A few Random observations occurred to me as I was previewing my Previews...
1 ~ I have never felt better, in the Bill Belichick Era, about our Depth of Talent at Defensive Tackle.
2 ~ Vince Wilfork is the very best, most dominant Nose Tackle in the Game.
3 ~ I believe that the rapidly improving Kyle Love will become a far more disruptive force, with glorious results.
4 ~ The Depth of Talent of our Dragoons ~ DE/OLB Convertibles ~ is utterly astonishing.
5 ~ The Depth of Talent of our entire Front 7 ~ because our Dragoons can move to the Flanks, and because both our Sam and our Will can play the Mike ~ is astonishing.
6 ~ Being able to boast the aggregate Pass Rushing Ferocity and Run Defending Tenacity of Chandler Jones, Rob Ninkovich, Jermaine Cunningham, Trevor Scott, Jake Bequette, and Justin Francis on one roster is absolutely mind-boggling. Wasn't it just 3 weeks ago that it was Derrick Burgess, Tully Banta Cain, and a bucket of spit???
7 ~ As awesome as Willie McGinest, Teddy Bruschi, and Mike Vrabel were, this group ~ Donta HighTower, Brandon Spikes, and Jerod Mayo ~ is fully capable of attaining their level in the next couple of years.
8 ~ If "Young & Talented, yet Experienced" is the best of all worlds ~ and it is ~ then this Defense will rapidly become the envy of the entire League ~ indeed, of the entire Belichickian Dynasty, when all is said and done, I believe. This Defense is deeper than it's ever been.
The "ReBoot", at long last...is complete.
Let the Chicken Littles quote statistics from 2011.
I'm here to say: This Defense ~ the 2012 Defense, and beyond ~ will prove to be of such explosive, disruptive, marauding Excellence...that it will be capable of carrying this team, if needs be, to a Championship.
How is your confidence with the secondary though?....good post on the DL and LB, they were spectacular on Sunday and caught EVERY ONE's attention....
Thanks, Brother Jones.
I am actually
very optimistic about our Secondary:
1 ~
Devin McCourty, I've got Locked & Loaded for an
enormous Resurgence, on the same scale as
Jermaine Cunningham, Esquire. McCourty's got
all the tools ~
Processing Speed, Field Vision, and, above all,
Verticity ~ the ability to
Flip Hips and
Turn & Burn. He's a
Tape Rat, a
Scrapper, a
Scraper, and his Confidence is Rock Solid. All he suffered, last year, when you boil it down, was an acute case of Sophomore Jinx, exacerbated by a truncated Off Season and a Schematic Change...He'll be Rocking & Rolling, this year, one of the very best CornerBacks in
all the Land, I say, and millions will wonder in
amazement how they
ever doubted'm.
2 ~ Kyle Arrington, the former UFA, is, arguably, every
bit as talented as Devin McCourty, and combines explosive
Burst and outstanding
Verticity with a
voracious Passion for the Game. He is just getting
started in carving out a reputation as one of the most reliable CornerBacks in
all the Land.
3 ~ Ras I Dowling is the
Wild Card in this group. I don't know if I see the
Verticity to
Turn & Burn with Grade A Wide Outs at this level, but evidently
Coach Bill The Mad (Genius) did, as he started'm on Opening Day, one year ago...If Mad Bill is
right on this guy and
if he can stay healthy, we could go from a
good Secondary to a
great one.
4 ~ Alfonzo Dennard was
incredibly raw and undisciplined in his College career...and in his College life. But the raw
Verticity is there to keep up even with
elite Wide Outs...and he is
fearless. If Mad Bill and Alfonzo, himself, can harness his
extraordinary Skill Set...we could have a
phenomenal Weapon on our hands, here.
~ Our Corners are
extraordinarily physical and nasty in Run Support.
~ And our Safety Corp ~ one short year later ~ commands
stunning Depth of Talent.
~ If our Front 7 evolves as I
expect it to, this year, a
decent Secondary will be enough for Excellence.
...And I expect our Secondary to be an
Hell of a lot better than
decent.
