The Patriots used a 4th round pick last April on 20-year old TE Aaron Hernandez out of Florida and the early returns look great.  Hernandez is a big target with good hands and slippery moves.  He has caught 7 passes for 146 yards (20.9 avg) in his first two NFL games.  Tom Brady really looked for him a lot against the Jets and he delivered.  Hernandez could have a big year because defenses will be worried about stopping Randy Moss and Wes Welker often leaving a safety or linebacker on him one on one.  Hernandez looks like another draft steal for the Patriots.

28-year old WR Wes Welker is Tom Brady’s safety net.  Welker tore his ACL and MCL in his left knee in the regular season finale against the Texans.  Brady looked lost without him in the playoff game against the Ravens.  Welker played in 14 games for the Patriots last season and he caught 123 passes for 1,348 yards (11.0 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  He also carried the ball 5 times for 36 yards (7.2 avg) last year.  Welker also helped out on special teams for the Patriots last season as he returned 27 punts for 338 yards (12.5 avg) and 2 kickoffs for 45 yards (22.5 avg).  Welker has been on fire since he came to the Patriots three years ago.  He has played in 46 games for the Patriots in his career and he has caught 346 passes for 3,688 yards (10.7 avg) with 15 TD grabs.  Welker also has carried the ball 12 times for 96 yards (8.0 ypc) for the Patriots.  Welker has returned 76 punts for 824 yards (10.8 avg) and he has also returned 10 kickoffs for 247 yards (24.7 avg) in his time in New England.  Welker is basically the one player the Patriots can not afford to be without so they hope he is healthy and ready to go for the 2010 season.

32-year old QB Tom Brady missed almost all of the 2009 season but you would never have known that watching him play in 2010.  Brady played in all 16 games for the Patriots this season and he completed 371 of 565 passes (65.7%) for 4,398 yards with 28 TD passes and 13 INTs (96.2 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 29 times for 44 yards (1.5 ypc) with 1 TD run this year.  Brady has now played in 129 games in his NFL career and he has completed 2,672 of 4,218 passes (63.3%) for 30,844 yards with 225 TD passes and only 99 INTs (93.3 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 305 times for 577 yards (1.9 ypc) with 6 TD runs in his career.  Brady is the top reason the Patriots are back in the playoffs as he leads by example.

24-year old undrafted rookie QB Brian Hoyer was the back-up for the Patriots in 2009.  He played in 5 games for the Patriots in which he completed 19 of 27 passes (70.4%) for 142 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 INTs (82.6 QB Rating).  Hoyer also carried the ball 10 times for 25 yards (2.5 ypc) with a TD run.  The Patriots will likely bring in either a cheap veteran QB or draft one late to compete with Hoyer for the back-up job in 2010.

28-year old WR Wes Welker is still Tom Brady’s right hand man.  He has played in 9 games for the Patriots this season and he has caught 85 passes for 886 yards (10.4 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  He has also carried the ball 4 times for 31 yards (7.8 ypc) and he has returned 16 punts for 236 yards (14.8 avg).  The Patriots really need Welker to stay healthy the rest of the year because he gets the tough yards over the middle for them.  Welker has now played in 41 games in his three years with the Patriots in which he has caught 308 passes for 3,226 yards (10.5 avg) with 15 TD grabs.  He has also carried the ball 11 times for 91 yards (8.3 ypc) and he has returned 65 punts for 722 yards (11.1 avg).  Welker is one of the best players on the Patriots so they can’t afford to have him miss any more time due to injury this year.

33-year old running back Kevin Faulk is a outstanding football player as he does anything the Patriots need him to do.  He has played in 9 games so far this season for the Patriots and he has carried the ball 37 times for 188 yards (5.1 ypc) and he has also caught 25 passes for 199 yards (8.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Faulk is also helpful on special teams when needed as he has returned 5 punts for 31 yards (6.2 avg) and 6 kickoffs for 144 yards (24.0 avg) so far this year.  Faulk has now played in 146 games for the New England Patriots in which he has carried the football 814 times for 3,358 yards (4.1 ypc) with 14 TD runs and he has also caught 406 passes for 3,503 yards (8.6 avg) with 15 TD grabs.  Faulk has returned 99 punts in his career for 932 yards (9.4 avg) and 181 kickoffs for 4,098 yards (22.6 avg) with 2 TD returns.  Faulk has never been the main man of the offense for the Patriots but he has always been there to make a big play when they need one.

Stephen Gostkowski is off to a good start to the season for the New England Patriots.  He has made 13 of 16 field goals this season and he has made all 21 of his extra point attempts.  The Patriots really like Gostkowski who has been solid this season and he has a big leg trying a lot of field goals that many kickers wouldn’t even attempt.

25-year old safety Brandon Meriweather is having an outstanding season for the Patriots.  He has played in 7 games for the Patriots this season and he has made 39 tackles, defensed 5 passes, 3 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble and he has intercepted 2 passes (70 return yards,  1 returned for a TD).  The Patriots are happy with Meriweather who has been great for the Patriots serving as the back line of the defense.

With a knee that took almost a year to rehab it appears that the real Tom Brady is back.  He completed 29 of 34 passes (85.3%) for 380 yards with 6 TD passes and 0 INTs.  He has played in all six games for the Patriots this season and he has completed 156 of 241 passes (64.7%) for 1,724 yards with 12 TD passes and 2 INTs (99.0 QB Rating).  You could just see that Brady finally felt confident last Sunday as he seemed to have a perfect rhythm with his WRs and TEs.  Look for Brady to continue his assault this weekend in London against the woeful Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Benjamin Watson is off to a very good start for the Patriots this season as he has played in all five games and he has caught 14 passes for 187 yards (13.4 avg) with 3 TD grabs so far.  He has career highs of 49 catches, 643 yards and 6 TDs which are all numbers that he could eclipse this season.  Tom Brady has looked to Watson more especially around the end zone where he often enjoys a size advantage.  Look for Watson to put up career highs in every one of his receiving categories as long as he stays healthy all year long.

Julian Edelman was selected in the 7th round of the NFL Draft out of Kent State where he was the starting QB.  The Patriots converted him into a WR and he has learned how to play it very quickly.  When Wes Welker went down to injury, Edelman has stepped up.  He has caught 11 passes for 118 yards (10.7 avg) this season and he has also carried the ball 1 time for 5 yards.  That’s not all Edelman has done as he has helped out on special teams.  He has returned 2 kickoffs for 39 yards (19.5 avg) and 1 punt for 2 yards this year.  Coach Belichick proves once again that he is a master of the draft finding this guy in the 7th round.