Blog: Pats sig Eric Warfield

[BelichickFan]

Actually, you failed to answer my question. You didn't tell me which game it was so that I could take a look at the play-by-play.

I listed his high tackle games on Post #18 of this thread. That source, CBS Sportsline, has a high of 11 tackles, that's an unofficial stat which different sources often have differently.

 

[RayClay]

I like this move...gotta be better than Starks for a fraction of the cost.

A little info from his website:

http://www.edub44.com/

Pro Career:

Supremely talented cornerback enters his sixth season with the Chiefs in 2003 and his third season as a full-time starter ... After opening four games in his initial three NFL campaigns, enters this year owning a streak of 32 straight starts ... Opened every game at left corner in 2002 after starting at the right CB post in 2001 ... Has shown flashes of brilliance throughout his career, but has registered consistent numbers each of the past two seasons ... Collected four INTs apiece each of the past two years ... Registered a career-high 77 tackles in 2001 and followed that up with 72 stops a year ago when he led the squad with a career-best 15 passes defensed ... Possesses the physical tools and the technique to compete on a consistent basis with the NFL’s top wide receivers ... Owns excellent recovery speed and a remarkable vertical leap, giving him the ability to bat down balls and come up with big plays in key situations ... Is also capable of pulling off the big play, registering his first pro score for a 51-yard TD vs. Oakland (9/9/01) and making a huge fourth-quarter INT in a 17-16 win vs. Buffalo (11/17/02) ... Owns eight INTs over the past two campaigns, which ties S Greg Wesley for the best mark on the team over that span, while his 26 passes defensed over that span are second to no other Chiefs defender ... Has made tremendous strides since joining the club as a seventh-round draft choice in ’98 ... After appearing in just two games on defense and playing primarily on special teams as a rookie in ’98, burst upon the scene as the Chiefs nickel corner in all 16 games in ’99 and started one contest at left corner ... Appeared in 13 contests with three starts in 2000, but was hampered by a back injury for a good portion of the season before staking his claim to a full-time starting role in 2001 ... Owns 73 games of regular season NFL experience with 36 starts ... Has tallied 11 INTs for 91 yards with a 51-yard TD, in addition to 195 tackles (156 solo), 39 passes defensed, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery and a QB pressure ... Has been a key special teams performer, owning 31 tackles, a forced fumble and a 20-yard blocked FG return on special teams in the pros after producing three blocked kicks during his collegiate career ... Made the jump to cornerback after playing safety at the University of Nebraska ... Joined the Chiefs as the club’s first of two selections in the seventh round (216th overall) of the ’98 NFL Draft.

Personal bio:

First player from the state of Arkansas to earn a football scholarship for the Cornhuskers since those records began being kept in ’71 ... Prepped at Arkansas High School in Texarkana, Arkansas, the same city where his mother currently runs a foster home ... Hosts an annual football camp in his hometown along with fellow Texarkana native, WR Rod Smith (Denver) ... Works closely with the Love Fund for Children. Invites foster children to Arrowhead each month for a pizza party, locker room tour and a chance to meet Coach Vermeil ... Also took a group of children to dinner and the opening night of “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets†in 2002 ... Attends the annual “Jolly Jingle Jams Kids Party†at the Sunflower House, a child abuse prevention center ... Full name: Eric Andrew Warfield ... Single ... Resides in Leawood, Kansas.

I was going to say that must be his own website with that praise.

And it is! LOL.

 

[RayClay]

smilies don't work.

 

[DaBruinz]

Okay, here's an idea of Warfield's "high tackle number games" from last year, and how they happened. Obviously, we can't really pin down what happened in every instance from stats, and if we were BB and SP we would do this with film. Nonetheless:

Week 9 vs. Oakland: 11 solo
Week 11 vs. Hou: 9 solo
Wk 12 vs. NE: 9 solo

PFnV

Week 9 Vs. Oakland - Warfield had 9 tackles against the pass. Recievers got 114 yards on the 9 tackles he made. That is an average of 12.67 yards a reception. Warfield tackled Porter 5 times, Gabriel 3 times and R. Williams once. Warfield also defended a pass intended for Gabriel.


Week 11 vs. Houston: Warfield had 9 tackles against the pass. Receivers had 69 yards on the 9 tackles made. That's an average of 7.67 YPR. Warfield tackeld Johnson 3 times, Gaffney 3 times and Bradford 3 times. Warfield also had a fumble recovery on a Gaffney fumble and an interception for a TD on a pass intended for Bradford.

Week 12 vs New England: Warfield had 9 solo tackles and 2 assists according to the play-by-play on NFL.COM. 4 vs. the run and 5 vs. the pass. Pats receivers had 40 yards on the 5 solo tackles that Warfield was in on.

What this shows me is a player who doesn't defend a lot of passes, but makes the tackle after the receiver gets the ball. In other words, the receiver doesn't get a lot of YAC. It also shows that Warfield is willing to get in and support the run.

 

[DaBruinz]

Read my statement again Mg. I'm saying that we WON'T draft a CB in Rd 1 or 2, but could if there is one at 3A or 3B that BB likes. Have BB/Pioli gone through a draft with the Pats and NOT drafted a CB (honest question--I'm not sure).

Yes. In 2002, the Patriots only used 6 draft picks and did not take a CB with any one of them. 2000 could also be considered a draft where they didn't take a corner, but they did draft Antwan Harris as a safety.

http://www.drafthistory.com/teams/patriots.html

 

[maverick4]

The next O-T-I-S ?

I looked him up, he seems like a solid player. From 2001-2004, he had 4 interceptions each season, with 64+ tackles from '01-03:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/players/stats?playerId=1596

By the way, O-T-I-S was 5'11, 198 lbs. Warfield is 6ft, 200 lbs. For comparison, Otis' 2001 season was 57 tackles, 5 interceptions - very similar to Warfield's recent production.

#44:

 

[T-ShirtDynasty]

So is All-Beef-Heath gonna give up his number 44 for this guy?

 

[tombonneau]

FWIW, on the Warfield thread in the Chiefs board (see link on previous page), the rational fans mostly seem to think Warfield will be missed and will end up being a solid contributor to the Pats. Let's hope they are right.

 

[maverick4]

re

This is kind of cool... Warfield has his own website, and on this page he answers questions from fans:
http://www.edub44.com/commerce/askme/askme.asp

I'm not sure if it's actually him writing, or if he hired someone to do it. Interesting nonetheless.

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[sieglo]

So am I the only one who's concerned we're looking at the next Monty Biesel?

 

[maverick4]

re

So am I the only one who's concerned we're looking at the next Monty Biesel?

The difference is when we got Beisel, Chiefs fans accurately described him as a bum last off-season. It seems like the same knowledgeable Chiefs fans are describing Warfield as a solid player.

Also, Beisel has never had major production - his best season was 2004 with 51 tackles. In contract, Warfield has been the Chiefs' #1 or #2 cornerback for several seasons and has generated solid numbers (see previous posts). The main concern I have is his legal/DUI problem. But, I think Warfield has the potential to play like Otis Smith did for us.

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[DaBruinz]

The main difference is when we got Beisel, Chiefs fans accurately described him as a bum last off-season. It seems like the same knowledgeable Chiefs fans are describing Warfield as a solid player.

Also, Beisel never had major production - his best season was 2004 with 51 tackles. In contract, Warfield has been the Chiefs' #1 or #2 cornerback for several seasons and has generated solid numbers (see previous posts). I think Warfield has the potential to play like Otis Smith did for us.

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Really? Beisel never had major production? 51 tackles in 9 games playing at MLB isn't major production? Especially when he'd never played the position previously? WOW. I guess you learn something new every day </sarcasm>

How long did it take Bruschi to get "major production"? How about his 4th year when the Pats moved him to 4-3 OLB from 4-3 DE. Bruschi didn't start having GOOD production at the ILB position until 2003. And then it was his 2nd full year there.

So, can someone please explain why we would expect Beisel, who had NEVER played ANY LB position until 1 year prior to the Pats getting him, should have been expected to come in and learn an entirely new position (ILB) and be this great, outstanding player immediately? Especially when every knowledgable Pats fan admits that the Pats defense is one of the hardest and MOST COMPLEX defenses in the league? What am I missing here?

And no, I am not ignoring the fact that Beisel had issues with his tackling technique and seemed to avoid contact in some people's eyes.

 

[maverick4]

re

Really? Beisel never had major production? 51 tackles in 9 games playing at MLB isn't major production? Especially when he'd never played the position previously? WOW. I guess you learn something new every day </sarcasm>

I'm not blaming Beisel. I just don't think he has the potential/makeup to progress like Bruschi did. I think this is besides the point. My response to the other poster was that Warfield has a better history of production. That's all.

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[Pats726]

How long did it take Bruschi to get "major production"? How about his 4th year when the Pats moved him to 4-3 OLB from 4-3 DE. Bruschi didn't start having GOOD production at the ILB position until 2003. And then it was his 2nd full year there.
So, can someone please explain why we would expect Beisel, who had NEVER played ANY LB position until 1 year prior to the Pats getting him, should have been expected to come in and learn an entirely new position (ILB) and be this great, outstanding player immediately? Especially when every knowledgable Pats fan admits that the Pats defense is one of the hardest and MOST COMPLEX defenses in the league? What am I missing here?

A very good point...whic is why I still think MB will be OK. Expectations were way too high with him... As far as Warfield goes, the fact that he can play both CB/ S helps a lot. A nice signing...I know Starks was as well...but not all can be hits..Maybe they are a bit more cautious this year.

 

[b72s]

Otis My Man

Otis Smith Redux

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Bruinz,

It looks like we both did the game logs from nfl.com. One of us added wrong on the Oakland game, but not appreciably. That one does look about as you describe (see my description.)

Interestingly, it looks like he's good, if he's not your shutdown corner. In KC, that was apparently supposed to be Wesley. He's the one you're afraid to throw at - but it looks like Warfield's the one you don't want to catch near. Looking through the other high-tackle game totals, the numbers are much better; he wasn't getting torched in the other two like he was in Oakland (if we assume every hit he made was on "his" man - that's why we need tape.)

You can look at the numbers and tell he's not a shutdown guy. If he was, there'd be no tackles. But at $10M a pop, a true shutdown corner might not be in the Pats' future.

I say, solid pickup, nothing to go "ooooh ahhhhh" over, but another role player, and downright cheap at that.

Could he blossom? We've got a couple of years to find out (possibly the hard way.)

PFnV