Getting their due – Gregory, Arrington, Ninkovich and Kelly

[Brady6]

We talk a lot about the defensive players such as Jones, Hightower, McCourty, Mayo, Wilfork and Talib on the team who were selected in the first round of the draft, and for good reason they’re all top tier players at their position, but so far this season it has been 4 players who all entered this league as late round or UDFA’s that have been the key figures in this defense taking the next step. I have been extremely impressed with all 4 of these players, expecially Steven Gregory who many including myself thought he was going to be either cut or fourth or fifth on the depth chart.

• Gregory is second on the team with 17 combined tackles; he also has 1 pass defended.
• Arrington leads the team with 3 passes defended and 2 forced fumbles; he also has 1 tackle for a loss.
• Ninkovich leads the NFL defensive ends with 9 solo tackles and is second in combined with 14; he also has 2 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery.
• Kelly is tied for the NFL lead in total tackles for an interior defensive lineman with 12; he also has 1 sack and 1 fumble recovery.

Belichick continue to find hard working players who he can either develop into quality NFL players or revive after some down years at the end of their careers.

 

[Sicilian]

There were a few things that most people (myself included) listed as concerns on the defense going into the season:

Safety #2 - Gregory was considered the weakest starter on the defense. So far he's been very solid and seems to be taking more decisive routes to the ball. This could be the result of greater comfort in the system, and is encouraging. If our "worst" starter can be solid, it makes it much easier to play 11 man TEAM defense.

Arrington on the outside - When everyone is healthy, he's great in the slot, but a liability outside the numbers if he has to fill in there. Now Dennard has been playing a lot, but considering Arrington and Talib have been playing almost all of the snaps at corner, that means Arrington HAS been lining up outside with no noticeable problems. We'll see if that holds up against better WR, but so far I'm encouraged.

Depth on the DL - This is still a long term concern, but I've seen good things out of both Vellano and Buchanan. They aren't the answers yet, but they're at least taking some steps towards alleviating the unknowns.

 

[Rob0729]

I think Gregory deserves a lot of props. He has been killed by the fans for a long time and he has been playing very well this year thus far. He isn't that enforcer that you would like out of a strong safety, but he is very heads up and making plays all over the field.

 

[Gronkandez]

I think Gregory deserves a lot of props. He has been killed by the fans for a long time and he has been playing very well this year thus far. He isn't that enforcer that you would like out of a strong safety, but he is very heads up and making plays all over the field.

The way he is playing though, IMO he will never last. He's coming up and laying the wood on RB's but he's a small guy. He came off the field a couple times in the last game after getting shaken up. Just my two cents. Tavon better start getting ready.....

 

[PatsFan2]

The way he is playing though, IMO he will never last. He's coming up and laying the wood on RB's but he's a small guy. He came off the field a couple times in the last game after getting shaken up. Just my two cents. Tavon better start getting ready.....

You're kidding right? Tavon ugh!

 

[PatsFan2]

The way he is playing though, IMO he will never last. He's coming up and laying the wood on RB's but he's a small guy. He came off the field a couple times in the last game after getting shaken up. Just my two cents. Tavon better start getting ready.....

You're kidding right? Tavon ugh!

 

[mgteich]

Harmon is our #3 safety.

The way he is playing though, IMO he will never last. He's coming up and laying the wood on RB's but he's a small guy. He came off the field a couple times in the last game after getting shaken up. Just my two cents. Tavon better start getting ready.....

 

[Brady6]

I think Gregory deserves a lot of props. He has been killed by the fans for a long time and he has been playing very well this year thus far. He isn't that enforcer that you would like out of a strong safety, but he is very heads up and making plays all over the field.

I agree completely especially about him not being an enforcer, which is something I see as a positive, enforcers are best suited for zone coverage where they can float around and make big hits on unprotected receivers. Gregory is a good fit for this defense because he is more of a free safety mold, and since we're playing more left and right safety in place of free and strong safety Gregory offers less of a deficiency when the coverage is to his side than an enforcer type such as Chung or Meriweather.

I think the majority of the negative opinions about Gregory were formed when he was playing with Chung in that safety pairing he was more of the free safety who was relied on in coverage, that doesn't work toward his strengths, now with McCourty being more of the center fielder he is back in the role he played in San Diego when he was paired with Eric Weddle who played the center field role.

 

[BradyFTW!]

The way he is playing though, IMO he will never last. He's coming up and laying the wood on RB's but he's a small guy. He came off the field a couple times in the last game after getting shaken up. Just my two cents. Tavon better start getting ready.....

I agree, but when he was hurt this past week it was Harmon that came on in his place.