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5 Questions Looming Over Patriots

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One week from today the Patriots will play a mostly meaningless last preseason game, relying primarily on the 23 players who will either be on the practice squad or the street shortly after.

But there are still plenty of questions looming. Position battles to be won. Final roster spots to be claimed. Make no mistake, the 2016 Patriots are still far from set.

Yes, tomorrow will be a fascinating test (despite the lack of gameplanning as BB pointed out this week) and the competition is still tight at a number of spots.

Here are five areas that will have to be figured out in the next eight days.

1. Who is the fifth cornerback?

This should be fascinating to watch as Darryl Roberts, Jonathan Jones and Cre’Von LeBlanc go head-to-head in the final two games of the preseason. None have ideal size, but all are feisty and competitive, unafraid to be physical. Those have quickly become hallmarks of the Patriots cornerback crop, probably their strongest top-to-bottom group since Bill Belichick arrived. Jones and LeBlanc showed up well in the first game against the Saints. Roberts had a great game against the Bears. What will give one of them the inside track for the fifth cornerback spot? Consistency, tackling and perhaps most of all, special teams ability. At this moment I’m giving the edge to Roberts, but there’s still a long way to go and these three will see a ton of snaps in the last two games.

2. Is Gaffney the guy or just a guy?

I really don’t know what to think anymore at running back. Last year I had Jonas Gray as a lock. He had little competition, was coming off that one impressive Colts game and even busted a long run in the preseason that had everyone thinking Gray was going to be a significant part of the offense. And then he got cut. I feel the same way about Gaffney now. He had that long run against the Saints and has picked up the tough yards. Hasn’t all been flashy, but it’s been effective. Does that translate to the regular season? I really have no idea. Would love to see Gaffney put an exclamation point on the preseason in these final two games. Taking the ball into the endzone from three yards out through heavy traffic just might do it. I want to believe Gaffney can be part of an early season/early down rotation with Blount and White. But I just don’t know for sure.

3. Coleman vs. Cyrus

I still think the competition between Cyrus Jones and Justin Coleman is very much alive heading into the last two games. Coleman has gotten picked on, and was forced to cover receivers who had distinct height advantages, but I still really like how aggressive he is. He’s always around the ball. Even when he doesn’t make the play, he’s always right here. Cyrus (who will be Cyrus not Jones henceforth) made an awesome interception against the Bears. Those are the kind of plays he made at Alabama and it’s a good sign he’s making them in the preseason now as well. There’s definitely a spot for both of them, but only one will get the coveted third CB position to start.

4. Is there a place for Anthony Johnson?

Yeah he set the world on fire against the Bears, looking like the kind of player we all wanted Dominique Easley to be (and that he often showed flashes of). Is Johnson really that good? Or perhaps the better question is, do the Pats need a three-technique pass rusher with their bevy of defensive ends who can shift inside? The last couple seasons it sure seemed like they wanted those kind of defensive tackles on the roster, but this offseason made me question that. With Ninkovich and Sheard battling injuries, the need for someone like Johnson could be greater. Simply put, who’s the better interior rusher — Johnson or Geneo Grissom. Last week it sure looked like Johnson. He’ll need to keep showing up and if he does he’ll be a difficult cut. You always need pass rushers.

5. Who can be counted on next to Malcom Brown?

Alan Branch had to be suspended for something, Terrence Knighton has had a rough couple games, Markus Kuhn hasn’t shown much in plenty of time with the 1s, Vincent Valentine probably needs a year of seasoning. So who can be the guy next to Malcom Brown? Brown picked up right where he left off with his strong rookie season. He’ll never leave the field unless it’s a pure pass rush situation, aka third-and-long. Branch has been one of the strongest defenders on the team the last two seasons. Will this discipline be a bad sign of things to come? Can Knighton turn it around? The likely answer is that Branch will step back into his role, and Knighton will start to look better as he rounds into shape. But nothing is assured at this point and we need to see more out of this entire group, outside of Brown.


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