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The New England Patriots got a rest in Week 10 but that doesn’t mean fans can’t look ahead to the end of the 2022 regular season.
New England will enter Week 11 with a 5-4 record and at the bottom of the AFC East. If the Patriots hope to make the playoffs, they will need to rip off a streak of wins.
If the Pats are able to make it into the playoffs, they will need players from all over the roster to step up. Mac Jones will need to find the form that he had in his rookie season and Matthew Judon will need to continue to get into the backfield.
But a different Patriots pass rusher is being projected by Bleacher Report to break out in New England’s second half of the season.
Who Will Break Out on the Patriots?
With his performance against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 9, Josh Uche is garnering more attention. Uche recorded 3.0 sacks against the Colts. He now has 4.0 sacks this season, per Pro Football Reference.
The choice was easy for Bleacher Report.
“This choice is kind of cheating because the Josh Uche breakout is already underway,” B/R’s Alex Ballentine wrote. “The third-year linebacker has as many sacks over the last two weeks as in his first two seasons in the NFL. The former Michigan defender has taken a while to come into his own since being drafted in the 2020 second round. Various injuries have limited him to just 28 games in two-and-a-half seasons.”
What Do Josh Uche’s Teammates Think of Him?
The Patriots pass rusher has gained plenty of praise from his teammates. This includes New England’s leader in sacks, Judon.
“He can be a premiere pass rusher,” Judon said. “I always tell him, he’s probably the best pass rusher we got. I’m very happy for him. That’s my brother. I’m going to continue to speak him up and boast him, but that’s all him. He works his butt off, just to get out on the field. When he’s out there and he has success like that, I’m just happy for him.”
Judon also revealed that Uche has added responsibility when on the field.
“Because I don’t know if y’all know, but Josh actually calls the plays out there when we’re on third down,” Judon added. “So our execution is from him. That’s hard for somebody that’s in year three, and hasn’t had that much success in the NFL, and it’s third and long and he has to make the right call, right? So for him to come out there, and have a game like he had and play lights out like that, that just allows him to see what he can do in this league.”
That praise from Judon is all the proof that Bleacher Report needs to declare Uche a breakout candidate for the rest of the 2022 season.