-1 reps, you may not win all of them -- you're definitely not going to win all of them -- but if you can hold your own physically and stay in front of them, you've got a good chance."
Also in the new episode: Perry shares his top three observations from day one of Patriots training camp. Koppen explains what it’s like as a rookie during the first days of camp. Will it be an issue for the offensive line if Matt Patricia is splitting his attention? And Perry opens up the mailbag to answer your questions!
Check out the latest episode of the Next Pats Podcast on the NBC Sports Boston Podcast Network, or watch on YouTube below: