The New England Patriots began the next stage of their offseason workout program this week when they started organized team activities practices.

The Patriots open OTAs to the media Thursday, and it will be a valuable, if not limited, first look at the 2023 roster. There really is only so much you can glean from OTAs, but there are certain positions that are easier to evaluate than others.

We’re eager to see the progress of these seven young Patriots players.

QB Bailey Zappe

Listen, we have a pretty good idea of what Mac Jones will look like at OTAs, right? He’ll be good. He’ll be efficient, just like he was at OTAs and minicamp last offseason, but this time he’ll have a better play-caller in Bill O’Brien.

But we don’t really know how Zappe will look. What if he’s just as good? What if he’s better? What if he’s terrible? It’s unclear how real this quarterback competition will really be this spring and summer. But competition can breed improvement. And if Zappe looks good, then that should push Jones to be even better. And if Jones can't be better, then we could see Zappe starting games again in 2023.

RB Pierre Strong

It would be massive if Strong can be a complement to Rhamondre Stevenson this season. Strong is undersized but speedy and would add a different playmaking element in New England’s typical third-down role if he can progress enough as a pass blocker.

Strong didn’t produce much as a rookie. We’d like to see him involved in the passing attack this spring.

WR Kayshon Boutte

Boutte, a rookie, fell to the sixth round due to injuries, off-field concerns and a poor NFL Scouting Combine showing. He’s still a fun prospect based on his pedigree as a five-star recruit. He was fantastic as a freshman at LSU before his college career went a little off the rails. He was worth the risk to see if he can get back on track in the NFL.

It's unlikely that we'll see Boutte taking first- or second-team reps, but he could still light up the field with other rookies and reserves.

WR Tyquan Thornton

The Patriots took Thornton in the second round last year, he suffered a collarbone injury over the summer, still wound up playing more than half of New England’s offensive snaps but didn’t have much to show for it from a production standpoint. Let’s see where he’s at in Year 2 as he initially competes for snaps with JuJu Smith-Schuster, DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne and tight end Mike Gesicki.

CB Christian Gonzalez

The Oregon product fell out of the top 10 picks and into New England’s lap at No. 17 overall. We’d like to see him immediately slotted in as a starting cornerback on defense. Let's see how well he can compete with those wide receivers listed above.

CB Marcus Jones

The Patriots probably won’t be revealing many trick plays or unique personnel packages during OTAs, but we are curious to see where Jones lines up on offense, defense and special teams this spring. He’s small at 5-foot-8, 175 pounds but still played most of his snaps last season at outside cornerback. He also adds a valuable playmaking threat on offense and as a return specialist. This is an important offseason for players like Strong, Thornton and Jones to make significant progress as they head into Year 2.

K Chad Ryland

The Patriots moved up in the fourth round to take their kicker of the future in Ryland. He’ll compete with Nick Folk for the Patriots’ placekicking job in OTAs, minicamp, training camp and the preseason. It will be easy to monitor the competition with makes and misses in practice. If Ryland can't beat out Folk, it would be a major upset.