The Patriots are hosting free-agent CB Leigh Bodden today, and after speaking with a scout familiar with Bodden, here are a few nuggets to consider about him:
# 1) Cover-2 style corner. His style of play would fit the Patriots' scheme. It probably helps the Patriots' projection that he played in a similar system while with the Browns, under head coach Romeo Crennel.
# 2) Size is a positive for a player at the position. At 6-foot-1, 193 pounds, Bodden is considered a bigger corner, and thus, he can play on the outside. When looking at the available cornerbacks in the draft, there aren't many that fit this profile, and thus Bodden would fill a need that the Patriots might feel they couldn't fill in the draft.
# 3) Has displayed solid ball skills. One of the things the Lions liked about Bodden when they acquired him in a trade last year was his ballhawking. He had a career-high six interceptions in the 2007 season. Bodden had just one last season.
# 4) Why will he be on his third team in three years? That is the question that interested teams figure to ask, because good corners are hard to come by. Bodden struggled in Detroit last season, and the Lions didn't pick up a sizeable bonus to retain him this offseason. The Browns traded him to the Lions at this time last season in a deal for NT Shaun Rogers.