Pats sign veteran DT Damione Lewis

Re: Pats sign Damione Lewis?

Marqui said:

Marques Douglas Profile - New York Jets - ESPN

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And they dumped him.....

Re: Pats sign Damione Lewis?

BaltimorePatsFan said:

Chargers starting DE Jacques Cesaire is also 6'2" and Glenn Dorsey actually measured in at less than 6'2" at the combine.

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And both are bloody awful. Dorsey is the perfect 4-3 DT moved because they have so much money invested in him.

Transitional veteran who'll likely battle with Wright and a first or second round rookie for the playing time at the RDE position, is my first impression here.

Re: Pats sign Damione Lewis?

BritPat said:

The guy is a 4-3 DT only IMO.

Looking at this, and the number of DT's we've been scouting for the Draft - I just don't see us playing 3-4 next year.

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If that were true, then there was no point in signing Wilfork to all that money.

Every off season, there is speculation that NE is switching to a 4 - 3 and it never happens. 3 - 4 will be the base defense.

Lewis was only released because he was due over $5 million next season. He started all 16 games last season and should add competent depth to the line.

Darin Gannt, a beat writer for the Panthers, had this to say via twitter:

New England agrees to deal with former Panthers DT Damione Lewis. Good for D-Lew, a true pro, who was underrated his whole time here.

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Here is his blog entry on it:

LINK

The former Panthers continue to scatter, as DT Damione Lewis has agreed to a deal with New England.

Lewis confirmed the moved Friday afternoon.

The 31-year-old Lewis should fit in nicely, replacing some of the inside rush the Pats lost when Jarvis Green went to Denver.

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Inside pass rush???? WTF? the guy had 0.5 sacks, note the decimal point, last year. Yeah, I know, no "pressuring the passer" stats available. Maybe the writer watched lots of film. Dunno.

Here is his article from when Lewis was released:

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The team released defensive tackle Damione Lewis, taking the most dependable veteran out of a room full of young, unproven players. Lewis led all Panthers linemen in tackles last year, and was a steadying influence during an injury plagued season.

But as with most cuts, his came down to finances. Though his deal was billed as being through 2014, it was going to revert to his original terms when a $9.3 million bonus wasn’t paid. Then, he’d have been due a $4 million base salary this year, along with a $1 million roster bonus in April.

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... and those asking about his pass rush:

In his first three seasons here, Lewis was a steady pass-rusher, with 11.5 sacks from 2006 to 2008. That dipped to just half a sack last year, but his 21 pressures were second on the team behind only defensive end Julius Peppers. He did it while playing next to a constantly revolving cast.

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Football 101: Defensive Line Alignments


he'll fit fine in our scheme.....


I still favor 3-4 over 4-3 He is physical and that is important for a 3-4 DT

A hybrid.... wouldn't hurt

PatsWickedPissah said:

Inside pass rush???? WTF? the guy had 0.5 sacks, note the decimal point, last year. Yeah, I know, no "pressuring the passer" stats available. Maybe the writer watched lots of film. Dunno.

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PFF has a "pressures" stat. I don't trust the site's formula stuff, but the data has been generally, though not always, reliable. It credits Lewis with 19 QB pressures and 11 QB hits. In contrast, it credited Greene with 11 QB pressures and 3 QB hits. What Lewis can do in a 3-4 is obviously an open question.

Re: Pats sign Damione Lewis?

Triumph said:

If that were true, then there was no point in signing Wilfork to all that money.

Every off season, there is speculation that NE is switching to a 4 - 3 and it never happens. 3 - 4 will be the base defense.

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Wilfork was a 4-3 DT in College, and I'm not sure whether you noticed, but our base defense last year for the majority, was the 4-3....

Obviously it would be ideal if he had 3-4 experience, and it is an unknown if he can adapt to the Pats system (see Galloway, Joey). Seems worth a try at least, and if it pays off great.

It is reportedly for short money and the guy seems to have some skills. I imagine they envision him in the Jarvis Green 3rd down rusher role, and if he can do more great. Hard to criticize the move, even if it doesn't work out.

Re: Pats sign Damione Lewis?

BritPat said:

Wilfork was a 4-3 DT in College, and I'm not sure whether you noticed, but our base defense last year for the majority, was the 4-3....

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Belichick stated on many occasions whether they play 3-4, 4-3, sub packages or whatever, their defense remains the same every year. It changes week-to-week more due to matchups than anything else. They aren't really a 3-4 or 4-3, they are multiple front team that plays certain techniques. No matter what front they play, Lewis will likely play some different techniques than he did in Carolina or St. Louis.

Deus Irae said:

Transitional veteran who'll likely battle with Wright and a first or second round rookie for the playing time at the RDE position, is my first impression here.

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Yeah, I hope so. there's no direct replacement for Seymour, but we need to not get beat up at that position. If he can draw double teams sometimes and has a little pass rush capability, who cares if he's less than 6'4". Let's draft a taller hopeful and pick up some more linemen.

They've had pretty good luck judging DL talent.

Didn't knew who the guy was, but he was the 12th pick in the 2001 NFL Draft, and has started for two teams. He's not that bad.

Who's he backing up for depth?

Re: Pats sign Damione Lewis?

BritPat said:

Wilfork was a 4-3 DT in College, and I'm not sure whether you noticed, but our base defense last year for the majority, was the 4-3....

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Our DEs are DTs in college. Seymour and Warren both.

I don't think we've switched to a 4-3 base defense.

Deus Irae said:

PFF has a "pressures" stat. I don't trust the site's formula stuff, but the data has been generally, though not always, reliable. It credits Lewis with 19 QB pressures and 11 QB hits. In contrast, it credited Greene with 11 QB pressures and 3 QB hits. What Lewis can do in a 3-4 is obviously an open question.

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Good info from you and NE39. I was too hasty. As you say, the question is open. There's a reason BB gets paid millions and I get nothing.

Re: Pats sign Damione Lewis?

BritPat said:

He's a 4-3 DT. Not a 3-4 NT, or a 3-4 DE.

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Why can't he be a 3-4 DE? At 6'2 and 300 lbs, he's on the low end of the mold (height wise).

Re: Pats sign Damione Lewis?

BritPat said:

Wilfork was a 4-3 DT in College, and I'm not sure whether you noticed, but our base defense last year for the majority, was the 4-3....

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I noticed. But BB did that due to the lack of Depth at LB once McKenzie went down. And he did it with Pees as the DC. But, the Pats spent quite a bit of time in their NICKLE package.

PatsWickedPissah said:

Good info from you and NE39. I was too hasty. As you say, the question is open. There's a reason BB gets paid millions and I get nothing.

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I don't think you were too hasty, and I hope you don't think I was being a smart ass in my response to you, because that certainly was not my intent. I think you were right on, at least in terms of questioning how 0.5 translates into a pass rush. The guy has gone 4.5,3.5,3.5,0.5 in the past 4 seasons. I think it's fair to wonder about that drop off, especially since he was also blanked as far as passes defensed, and I think it's fair to question how much pass rush he'll give the team when he's facing guard/tackle combos instead of guard/center combos.

I'm not sold on this move, by any means. I'll reserve judgment until he's had time to get up to speed on two-gap techniques, but he's never exactly lit the world on fire in the 4-3, so I'm not expecting all that much from the guy.