New England Patriots: Five Breakout Candidates for 2015

Sep 22, 2013; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick (right) speaks to quarterback Tom Brady (12) during the first half of a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

Throughout the Bill Belichick era, the New England Patriots have consistently found players from seemingly out of nowhere to contribute to their impressive success. Obviously, the most famous case of this was when a little-known sixth round pick named Tom Brady took over for an injured Drew Bledsoe. The rest, of course, was history.

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Brady stepping in for Bledsoe may be the most famous and impactful breakout performance in NFL history. However, Brady is far from the only unlikely success story for the Patriots under Belichick. Look no further than arguably Brady’s favorite target in the passing game the past few years.

In the 2013 off season, the Patriots moved on from veteran slot receiver Wes Welker, and instead decided to bring back the younger player in Julian Edelman.

Edelman is a former college quarterback who the Patriots took in the seventh round of the 2009 NFL Draft. With incredible speed and quickness, the Patriots wisely pinpointed Edelman as a great slot receiver option, and he has rewarded the team the past two seasons with incredible reliability and pure playmaking skills on the field.

For both Brady and Edelman, all it took for them to breakout at the NFL level was a legitimate opportunity. Both players had faith in their talents and the Patriots took a chance on them. There are many other examples of similar breakout players all across the Belichick  era in New England.

Now, for the hard part. Which unproven players currently on the roster will have a breakout season in 2015. When looking at talent across both the offense and defense, and taking into account opportunity, I was able to come up with five strong breakout candidates.

Without further ado, here are the top five breakout candidates for the Patriots in the 2015 season.

Next: Number Five