NFL Rising Stars of 2022: Which Patriots Make List?

The NFL Players Association's annual list contains - surprise - no members of the New England Patriots.

Bill Belichick has seen enough.

Maybe in his old age - he turned 70 earlier this offseason - he's getting soft. Or maybe he already has a good handle on his team for the 2022 season.

Or perhaps, as has been the case many a time during the future Hall-of-Famer's career, he knows something we all don't.

Whatever the reason, the New England Patriots' coach canceled Thursday's minicamp workout (because of nasty weather in the area), then went a step further and blew off next week's OTAs voluntary workouts. The next time Belichick will address his team as a whole will be at training camp near the end of July.

On the surface, this isn't uncommon. Belichick has been known to make this kind of decision as a reward for a successful offseason, then spend a couple weeks in Nantucket before the commencing the grind of another season.

It just feels different this season. In a Summer in which experts are predicting doom-and-gloom, the offensive play-calling seems a jumbled mess, analytics sites are slapping New England with the league's worst offseason grade, former players are echoing low expectations and peers are harpooning the team's draft haul, Belichick apparently feels confident in both who and where his team is.

Accordingly, he's unmoved by this week's list from the NFL Players Association highlighting its "rising stars" for the 2022 season. The list "identifies top rookies and veterans poised to have breakout seasons, gain fan support and ultimately rank among the top-sellers of all officially licensed player merchandise."

Sounds like a good list to have players - young or old - make. Right?

On it, exactly zero Patriots. Obviously the folks at the NFLPA aren't as enthralled with Tyquan Thornton's speedy potential or Matthew Judon's veteran growth as his head coach.