DropKickFlutie
Veteran Starter w/Big Long Term Deal
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We can talk about getting new player talent all we want through draft or free agency, but I want to raise the issue of poor secondary coaching that Greg Bedard brought up during the season:
Why does it seem like players always regress/plateau in the Patriots’ secondary? The list of promising rookies (1st or 2nd round picks) who never improved after arriving here is long:
Brandon Meriweather
Terrence Wheatley
Darius Butler
Leigh Bodden (not a draft pick but he got worse)
Patrick Chung
Devin McCourty
Ras-I Dowling
(Tavon Wilson)
That's a half dozen HIGH draft picks who never improved to starter-level. It should be clear first that these prospects were good draft picks - relative to their rookie peers they had potential, but like most rookie prospects they still need good coaching and improvement in order to become starter-level talents in the NFL.
Corwin Brown did well (noted by a posted named Boiler) in McCourty's first year (a PRO BOWL year), and that same year he also coached up Arrington to have a breakout year as well. Corwin Brown was only on the staff for one season.
Below are the secondary coaches for the Patriots. Neither coach has any actual experience playing cornerback or safety in D1 college or in the NFL. We have one guy Flores who played linebacker at BC and the other guy Boyer who played small division football (likely the Ohio connection).
Josh Boyer
Josh Boyer is in his first season as cornerbacks coach on Head Coach Bill Belichick's staff after three seasons as defensive backs coach. Boyer joined the Patriots as a coaching assistant in 2006, serving in that role for three seasons.
Brian Flores
Flores played football at Boston College as a linebacker from 1999 through 2003. In 2004, Flores joined the Patriots as a scouting assistant. He then became a pro scout in 2006 before moving to the coaching staff as a special teams coaching assistant in 2008. His title was changed to assistant coach offense/special teams in 2010. He was named defensive assistant in 2011. In 2012, he was named safeties coach.
Look at the gradual improvements in offensive line (Scar) or defensive line/linebacker (Peppers) regardless of the personnel; it's a stark contrast to the secondary which has been a weakness going on 5+ years where almost no players have actually improved since they got here. I know Belichick doesn't fire coaches (while being ruthless with his player roster), but he should consider firing some of his staff to shake things up and also let them know that poor coaching performances will be acted upon the same way he deals with his players.
Why does it seem like players always regress/plateau in the Patriots’ secondary? The list of promising rookies (1st or 2nd round picks) who never improved after arriving here is long:
Brandon Meriweather
Terrence Wheatley
Darius Butler
Leigh Bodden (not a draft pick but he got worse)
Patrick Chung
Devin McCourty
Ras-I Dowling
(Tavon Wilson)
That's a half dozen HIGH draft picks who never improved to starter-level. It should be clear first that these prospects were good draft picks - relative to their rookie peers they had potential, but like most rookie prospects they still need good coaching and improvement in order to become starter-level talents in the NFL.
Corwin Brown did well (noted by a posted named Boiler) in McCourty's first year (a PRO BOWL year), and that same year he also coached up Arrington to have a breakout year as well. Corwin Brown was only on the staff for one season.
Below are the secondary coaches for the Patriots. Neither coach has any actual experience playing cornerback or safety in D1 college or in the NFL. We have one guy Flores who played linebacker at BC and the other guy Boyer who played small division football (likely the Ohio connection).
Josh Boyer
Josh Boyer is in his first season as cornerbacks coach on Head Coach Bill Belichick's staff after three seasons as defensive backs coach. Boyer joined the Patriots as a coaching assistant in 2006, serving in that role for three seasons.
Brian Flores
Flores played football at Boston College as a linebacker from 1999 through 2003. In 2004, Flores joined the Patriots as a scouting assistant. He then became a pro scout in 2006 before moving to the coaching staff as a special teams coaching assistant in 2008. His title was changed to assistant coach offense/special teams in 2010. He was named defensive assistant in 2011. In 2012, he was named safeties coach.
Look at the gradual improvements in offensive line (Scar) or defensive line/linebacker (Peppers) regardless of the personnel; it's a stark contrast to the secondary which has been a weakness going on 5+ years where almost no players have actually improved since they got here. I know Belichick doesn't fire coaches (while being ruthless with his player roster), but he should consider firing some of his staff to shake things up and also let them know that poor coaching performances will be acted upon the same way he deals with his players.