No one is talking about

AndyJohnson said:

I'm never one to exaggerate how good Patriot players are. In my view HT has been better at LB all around so far this year than anyone we have had at the position in a number of years, and that includes Mayo. Yes they are different players, but HT has been dominant at everything he does this year, aside from the time he missed with injuries.

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AndyJohnson said:

No. Its called a zone blitz because you play zone coverage behind the blitz.

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robertweathers said:

Agreed. I keep restraining my excitement over this kid. He strikes me as the second-coming of Roman Phifer. This year he'll pick up a sack or two, maybe another INT, force another fumble and net 100 tackles. In my book, that is a Pro-Bowl year for a LB yet my gut tells he is just rounding into form. Keep in mind hes only had 16 starts.

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MrNathanDrake said:

Yes.

"Blitz" or not, the gameplan was clear. Pressure up the middle.




Only 3 rushers on this play, with Ayers stunting through the middle

On Ninkovich's INT, Collins shoots through the A Gap. Patricia called the perfect play here, even the under route was cut off by Hightower.

Those are just a couple gifs. Their were a few other plays where Collins came rushing through the middle and Peyton had to throw the ball away early.

Ayers is turning out to be a steal BTW.

Collins is having a huge impact, even if the numbers dont always show it.

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VrabelJr said:

As usual with defensive calls/alignments, the meaning of zone blitzing can have different interpretations based on a lot of things. Zone blitzing in a 3-4 looks different (only on paper) than zone blitzing in a 4-3 due to tweener OLB/DL type players.

For example, the Steelers were known for using a zone blitzing scheme because they would drop James Harrison into coverage occasionally and blitz Timmons/Foote. The Steelers were certainly not dropping "true" defensive linemen such as Brett Keisel or Casey Hampton into coverage though! While James Harrison is a "LB" in a 3-4, in actuality he's more a DL. The same goes for a guy like Ninkovich, which is why the Manning INT did in fact happen on a zone blitz.

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pdangle said:

Hey, I didn't name it. Just saying you can play man or zone after the signature move of dropping a rusher into coverage and replacing him with blitzers. Maybe, originally that was how it was played, but it has since morphed into several coverage/rusher variations under the same name umbrella "zone blitz". Playing zone behind a blitz is completely different.

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robertweathers said:

Completely agree. I'll take it a step further....Because of his ability, production, versatility, intelligence and raw talent, he may be the reason Mayo is playing elsewhere in 2015.

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AndyJohnson said:

They aren't redundant. In fact they make each other better.
HT is a better player if he can at on the edge with mayo inside.

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rochrist said:

But wait! We had it on good authority that the kid was a bust and a wasted pick!

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Brady6 said:

I'm surprised to hear that Mrs. Supafly has that perception of Ninkovich. He is overall consistent, although I can understand her view on some level because he had shown up with some big primetime performance over the years so for a casual follower it could look that way.

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betterthanthealternative said:

If he had any kind of grip on him at all here, it would impede the receiver. Perhaps only by .5%, but it would impede him. So if the rule is written without any subjective requirement of the ref about how much the receiver is impeded, the flag has to be thrown.

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robertweathers said:

Agreed that they play different roles but I wonder if this defense is better without Mayo and his contract.

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chasa said:

Love Mayo but after two lost IR seasons, and his age, he's just not a safe bet for the type of money its going to take to keep him around.

I hope he's willing to play ball and go with a team friendly incentive deal, but I could see him going the way of Mankins.

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AndyJohnson said:

If you are talking about while he is injured, sure, but if he is on the field, no way.

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robertweathers said:

I think the Pats have an interesting dilemma.

I think the defense is better with him but fine without him. I think if Collins continues to improve vs the run he potentially phases out Mayo in sub packages.

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mayoclinic said:

I think Mayo improves the base considerably as a MLB/WILB. In sub, I could see it getting to a point where he is no longer automatic, and if that becomes the case, then his contract outweighs his value. But we're still a ways from that yet, IMHO.

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