http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2015/09/09/new-england-patriots-defense-nfl-season-preview
Nice preview about the issues that the Patriots have on D at the moment. The main points:
1. With a depleted cornerbacking corps, the Patriots are nowhere near as good as they were a year ago, but they’ll still win the AFC East. Because they have Tom Brady. At 38, Brady is coming off arguably his finest season, and certainly his most impressive Super Bowl performance. He has mastered this ball-control offense and, last season, showed newfound improvements as an on-the-move passer (granted, he doesn’t do this often). He also maintained his usual brilliant footwork and snap decision-making from in the pocket. And, despite an advancing age, the most underrated part of Brady’s game—his arm strength—has shown no decline.
2. New England’s offensive line struggled throughout most of 2014, markedly in September but even into late December. With the only alteration coming at left guard (Dan Connolly has retired; Josh Kline takes over, with fourth-round rookie Tre’ Jackson possibly in the mix), there’s little reason to think much will change. The only hope is that the younger guys, second-year center Bryan Stork and certainly fifth-year left tackle Nate Solder (who barely counts as “younger” anymore), improve. Brady and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels have done a great job disguising this line’s deficiencies through three-step timing pass concepts, as well as a power-infused running game that features a sixth O-lineman and/or a fullback, plus selective use of up-tempo no-huddle, something the Patriots have always done well.
[SLAINE - worth noting that Bryan Stork is out with a concussion]
3. Here’s how you defend New England’s two best receiving threats: against Rob Gronkowski, you must be physical with him coming off the line of scrimmage. You won’t often outwork him here, but you at least stand a chance of disrupting the timing of his seam and post patterns, which can also compromise many of New England’s shallow routes. With Julian Edelman, you must play short-area zone concepts and assign man-coverage responsibilities based on his release off the line. (If Edelman goes inside, Defender A takes him; if he goes outside, Defender B takes him.) You can’t play one defender straight-up against Edelman; the Patriots do too good of job at putting the shifty 5-10, 200-pounder in motion and getting him free access off the line of scrimmage. It’s nearly impossible to win with just one dedicated defender against a presnap motioning receiver who’s behind the line.
4. Running back is an interchangeable position in New England’s offense, but Shane Vereen, who’s now a Giant, will prove very difficult to replace. His proficiency as a receiver—both on backfield option routes and as a mismatch-creator when split out wide—was enormous for this offense. The Patriots would not have won Super Bowl 49 without Vereen. Ex-Saint Travaris Cadet was signed to fill this role. He’s underrated, but it’s hard to see him splitting out at wide receiver and achieving Vereen’s level of success.
5. Jerod Mayo is the fifth-highest-paid guy on the team, which typically is a call for one’s release when coming off a second-straight season-ending injury, especially with two young stars (Hightower and Collins) emerging at your position. But cutting Mayo would have cost the Pats $10.5 million in dead money. And so the 29-year-old gets a chance to prove his mettle in 2015 and earn the right to at least play out the final two years of his contract. Here’s hoping he does. Mayo is a smart, fundamentally sound player who more than once has held this linebacking unit together when it had nothing else.
Nice preview about the issues that the Patriots have on D at the moment. The main points:
1. With a depleted cornerbacking corps, the Patriots are nowhere near as good as they were a year ago, but they’ll still win the AFC East. Because they have Tom Brady. At 38, Brady is coming off arguably his finest season, and certainly his most impressive Super Bowl performance. He has mastered this ball-control offense and, last season, showed newfound improvements as an on-the-move passer (granted, he doesn’t do this often). He also maintained his usual brilliant footwork and snap decision-making from in the pocket. And, despite an advancing age, the most underrated part of Brady’s game—his arm strength—has shown no decline.
2. New England’s offensive line struggled throughout most of 2014, markedly in September but even into late December. With the only alteration coming at left guard (Dan Connolly has retired; Josh Kline takes over, with fourth-round rookie Tre’ Jackson possibly in the mix), there’s little reason to think much will change. The only hope is that the younger guys, second-year center Bryan Stork and certainly fifth-year left tackle Nate Solder (who barely counts as “younger” anymore), improve. Brady and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels have done a great job disguising this line’s deficiencies through three-step timing pass concepts, as well as a power-infused running game that features a sixth O-lineman and/or a fullback, plus selective use of up-tempo no-huddle, something the Patriots have always done well.
[SLAINE - worth noting that Bryan Stork is out with a concussion]
3. Here’s how you defend New England’s two best receiving threats: against Rob Gronkowski, you must be physical with him coming off the line of scrimmage. You won’t often outwork him here, but you at least stand a chance of disrupting the timing of his seam and post patterns, which can also compromise many of New England’s shallow routes. With Julian Edelman, you must play short-area zone concepts and assign man-coverage responsibilities based on his release off the line. (If Edelman goes inside, Defender A takes him; if he goes outside, Defender B takes him.) You can’t play one defender straight-up against Edelman; the Patriots do too good of job at putting the shifty 5-10, 200-pounder in motion and getting him free access off the line of scrimmage. It’s nearly impossible to win with just one dedicated defender against a presnap motioning receiver who’s behind the line.
4. Running back is an interchangeable position in New England’s offense, but Shane Vereen, who’s now a Giant, will prove very difficult to replace. His proficiency as a receiver—both on backfield option routes and as a mismatch-creator when split out wide—was enormous for this offense. The Patriots would not have won Super Bowl 49 without Vereen. Ex-Saint Travaris Cadet was signed to fill this role. He’s underrated, but it’s hard to see him splitting out at wide receiver and achieving Vereen’s level of success.
5. Jerod Mayo is the fifth-highest-paid guy on the team, which typically is a call for one’s release when coming off a second-straight season-ending injury, especially with two young stars (Hightower and Collins) emerging at your position. But cutting Mayo would have cost the Pats $10.5 million in dead money. And so the 29-year-old gets a chance to prove his mettle in 2015 and earn the right to at least play out the final two years of his contract. Here’s hoping he does. Mayo is a smart, fundamentally sound player who more than once has held this linebacking unit together when it had nothing else.
