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New England Patriots ‘09 Preview
June 29, 2009 by Andy Benoit
Maybe Bill Belichick’s legions of critics were prophetic. Maybe his New England Patriots did wind up pissing off the football gods. During New England’s historic 2007 season, most of the non-Patriots fans who were not irate about Spygate were eventually turned off by what they perceived to be the head coach’s hubris.
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New England Patriots 2009 Quick Hits
June 29, 2009 by Andy Benoit
Quick-hitting one-liner analysis on every Patriots starter and significant offseason acquisition.
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Would it hurt your feelings if I said that guy is one of the worst writers I've ever read?
Could be he needed to use colorful terms like Football Gawds another ten or twenty times. I never thought Seymour and Warren were very vociferous. I'd say they are both rather laconic, even taciturn.
But it's good to know Gary Guyton is ready to step in at outside linebacker if Woods struggles. I thought he was being worked at inside linebacker, but what do I know?
Glad Mayo's already the best ILB in the league, when did that happen?
Kids been writing crap since he's been in the 4th grade ... with the help of his mother. supposedly never went to an NFL game until college which he might have graduated by now. Probably a Jet's fan.
It was a nice preview to read but I disagree with a couple of his points.
Quote:
New England’s 2007 first-round pick, Brandon Meriweather, will work at strong safety.
I seriously hope the Pats don't play him at SS because he is clearly better as a FS. I want to see Merriweather playing "center field" where he excels, not trying to be a "in the box" safety which he isn't. Sanders and Merriweather should flip positions.
Quote:
And if Pierre Woods, Vrabel’s replacement, should struggle, New England has a very talented alternate in second-year pro Gary Guyton.
Because of injuries, they tried to put Guyton at OLB last year and he got manhandled. Unless Guyton steps up his game, he's better as a ILB. Shawn Crable is the next in line to replace Woods if he struggles. In fact, I'm sure we will see Crable in a lot of pass rushing situations this season.
Quote:
At cornerback, the tentative plan is to start Jonathan Wilhite opposite newcomer Leigh Bodden.
I highly doubt they want Wilhite to start at CB, that role would belong to Springs. In fact, the Pats aren't paying Springs just to be a motivational coach for the young guys. The most likely scenerio, Wheatley, Wilhite and Butler will be battling for the "slot" CB position unless they're ahead of schedule and beat out Springs or Bodden.
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What’s more, playing behind this line is second-year star Jerod Mayo, already the league’s best inside linebacker.
While Mayo is on the right track, he's not the best ILB in the game. I think that award belongs to Patrick Willis.
Heybrowhatup, you're right. I agree that that is what they drafted Chung for and this guy barely mentions his name. The guy was our top pick aferall.
That wasnt a typo. im alitte dwunk.
Heybrowhatup, you're right. I agree that that is what they drafted Chung for and this guy barely mentions his name. The guy was our top pick aferall.
That wasnt a typo. im alitte dwunk.
Party on bro!
Last edited by HEY BRO! WHAT UP?; 07-10-2009 at 11:09 PM..
I seriously hope the Pats don't play him at SS because he is clearly better as a FS. I want to see Merriweather playing "center field" where he excels, not trying to be a "in the box" safety which he isn't. Sanders and Merriweather should flip positions.
Because of injuries, they tried to put Guyton at OLB last year and he got manhandled. Unless Guyton steps up his game, he's better as a ILB. Shawn Crable is the next in line to replace Woods if he struggles. In fact, I'm sure we will see Crable in a lot of pass rushing situations this season.
I highly doubt they want Wilhite to start at CB, that role would belong to Springs. In fact, the Pats aren't paying Springs just to be a motivational coach for the young guys. The most likely scenerio, Wheatley, Wilhite and Butler will be battling for the "slot" CB position unless they're ahead of schedule and beat out Springs or Bodden.
While Mayo is on the right track, he's not the best ILB in the game. I think that award belongs to Patrick Willis.
Yeah I don't understand why they had Sanders playing FS and Merriweather playing SS. Sanders biggest weakness is speed/tackling in the open field and Brandon's biggest weakness is run stuffing.
You hit the nail on everything else. But don't forget about TBC (even if you may like too). For what he lacks in the run game he makes up for in the passing game. He is fairly quick and I could see him in on passing downs early if Crable isn't ready or hurt.
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I seriously hope the Pats don't play him at SS because he is clearly better as a FS. I want to see Merriweather playing "center field" where he excels, not trying to be a "in the box" safety which he isn't. Sanders and Merriweather should flip positions.
I definitely agree with your analysis of their relative strengths and weaknesses, but all in all it seems pretty clear that the Pats are going for more versatile safeties who can perform either role as needed. When they do need more free/strong distinction, Meriweather will probably move more into the 'free' role once Chung steps into the starting lineup, whenever that happens.
Quote:
Because of injuries, they tried to put Guyton at OLB last year and he got manhandled. Unless Guyton steps up his game, he's better as a ILB. Shawn Crable is the next in line to replace Woods if he struggles. In fact, I'm sure we will see Crable in a lot of pass rushing situations this season.
Agreed, although an offseason of NFL conditioning can do a lot for a guy's strength. Whether he's at ILB or OLB (and I agree that he's sticking at ILB), Guyton will need to be more stout against the run if he wants to become more of an every-down presence.
Quote:
I highly doubt they want Wilhite to start at CB, that role would belong to Springs. In fact, the Pats aren't paying Springs just to be a motivational coach for the young guys. The most likely scenerio, Wheatley, Wilhite and Butler will be battling for the "slot" CB position unless they're ahead of schedule and beat out Springs or Bodden.
IMO, Wilhite's going to be more in the slot CB role either way, since that fits his skillset better. In the modern NFL, you realistically need 3 starter-caliber CBs, and if you can have someone who matches up with guys that are split out wide, and others who match up against slot guys, you're in good shape. If the slot CB is the traditional #3, then I'd guess that makes Wilhite the #3. Wheatley seems like more of the classic #2 CB.
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New England Patriots ‘09 Preview
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