The New England Patriots will need their young players to step up this season if they want any shot at success.
NBC Sports' Peter King believes the team's second-round draft pick will be up to that task and then some.
In his NFL predictions column Monday, King tabbed Patriots outside linebacker Josh Uche as his choice to win NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, ahead of top-three draft picks Chase Young and Jeff Okudah.
Why is King so bullish on Uche? It's all about opportunity.
"The 60th pick in the draft is intriguing because he’s a little undersized (6-3, 230) and he played only 53 percent of the defensive snaps at Michigan last year.