The Talib Effect

[fnordcircle]

It's not just Talib - the whole defensive backfield has finally come together.

McCourty at safety is huge for us. His range and cover skills along with really sure tackling will make him a star at safety for years to come, imo.

Dennard has come on well and has allowed us to move Arrington into the slot where he has excelled.

Gregory is a wily vet who has a knack for being in the right place at the right time.

Together they are the best defensive backfield we've had in years. I think we'd have to go back to the Rodney years to find a complete defensive backfield like this.

 

[DocHoliday]

DmC just doesn't play man well.

He's overall the best corner, it's just that without being able to play man well, he's not that great of a corner for the team.

He's like Talib's polar opposite. Talib sucks at zone (apparently, according to that film review by that Texans media guy).

Gotta wonder if they'll coach Talib up or flip DMC to corner in zone.

 

[Kontradiction]

Talib and Dennard are better CBs than McCourty was because they have........ McCourty at safety. If we had two McCourty's lined up at both CB and S, he would be the best CB on the team. You saw him chase down that sure kickoff return last week? It's nice to have that kind of speed/range helping out on throws over the top.

The problem with that is that McCourty is anywhere from average to below average in man. Belichick has made it pretty clear he wants corners who excel in man. That's why putting McCourty at FS was the best move. His head is constantly turned toward the ball, he covers a ton of ground quickly, and be makes better use of his ball hawking skills.

 

[Observer]

He also can be trusted to play the opponent's best WR in single man coverage, which is something this team hasn't had since the Samuel/Hobbs duo was around. Even there, you have to go back to the days of Ty Law to find a Patriots CB who could do it for an entire game.

Exactly right. What Talib gives is a legitimate one-on-one matchup against top flight wide receivers of the league such as Andre Johnson. This is something that cannot be gleaned from the numbers alone because not all teams have such wide receivers.

 

[Schmo]

The problem with that is that McCourty is anywhere from average to below average in man. Belichick has made it pretty clear he wants corners who excel in man. That's why putting McCourty at FS was the best move. His head is constantly turned toward the ball, he covers a ton of ground quickly, and be makes better use of his ball hawking skills.

If McCourty was a better cornerback, they'd move one of those two to safety, or play Chung. He's a much better safety than cornerback which is why that makes us better.

What does chasing a kick returner have to do with it? Despite that speed, he's not a very good kick returner either.

There are aspects, other than speed, of playing cornerback and returning kicks, that he's lacking IMO. On the other hand, playing safety plays into his strengths.

I think the biggest problem with McCourty's man coverage was getting beat long when the deep zone couldn't make it to the sideline. I was trying to point out the irony that McCourty would need a safety with range, like himself, to be a good man corner. Luckily, the other CBs on the team get that luxury now.

Talib+Dennard at CB are better than Gregory+Chung at S. That's where McCourty's flexibility (in my opinion, the best player at both positions) makes the secondary better.

And, no, I don't believe McCourty is a very good kickoff returner either (dunno what that has to do with anything), but he's still the best one we have.

 

[AzPatsFan]

On the surface the 2 biggest differences between the Pats secondary in game 3 of this year and now is the addition of Talib and Dennard to the lineup. But THAT's just the surface. Because we've added those 2 players, we've been able to move McCourty to the FS spot and Gregory to the SS position and immediately improved the coverage at BOTH position. MicCourty has added more speed, range and ball skills to the FS position than Gregory, and Gregory covers better from the SS than Chung. Plus by replacing Arrington with Dennard on the outside, we turn a liability into an asset in the slot. That's 5 positions and 5 upgrades

Understand, the Secondary that played the Ravens in week 3 was a better one that played them in last year's AFCCG. The one that will play them on Sunday is just SOOOO much better than the week 3 version....at EVERY position. So all the talking heads that are commenting on the porous Pats 2ndary haven't been paying attention to what's been evolving here

Talib's impact goes a lot farther than just the infusion of his individual talents.

It is worth noting that despite a very poor QB performance by Brady, and that abominable secondary a year ago, the Patriots still won the last AFCCG.

The Ravens defense is weaker too, as another year of age and the injuries to Suggs, Harloti and Lewis have slowed them some more. In fairness, their Offense is better. Maturity helps Flacco and Torry Smith, and the re-addition of their old LOT helps too, allowing Oher to go to back to ROT. It strengthens both O-line positions for this year.

 

[RobertWeathers]

The team is also blitzing more and stopping the run better. That helps the secondary as well. With that said, because the secondary is better, they ARE blitzing and stopping the run better because they can commit more resources on the line.

It all goes hand and hand...Team defense.