Bethel visits

Babyface Bethel Johnson... nice! I gotta think it is more for next season though as the Pats have Hobbs, Welker, K-Faulk, Willie Andrews, etc who are very able to return kicks and we all now how deep the Pats are at WR right now.

GoodBye Stallworth!

His option is too high and he will be let go in order to pay Moss

Bethel and 2nd round pick Chad Jackson will fight in the preseason for the #2 outside WR role even thought the slot receiver welker is really the number 2.

The kickoff return game has kind of gone down hill this season..

At the beginning of the season with Hobbs 107 yard return it looked like a team strength. But as the season went on, returns seemed to be less and less effective. At this point I would consider it a team weakness.

But still not sure Bethel is the answer.

108 yards.

No way is kick off returns a team weakness. Only if you a really negative person and want to pick the team apart. We avg a decent to good amount on returns. Sure we don't have a Devin Hester on our team but how many teams do. We have a ton of guys that can return kicks like the four men that Eric mentioned and even Laurence Maroney, Chad Jackson, or even Troy Brown. But it is definitly not a team weakness.

Bethel Johnson, who couldn't stick with us, or the Saints, or the Eagles, or any number of other teams? That Bethel Johnson? What a waste of time. Apparently Pats fans in Florida don't follow football too closely if they think Bethel Johnson could possibly challenge for a number two receiver spot and replace Donte Stallworth or Jabar Gaffney.

Gotta wonder if Bethel got his head straight after leaving NE. According to NFL.com, he's been on three teams in the two years since leaving us. Not a good sign for his development, but with the Patriots, you never know what they see in a player that we don't that they think they can build upon. I'm not sure what his contract status is with the Texans, but I'd be surprised if NE makes a trade or gives up anything to get him.

Fan From Florida,

Even if Stallworth finds a new home next year, there is still a better chance of LM winning the rushing title over LT and Peterson than Bethel Johnson being the #2 receiver anywhere in the league. Not to mention over the likes of sure-handed Jabar Gaffney (who has emerged as a go-to guy for Brady) and Chad Jackson who, unlike Johnson, actually has an upside. Johnson has been cut from the Eagles, Saints and Patriots for an awful attitude, being "terribly out of shape" as quoted from the Saints coach and from being overall a waste of salary (which, for the record, is still hitting the Pats salary as a cap penalty). So, Bethel has a chance at making our roster, yes, but as a good KR to keep the players mentioned above from being injured and also to actually justify us still paying for the kickoff return.

I wouldnt consider it all that crazy to think Bethel could help this team this season. Yes, the Patriots have any number of viable candidates to return kickoffs. But when you look at that group again (Hobbs, Welker, Maroney, Faulk, Andrews, Jackson, Brown) you can find reasons why each of those players might not be available to return kicks this postseason.

Hobbs, Welker and Maroney are all starters at valuable positions, so devoting their time and energy to their primary roles is important. Plus it makes sense to avoid the injury risk as a kickoff returner. Faulk sort of falls into this category but only because he is such a valuable role player on this offense. Also, Faulk isn't a spring chicken anymore, so saving his energy for the offense might be a reason to keep him from returning kicks.

I might be mistaken, but I think Willie Andrews has been dinged up recently, so its not a given that he will be ready to go next weekend. The same can be said for Chad Jackson and Troy Brown, who are not only coming off injuries but also play at a stacked position (WR), which limits the amount of playing time they would get outside of returning kicks. Brown could add some depth at DB, but given that he only re-joined the team recently, I don't know how much time he has devoted at practice to playing DB.

Bethel "Whiteshoes" Johnson? Maybe the Pats need someone faster in the mailroom? Otherwise, I don't get it.

If they wanted a Kickoff Returner they should have hung onto Andre Davis! He matched BJ's career score total in 1 game!

Yeah, starting on average from your own 30 yardline is a weakness...C'mon.

Hey what does it hurt them to look and see if the guy still has his return game? As awful and undisciplined a route runner he was as a receiver, he was an absolute threat every single time as a return guy with his insane speed.