Everyone talks about the 3-4 BB used back in 07-08, my real question is if that was the defense BB wanted to run why did he basically blow it up right after the super bowl loss to the Gaints.
He didn't.
If we wanted players like Richard Seymor and Ty Warren we would of kept them or drafted similar players in the last 6 years. BB used a 4-3 and then shift to a 3-4 to utilize Wilfolk, Seymor and Warren best. This season we will actually see a defense that BB built from the ground up. It's going to be something innovative and unique.
We let Seymour go because the Raiders offered a first round pick for a guy who we were going to lose in a year anyways. I personally disagreed with the move at the time, but that was the rationale. Warren's gone because he didn't show up to offseason workouts, got hurt and missed a full season when he did show up, then was out of shape when he finally came back. Due to injury, he hasn't played a regular season snap of football in two years. There's no mystery to why he's gone- you're grasping at straws when the answer literally could not be more obvious.
The reason why the Patriots haven't drafted another Richard Seymour in the last few years is, quite simply, because there hasn't been another Richard Seymour to draft. Guys with his unique skills don't come along often, and when they do they're gone long before the Patriots are drafting.
The rest is just conjecture, and every defense since 2003, at least, has been one that BB built "from the ground up".
Bequette was not brought in to back up Jones and Hightower. Spikes and Mayo will not be ridding the pine and Nink was arguably our best defensive player behind Wilfolk last year.
Jake Bequette was picked 90th overall. Ryan Mallett was selected 74th overall last year. If it's so implausible to you that the 90th pick could be spent on a backup, then how do you explain the Mallett pick? Was he brought in to start right away, too? If so, someone ought to tell Brady to start packing his bags any day now.
You keep saying this, but you have yet to give any real reason why. A backup--one one at a critical role who would figure prominently into sub packages, no less--is a very reasonable role for a pick at the tail end of the third round.
Bequette will be playing LDE and standing up a LOLB in a 2-4 front. You will see Deaderick on short yardage and other run situations but in the pass happy NFL you will see Bequette 65% + of the time in that position
If somebody can suggest any reason other then he doesn't weigh enough or he is Ty Warren or Richard Seymor I would love to hear it but if you watching game film of our 2005 defense and making a mock draft based on that you need to stop and read the pass stats last season across the league.
I can suggest a reason: because you still have to be able to stop the run, and putting Bequette at DE all but guarantees that you'll have offensive linemen taking it to linebackers on the second level on every running play. Opponents would simply run it directly over Bequette for 5+ YPC until the Patriots were
forced to remove him from the game.
The Patriots have no reason to make that sacrifice, especially when they finally have the horses to generate a real pass rush from their linebackers.
