Marquise Hill

[DCPatsFan]

I don't think he's played yet this year - I guess he's still a project? I also wonder if they keep him on the roster in order to keep Miami from picking him up - he's one of Saban's players from LSU. Does anybody know if he has an injury?

 

[PatsSteve1]

I don't think he's played yet this year - I guess he's still a project? I also wonder if they keep him on the roster in order to keep Miami from picking him up - he's one of Saban's players from LSU. Does anybody know if he has an injury?

* I may be wrong but I think Mr Inactive has only been active for 1 game, the last one of the year in 2005. It may have been more games than that, but every week before a game I now expect him to be on of the inactives. I recall in a previous discusion here about Hill I posted that I thought it striking that a walkom, Mike Wright was active a lot more than him. The disagreeing replies were that it was due to Hill being a DE and Wright the backup NT. I don't think that would apply now -

 

[DCPatsFan]

* I may be wrong but I think Mr Inactive has only been active for 1 game, the last one of the year in 2005. It may have been more games than that, but every week before a game I now expect him to be on of the inactives. I recall in a previous discusion here about Hill I posted that I thought it striking that a walkom, Mike Wright was active a lot more than him. The disagreeing replies were that it was due to Hill being a DE and Wright the backup NT. I don't think that would apply now -

Good point, Mike Wright is getting the playing time that we thought Hill would get - the Pats must think they can eventually get some sort of return on their investment (2nd round pick in 2004), but this is his 3rd year. I hope he plays and contributes at some point in a productive manner, especially with his 6-6 height - maybe a guy that could knock down a lot of passes. But since he's never on the field, who knows.

 

[RayClay]

It's not like BB to keep a non performer.

I can only assume he has shown something. Otherwise, I think it's fish or cut bait after this season.

I know he's insurance, but if he can't play.......

 

[DCPatsFan]

Insurance - good point - when they drafted him, I was hoping he was the second coming of Ed "Too Tall" Jones

 

[5 Rings for Brady!!]

I don't think he's played yet this year - I guess he's still a project? I also wonder if they keep him on the roster in order to keep Miami from picking him up - he's one of Saban's players from LSU. Does anybody know if he has an injury?

This thought occurred to me, but I dismissed it. They would have kept players like Keith Traylor, Klecko, Poteat, and especially John Sullivan, if they were thinking about what the competition might do. I haven't heard any updates, but I would not be surprised if we are playing against Sullivan and Klecko when the Colts come to town. They NEED a DT badly.

Hill is injury prone, in my mind, anyways. Ankle problems, it seems.

But he must be showing hidden potential, or he would be on Miami's roster by now.

As a second round pick, Hill is getting the full chance to get up to speed, I guess......

 

[Pats726]

Good point, Mike Wright is getting the playing time that we thought Hill would get - the Pats must think they can eventually get some sort of return on their investment (2nd round pick in 2004), but this is his 3rd year. I hope he plays and contributes at some point in a productive manner, especially with his 6-6 height - maybe a guy that could knock down a lot of passes. But since he's never on the field, who knows.

Last year, Wright was also on special teams, something Hill can not do. But this year, Wright has become so much more of a player than Hill is. Sometimes, players develop at different rates. Wright is actually older than Hill even though he came out a year later. Obvious;y, they see something in him which is why they are keeping him around. Last year he was banged up and this year, it seems slow progress. Who knows, all of a sudden, he might step up and be the player everyone thought he would. No time to give up on him now.

 

[TruthSeeker]

Last year, Wright was also on special teams, something Hill can not do. But this year, Wright has become so much more of a player than Hill is. Sometimes, players develop at different rates. Wright is actually older than Hill even though he came out a year later. Obvious;y, they see something in him which is why they are keeping him around. Last year he was banged up and this year, it seems slow progress. Who knows, all of a sudden, he might step up and be the player everyone thought he would. No time to give up on him now.

The first sentence says a lot. Saying Hill can't play special teams, what EXACTLY can Hill do ? So far, he's great at picking up a paycheck, for doing absolutely nuthin !! I say dump the bum.

 

[IcyPatriot]

The knock ojn him when drafted was that he played too high...he is tall...but???

But here is where I don't get it....except for this year, our D-Linemen never were required to tackle much anyways...they're supposed to tie up the O-Linemen. Belichick was enamored with his pass altering, pass deflecting ability with his height and long arms.

To those that go to training camp:

Did he get blown off the line alot in camp?

Is he still too weak?

Is he painfully slow like Brady?

 

[DCPatsFan]

Last year, Wright was also on special teams, something Hill can not do. But this year, Wright has become so much more of a player than Hill is. Sometimes, players develop at different rates. Wright is actually older than Hill even though he came out a year later. Obvious;y, they see something in him which is why they are keeping him around. Last year he was banged up and this year, it seems slow progress. Who knows, all of a sudden, he might step up and be the player everyone thought he would. No time to give up on him now.

Hill turned 24 in August, so he was only 21 when drafted - so your post makes sense - he may yet pay dividends. Also, although drafted in the 2nd round, it was at the end of the round, almost a 3rd rounder - when they drafted him, the reports at the time were that he was raw, but had the physical abilities. I'm not criticizing the pick at all, I'm just curious about his status - their d-line draft picks have been pretty good, i.e., Seymour, Warren, Wilfork, Green.

 

[lobster]

First the Pat's have 7 DL, their normal number, so it's not like they are wasting a roster spot on him. The season and playoff's is very tough on DL's according to Belichick so Hill may see more action later.

Based on last season Hill showed signs of being an excellent pass rusher, but he was lousy against the run. It was odd - almost like he didn't want to tackle. However that might have changed since I didn't really watch him in the pre-season. I would expect to see him on a 3rd and long situation, or against a weak rushing team.

 

[Pats726]

The first sentence says a lot. Saying Hill can't play special teams, what EXACTLY can Hill do ?.

Actually it's unusual to find a D lineman that can play special teams..kickoffs and punt coverages...I am sure there are others of note, but I remember in the 70s, Richard Bishop doing that.. Obviously they think he'll be a player..IN time.. I think he's got a year..and unless he shows some improvement by TC 07, he's history..

 

[psychoPat]

Two seasons ... and into a third ... with nothing to show for it
obviously is disenchanting.

But BB surely keeps his 53 best
(providing they offer reasonable distribution across the positions).
So Marquise must be better than whomever might be #54.

And of those ... only 45 can suit up on Sunday.

 

[mgteich]

We have five defensive linemen in the starting rotation, including Wright. That's all that is active each week.

We chose to keep three backups. It is not clear why. However, the three were Sullivan, Smith and Hill. We all were guessing who would be the odd man out. bb kept them all, choosing to wait to make a decision, or keep them all if there were an early injury.

Well, last week the choice was made. Hill was kept instead of Sullivan. I think it is clear that bb thinks that he has a potential future with the club. As with the OL, we have a very young and strong DL, with all seven signed through at least 2008.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

* I may be wrong but I think Mr Inactive has only been active for 1 game, the last one of the year in 2005. It may have been more games than that, but every week before a game I now expect him to be on of the inactives. I recall in a previous discusion here about Hill I posted that I thought it striking that a walkom, Mike Wright was active a lot more than him. The disagreeing replies were that it was due to Hill being a DE and Wright the backup NT. I don't think that would apply now -

Hill was active for several games last season, though he was also hampered by injury.

First the Pat's have 7 DL, their normal number, so it's not like they are wasting a roster spot on him. The season and playoff's is very tough on DL's according to Belichick so Hill may see more action later.

Based on last season Hill showed signs of being an excellent pass rusher, but he was lousy against the run. It was odd - almost like he didn't want to tackle. However that might have changed since I didn't really watch him in the pre-season. I would expect to see him on a 3rd and long situation, or against a weak rushing team.

I agree, the roster has settled down to what we consider to be normal. I didn't think Hill was that effective at pass rushing, he seemed to be better at run defense. I thought he would work out better playing behind Warren instead of Seymour, which is reportedly where he was working in Mini-Camp before he hurt his ankle again in Training Camp.

Frankly, Warren's efforts to improve his quickness and speed has really paid off, he looks like the pro-bowler to me. He and Jarvis seem to be the two most disruptive DL we currently carry. Sey has been streaky. I think Vince is getting warmed up, he may be on the verge of a breakout as the season progresses. Wright was solid last season and is showing some explosiveness inside. If he and Vince are in the 4 man line, he now takes the draw/QB spy role and Vince brings the interior pressure. Given the current line up and the delay Marquis had with the injury in camp, I'm not surprised he is on the inactive list, the kid has a huge uphill battle to get a sniff of playing time, and I defy anyone to show how he's going to get tuned up properly if he rarely gets game speed experience.

 

[Mike the Brit]

Just as a footnote to that, BB showed the excellent line play against the run on the Belistrator on Patriots All Access this evening and Vince was singled out for his outstanding play both in tackling himself and in enabling the interior linebackers to shoot the gap.

Belichick showed how, while we generally play "two-gap", it's common for at least one D-lineman to be lined up in a gap rather than over an opponent (hence, he is playing one-gap). That was Seymour in the example he gave, but I assume it could as easily be Warren or Jarvis. I really profited from the explanation (see sig.!)

 

[shakadave]

I never liked the pick, coming when we seemed already rich in D-linemen. A 2nd round bust.

 

[PatsSteve1]

Hill was active for several games last season, though he was also hampered by injury.

* I decided to look and that's true. He was "active" as far as not being on the inactive list for 8 games in 2005 and 1 game in 2004. Although I don't know how active he really was. It sure seemed like he was inactive - BB kept Klecko around for a few years and eventually gave up on him. He often has said a guy improves the most from his 1st to his 2nd year. He also says in picking the 53 man roster the choice is often between a young guy with upside and an older guy who's not going to get better and likely start his downslide. He has it tough in that he now has 5 guys in front of him who play better and are more valuable to be the active players.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

Hill was active for several games last season, though he was also hampered by injury.

* I decided to look and that's true. He was "active" as far as not being on the inactive list for 8 games in 2005 and 1 game in 2004. Although I don't know how active he really was. It sure seemed like he was inactive - BB kept Klecko around for a few years and eventually gave up on him. He often has said a guy improves the most from his 1st to his 2nd year. He also says in picking the 53 man roster the choice is often between a young guy with upside and an older guy who's not going to get better and likely start his downslide. He has it tough in that he now has 5 guys in front of him who play better and are more valuable to be the active players.

I recall trying to breakdown some of the plays he was in on - this was when Sey was out with the knee injury and Jarvis was struggling with a bum shoulder. The impression I came away with was that of a guy who knew the dance steps, but had to consciously think about each one as he took the step. He was out of sync with the music because he so rarely faced game speed situations. The only way I know to overcome that is to play, which he won't be doing much of with the players ahead of him on the depth chart.

 

[Fencer]

Kickoff return teams always seem to have one or more big guys, as part of the "wedge". Jarvis Green and Dan Klecko have both played on the kick return team. Klecko even once ran back a short kickoff himself. ... What is more variable, I think, is whether the "wedge-busting" is done by similarly-sized guys running into them, or if it's restricted to LBs and TEs and FBs because they're faster.