Mike Dussault

The interesting thing that I’ve found upon further analysis of the Patriots 4-3 defense is that the alignment of their interior lineman is actually more of a 4-3 Over than 4-3 Under.

In the 4-3 Over the Nose Tackle (Vince Wilfork) is to the weak side, and the defensive tackle (Haynesworth*) is on the strong side.

While in the traditional 4-3 Under like Pete Carroll’s (the one we initially thought was the model for the new Patriots tweak), the nose tackle is in the strong side A gap and the defensive tackle is in the weak B gap as somewhat of a better pass rush than run stopper.

Why the switch?

I’d say because they want to ensure that they protect Jerod Mayo with their best defensive lineman, aka Vince Wilfork. Haynesworth* would also work well on the strong side, blowing up runs and also getting mostly one-on-one match ups. With those two guys you’d only need two traditional defensive lineman.

But again, who knows what exactly we saw Thursday night. It was whatever BB felt like revealing to the sixteen NFL scouts that were in attendance. An extraordinary number of scouts all who needed to check out if the Patriots 4-3 rumors were legit.

Just look below at how much space Gary Guyton has. Now imagine he’s Jerod Mayo and that’s Wilfork and Moore in front of him. He’ll have plenty of space to use his speed and make plays all over the field.