FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Quick-hit thoughts and notes around the New England Patriots and NFL:
1. Cowden addition: One of the signature plays of Ryan Cowden's football career came in his senior season at Wofford College. A strong safety and nickelback who also served as the holder on field goals, he threw a 29-yard touchdown on a first-half fake that helped the Terriers beat Chattanooga 41-34.
"We had been a Division II team and were moving toward I-AA, so we were facing teams that were well established and tough," longtime Wofford coach Mike Ayers recalled of the 1999 season. "We tried every way we could to come up with a way to win. We weren't above onside kicks, fake field goals, fake punts -- you name it, we'd do it. Ryan wasn't afraid to fight the fight."
The play, and Wofford posting a 6-5 record that season, might as well be a metaphor for Cowden's new job with the Patriots as vice president of player personnel.
From a talent standpoint, the Patriots have significant ground to make up with most teams they are competing against. Thus, they might need to push the envelope and think outside the box -- whether it's in free agency, trades or the draft (starting with the No. 4 pick).
If January was mostly about solidifying first-year head coach Mike Vrabel's staff, February has turned the focus more to how the Patriots plan to invigorate their depleted roster.
Enter Cowden, 46, whose hire in New England has mostly flown under the radar other than a video on the Patriots' website from college all-star games that featured Vrabel, executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf, Cowden and director of college scouting Camren Williams. Cowden was at the Senior Bowl and is also expected to be at the NFL combine next week.
The addition of Cowden is directly tied to Vrabel, as they worked together with the Tennessee Titans for the first five years of Vrabel's head coaching tenure. When the Titans moved on from general manager Jon Robinson in 2022, it was Vrabel's hope that Cowden would be elevated to the job that ultimately went to Ran Carthon.
Now they reunite in New England, with the delegation of responsibility still coming into focus.
When asked at his introductory news conference in January if he has ultimate personnel authority, Vrabel sidestepped the topic and touted the importance of a "shared organizational vision."
He repeatedly referenced Wolf as the leader of the personnel staff that day. Soon after, the team hired Cowden to join the high-level ranks that also include director of player personnel Matt Groh, senior personnel executive Alonzo Highsmith, Williams and director of pro personnel Patrick Stewart.
Cowden, who grew up in Lebanon, Virginia, broke into the NFL shortly after graduating from Wofford in 2000 with a degree in finance.
He was planning to interview with pharmaceutical companies in Charlotte when then-Carolina Panthers director of player personnel Jack Bushofsky identified him as a strong candidate for an entry-level/internship-type position. Ayers, his football coach at Wofford (where the Panthers held training camp), provided a strong recommendation.
"He was one of those guys where you didn't have to work hard to find good things to say about him. He was willing to do hard things," Ayers recalled. "When he was first starting out as a player, and struggling a little bit because others were better than him, and then you see the whole body of work and what he was willing to do as a player, of course you recommend it."
According to longtime Panthers personnel executive Jeff Morrow, some of the key responsibilities of Cowden's first job were coordinating scouts' schedules on the road, building relationships with schools to ensure the Panthers received scouting tape from them and putting players on the draft board based on position.
"He knew exactly where everybody was and had great retention. He showed early on to me that he had really good evaluation skills," Morrow said.
That came around the same time that Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane and New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen were starting their NFL scouting careers in Carolina. The three retain a close bond.
One veteran member of the Panthers' personnel department in those years said: "They all played off each other, learned from each other, and made each other better. Ryan also learned a lot from Jack [Bushofsky], who was one of the best evaluators. Ryan was a sponge, very thorough, process-driven, a systematic thinker able to use all the tools available to him."
Morrow tells one story from the 2014 draft that he believes highlights Cowden's growth over the years and his contributions to the franchise. Scouts were discussing LSU offensive lineman Trai Turner and were wavering on whether he would be a solid fit.
"Someone had some information that maybe we should stay away, and that was one of Ryan's schools," Morrow said. "He basically stood on the table and said, 'No way -- this is what it's basically all about.'"
The Panthers selected Turner in the third round (No. 92). Turner started 80 regular-season games from 2014 to 2019 for the Panthers, including six playoff games (one of which was Super Bowl 50 against the Broncos).
Cowden stayed with the Panthers for 16 seasons, working his way up the scouting ranks, before the Titans hired him as director of player personnel in 2016. He served as VP of player personnel in Tennessee from 2018 to 2022 and spent the last two years with the Giants as executive adviser to Schoen.
Ayers chuckled when recalling Cowden would "drop the hammer" as a safety and referred to him as "one of those guys that were bonuses to your team."
He said Cowden's personality has a way of putting others at ease, with Morrow also noting his calmness in the draft room.
At the same time, Ayers added: "He's a guy that's true to what he believes. He's not going to waver a whole lot."
2. Tag window: Tuesday marks the first day NFL teams can assign the franchise tag to one of their free agents, with the deadline to do so March 4. The Patriots aren't expected to use a tag.
One question that receiver-needy teams like New England around the NFL figure to be asking: Will the Cincinnati Bengals tag receiver Tee Higgins -- ESPN's No. 1-ranked free agent -- for a second year in a row?
The Bengals have $46 million in cap space, according to Roster Management System, so there's currently room for them to absorb what will be a cap hit in the $26 million range.
3. Scout meetings: Patriots scouts were in town last week and were part of daylong meetings, which is commonplace across the NFL at this time of year. Teams are preparing for the NFL scouting combine later this month in Indianapolis, with head coaches and/or general managers scheduled to answer questions from reporters on Feb. 25-26.
4. Campbell at 4?: Will LSU offensive tackle Will Campbell be a reach at No. 4 for the Patriots? ESPN draft analyst Field Yates' latest mock draft sparked that question and senior draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. tackled the topic on the "First Draft" podcast.
"There is not a lot of separation. People say you have him 11 on your [ranking] board, how could you take him at four? The grade between the fifth player and the 11th player/12th player in this draft isn't much. It's right there. You're splitting hairs," Kiper said. "So to say Will Campbell could go at four is not a stretch at all."
Campbell's arm length will be a notable measurement at the combine, as some believe he might be a better fit at guard.
As a result of the cluster of players grouped together after the top of the draft, it serves a reminder of how significant the Patriots' season-ending win over the Bills was, costing them the No. 1 overall pick.
Field's mock draft creates a scenario for Patriots to consider at No. 4:
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) February 11, 2025
🏈 Travis Hunter and Abdul Carter are off the board
🏈 Thus, 1 of top 2 QBs is available at 4, potentially creating a scenario for trade interest
🏈 Or just sit and pick - Will Campbell vs. Mason Graham? https://t.co/54Q4iIJYe8
5. Maye silver lining: If Drake Maye was part of this year's draft class, he would probably be the No. 1 pick. That was the opinion a national scout shared with ESPN NFL Nation reporters.
So while the value of the Patriots' No. 4 pick might not be as high as it would in other years, one silver lining for the franchise is that it is fortunate to have landed Maye last year.
"The top guys in this class wouldn't be in the top three from last year's crop, in my opinion," the scout said. "Good debate on if they would be in the top five actually."
6. Cap check: The Patriots currently have a league-leading $123 million in cap space with $6.1 million in dead money, per Roster Management System. As for teams with the most space after the Patriots, the Las Vegas Raiders ($96 million), Los Angeles Chargers ($79 million), Washington Commanders ($79 million), Arizona Cardinals ($73 million) and Detroit Lions ($69 million) are next in line, per Roster Management System.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, eight teams had commitments that put them over the cap as of Friday, led by the New Orleans Saints (minus-$51 million).
7. Medical checks: Some players who ended last season on injured reserve, such as cornerback/punt returner Marcus Jones, were also back in town last week for a medical check-in.
Jones missed the final three games of the regular season because of his hip. These are standard visits and help provide the team with more information on players' recoveries.
8. Austin/Brown next?: Exclusive rights free agent Jeremiah Pharms signed a two-year deal that includes $250,000 guaranteed last week, shining a spotlight on the Patriots' other exclusive rights free agents -- a group headlined by cornerback Alex Austin and center Ben Brown.
Austin and Brown can either sign a one-year deal at the league minimum -- which sets them up for restricted free agency after the 2025 season with a chance for a significant boost in salary -- or commit to a multiyear deal that provides them with a lower immediate guarantee.
Austin was coming on by the end of the 2024 season, while Brown -- who played 61% of the offensive snaps after being signed off the Raiders practice squad in October -- missed the last two games with a concussion.
9. They said it: "It's impressive. Adding certain free agents, draft well -- it shows how you can build a team and you can turn a lot around." -- Patriots center David Andrews, via the "Quick Snap" podcast, on the Eagles after their Super Bowl LIX victory
10. Did you know?: Patriots All-Pro special-teamer Brenden Schooler has led the club in tackles in each of his first three NFL seasons.
He is looking to join Nick Bellore (Jets, 2011 to 2014), Johnson Bademosi (Browns, 2012 to 2015), Justin Bethel (Cardinals, 2012 to 2016) and Tyler Matakevich (Steelers, 2016 to 2019) as the only four players this century to lead the same club in special teams tackles in each of their first four NFL seasons.