Dolloff Blog: Start Edelman Over Welker To Begin Season
Yes, it was only the first preseason game, but Patriots receiver Julian Edelman showed great pass-catching ability and rapport with Tom Brady in Thursday night's preseason win over the Saints. So that begs the question: Should he start the season as the Patriots' No.2 receiver and not Wes Welker?
The answer to that question is an emphatic YES! The converted quarterback from Kent State looked like basically a Welker clone against defending champion New Orleans, with six catches for 90 yards and an eye-popping 40-yard punt return in the first quarter.
Welker looks like he's on track to be ready for Week 1 against the Cincinnati Bengals, but does that mean he'll really be 100 percent? Bill Belichick himself said after last night's game that he's not ready to play. It's not worth throwing Welker right back into the fire in Week 1 to find out if he's completely back to playing shape.
Despite a strong performance from the Pats' young defense Thursday, it's likely they'll need to put some serious points on the board against the explosive Bengals offense. It would be a great idea to get the ball in Edelman's hands as much as possible to make sure he stays sharp after he moves down the depth chart when Welker regains the No.2 receiving role.
Although the Houston Texans had a porous pass defense last season- 18th overall in opponent's passing yards- Edelman was fantastic in Week 17 following Welker's ACL injury, catching 10 passes for 103 yards. One might confuse Edelman for Welker when just glancing at the box score. Edelman was also impressive in an otherwise ugly playoff loss against Baltimore, with two touchdown catches.
As evidenced by the chemistry he's shown with Brady in his playing time, Edelman deserves a chance to keep the starting spot warm while Welker rehabs his way back into playing shape. Not that Welker looks particularly weak so far this preseason- the fact that he's already running routes and playing to full contact is astounding- but an ACL tear is still nothing to treat lightly.
Edelman looks like he belongs, so he should hold onto the starting slot receiving job while he still can. When Welker is ready to resume his routine shredding of interior defenses, he should absolutely get his job back. But he's too important a receiver to risk any type of- find some wood to knock on before reading this next part- setback to his knee injury that could debilitate him for a much longer and painful period of time.
So what do you think? Should Edelman start in Welker's place to start the season, or has Welker clearly recovered quickly enough to step right in and start against Cincy in Week 1? Tweet your answers to @985TheSportsHub and we'll post your responses.
