It was shock news for the New England Patriots: Returner Malcolm Butler is out for the entire 2022 season with a hip injury. This leaves the Patriots with hardly any cornerbacks left on the roster. Either they add personnel now, or rely on young players.

Munich/Foxborough – The New England Patriots’ training camp has been more than mixed so far.

Now the next bad news after the retirement of team captain James White: Malcolm Butler has seriously injured his hip, the 2022 season is over for the 32-year-old before it has begun.

That leaves the Patriots with few pass defenders left after Joejuan Williams’ season-ending injury as well.

Retrofitted backfield – Jones comeback gives hope

Actually, Butler was supposed to be the Patriots’ new and old number one pass defender. “Malcolm is working very hard, like he always has. It looks like he’s back to his old self,” head coach Bill Belichick praised the returnee just a few weeks ago.

Now the veteran and two-time Super Bowl winner is out. Not only him, but Joejuan Williams have also been placed on the Injured Reserve list. That leaves the Patriots with only four cornerbacks who have any NFL experience at all: Jalen Mills, rookie Terrance Mitchell, Jonathan Jones and Myles Bryant.

A glimmer of hope at least is the return of slot cornerback Jonathan Jones, who is considered one of the best in the league. Whether Jalen Mills and Terrance Mitchell are anywhere near adequate replacements for the former top duo of Stephon Gilmore and J.C. Jackson, however, is more than doubtful. In general, there is hardly anything left of the heyday of New England’s pass defence. It’s quite possible that there will be more additions to the team.

Trump card Wade – McCourty as temporary cornerback?

But it would be just as possible for Belichick to pull a no-name out of a hat and make him a star. Jackson and Butler were both Undrafted Free Agents and the 70-year-old turned both into Pro Bowlers.

It’s in those footsteps that (another) Jones faction in New England wants to follow. Marcus Jones is a third-round pick from Houston, Jack Jones is a fourth-round pick from Arizona State. The two rookies need to take a step forward. Still, there’s nothing but good things to hear about them from training camp. Devin Hafford, undrafted free agent, will probably fall victim to the roster cut.

Then there is Shaun Wade, who has had a special journey. In 2021, he was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens – and immediately traded to Foxborough. Many feared that Belichick had already got another diamond in the rough for almost nothing. However, Wade is still waiting for his first NFL game. Whether that will come in a timely manner remains to be seen. He doesn’t appear to be on the level of Butler or Jackson in their prime.

If all else fails, longtime safety Devin McCourty can also be used at the cornerback position. He was even selected to the Pro Bowl at that position in 2010. To date, he is the only player to be selected to the Pro Bowl as both a safety and a cornerback. And that’s saying something.

So Belichick and Co. will be putting their heads together in the coming days and weeks as to whether any personnel needs to be added.

In the end, though, it should be safe to say that arguably the best defensive-minded coach in NFL history will put three competent cornerbacks on the field when the season kicks off.