Player who Breaks Through/Player who Regresses

[s3antana5757]

Little bit of a slow night. Just a chance to kick around some thoughts. Pick one player who breaks out, and why, as well as one player who regresses and why.

For me:

It's Sebastain Vollmer on offense. I think he's going to jump into the elites of RTs this year. He's already considered pretty good amongst those who know, but he'll got national attention this year.

Regression for me, and I hate to say it, but Devin McCourty. Before I get flamed, I think he's going to have a really good year, but he won't have the interception numbers like last year and he'll get a few more times. The corners as a whole, Bodden, Dowling, and McCourty will play extremely well.

 

[Bigatrop]

Breaks through - I am having trouble choosing one player, but I think it'll be Cunningham or Spikes. Cunningham was just one step behind getting several sacks. With the addition of Haynesworth disrupting offensive lines and being double teamed (along with Wilfork), I think Cunningham could become a legitimate pass rusher.

Spikes is going to continue where he left off before the suspension. I think he will continue clogging up passing lanes and being the yin to Mayos yang.

Regression - Woodhead. I think he is a tremendous talent, but he caught alot of teams offguard and unaware last season. This year he will be planned for and prepared against. I think his production drops a bit but he still remains a threat in open field.

 

[Sciz]

Brady will regress. His last two fully healthy seasons have been two of the top 5 or so QB seasons of all time, and it's hard to keep that up. I think we'll see him put up higher yards, but he's not going to avoid interceptions like he did this past season.

Cunningham, Mayo, Spikes, and Fletcher will progress. Cunningham will be primarily a pass rusher and have fewer run and coverage responsibilities, and the other three will fit in perfectly as 4-3 LBs.

 

[farn]

Vollmer and Fletcher : progress.

Faulk (if on team) regress. Seems confident he'll make the cut, but I dunno... Otherwise, I agree - McCourty : just can't see him duplicating an amazing 2010.

 

[sbpatfan]

D-Mac having a worse statistical year in 2011 wont necessarily mean he has regressed. It'll probably mean the opposite. Cornerback stats never tell the whole story. Look at Revis and Aso. It'd be nice to see him get a bunch of picks but it'd be even nicer to see QBs completely ignore whoever he's covering.

 

[Ice_Ice_Brady]

Ka-Chung! Going up.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Regress...definitely Hernandez who is coming off a hip injury...Woodhead won't be surprising teams again and Edelman will be little factor,maybe even cut.

Progress....Brandon Spikes who could be a strong player if he stays healthy and out of trouble.....Darius Butler who I still think has potential to become a solid corner in our tremendous backfield depth.....Brandon Tate,don't right off this kid yet,he will have 500-600 yards catching this season.

 

[patsfan-1982]

Break Through player Jermaine Cunningham if the pats really are going to play a lot more 4-3 he will be a DE were i think he will have more of a impact as far as pass rush goes


Regresses Deion Branch, Welker will have he's 100 rec Ochocinco is is going to have about 80 rec the pats have two realy good TE's im not sure Branch will get the 50 rec 700+ yerds and 5 TD's he had last year

 

[DarrylS]

I thought after last year Vollmer had broken through.

This year look to Spikes, Chung and Cunningham to break on through.

Regression is difficult to determine, but injuries may make it easier.

 

[supafly]

Regress...definitely Hernandez who is coming off a hip injury...Woodhead won't be surprising teams again and Edelman will be little factor,maybe even cut.

Progress....Brandon Spikes who could be a strong player if he stays healthy and out of trouble.....Darius Butler who I still think has potential to become a solid corner in our tremendous backfield depth.....Brandon Tate,don't right off this kid yet,he will have 500-600 yards catching this season.

Certainly hope that Hernandez is not one to regress, as he can provide quite a mismatch nightmare for opposing defenses and coordinators. A.Hernandez should be a vital part of our success. I couldn't imagine him having too much less than the 45 catches that he put up last yr, unless you consider something around 35-40 a major regression.

I'd also have to disagree with Edelman too. He had some extensive work with Brady himself, and has been showing a lot more towards his 2009 self in camp so far. If you really think that BB will cut Edelman, you're fooling yourself. He provides backup/role reps at WR, and is our #1 punt returner who is downright explosive at times.

I certainly agree with Spikes, no doubt. And possibly even Butler too. I still think that we have not seen exactly what Butler can offer this secondary, and feel as though he may make some leaps this yr.

Not sure exactly what to think of Tate, although I do think that he should continue to make some leaps. In my opinion, all 6 WR's will stay, with Slater being the one who is expendable--despite his role as gunner.

 

[borg]

UP.....Can Mayo play even better.....YES......Mayo transforms into an attack LB that BB lets loose (assuming that this 4-3 D is legit and Spikes plays the middle). I expect to see Mayo making plays behind the LOS.

DOWN....BJGE.......With a deeper RB roster, less touches = less TDs, less yds. I even foresee a fumble....DOOOOOOOOOM

 

[Brandon_Cox]

Darryl Richard - remember him? - comes out of nowhere to make the team and get into the D-Line rotation.

 

[randomk1]

Damn...you must have alot of young talented players if one has a problems choosing a breakthrough player.

Breakthrough : Spikes - he has been looking good in camp and i think he will become a huge force in the running game. Also a few interceptions for him...

Others: Fletcher,Cunningham. ( if #92 pans out i see our linebackers having great years)


Regression: Brady( hard to follow a NFL record setting season,will still be MVP frontrunner)

 

[JoeShmoe]

Not sure im on the Spikes bandwagon, unless he plays as a MLB in a 3-4. Too slow for a 4-3 LB

If we are going to more of a 4-3 or 4-2-5 i think Guyton will do well because of his speed and im tipping Eric Moore for a big year at DE

Regression i think Edelman, Green-Ellis, Tate and Woodhead, simply as they wont get the snaps

 

[PatsBoy12]

BREAKOUTS:

I'm being dead serious when I say I'm still waiting for Darius Butler to break out. The guy absolutely has all the physical tools to be just as good as the rest. Why is it that McCourty just came in and did what he did, but Darius cannot? What is it that just isn't clicking for him right now? Is his confidence in himself gone? I don't know. The guy is good . . . I believe that. He just isn't putting it together right now and it's driving me (and I'm sure the NE staff) crazy. Watching him last year, I see a guy who was typically in good position, but he just failed to make the play. Also, his tackling leaves a little to be desired. I still have hope for him.

Another player I'm watching very closely is Jermaine Cunningham. I watched him in person at UF, and he's really really good. Maybe the switch to a more hybrid defense where he can put his hand in the ground will benefit him more than just about anyone else. It'll perhaps feel more natural to him that playing OLB in a 3-4. I think (or maybe hope) he breaks out and gets close to double-digit sacks this year.

REGRESSIONS:

Brandon Tate just doesn't seem like he is going to be anything more than an explosive ST guy. He's a terror in space. Good luck trying to get a hand on him out in the open. However, he just isn't going to become a real threat at the WR position in the NFL. He was given ample opportunity to play the position last season, and he failed to impress. I think that continues this season. In fact, were it not for his ST value, I think he'd be one to get cut. Ultimately, he stays because he can return kicks and punts well.

HONORABLE MENTION:

Mike Wright has shown me that he can terrorize opposing QB's. NOBODY is thinking of him right now because we're still on the Haynesworth addition (and rightfully so). However, we tend to forget that Wright led the team in sacks last year but didn't play a down after the Steelers game. Yes, I know that means the pass rush was pathetic, but it also means he played extremely well when he was in there. I look for some good things out of him this season.

 

[randomk1]

Not sure im on the Spikes bandwagon, unless he plays as a MLB in a 3-4. Too slow for a 4-3 LB

If we are going to more of a 4-3 or 4-2-5 i think Guyton will do well because of his speed and im tipping Eric Moore for a big year at DE

Regression i think Edelman, Green-Ellis, Tate and Woodhead, simply as they wont get the snaps

I personally don't think much of Guyton...had some missed tackles last year that made me want to pull my hair out. Fletcher will move ahead of him in the depth chart.

 

[PatsBoy12]

D-Mac having a worse statistical year in 2011 wont necessarily mean he has regressed. It'll probably mean the opposite. Cornerback stats never tell the whole story. Look at Revis and Aso. It'd be nice to see him get a bunch of picks but it'd be even nicer to see QBs completely ignore whoever he's covering.

This is a very good point.

 

[patchick]

I'll take Dane Fletcher as my breakout candidate. Year 2 is a classic breakout time, and Fletcher had SO much to learn as a rookie going from Big Sky DE to NFL ILB. (Come to think of it, can you think of ANY college DE who played successfully at ILB as a rookie, for any team?) Fletcher showed he had the work ethic and football intelligence, and he flashed playmaker instincts. And if they do play more 4-3, he'd be a strong pass-rushing option at OLB.

For regression...if we're talking statistical regression, that's easy: Green-Ellis and Woodhead. No slight on the players, really. I'd just be surprised (even disappointed) if BJGE were in the position to grind out another 1000-yd season after the team put some serious draft resources into RBs. I'd hope for more of a committee approach. As for Woodhead, it's just a matter of realistic regression to the mean. He was unreal last season. Take a look at the contracts Reggie Bush and Darren Sproles signed, then compare their stats to Woodhead's!

 

[PatsBoy12]

I'll take Dane Fletcher as my breakout candidate. Year 2 is a classic breakout time, and Fletcher had SO much to learn as a rookie going from Big Sky DE to NFL ILB. (Come to think of it, can you think of ANY college DE who played successfully at ILB as a rookie, for any team?) Fletcher showed he had the work ethic and football intelligence, and he flashed playmaker instincts. And if they do play more 4-3, he'd be a strong pass-rushing option at OLB.

For regression...if we're talking statistical regression, that's easy: Green-Ellis and Woodhead. No slight on the players, really. I'd just be surprised (even disappointed) if BJGE were in the position to grind out another 1000-yd season after the team put some serious draft resources into RBs. I'd hope for more of a committee approach. As for Woodhead, it's just a matter of realistic regression to the mean. He was unreal last season. Take a look at the contracts Reggie Bush and Darren Sproles signed, then compare their stats to Woodhead's!

I like the way you think.

 

[NEGoldenAge]

Little bit of a slow night. Just a chance to kick around some thoughts. Pick one player who breaks out, and why, as well as one player who regresses and why.

For me:

It's Sebastain Vollmer on offense. I think he's going to jump into the elites of RTs this year. He's already considered pretty good amongst those who know, but he'll got national attention this year.

Regression for me, and I hate to say it, but Devin McCourty. Before I get flamed, I think he's going to have a really good year, but he won't have the interception numbers like last year and he'll get a few more times. The corners as a whole, Bodden, Dowling, and McCourty will play extremely well.

Vollmer is already considered among the elites at RT. He'd be an elite LT if he played on that side.

I'm not going to flame you about your McCourty comment, but I will try to put it into perspective for you. In just about every aspect of the game, McCourty improved tremendously over the course of his rookie year. For the first half of the year, McCourty was making the adjusment to the NFL and learning to blanket his receiver consistently. It wasn't until the second half of the season that he was turning his head and making a play on the ball. This guy is a real ballhawk, and it doesn't stop while the ball is in the air.... he has great hands and a real knack for stripping the ball and creating fumbles. Combine this with better coverage by his team mates on the opposite side and in the middle of the field, and Devin will probably see a fair number of balls thrown his way. The only factor that I can see that affects his INTs negatively is that the defense will likely play significantly fewer snaps this year.