The New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens each made crucial personnel decisions in the offseason that are having huge impacts in 2013, as both wide receivers Wes Welker and Anquan Boldin are no longer with the teams and after Danny Amendola and Jacoby Jones were injured, both clubs may be regretting their choices.
The Patriots are 2-0 on the season after winning two AFC East games against the Jets and the Bills, but the offense has not looked very good and the absence of Welker has been felt by quarterback Tom Brady. The team was able to squeak by with a victory over the Bills with a last-second field goal, but the game against the Jets was even more of a struggle, as rookie Kenbrell Thompkins and Aaron Dobson made too many drops, leaving Brady visibly frustrated on television.
The Patriots signed Danny Amendola in the offseason to take over for Welker in the offense and while he showed solid production in Week 1, what many fans feared was the injury history of Amendola and that has cropped up again. Amendola has played in just 11 games over the past two seasons and after tweaking his groin in the Week 1 game against the Bills, he could be out for a few weeks and that is a big hit to the offense. The Patriots already lost Aaron Hernandez and Welker, while Shane Vereen, Rob Gronkowski and Zach Sudfeld along with Amendola are dealing with injuries.
Amendola made 10 catches for 104 yards on 14 targets in the first game, but he didn't play against the Jets and now the Pats offense will have to rely on rookie Aaron Dobson and Josh Boyce as well as Kenbrell Thompkins. Brady was very frustrated on Thursday with the drops from receivers and depending on how long Amendola is out, many will wonder what the cost of losing Welker will ultimately be.
While he was with the Patriots, Welker was one of the most productive players in all of the NFL and now he will take his 110-plus catches and 1,000 yards to Denver. Brady has always done a good job with new receivers, but the Patriots situation is different this year and Welker has already broken through, making nine catches for two touchdowns on Thursday against the Ravens.
Speaking of the Ravens, they are also dealing with a wide receiver issue after trading away Anquan Boldin after the Super Bowl to the 49ers. The Ravens got beat up by the Denver Broncos to open the season on Thursday night and the loss of Boldin in the offense was very noticable, especially after Jacoby Jones was injured. Jones suffered a knee injury and now he will be out for at least a few weeks and making matters worse, Boldin looked great for the 49ers.
Boldin had a breakout first game, making 13 catches for 208 yards against the Packers and that total was more than all the receivers had combined for the Ravens. Both teams obviously can overcome these losses, but letting Welker leave for the Broncos and trading Boldin to the 49ers could have huge impacts later in the season for the teams.