Injuries to the Patriots Defense Has Ultimately Made them Better

[PatsFans.com Article]

Injuries to the Patriots Defense Has Ultimately Made them Better
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Injuries are never a good situation to deal with, but that hasn't stopped the Patriots from making the most from them....

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[mayoclinic]

Injuries to the Patriots Defense Has Ultimately Made them Better
By:

Injuries are never a good situation to deal with, but that hasn't stopped the Patriots from making the most from them....

CLICK HERE TO READ THIS STORY​

Great article, Ian. For the first time since Wilfork and Mayo went out, we're starting to see the defense play at a high level again, just in time. It took 8-10 games for the defense to regroup on the fly, and to get the secondary back healthy. The accelerated development of Collins and Hightower at LB and of Jones and Siliga at DT should also reap dividends next year.

One could argue that the same thing happened with the offense - it's arguable whether we would have seen the evolution of the running game over the past 5 weeks without the injury to Rob Gronkowski.

 

[I.M. Fletcher]

One thing i will say after looking at the snap count, we really can't afford anymore injuries. I agree that our depth has been tested and has mettled the defense, there just isn't much room for subs.

If Collins Hightower or siliga go down, we could crumble. The line is that thin right now.

 

[Ian]

Great article, Ian. For the first time since Wilfork and Mayo went out, we're starting to see the defense play at a high level again, just in time. It took 8-10 games for the defense to regroup on the fly, and to get the secondary back healthy. The accelerated development of Collins and Hightower at LB and of Jones and Siliga at DT should also reap dividends next year.

One could argue that the same thing happened with the offense - it's arguable whether we would have seen the evolution of the running game over the past 5 weeks without the injury to Rob Gronkowski.

Thanks, and I completely agree with you. I think it's going to be interesting to see the long-term effects the development of these guys has heading into next season, and it definitely helps in terms of positions they'll need to address during free agency. But overall I can't get over how far they've come this year and how much a lot of these guys have grown. It's terrific