Putting the Team First: Brandon Bolden’s Unknown Battle
On December 30th 2021, Brandon Bolden revealed he has been fighting cancer since 2018.
Brandon Bolden spent most of his career with the New England Patriots as a special teamer, receiving the ire of Patriots fans when he was given the ball on draw plays from third and long. In December 2021, Bolden revealed, via an Instagram post, that he has been fighting cancer since 2018. For taking the responsibilities that being a special teams’ player on the New England Patriots entails and fighting a battle nobody knew about, Brandon Bolden deserves recognition from Patriots fans for his contributions to the team and for fighting a war nobody knew he was going through.
The public overlooks special teams’ players due to a lack of noticeable contributions. There is a reason why Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots employ as many as five to six core special teamers, with their sole focus to play on fourth downs, kickoffs, and field goal attempts. For those that are not fortunate enough to be drafted in the first couple of rounds, NFL rookies can make a name for themselves on special teams and stay in the NFL if they have great football instincts and learn how to do the work nobody else wants to do.
Brandon Bolden, a reliable passing option out of the backfield, was thrust into a third-down role when James White suffered a hip injury that rendered him out for the season. In 2021-22, Bolden is having a career year in the passing game, with roughly 200 more receiving yards this season than his career high. Maybe it was the number change (from 38 to 25), opportunity, or resting during the 2020-21 season due to the COVID-19 season, but Bolden is a factor in the Patriots' short passing game, in addition to his core special teams’ duties.
Now that there is more clarity on why Brandon sat out the 2021-22 season, people should credit him for his contributions, given it's a risk to play in the NFL during a pandemic. Bolden put his team first while battling a terrifying disease. It’s never wise to attack anybody without knowing what they’re going through on a personal level. Brandon Bolden is a courageous human for putting his family and team above his health.
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Statistics Courtesy of Pro Football Reference