Weapons or Defense?

[mgteich]

defensive weapons

 

[tombonneau]

Tough to answer. If I could wave a magic wand and choose one of the two, I'd pick defense.

However, the reality is it would be easier to plug in two difference-makers on offense that it would be on D.

Just throwing out semi-realistic scenarios, I think if they get Justin Blackmon for a 3rd/4th and he keeps his nose clean and plays 16 games, that does a whole lot more than any one player on D.

Or pick up a solid center and/or another internal OL player. Or pair Gronk with a receiving TE in a A-hern mold.

On D, I don't think a stud safety or even interior pass-rushing DL makes that big of an improvement. Frankly, IMO, it's more scheme than players. I thinK BB will still adopt the same passive philosophy or not giving up big plays, letting teams papercut you down the field, then try to hunker down in the red zone.

As much as I'd prefer an aggressive D to this, you can't really argue the results. As putrid statistically as they were vs. Denver and didn't force any TOs or sacks, they STILL played good enough RZ D that had the offense done it's share they'd have won that game.

 

[PATS16N0]

Defense. I want a mean defense. Brady is good enough to win with nobodies as long as he has Gronk and Edelman.

Our defense used to make people wilt. I want that again.

Like Rodney Harrison said, I want a mean safety, given a big enough contract where he can afford to eat a few fines in big time games.

We have plenty on offense if Gronk is healthy. It's easy to forget at this point.

 

[50-yard-line]

Wouldn't it be amazing if Adrian Wilson found a couple of years of the old Adrian Wilson in that body...

Yeah, I know...but he is exactly the type of player that would really go a long way in helping this D develop some serious thump.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

Offense has enough weapons if they can keep Edelman. Gronk, Edelman, Amendola, Dobson, Vereen, Thompkins/Boyce is an adequate amount of options in the passing game. Backfield is fine too (for next season at least). It's been proven time and time again that you can have all the amazing recieving options you want and as prolific a pass attack as you want, but a good defense will nullify all that if they win the battle up front. For that reason I would work on beefing up the interior OL before worrying about a bigtime reciever, but my priority would absolutely be getting help on the DL. If Talib can't be re-signed, CB is priority #2 IMO.

 

[superpats]

i need one WR!! BUT it needs to be a true #1 so we can be done with it! For once do it right! A true #1 will have a rippling effect on the whole offense Justin Blackmon would be best. He is still under rookie contact and his price is down due to his problems. But thats good news. For ONE, bellichick is good at keeping players in line helped by a winning environment. Second, he is losing $$ and need of CASH is enough to motivate anybody. He only did marijuana. Not heroin. THIRD, he has learned and matured partially by losing greenbacks. If you want to wait til he has matured AND has a major breakout he will cost us a lot more.He will birtually be unattainable then. That would just be stupid to wait til his value skyrockets. Just like a stock that has skyrocketed,kinna to late then!!

With the offense finally set and no more quarters for the merry go round of retread brokenzWR"s with nu tread left they could focus on Oline and the Dline. Get a rg and center with power to take it to a dline like SEATTLE and punch them back harder. I said b4 Cannon if he puts the work in the weightroom martial arts stretching and conditioning To go with a nutrit to maximize Muscle to get back to his college shape and size. He seems to have lost somee muscle mass as part of the weight he lost. If team coaches and trainers recognized that they would realize they have a diamond in th rough. Look at his college tape he has nearly 20lbs more and he has unbelievable quickness for that size and power. He benched 500lbs functionally without being a weightroom warrior. I always felt like he was like a carl nicks. I thought of him as an elite guard in the nfl with carl nicks abilty. When healthy and on, he is the best guard in the nfl. However Kelichi Osemele could push for best guard and so could Cannon if he puts in the work to get back to college size and power. He weighed over 350lbs but you wouldnt have known the way he moved. Then all we need is dominant physical center and they could focus on defense after that.

I just hope if they pursue Blackmon they do it right and not try to get away with thinking they will give a talent like that away for a fourth rd pick. Thats part of the problem,they try to get off cheap and end up with a totally useless over the hill or untalented wr or any position.

Also cut the fat. Subpar starters like connolly,gregOry,ninko. Even wilfork is done. Factor in his decline that started in 2012 Multipy that by age and serious injury squared by terribly out of shape.

 

[strngplyr]

I want defense and not just because of this year's Super Bowl. In recent seasons we've watched the #1 offense in NFL history fail. Twice. Miserably.

15-1 offensively dominant packers be one and done. The prolific colts made it a habit to fail in the post season. Our own 2011 squad carried by a dominant offense fell.

Even the saints 2009 victory was aided significantly by Peyton and the defense.

A prolific offense hasn't carried a team to a Super Bowl victory in quite some time. The better defense always seems to pull it off.

Brady will be great no matter who he has around him on offense but he can't stop the other team from scoring. The best thing we can do is prevent every game from becoming a shootout instead of building a team to win a shootout. That's a stupid philosophy.

 

[DarrylS]

Do not see it as either or, but both. We lost something like 110 receptions and 11 TD's from the TE position.. and our complimentary WR's, became primary targets, which they were not ready for.

I would look at another TE, O line help and the rest on Defense... but D can come first, but another TE who can play that position is critical for this O.

 

[superpats]

Tell me how we have enough weapons?? Viable weapons that is!! Tell me how anybody can put resigning A limited WR option like Edelman over an ELITE shutdown Corner??!! If the team has to find a role for somebody it means he is a sentimental hometown favorite who tryed hard but lacks nfl starter caliber! You are telling yourself lies if you think we can win a SUPERBOWL with a team littered with so called starters you had to find a role for. You cant table edelmans and Gregory"s when your opponent is fronting D Thomas's, cam chancellor's, and percy harvins. Well im wrong you can actually,sorry, but its only if you are content with just making playoffs and then getting our buts kicked at some point!! Edelman Amendola looks real good. They are slots in a system designed to aid the slot to get open to catch passes from the best qb in the game. I could name several no names who could do it. Amendola is already paid and garunteed so he is our slot. Would you really want to pay another slot that would prevent us from having capspace to bring in a true#1 done right ,an eric wood or power athletic center or julius Peppers? Of our young WRs i like Dobson. BUT at Tom Bradys age we can't put HOPEfuls out there to be our multi talented complete true #1 due to the FACT that if he doesn't come through then they have wasted one of the last 2 yrs of Bradys time as elite qb. Think about that. I like Dobson as our #2 outside complete WR. If he steps up we have elite #2 or a second #1 which would be awesome coolness. If he doesnt then oh well he is just second option.

If the fat is cut like wilson sopoaga,Conolly,wendall,possibly ninko unlerestructures to a paycut as well as Wilfork who i hope retires when he realizes he isn't dominant anymore by far. Then restructure mayo,mankins whom is overpayed, Then maybe Tom Brady restructures to a sliight paycut for capspace to win couple more rings as well as gronkowski. This team will have the room under the cap to Sign anybody they want in free agency! Peppers,starks,cody johnson,wood. Not to mention kelly as well pending a workout cuz he will be 33. I still firmly believe JusTin Blackmon is our best wr option. Supernatural, under rookie deal,and trade value cheapened. If we make jpgrades to tony Gonzalez liking to talk him from retirement,to play and train with blackmon and our others like Dobson,Gronk,amendola, Justin Blackmon will be unstoppable once tony gets him in condition And the science of pass routes and catching such as how to not waste any movement he would be unstoppable as would gronk.

 

[superpats]

Dont get me wrong i have been saying since 2009 we NEED a passrush and shutdown Corner. Well we have the corner but we're in danger of losing him due to the unthinkable idea that the limited slot wr Edelman is our profit,which is ridiculous! Especially when we are paying a slot and cant change that. Amendola is our slot. We need a true #1 on offense. I could name 3 no name wrs to get 90 catches in our slot from brady in an offense designed to free up the slot. Find somebody to replace a premier shutdown corner. Also there's a load of subpar players on this team who should be cut. CONNOLLY,GREGORY,SOPAGA,WILSON AND AGING DECLINED WILFORK AND LIKELY NINKO DEPENDING ON HIS SALARy. Then mayo mankins restructured. Hopefully Brady and gronk want to win enough to restructure. Then this team has the room under the cap to sign any free agents they want to accelerate improving this team to not WASTE BRADY"s last couple yrs of being elite.

Bring a #1 wr in like Blackmon to do it right and be done with the merry go round of multiple useless wrs. Blackmon will have a rippling effect and make the whole offense better. Then if all cuts are made they can commit to one power ELITE interior OLineman then commit to Defense after that.

All those top scoring offenses how many had dominant Oline?? ZERO!! They all had mediocre Olines masked by an elite qb who got ball out quick. They got away with it against most teams. But a dominant passrush and all around dominant defense exposed these olines. They couldn't get away with it against suffocating defenses. Take 07 patriots,after game bellichick swatted his hand at oline after the game in anger at them. It was no secret secret bellichick preferred an oline thy knew his scheme and worked in unity than a powerful athletic dominant Oline and it failed and came back to bite him cuz he preferred stability rather than coaching replacements into take over for weak links like kaczur. Turned out against dline of impact passrushers they couldn't double team everybody and got exposed. Suppose in 05-07 drafts they came away with marcus McNeil,whitworth, jahri evans, or Michael roos to name a couple. I bring that up because we found ONE longterm starter in those 3 drafts. Everybody knew kaczur was terrible,but Bill Bellichick didnt want To take on time and projecti of coaching a new player into chemistry of his oline schemes,even if they were far more talented and dominant.

 

[Rob0729]

I'm gonna cheat a little bit. I will say defense, but I think this team still needs to get a bigger bodied outside WR.

I think they need to change the way they play offense a bit and get more outside threats rather than all the small receivers who go over the middle. I think what has hurt them most in the playoffs in recent years is that teams could flood the middle of the field and take away the receivers.

But for the playoffs, defense is more important. You need a good, but not great offense. But they let defenses play in the post season and the rules of the regular season where all the rules benefit the offense goes out the window a bit.

If I was making personnel decisions, my priority would be to get another pass rusher (probably a DT), a big hitting saftety, and re-sign Talib or get his replacement. The offense has some needs that have to be filled (a center, another outside WR, and another TE), but I don't know if filling those roles with top line talent is as important.

 

[Love The Drake]

Sidney Rice is a free agent a good one or two year contract packed with incentives could be just what the Dr ordered for both sides.
Rice plays for a team who will air the ball out with the goat and could be paid handsomely based on hitting his performance incentives. Between him Denario Alexander and Emanuel Sanders should Julian Edelman leave we have options.
I would make Micheal Johnson or Greg Hardy before any free agent followed by TJ Ward or Alex Mack. I'm excited by the offsesson for sure.

 

[superpats]

Profit=priority spell check going nuts changing words. Anyways, i would actually rather see some balance in fa spending. Lets get wr right and be done with it,then inject the Oline with a mauler with the athleticism to move in a zone schemes. Then concentrate on what upgrades need be made on defense like PASSRUSH and speed. With more and more running qbs hitting the league i see slow lbs like spikes and Hightower obsolete as defenses retool with fast hard striking lbs to combat running qbs. Another reason Gregory needs to go. At least give Harmon the chance to bulk up some and get reps to develop. SS is now a premium position with all the running qbs and freak te"s

 

[superpats]

Calm down guys,so long as they cut the fat and do the restructured contracts theres enough cap room for several key additions. I feel all is important as the other. I say WR is important priority to get it right this time and end the merry go round of mediocre and totally useless WRs. Remember to win a SUPERBOWL means being better than EVERYBODY! I think Blackmon committed on a winning team would be unstoppable and have a rippling effect on the entire offense. And make Denver's offense envious. Think about it for a minute. Other upgrades are as important,i just would like to see them stop screwing around with Brady offense and get the WR thing right like when we brought Moss on board. Blackmon is even more complete than moss. Fast and physical! Im thinking Brady Bellichick and winning can bring the best out of Blackmon like when Moss came in. Other upgrades are important.

 

[BobDigital]

Well they need to do both obviously. But if you were to get only 1 star FA this off season I would make it a Defensive star.

I think a Jared Allen/Greg Hardy (or some other DE of that ilk) or maybe Arther Jones/Randy Starks for a DT if you let Wilfork walk would be best.

Also on a side note it is going be easier to get a defensive difference maker than an Offensive difference maker this year in FA. a lot of Good D players 30+ are available which would be a good piece to use while we ride out Brady's last years.

For offense the guy I really want is Riley Cooper - WR. He is not going to be overly expensive and is a big target. I would take him even if it means letting Edelman walk.

 

[superpats]

I would take Cooper over Edelman in .03 seconds. BUT Blackmon would be the best! If we are going to be the best we must have the very Best and we have a ways to go after beatdown from Denver. Blackmon is a phenom and he alone could have a rippling effect on the offense making us instantly BETTER than Denver's!! Once again Brady provesbetter than manning when he has the weapons to. If the offense is void of injuries it could make a jump and warp like rams did in one year. Boyce can compete with amendola for the slot. Dobson #2 outside wr with Blackmon our #1 and all that before we even talk bout gronk! Think how much that will screw with and twist defenses!! An outside speed guy like Blackmon who is super physical AND can go over the middle and snatch the ball in traffic and take it the distance while our slot has 4.3 speed and also a dangerous threat to go deep from the slot. Vereen out of the backfield like a Marshall faulk threat type. And Tom Brady the GOAT at scanning the field and a threat to hit either weapon ANY time ANYWHERE!! Even SEATTLE WOULD LOSE SLEEP OVER THAT!! GIVES GOOSEBUMPS THINKING OF IT DOESN'T IT!!??!!

Next add one mauler to our Oline. On defense there's tons of ways to go. Hardy would double the national debt!! Peppers Is such a freak he could have lost a step and still be a freak!! Cody could replace Wilfork and completed by Randy Still. Iwould like to see Hightower traded and replaced by speed cuz at some point we are going to have to face a running baCk qb. And all our lbs must b able to chase and strike b4 to much damage is done.

 

[bruinator]

How many people think the Pats should become more offensive on defense or more proactive instead of reactive?

I think they need to attack the QB more with the D. ends, more corner blitzes, bump the receivers at the line more, defensive backs turn their heads more on pass routes and look to intercept the ball instead of not turning their heads and look to just deflect the ball once it reaches the receivers hands.

thoughts?

 

[superpats]

Wtf!!?? My stupid spellchecker is nuts changing whole words. ANYWAYS THAT'S Randy STARKS Not Still. Sorry my friends this is irritating me so i know what others MUST think trying to read. ANYWAYS I get goosebumps thinking bout how freakishly awesome our offense would be adding Blackmon and the rippling effect he would have along with a powerful athletic tonesetter along the oline that will set a mauling tone across the board. Like Erik Williams did in Dallas and even inspired the great Larry Allen. If we are going to be the best we HAVE to have the best. Blackmon is faster and more talented than Demaryius Thomas and he will have a rippling effect along our whole offense. But we have to be realistic about how we MUST be willing to part with high draft picks or mallet and a draft pick. AsWE LEARNED THE HARD WAY WITH JOSH GORDON, NO TEAM IS GOING TO PART WITH A YOUNG ELITE TALENT FOR A DARNED FOURTH ROUND PICK!! It was is RIDICULOUS TO THINK SO!! WITH ALL OF OUR SECOND ROUND DRAFT BUSTS WE HAD HOW COULD WE THINK ITS TO HIGH A PRICE TO PAY FOR A FREAKISH YOUNG TALENT???? DO THEY THINK WE NEED MORE CUNNINGHAMS,CHUNGS,BRACES, WILSON'S,HIGHTOWER"S?? It would be nuts to not trade for a player who will take our offense to another level. Same as missing out on Josh Gordon. Was it really worth another Taylor Price for a player who has/had shown Elite ability in the NFL?? Why cant they just provide Brady with weapons of Elite caliber for the last couple yrs of his prime.

 

[patsfanboy]

We have a lot of needs to fill, but it needs to be addressed the right way. So we have two way of doing that through free agency or the draft.

From the Draft, i would to draft defense and a TE as well. From free agency offensive player especially WR.

 

[Hercules Rockefeller]

Superpats, the Patriots did not miss out on Josh Gordon. Just because the Browns traded a terrible scrub does not mean they also intended to trade one of their best players. There was never a report coming out that he was on the trade block, just speculation because the media had not figured out Trent Richardson is terrible and people thought they were going to start trading their entire team. They didn't trade a single other player, so to assume that Gordon was on the block is a bad assumption. They traded Richardson because Irsay and the Colts got desperate and the Browns saw they could fleece them.

Also, please, please, please read through stuff before you post it. Punctuate. Be a bit more brief. I doubt anyone is actually going to read your thoughts until you do that, it's hard on the eyes and often makes no sense.

Your love of the Pats and your passion is appreciated. But if you can't make legible posts your efforts are going to go wasted because nobody will be able to comprehend them.