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27 of our players currently under contract are dedicated to the defensive FRONT 7. That's very different than the defensive line.
Yes, certainly my mistake, although many of the defensive line spots will also be interchangable with LB spots, depending upon the looks, or where you'd consider the positions.
Not sure about the need for the 'confused face' as everyone is human, but to each his own.
The rest of the post was quite appropriate in my opinion.
Nice to see you back on the forum though, as I enjoy your posts.
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Patiently waiting to defend the next "bubble" player in this summer's training camp.....
Last edited by supafly; 05-16-2012 at 04:56 PM..
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Mayoclinic opined in the Front 7 thread that even though Spikes played creditably in sub packages, that wasn't likely to be a major use of him. That makes sense.
However, what about a 3-3-5, with 1 true DL, 2 LB/pass rusher types with their hands down, and 3 true LBs? You might well want a Spikes-quality ILB then to make up for the lack of beef otherwise.
The front seven thread was about next year. That's a hundred years in football terms. For this season, I think this makes sense. By next year, I would expect the team to plan for a decline in Wilfork's production and take action to shore up the middle beef.
Yes, certainly my mistake, although many of the defensive line spots will also be interchangable with LB spots, depending upon the looks, or where you'd consider the positions.
Not sure about the need for the 'confused face' as everyone is human, but to each his own.
The rest of the post was quite appropriate in my opinion.
Nice to see you back on the forum though, as I enjoy your posts.
Thanks.
The confused face was just to indicate what I said - that you confused DL with front 7. I agree your post was appropriate, and I wasn't trying to be critical at all.
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To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. "OVER Loading at ANY position can create a Fatal Advantage. THAT is what interests ME. Attacking With Concentrated Force. THAT is what WINS. In the words ~ more or less ~ of General Patton: 'I'm fighting a WAR, here. Let the B*****ES worry about their FLANKS.' " - Off the Grid
"The key to any successful organization is to anticipate things, not react to them." - Michael Lombardi
I certainly hope the rookies can contribute significantly even this year. However, Trevor Scott appears to be a forgotten man in these discussions. Doesn't anyone expect him to be a major contributor? His experience (even if it isn't with BB's schemes) may give him an initial edge over the rookies.
We have so many 6'3" - 6'5", 250 - 280 guys on the roster that I am really looking forward to that camp competition even more so than the WR competition.
We have so many 6'3" - 6'5", 250 - 280 guys on the roster that I am really looking forward to that camp competition even more so than the WR competition.
I agree. The defensive front seven competition should be great.
I am certainly curious to see the potential of guys like Scott, Fanane, and the rookies.
It will also answer some questions about the status of guys like Cunningham, M.Carter, (well, both Carters to be honest), Brace, Pryor...the list goes on.
Hopefully the depth will be increased, as will the talent in the front seven; for I feel that the secondary will be in a much better position this year.
__________________
Patiently waiting to defend the next "bubble" player in this summer's training camp.....
I certainly hope the rookies can contribute significantly even this year. However, Trevor Scott appears to be a forgotten man in these discussions. Doesn't anyone expect him to be a major contributor? His experience (even if it isn't with BB's schemes) may give him an initial edge over the rookies.
I think there's a great chance Scott is this year's Anderson, except with more versatility. He's already played both DE and linebacker earlier in his career before he got injured. If he's healthy, not only should he make the team but he could be heavily featured in the rotation playing 4-3 DE, 4-3 OLB, and 3-4 OLB positions.
In the nickel you generally want your LBs to be faster. Mayo is an obvious choice but the spot next to him in the nickel could be Tracy White or Jeff Tarpinian, at least on third downs anyway.
PS: a "4-1-6" nickel is called a dime
I think with Mayo and Hightower you'd have all the speed you'd need at LB for the 4-2-5. Mayo has sideline to sideline range and Hightower is more athletic and rangy than Spikes. As for their coverage skills. I can't speak for that yet. Let's see how they look in camp. Who was our usual coverage LBer last season?
We have so many 6'3" - 6'5", 250 - 280 guys on the roster that I am really looking forward to that camp competition even more so than the WR competition.
From Mike Reiss' chat today:
Quote:
James (Derry, NH): Hi Mike, we all know that the NFL is a copycat league. The Patriots have a lot young speedy athletic DE/OLB, with that in mind could we see BB take a page out his old friend Tom Coughlin's play book and unleash a Patriots version of the "Nascar Front" that the Giants use? Some combination of Jones, Bequette, Scott, M. Cater, A. Carter(assuming he resigns), and Cunningham getting after the QB could generate some serious pressure.
Mike Reiss (12:24 PM): Yes, yes, yes. James, I think this is one of the big stories of the team's offseason. Bill Belichick acknowledged that more of the game is being played in space and that the D is not in its base 3-4 as much as it used to be. So you need a different type of player -- 250-275 pounds, a little faster, a little longer -- because you're in a sub almost 65-70 percent of the time (according to Nick Caserio). This is a significant shift, IMO, in how BB has viewed and valued defense/defensive personnel in recent years.
The other guy who I think is being overlooked is DE/DT Jonathan Fanene. I think he'll fit in where the Pats tried to use Shaun Ellis last year. He can essentially play inside our out in 4-3 and 4-2-5 schemes, and outside in 3-4 and 3-3-5 schemes. He could probably even play standing up occasionally, though not on a regular basis. Eric Mangini wrote last year that the Jets used Ellis in that kind of role very effectively:
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. "OVER Loading at ANY position can create a Fatal Advantage. THAT is what interests ME. Attacking With Concentrated Force. THAT is what WINS. In the words ~ more or less ~ of General Patton: 'I'm fighting a WAR, here. Let the B*****ES worry about their FLANKS.' " - Off the Grid
"The key to any successful organization is to anticipate things, not react to them." - Michael Lombardi
Doug Kyed of NE Patriots' Draft discusses how Chandler Jones may fit into the defense:
Quote:
When the Patriots traded up to draft former Syracuse DE Chandler Jones, I was neither surprised nor overly excited. From what I saw on tape, I don’t think that he’s a perfect fit for the defense. Yet.
Despite glowing combine workout numbers, his change of direction not only didn’t flash on tape, it looked like a weakness. He was rarely asked to stand up, either in pass coverage or in rushing the passer, and when he was playing in space, he played with his pad level far too high and looked awkward at times running.
But Jones was also struggling with a knee injury all last season, which obviously could have affected his mobility. His stellar workout numbers, especially in the 3 cone tell me that the knee injury could have been affecting him more than we could have thought.
With the concerns I have regarding Jones, I don’t see him starting early in his NFL career. If the Patriots played a straight 4-3, rather than a hybrid 3-4/4-3, he could likely start at DE, but the Patriots have an interesting alignment. They essentially play a 3-man front with two 5-techs and a 1-tech, last year it was Love/Wilfork at 1-tech, and Wilfork, Shaun Ellis and Brandon Deaderick at 5-tech. Then they have a 7-tech/OLB next to Wilfork on the weak side. Last year that position was played by Andre Carter/Mark Anderson once Carter went down/in sub packages.
With Carter unsigned and injured and Anderson gone to Buffalo, I expect the Patriots to employ a rotation at that “elephant” position this season. Jones could eventually fill that role, but he’s not experienced enough yet in dropping back into coverage or rushing standing up. His strengths are his length, his natural strength, his run defense and his interior rush. I think that Jones will likely play in four man front sub packages on the strong side and in the base defense when that 7-tech/elephant will have his hand on the ground.
Jones could either morph into a great elephant, but if the Patriots don’t see that upside, he could also pack weight onto his frame and become a dominant 5-tech filling that Shaun Ellis/Brandon Deaderick role from last season. Jones weighed in at 266 at the combine this season and has a frame that looks like it could easily add weight. Ellis played that 5-tech/7-tech position at just 290 last season, so Jones really needs to add just 25 pounds to have a legitimate shot at playing strong side DE/5-tech.
Obviously it’s not reasonable to expect Jones to add that much weight in one off-season, and I’m not saying that’s definitely going to be his career path, but like many players that the Patriots bring in, Jones has versatility and if he’s not showing enough growth as an elephant this season, he could transition into a stellar interior rusher.
Jones wasn’t my favorite player the Patriots brought in during the draft, but he could very well wind up being the best player the Pats drafted.
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. "OVER Loading at ANY position can create a Fatal Advantage. THAT is what interests ME. Attacking With Concentrated Force. THAT is what WINS. In the words ~ more or less ~ of General Patton: 'I'm fighting a WAR, here. Let the B*****ES worry about their FLANKS.' " - Off the Grid
"The key to any successful organization is to anticipate things, not react to them." - Michael Lombardi
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Re: How will the Front 6 look next season?
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