The Facts: Only eight teams in the league ran the ball more frequently than the Patriots last season. New England's deep stable of backs saw Stevan Ridley, Brandon Bolden and Shane Vereen attack teams on the ground, with LeGarrette Blount surging down the stretch as tackle-breaking hammer. Blount is out the door to Pittsburgh, but HC Bill Belichick is already talking up the newest addition, fourth-round rookie James White out of Wisconsin. "It's been good working with James White. He's a very interesting and versatile player," Belichick told SiriusXM NFL Radio.

Diehards Line: Belichick continued: "He does a good job in the passing game and in the running game -- both inside and outside. Blitz pickup -- we have a pretty extensive offense for him to learn, but he's working hard at it. We'll just let him go and see how it goes, but I think he has the ability to compete on all three downs, in both the running game and the passing game. ..." As NFL.com's Mar Sessler noted, the takeaway here is that White is seen as a weapon who can stay on the field for more than just passing downs. Talked about as a Kevin Faulk type, White's 5-10, 205-pound frame is smaller than what the Patriots typically draft as lead-back material. Still, if White -- who averaged 6.2 yards per carry in college -- can pick up New England's constantly evolving playbook, he's a candidate to see early-season action and possibly put Bolden on the roster bubble.