2012 Patriots Pandemonium Positional Preview ~ Corners!!

[Off The Grid]

CB Devin McCourty

I expect a dramatic resurgence from Devin McCourty this year, thank you very much.

People ~ especially Media Morons ~ tend to extrapolate far too much from what they've most recently seen.

And they forget ~ inexplicably ~ that The Sophomore Jinx is a very real phenomenon.

Teams study tape on your successful Rookie Campaign, come up with counters, and, in your youth and inexperience, you're not equipped to react effectively to this, and once momentum shifts against you, it can spiral...all year long.

McCourty's a smart, exceedingly talented kid.

He's got great Field Vision, and his Processing Speed, his Diagnostic Acuity, his Verticity to Turn + Burn, and above all his Passion for this Game and his willingness to burn Tape long into the night are all outstanding.

I presume nothing, but I would be stunned if this kid didn't turn it around and have a tremendous year.

CB Kyle Arrington

Kyle Arrington is just getting started.

A tremendous package of Processing Speed, Lateral Agility, Burst, and impressive Verticity, he's just starting to realize how good he can be, I think. And he's really having fun out there, blitzing, stuffing the run, and just kicking ass!!

Here's hoping he's with us for a long, long time!!

CB Ras I Dowling

I still think that Dowling would make a better Free Safety than CornerBack, because I didn't see the Verticity on Tape in his College games that a really good Corner needs to succeed...but we'll see. Right now, it's actually too early to tell, because we haven't got to see much'f'm. Here's hoping he can get healthy and stay that way.

CB Sterling Moore

I'm not madly in love with Sterling Moore's athleticism ~ I'm not feeling the Verticity when he needs to Flip the Hips!! ~ but he's a very intelligent, savvy Player, out there, and that goes a long way. We'll see how he develops.

CB Alfonzo Dennard

Alfonzo Dennard showed a remarkable lack of discipline in College, and his Mechanics were awful.

But he does command exceptional Verticity, the most essential element to a CornerBack's chances of success.

If you can't Turn + Burn, you're in big trouble.

But if you can Flip Hips and run with your Receiver...you could forge a remarkable career.

Dennard can Turn + Burn, and while he is crude in his Mechanics, this is a very tough, scrappy player who ~ despite a rough game ~ has both the raw Talent and the Spirit to become an exceptional CornerBack...if he can get focused.

Positional Prospectus​

1 ~ I really would've liked to've seen us snatch Josh Norman at #143, this year, or Jamell Fleming at #80. Even so, Bill The Mad (Genius), by virtue of stealing Alfonzo Dennard in the late rounds, has given us pretty substantial Depth of Talent, here. Dowling is the real Wild Card. If Coach Bill was right about him, then our Depth of Talent soars from a "B-", which is where I currently have it, to an "A". Even if that turns out to be so, and as much as I like Sterling Moore, I would've much rather seen Dowling bounce to Safety, while we develop Fleming and Norman. But that's me!!

2 ~ As it is, we have two guys ~ McCourty and Arrington ~ who can Turn + Burn with most anyone, and another one or two guys ~ Dowling and Dennard ~ who might very well prove to be of the same caliber, at least in that sense.

We've certainly been in worse shape, before, haven't we??

The Future​

1 ~ As always, I would really like to see us pursue Round 3 or later guys like Jamell Fleming @ #80 or Josh Norman @ #143 in 2012, & Curtis Marsh @ #90, Josh Thomas @ #143, & Richard Sherman @ #154, in 2011. These are the kind of Values I'd love to see us pursue in the future, to develop as they make their bones on Special Teams.

I've always had the impression that High Caliber CornerBack talent is often available late...if we'll just develop it.

 

[Joey007]

You forgo Marquice Cole!!

 

[Off The Grid]

You forgo Marquice Cole!!

You're damned right, I do.

This is a CornerBack thread, not a Special Teams thread.

 

[Joey007]

You're damned right, I do.

This is a CornerBack thread, not a Special Teams thread.

......................

Lucky switch of definition.

 

[RelocatedPatFan]

I agree about our talent. BUT if our Safeties improve, so will our corners.

 

[mayoclinic]

As always, I would really like to see us pursue Round 3 or later guys like Jamell Fleming @ #80 or Josh Norman @ #143 in 2012, & Curtis Marsh @ #90, Josh Thomas @ #143, & Richard Sherman @ #154, in 2011. These are the kind of Values I'd love to see us pursue in the future, to develop as they make their bones on Special Teams.

I've always had the impression that High Caliber CornerBack talent is often available late...if we'll just develop it.

Richard Sherman was one of my top day 3 binkies in 2011, to a similar extent as Senio Kelemete on OL in 2012. I desperately wanted the Pats to get him. Like Kelemete, Sherrman was an exceptional athlete with great processing speed and intangibles who had undergone a position switch (WR to CB). He was fundamentally raw but extremely talented. It was very painful that they ended up taking Lee Smith 5 picks later in the 5th round and then cutting him, while Sherman became an immediate starter for Seattle and is one of the most promising young CBs in the NFL.