PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

Me personally I love the Easley pick but how do yhu see the dline rotation playing out. Easley, Bequette, Buchanan, Siligia, Chris Jones, Vellano, Armstead,Wilfork, Kelly, Will Smith, Chandler Jones , & Ninkovich. Who makes the team. Which unit could be most dangerous. Best pass rushing unit & best run stopping unit.

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Getting a lot of questions like this today for obvious reasons. I think the important thing is that injuries and competition have to play out. Especially in a situation like this, where there is some uncertainty due to injury.

But it’s fun to pretend, so let’s assume everybody’s healthy and there are no major surprises.

4-3 (standard run defense): Ninkovich-Wilfork-Kelly-Chandler

4-3 (double nose): Ninkovich-Siliga-Wilfork-Chandler

3-4: Kelly-Wilfork-Chandler Ninkovich-Hightower-Mayo-Collins

Nickel (run protection): Ninkovich-Wilfork-Easley-Chandler

Nickel (pass rush): Ninkovich-Chris Jones/Armstead-Easley-Chandler

or

Ninkovich-Chandler-Easley-Buchanan/Wil Smith

Dime (3-2-6): Buchanan-Wilfork-Easley Collins/Mayo at LB

As you can see there are plenty of options and a number of guys can be mixed and matched. I think Easley and probably Chris Jones are locks at DT, but after them Armstead/Kelly/Vellano will have to duke it out. Kelly could sneak on by getting PUP’d. I’d guess the Pats will be creative and calculating when it comes to the PUP list.

The good news is that there is depth and a number of options, however the lack of depth on the edges could be a problem. Ninkovich and Chandler are keys to almost every package.

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Last year [Marquice] Cole sort of did that, played some safety, played some nickel corner, played a little bit on the perimeter. Logan did that [too]. We’ll have to see how it all comes together, but I would imagine in the spring that we probably give [him] some exposure [at safety again],” Belichick said. “I think there’s definitely a place for that too with the different personnel groups and the different types of receivers that we see. Every time it’s three receivers, it isn’t quite three receivers; it depends on who those three guys are and how you want to match up on them and so forth. So some flexibility for us defensively is probably a good thing over a long haul.

New England Patriots Blog – ESPN Boston

This makes sense. What didn’t make sense was putting Logan Ryan out as a safety with McCourty as the starting safety tandem.

https://www.patspropaganda.com/last-year-marquice-cole-sort-of-did-that/

Upon further review of the Patriots roster

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After a full day to reflect and evaluate both the draft picks but the multitude of undrafted rookies who are now getting acclimated in Foxboro, I’m getting a better feel for the Pats 2014 roster.

The first thing that no draft haul should make us forget is that the Patriots have arguably the best players in the NFL on both the offensive and defensive side of the balls. Brady and Revis alone will make for another exciting year that will have the Pats in the hunt.

The top of the depth chart is loaded. There are certainly injury questions that will likely linger into the first month or two of the season. But luckily, that’s not when Super Bowls are won.

I don’t want to make too broad of a prediction, but I think the Pats’ Super Bowl hopes will hinge directly on how healthy Gronkowski and the defensive end/linebacker positions are come January.

They have their best depth in the secondary, offensive line and at wide receiver. The competition at those spots in training camp should be fascinating.

Michael Buchanan remains a player the team needs to take a big step forward. Will Smith is still recovering from his ACL injury, rookie Zach Moore is as raw as the come, and Jake Bequette will need to come out of nowhere to make the team again.

This is the most stacked I’ve ever seen the Patriots on defense since the mid-2000’s. They can play any front and Belichick will mix and match guys based on matchups. I feel confident about what the Pats pass rush will look like this season, even with some uncertainty at designated pass rusher.

Each year since 2009 the defense has added pieces and gotten a little better. This could be the year that we really see them take off, I really believe it. 

Offensively, it’s all about getting and keeping Gronk healthy and the young wide receivers developing. The interior of the line has been reinforced and it wouldn’t be a shock to see a rookie starting at center or right guard (or both?).

There are some some spots where they’re thin, but as we saw last year, they have a remarkable ability to overcome injuries that would cripple most teams. On paper, this is a Super Bowl contending team.

We’ll see who’s on the field come January before we truly know how good a shot they have at number four.