Ras-I Dowling current and future status

[Ring 6]

Moore took all his snaps on Sunday. What should we make of that? What should we expect from him long term?

Defensive snaps: Moore over Dowling - New England Patriots Blog - ESPN Boston

I don't think you can make anything of it yet. We really don't know the reasons. Gvie it a few games and it may be more clear.
By the way, it is also possible that it could be the worst case reason, and he overcomes it, or an innocuos reason and he never gets it back. We just can't tell.

 

[Lamanai]

Maybe Dowling has been doing just fine. Instead of the reason being Dowling not doing something, why couldn't it be that Moore has just been THAT good in practice...?

 

[Double TE]

I just want to see some more CB or safety blitzes those are cool when they work!

 

[Ring 6]

Maybe Dowling has been doing just fine. Instead of the reason being Dowling not doing something, why couldn't it be that Moore has just been THAT good in practice...?

Have you seen Moore play?

 

[dales804]

I just want to see some more CB or safety blitzes those are cool when they work!

Visions of Rodney coming off the edge...

 

[Lamanai]

Have you seen Moore play?

me personally? No. I think his two big plays last year covered up a LOT of missed coverages.

But it does seem like he was BB's choice last week...and he watches pretty closely during the week, no?

 

[TheComeback]

Speaking of jamming..they need to jam the ravens Wrs big time in order to have a shot

I'm more concerned about containing Pitta. He looks like the real deal. Torrey Smith really struggles against press coverage. Boldin is still their best WR.

As for Dowling, if it becomes a trend, then we can be concerned. It could be as simple as Moore winning the nickel job, and Dowling sitting because he doesn't contribute on special teams like Marquis Cole does.

 

[Rob0729]

Without knowing why Belichick benched him, we are doing a lot of speculations. We have seen plenty of starters sit because of the situation. Dowling isn't a stud at this point that is a guy you can't sit.

 

[fnordcircle]

Wait, are you telling me this board's expert opinion based on a few plays in the preseason might not match the coach's view?

There is no shocked emoticon grand enough to display the emotion I am feeling right now!

 

[neuronet]

Let me be the first to use the word 'glass' in this thread.

 

[Lamanai]

Let me be the first to use the word 'glass' in this thread.

..and last?

Dowling is not injured; S. Moore is on the list though.

 

[crowell33]

I don't know, I think Dowling got benched because he just can't play well right now. He looked shaky to me in the preseason and didn't look much better against Tennessee. He looks a lot slower right now than he did last year. Seems like he's still slowed down by that hip injury which is a bad sign considering how long ago that happened.

This is a shame cause he looked like a future #1 corner to me against Miami and SD last year.

This. The complaint against Dowling is that he would never be able to stay healthy. Now he is finally healthy and Arrington and Moore, two undrafted free agents, are playing before him.

Still, its way too early to judge this guy. Ron Brace & Cunningham are a couple of examples of second round picks who picked it up in their third years and are contributing. I expect Dowling will find a way to stay on the roster and eventually contribute as well.

 

[crowell33]

Have you seen Moore play?

If your a Moore fan, here you go : Big play by Sterling Moore put aside - BostonHerald.com

 

[State]

Who is going to cover Torrey Smith? I believe it was McCourty who he burned last year. I don't like that matchup.

The Ravens WR who was drafted after Dowling in the same round?

I'm convinced we win the SB with Torrey Smith last year. I'll be watching him this Sunday. He's a legit deep threat with a passion for the game. Very good player.

 

[supafly]

The Ravens WR who was drafted after Dowling in the same round?

I understand your point, and I agree that Smith is a good WR of course, but looking back in hindsight is never a good idea when assessing our picks.

First of all, we lacked a good, physical CB who could play man to man coverage much more than we lacked a WR in the 2011 draft.

Second of all, your guess is as good as mine as to whether or not T.Smith would have been able to pick up this extremely complicated offensive scheme. Just because he can do it in Baltimore doesn't mean he could do it here.

I don't necessarily blame Belichick for thinking that it may be better to try and bring in WR's who are established in their knowledge of certain nuances of the WR position, rather than rely on rookies trying to learn this extremely complex system.

Next year it seems as though he won't have a choice but to gamble though, possibly in a double up move like we've seen at RB and DE/OLB the past 2 yrs. We'll have to take a shot or two on a promising young prospect, but we'll still have to hope like hell that he can pick up the system here, which is a shot in the dark.

 

[ATippett56]

The Ravens WR who was drafted after Dowling in the same round?

I'm convinced we win the SB with Torrey Smith last year. I'll be watching him this Sunday. He's a legit deep threat with a passion for the game. Very good player.

Randall Cobb >>>> Torrey Smith

 

[DocHoliday]

Randall Cobb >>>> Torrey Smith

One thing I've come to accept is the fact that how a WR does anywhere not named New England has no bearing on how they do in New England.

 

[ATippett56]

One thing I've come to accept is the fact that how a WR does anywhere not named New England has no bearing on how they do in New England.

At least with Randall Cobb, you get a kick returner and punt returner in one package.

Randall Cobb NFL Football Statistics - Pro-Football-Reference.com

 

[jbb9s]

This. The complaint against Dowling is that he would never be able to stay healthy. Now he is finally healthy and Arrington and Moore, two undrafted free agents, are playing before him.

Still, its way too early to judge this guy. Ron Brace & Cunningham are a couple of examples of second round picks who picked it up in their third years and are contributing. I expect Dowling will find a way to stay on the roster and eventually contribute as well.

well it was a high risk high reward bet BB took at the very very top of the second round. as a UVA guy who watched Ras-I, it was clear he had first round talent although we all know about his injuries and his missed time. think of this guy like a penny stock - he'll be gone in the next two years or he may be a starter, but it will be completely random outcome that isn't worth trying to analyze in the intermediate time.

 

[PatsBoy12]

I am still expecting big things from this kid. He has all the physical tools, but his health will be the "bottleneck" for how much success he has in the league. He looked pretty good in his brief time on the field last season. He hasn't looked too good thus far, but I really think it has to do more with him still trying to recover and get up to speed than anything else. We'll see what happens.