In their season opener against the Panthers last week, the Patriots had to contend with inclement weather that ultimately affected the game. Steady rain and the possibility of thunderstorms may have influenced Jerod Mayo’s decision on who to put on the field, including Drake Maye.
Unfortunately, the team can’t escape the unsettled weather as it hosts the Eagles on Thursday night in the second week of preseason play, but things could get even worse this week.
The latest weather forecast reports that Foxborough will have cloudy evenings with a slight breeze, and thunderstorms will develop later in the day. Depending on when that will be, it could affect the game by rescheduling it at some point or the league could even be forced to cancel the game.
Since the weather can change in an instant, it would be beneficial if the skies cleared up and there was no rain so the Patriots could properly assess the state of their roster, something they were unable to do last week.
There have been a lot of changes to the team in the last seven days alone, most notably the departures of JuJu Smith-Schuster and Matthew Judon, so seeing who might step in to replace them is an important part of the game to watch this week, especially with just over three weeks left until their Week 1 game.
The focus in the offseason was on the offense, which also applies to the preseason matchups. But now that Judon is joining the Falcons, the defense has to show what it can do as a pass rusher without him in the lineup.
This will inevitably become one of the most talked about aspects of the Patriots’ effort against the Eagles, especially after the memorable performances from Jeremiah Pharms Jr. and Oshane Ximines last week. If they can build on that, even if the weather isn’t great this time, the defense could be in better shape than initially thought after the Judon transfer was announced.
