The Hunger Games are in full swing down in
Foxborough. 90 players on the roster playing for 53 spots on the roster; 61 if
you count the practice squad but whose NFL dream was it to make the practice
squad? And the harsh reality is that all 53 spots are not open to competition.
Earlier in July, estimable ESPN Boston scribe Mike Reiss projected 49 locks or near locks on the current roster. So…
4 open spots on the roster.
37 men are playing for those 4 spots.
Math is hard.
Smashing and Dashing
Mike Petraglia and Christopher Price broke down Day 2 and Rob Gronkowski’s progress, referencing nicknames Gronkalicious and The Full Gronkowski but I
think I’m going with The Big Gronkowski. If anyone on this team is
The Dude it’s Rob Gronkowski. Gronk’s “smashing and
dashing” quote is the early favorite for Best Sound Bite of the Summer. Gronk
is likely his own biggest competition when it comes to quotable quotes, of
course. Gronkowski is, by his own words, less than 100% but the fact that he’s
on the practice field, running and cutting, is like Christmas in July for
Patriots fans.
More to come. We wait with anticipation and
anxiety for The Big Gronkowski to participate in 7-on-7’ and 11-on-11’s. (Half
speed on Sunday!) We wait for the first report of a hit that takes him to
ground followed by a grinning Gronk trotting back to the huddle.
Okay, some of us (I’m looking at me!) will be
holding their breath every time Gronk makes a catch this season. As he looks around
for a defensive back to truck, as he carries a cornerback and a safety on his
back for another five yards we’ll be yelling, “Get down! Get out of bounds!”
and we will heave a sigh of relief as he gets up and is greeted by a hollering,
high-fiving Tom Brady.
The wife has suggested I start taking CoQ10 for my
heart.
I think she might be right.
Extra Mayo
Bill Belichick’s uncharacteristic and effusive praise of Jerod Mayo prompted the old debate about Mayo from local pigskin pundits and
bobbleheads. Andy Hart of Patriots.com was on WEEI on the drive home yesterday
making the argument that Mayo is good but he isn’t special. He isn’t Patrick Willis. He isn’t what you want
from the #10 pick in the draft. Mayo is good for 140 tackles, Hart’s argument
went, but he isn’t a playmaker.
I just don’t get this argument. You only get
credit for a tackle if the offensive player did not score. That’s not making a play? Whatever. Patrick Willis is a
great player; the gold standard for NFL linebackers. He also plays in a
different system than the one the Patriots run and that has something to do
with the numbers, too. Look at Mayo’s 2012 numbers with New England running
more 4-3 and you see a bump in those “playmaking” stats.
Am I arguing that Mayo is as good or better than
Willis?
No, I am not.
But I do remember this from Bill “Stats Are For
Losers” Belichick. A number of years ago, in a post-game presser, he was asked
about a sack. It might’ve been Tully Banta-Cain; let’s say it was. Belichick
was asked about Banta-Cain’s ability to get to the QB. Belichick answered that
the only reason Banta-Cain got the sack on that play was because of how Junior
Seau handled his coverage responsibilities. Similarly, Mike Reiss, in his bold predictions column tabbed Chandler
Jones for a career year in sacks in part because of Darrelle Revis, Brandon
Browner and the improved defensive backfield provided better coverage.
More recently, Belichick made a similar argument
regarding Dominique Easley’s college production, noting that opponents had to
double- and triple-team Easley, giving his teammates opportunities for sacks
and tackles. Easley’s pressure would force the quarterback to hold the ball so
a teammate could make the play.
In 10 years in the NFL, including his injury
shortened 2013 season, Vince Wilfork has 16 sacks, 4 forced fumbles, 12 fumbles
recovered and 2 interceptions. He has never had 100 tackles in a season because
his job is to tie up two and sometimes three offensive linemen so his teammates
can make a play.
Is Vince Wilfork a playmaker?
Is Jerod Mayo a playmaker?
I’m just glad they’re both back on the field.
No Man is an Island, Unless
his Name is Darrelle Revis
Darrelle Revis pronounced himself to be in the best shape of his career after Day 2
and proceeded to go out and prove it on Day 3, intercepting Tom Brady twice and
knocking down a couple more attempts that came his way.
It seems unlikely Revis will lead the league in
interceptions in 2014. I doubt he’ll be in the Top 20 for passes defended. It’s
hard to defend a pass when nobody’s throwing them in your direction. Recent
discussions of the Patriots playing Cover One have as much to do with
Revis’ ability to take one half of the field away from opposing offenses as it
does with Devin McCourty entering his prime at safety. McCourty could lead the
league in interceptions and Chandler Jones could lead the league in sacks in
part because of the Revis Effect.
Aqib Talib played well for the Patriots and I
would’ve been happy had he re-signed but Revis is better. Significantly better.
I don’t think there’s any debate on that. Talib isn’t even in the
Revis-Sherman-Peterson conversation. In a game decided by small margins, an
upgrade at any position can be the difference between winning and losing; an
upgrade at a position like cornerback can be the difference between a loss in
the AFC Championship and a win in the Super Bowl.
The addition of Revis, Brandon Browner and draft
choice Dominique Easley, the return to health of Wilfork, Kelly and Mayo, the
continued development of Chandler Jones, Dont’a Hightower, Jamie Collins, Logan
Ryan and Duron Harmon with Devin McCourty playing at a pro bowl level at safety
has pigskin pundits and bobbleheads asking if this defense has the look of the
2003-04 champions, if this secondary is the best of Belichick’s tenure in
Foxborough.
That these questions are even being asked is
encouragement enough for those of us looking wistfully at Lombardi Trophy #4.
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