All eyes will be on the prospects competing at the NFL Scouting Combine, but could an Alabama football reunion be forming for another National Football League team?
The New England Patriots have Mac Jones, Damien Harris, and Bill O’Brien.
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Mike Reiss, ESPN’s NFL National reporter for the Patriots, said Slade Bolden is scheduled to work out for New England.
While much of the NFL’s attention is focused in Indianapolis at the combine, a note back home: Free-agent WR Slade Bolden is scheduled to work out for the Patriots.
Played at Alabama with Mac Jones, and then under Bill O’Brien. 2022 UDFA with Ravens. Healthy after sports hernia.
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) February 28, 2023
Bolden, a former Crimson Tide wide receiver, is close friends with Jones. Alabama fans wanted the Patriots to select Bolden in the 2022 NFL Draft. Jones set a school single-season record in 2020 with 4,500 passing yards and 41 touchdowns.
Bolden caught 24 passes from Jones for 270 yards, including a touchdown reception in the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship Game against Ohio State. It was his first touchdown catch of the season and his career. The Louisiana native and former three-star recruit responded by totaling 42 receptions in 2021 for 408 yards and three scores. He helped Bryce Young pace the Tide’s offense under O’Brien to an SEC Championship and a berth in the CFP National Championship Game.
Bolden went undrafted in 2022, but he got an opportunity with the Baltimore Ravens.
A sports hernia caused him to get cut from the team, but Bolden is healthy and ready to show the league what he can do.
It will be intriguing to see if the Patriots put Jones and Bolden together.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
