Bill Belichick on rookies making NFL debuts: "Dive right in and try not to drown"

BOSTON -- Sunday marks the beginning of a new season for the New England Patriots. For a handful of rookies, it also represents the start of a new life.

Come late afternoon on Sunday, as many as 10 members of the Patriots' rookie class will make their NFL debuts. Their impacts will be seen up and down the roster, from presumed starting cornerback Christian Gonzalez, to potential defensive playmakers Keion White and Marte Mapu, to specialists Chad Ryland and Bryce Baringer, to potential offensive playmakers Kayshon Boutte and Demario Douglas, to offensive lineman Atonio Mafi, Sidy Sow and Jake Andrews.

It's unlikely that all 10 of those rookies -- plus Ameer Speed, and practice squadder Malik Cunningham -- will be active. But most will, and some are going to play a lot.

While the rookies got varying levels of playing time throughout the preseason, it will be quite different on Sunday, with the reigning NFC-champion Eagles in town. And head coach Bill Belichick isn't sugarcoating the challenge that awaits.

"Go in there and get their feet wet," Belichick said of his rookie class. "Gotta kind of jump in and start swimming. There's no baby pool. You know, you just dive right in and try not to drown."

That may be an extreme analogy, but it's nevertheless what life can be like for an NFL rookie trying to survive.

As he has done many times in the past, Belichick sympathized with the avalanche of information and instruction that hits every rookie in the league.

"They've got a lot on their plate. They've got a lot to handle," Belichick said. "They're grinding their way through it. There's no way to get experience besides getting experience. So they've played some preseason games, had a lot of practices. I'm sure they can feel the difference in intensity in terms of preparation and the ramp-up that's happened here in the last few days. That's good, they should feel that."

Likely feeling that the most is Gonzalez, who will face a bear of a task lining up against the likes of DeVonta Smith or A.J. Brown on the outside. Belichick was asked specifically how Gonzalez is handling the challenges of entering an NFL game week for the first time.

"Yeah, well, you know, Gonzo's a pretty even-keeled guy. Doesn't get too high, doesn't get too low," Belichick said. "He's pretty consistent. That's a little bit of his personality anyway, which is probably a good thing for a corner."

Here's a closer look at what to expect from the rookies on Sunday.

CB Christian Gonzalez (First round, 17th overall): With Jack Jones likely out due to a hamstring injury, the job's even tougher for Gonzalez. The Patriots will likely lean on him to play wire to wire against some top-flight receiver talent. We'll see if the Patriots have him on one guy, or if they keep him on one side, or if they mix it up a bit. With Jonathan Jones, Marcus Jones and Myles Bryant making up the rest of the cornerback depth, there will be a lot of eyes on the rookie.

DE Keion White (Second round, 46th overall): Look for White to get some snaps at defensive end when Deatrich Wise comes off the field. The 6-foot-5, 290-pound White looks like he could be a menace, so even if he takes 30-40 percent of the defensive snaps, he could make a difference.

LB Marte Mapu (Third round, 76th overall): There were some concerns that Mapu was too small to play linebacker at the NFL level, but the Patriots haven't had any of those. They've used him with the starters since day one of camp, and he's been everywhere. In terms of snap count, it's hard to estimate exactly how much Mapu the Eagles will see. But given how explosive he was all summer, it would be surprising if we don't hear Mapu's name on the game broadcast quite a bit.

K Chad Ryland (Fourth round, 112th overall) and P Bryce Baringer (sixth round, 192nd overall): Special teams aren't sexy, but they're important, and the Patriots will be relying on a rookie who kicked zero field goals in the preseason to finish their drives on Sunday. No pressure there. And while Baringer has an impressive leg at punter, don't underestimate his duties as holder on those Ryland field goals and PATs. 

WR Kayshon Boutte (Sixth round, 187th overall) and WR Demario Douglas (sixth round, 210th overall): Will both of these guys suit up on the active roster? Maybe not, with DeVante Parker/Kendrick Bourne/JuJu Smith-Schuster filling out the top of the depth chart. But also ... maybe. The Patriots are going to need playmakers, and the two rookies showed throughout the summer they're capable of delivering the occasional big play. Neither will be the focal point of the offense, but if they're in the game -- especially Douglas -- look for some designed plays to get the ball into their hands.

OL Jake Andrews (Fourth round, 107th overall), Sidy Sow (Fourth round, 117th overall), Atonio Mafi (Fifth round, 144th overall): If the Patriots have everything perfect on the O-line, we won't see these guys. But ... well, things aren't perfect on the O-line for the Patriots. It's unclear if starting guards Mike Onwenu and Cole Strange will be healthy enough to play. And if they are, it's unknown if they can last a full 60 minutes. Right tackle is very much a question too, so expect to see Sidy Sow there at some point on Sunday. The Patriots need to be prepared to potentially have three rookies on the O-line at the same time on Sunday, which might prevent the offense from getting overly complex against the most ferocious defensive line in the league.