Go Ninkopoop Go!
In all seriousness though folks I really like the Ninkopoop, even though I call him Ninkopoop.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/go-ninkopoop-go-in-all-seriousness-though-folks/
rob ninkovich
Some pictures for the barren walls of Gillette Stadium…
https://www.patspropaganda.com/some-pictures-for-the-barren-walls-of-gillette/
Notes on a Feel Good Patriots Win
The tide turned against the New England Patriots this week, and once again they showed that rumors of their demise had been greatly exaggerated. Here’s a tid bit from Ian Rapoport about BB’s pregame motivation:
The master motivator, Belichick had a barb for every player, emphasizing why they weren’t wanted or why they were overlooked. He ended telling them they played “just OK” for three weeks, but in Sun Life Stadium, “We explode.”
Explode they did. At least on offense and special teams. The funny thing is that there will be much love for the Patriots over the next twelve days but just as we didn’t get too low after the Jets/Bills games, we’re not getting too high after what might look like a blowout of the Phins.
The fact is that yes, the defense showed improvements and made some big plays, but they also gave up 66% of their third downs. The promising thing is that the Patriots defense is really not that far away. Just getting to that many third downs as a defense is a positive. Once they tighten up and stop a few more of them they’ll be on their way.
QUICK HIT THOUGHTS:
Brandon Deaderick showed up well in limited snaps, showing power to drive offensive lineman back.
Ron Brace didn’t play a defensive snap that I saw. Not sure if that’s an indictment of his play of late, but I think it’s probably because they wanted Wilfork at LE for this one and that’s the only position Brace has played this year going all the way back to training camp.
If you’re one of the people banging the we need pass rush drum I think you need to start looking at Myron Pryor/Mike Wright and not just the OLBs. Pryor and Wright are the guys responsible for getting interior rush and you’ve probably noticed we haven’t seen much from them. Wright gets somewhat of a pass since he logged heavy time at nosetackle but Pryor needs to start producing. Myron plays the role Jarvis Green used to have, and he seems to have a good motor, but he really needs to get into the 5 sack range. If he doesn’t start getting consistent pressure this season he could be marked for upgrade this offseason.
Another guy that I’m starting to lose patience with is Gary Guyton. He’s been moved back to a sub-package coverage linebacker role, usually covering runningbacks and tight ends, occasionally blitzing, and it seems like the backs and tight ends are consistently killing the Patriots defense. I’d be curious to see more Jarrad Page in that role if Guyton can’t start making plays.
Banta-Cain, Cunningham, and Ninkovich are all playing a lot in a variety of spots. It is interesting to see how Cunningham got the start at ROLB again, I wonder if the coaches feel he is better against the run than TBC, and/or if this is just a way to help keep TBC fresh for pass rushing.
Cunningham continues to show flashes, if he continues to improve it looks like the Patriots will have finally hit on an OLB via the draft.
Looks like the light is finally starting to come on for Meriweather and that’s a good sign. Shalise Manza-Young reported that she didn’t think his knee injury was serious. That is good. The Patriots really need Meriweather.
I have to say I feel kind of proud of PatChung! after the way I was pimping him all off-season. It’s nice to see a player you believe in have a breakout game. Now everyone needs to catch on that he doesn’t go by Patrick. I also really enjoyed his “Woosah” comment on the postgame interview. Perhaps that becomes this season’s defensive catch phrase.
Rob Ninkopoop made two great plays on his interceptions. He’s one player who is really seeming to improve with each snap he gets. He might not be Mike Vrabel but he’s a smart player and has the athleticism to compete on every down.
I love the thought of everyone complaining about how the Patriots always acquire/draft noted special teams players eating a nice, greasy shit sandwich this morning.
Devin McCourty’s fourth quarter, fourth down tackle of Ronnie Brown won’t make the highlight packages but it was an excellent heads up play by the rookie that Bill Belichick made a point to congratulate him on. McCourty looks like he could be a special player.
I try not to get past this year, but imagining this team with Bodden and Ty Warren back next year makes me warm and fuzzy. Assuming there’s not a lockout….
That Woodhead touchdown was a vintage Kevin Faulk one. I don’t know if Woody can block like Faulk but he clearly brings some pass catching ability to the party. Every time he touches the ball must make Rex Ryan shake his head.
Aaron Hernandez was a fourth rounder and is the youngest player in the NFL? Wow and double wow.
It’s kind of unheard of these days for a running back like Law Firm to be developed over three seasons, isn’t it? He runs hard and always gains positive yardage. Maybe there won’t be as much turnover at RB this offseason as we thought.
What can you say about Tom Brady getting to 100 wins faster than any quarterback in NFL history? It’s clear that Brady is back to the old Brady now. I guess it really does take two years to get back to 100%. (Welker in 2011?)
I heard Jay Shields mention on the Patscast podcast after week one that he thought Sebastian Vollmer had regressed a little bit and after last night I think it’s pretty clear that he’s right. Shields thought Vollmer was going back to relying too much on his athletic ability rather than technique and is paying the price for it against good pass rushers like the relentless Cameron Wake.
How about Dan Connolly?
Special Teams can be a feast some games, but a famine in others. Maintaining consistency is one of the hardest things for a football team, but it appears that at the very least, the kickoff return team must be respected and game planned for by opponents.
The Patriots head into the bye week feeling pretty good, but there is still much work to be done. With the Ravens coming back into Foxboro, then a cross country trip to San Diego, the Patriots must continue to tighten up the blown coverages and mistackles on defense.
As Mike Lombardi has pointed out the advantage to having a young defense is that you can practice hard and improve throughout the season. This young Patriots defense must do just that.
Patriots Wednesday OTA Observation Huddle Up
You had to be excited for media access day at OTAs today, but no one could’ve predicted that Wes Welker would be on the field. Of course Michael Silver had plans of his own today, deciding to turn “talks between Pats and Brady are going slowly” into “this might possibly lead to something but it probably won’t” article that of course every member of the Boston media had to hop on.
We stick to the positive propaganda here, we’ve read the recaps, and here are the non-Welker tidbits that we’ve found most interesting:
The linebackers split up during one segment that included seven-on-seven work. Crable, Mayo, Guyton, Eric Alexander, Pierre Woods, Williams, Banta-Cain and Spikes remained on the field with the defensive backs and worked on coverage. Burgess, Cunningham and Ninkovich went to work with the defensive linemen.
On the outside I saw many different guys get reps on both sides with a variety of groupings in different drills. I saw some with Tully Banta-Cain on the left and Derrick Burgess on the right. I saw Jermaine Cunningham on the left with Burgess on the right. I saw Burgess on the left. I saw guys like Shawn Crable, Rob Ninkovich and everyone else on the depth chart rotate through.
Maybe it’s reading into it, but I think this is very significant. Why? Because it says to me that Burgess, Cunningham, and Ninkovich are considered primarily pass rushers, while Crable, Woods, Williams, and Banta-Cain are those we could be seeing on early downs as run stoppers (i.e. “starting”).
Of course the Patriots linebackers are versatile, you’ll see all of them all over the place. But I’m surprised to see Ninkovich with the lineman. And I’m happy to see my boy Crable with the defensive backs.
With two-time Pro Bowler Logan Mankins not present for the voluntary session, veteran tackle Nick Kaczur was inserted at his spot at left guard. Second-year man Sebastian Vollmer took reps at right tackle, with Matt Light remaining at left tackle.
Ultimately when Mankins comes back we’ll be back to Kaczur and Vollmer battling it out at RT, but knowing now that Kaczur has the confidence and ability to play guard, we should have a better sense of why the Patriots gave him a contract extension. He’s versatile and could be the new Russ Hochstein.
TE Aaron Hernandez looks like he’s ticketed for a significant role as a rookie. We all know why he fell to the fourth round, and if the kid has his act together – as I’ve said in the past – he could be a big-time steal. The offense rotated a bunch too, but Hernandez was with Brady’s group a lot, and seems to be getting a lot of personal attention from the coaches. His fellow rookie TE, Rob Gronkowski, is working behind Alge Crumpler as the in-line tight end for now. Hernandez looks aware in recognizing coverage, sitting down in zones, and smooth running routes and catching the ball.
Aaron Hernandez once again looked very good. He has very good hands, moves well and shows pretty good route versatility. He was part of a five-wide set in group work that also included Moss, Julian Edelman, Kevin Faulk and Alge Crumpler.
Hernandez could be the offensive steal of the draft. If he can progress he’s going to be an excellent safety valve for Brady, especially against attacking defenses like the Jets.
LB Brandon Spikes is being coached pretty hard too, and with a purpose. Coaches seemed to be working on him as a signal caller. Told you back at the rookie minicamp that this guy’s ability to diagnose plays and react was uncanny. Well, this is another encouraging piece to the puzzle – The coaches feel comfortable enough with him, and his progress, to drill him on setting the defensive front. Not earth-shattering or anything. But worth mentioning, at least.
I would’ve like to heard something about Tyron McKenzie but he got no mentions on any of the blogs. Not sure if that’s good or bad. Regardless it’s full steam ahead for Spikes. Someone needs to emerge from the group as a playmaker, and it seems Spikes has as good of a shot as anyone. Especially after the reports last week that his hands are excellent, picking an interception out of the air effortlessly like he did many times at Florida.
Making Sense of the Patriots Linebacker Corps
Bill Belichick loves him some linebackers, but without a single high priced free agent among them, this is largely an unproven group, drafted by Belichick or pulled from the NFL free agency scrap heap.
I am excited about this young group, because there will be a lot of opportunities. The group:
Tully Banta-Cain: Now the eldest statesmen of the Patriots linebacking corps after spending 2007 and 2008 in San Francisco. TBC had 10 sacks last year, and was generally the Patriots best player on defense, along with Vince Wilfork. Expect him to continue as a 3-down contributor, who would benefit from additional pressure across from him.
Jerod Mayo: The young captain of the defense whose play was limited my a sprained MCL in the first game of 2009. Look for Mayo to play the Will (Weak Inside Linebacker) where he should continue to use his speed and instincts to only get better.
Gary Guyton: Guyton got a lot of experience in many different positions in 2009, and along with Brandon Meriweather played the highest number of snaps of anyone on the Pats defense. He looks to be his best in coverage, but still has some versatility to play OLB when the Pats go to their 4-3 defense.
Rob Ninkovich: Ninkovich has kicked around the league for a few years, but did enough in 2009 to earn him a contract extension. The Pats must like him, and he does look somewhat like a Vrabel clone (#50 aside). If he can prove sturdy against the run he could be the starting LOLB against Cincinnati.
Pierre Woods: Woods got some time in the base defense in 2009, and was largely invisible. Looks like Pierre is what he is, a solid special teams player. And that’s fine.
Shawn Crable: Year three of crazy legs is about to begin. I have to say, I’m a big “look” guy and based on Crable’s look I really want him to be good. He’s got a lot of length and speed, here’s hoping it will finally translate to a unique OLB.
Tyrone McKenzie: McKenzie gets a lot of love for the dude that he is, and how hard he works. He was productive in every defense he’s ever played in. But figuring out the Mayo-Guyton-Spikes-McKenzie rotation seems impossible at this point. But he’s played lot of LB positions in lots of defenses so who knows what BB could come up with.
Brandon Spikes: Seems like everyone in Patriots Nation loved the Spikes pick and he should really bring a Ted Johnson-esque presence, along with leadership, that has been missing. Spikes can relieve Guyton from heavy run stopping responsibility at SILB (Mike), and allow Mayo to WILB (Will).
Jermaine Cunningham: Hard to expect much out of a rookie DE-OLB conversion project, but if Cunningham can just start as a sub-package rusher he should be able to contribute right away. And if he gets snaps at OLB on early downs it’s icing on the cake.
