Patriots defense moving forward

[BobDigital]

How will things change?

Rowe I think will continue to grow here and on the hole has done well the last 3 games. I would hope Ryan will grow into the #3 spot which is a bit of a different skill set but one he should have.

Roberts at LB has looked good and will be a good piece. He has showned to be a good run stuffer so i hope that part of the D improves with him. Maybe we will see more Mingo and Flowers now for specialty downs.

Flowers had a good game yesterday so hopefully that continues as we need to generate more of that.

Thoughts on the future of this D?

 

[PatriotsPimp136]

It will be what it is minus a trade. Just need to do better on 3rd down. It will give up yards no matter what. I hope roberts can be a run stuffer up the middle. Our damn tackles could help if they can clog up the line.

 

[Mack Herron]

Moving forward? We've got 2 perfectly good weeks to stew in the present!

 

[NG Pats Fan]

Honestly, I don't know. I'm a bit sad. I love defensive stars, especially ones drafted by the patriots. I love building through the draft, homegrown talent. With now two homegrown fan favorites Collins and Jones gone, our defense seems headed in a different direction. I thought jones Collins Easley were going to be the athletic pass rushing stars of this defense for years to come, obviously I was very wrong.

In bill we trust, I'm going to reserve judgement of this D for another few weeks. I don't think we are finished trading yet either.

A lot of pats fans told me his years defense would be our best of the past ten years, but so far I'm not seeing it. I thought our 14 defense 3rd down D has improved lately which is very good, but I'm not sure if we have that big playmaker that can go and make a game changing play in the 4th quarter in a big moment.

I prefer the style of 03-04 defense which were very aggressive, but that is long gone, our scheme is now very conservative. based on assignments, not taking risks, play it safe. Give up yards but not points. Kill the clock.

Bill is known has the best defensive mind of all time, his defenses he had with Giants and 03-04 patriots were loaded with star players, especially pass rushers. I'm a bit surprised that since 07, he hasn't tried to rebuild the defense by acquiring as many star pass rushers as he could. bb has been very aggressive in acquiring premium CB talent like Revis and Talib, but hasn't put a premium on the pass rushers. I always figured Bb would try to find another LT to wreak havoc on the QB.


The only question that matters is ...is this defense good enough to help us win the super bowl? I'm going to say yes.

 

[ivanvamp]

I had two major concerns about the defense before today:

(1) A lack of pressure on the QB.
(2) Quality LB depth.

Even if the trade was wise as BB only knows it is, trading Collins doesn't help either of these. I'm fine with Hightower, Ninkovich, Roberts, and Mingo as the primary LBs, but the group simply cannot afford any injuries to key guys now.

 

[slash83]

I for one do not want to see Nink cover any RB's or TE's, ever.

 

[ausbacker]

Well, if the Patriots depth chart listing is to be believed, the base 43 looks like this;

Sheard - Branch - Brown - Long
Ninkovich - Hightower - Roberts
Ryan - McCourty - Chung - Butler

The only real issue there is Ninkovich appears to be out of place however, what we do know is he'll be exactly where he's supposed to be, something we couldn't apparently say for Collins (it really is a shame). If either of Van Noy or Mingo can turn into an LBer we need them to be, then that defense looks pretty darn decent.

To be honest, looking at that 4-3 alignment ain't all that bad.

 

[PF_SU]

Well, if the Patriots depth chart listing is to be believed, the base 43 looks like this

The real base nowadays is the nickel anyway.

 

[slash83]

The real base nowadays is the nickel anyway.

Yeah even in nickel they real don't have a LB that really excels in pass coverage. They can bring Chung down in the box more often but it does make the defense little weaker in terms of run defense.

 

[thecore762]

Here is my problem, both Hightower and Roberts are run stuffers, but they both struggle on the pass D, Collins on the other hand had an uncanny ability against the pass game and very fast...his coverage skills are much better than these two guys. My concern is, who do we use now to cover linebackers? We are thin at LB coverage wise...

 

[ausbacker]

Here is my problem, both Hightower and Roberts are run stuffers, but they both struggle on the pass D, Collins on the other hand had an uncanny ability against the pass game and very fast...his coverage skills are much better than these two guys. My concern is, who do we use now to cover linebackers? We are thin at LB coverage wise...

Yet he was able to be exposed in pass coverage, on a simple wheel route and on simple routes by Owen Daniels. I'm and will continue to be a huge fan of Collins' ability but if he's making the same mistakes over and over again, he's not learning.

 

[mihap]

Here is my problem, both Hightower and Roberts are run stuffers, but they both struggle on the pass D, Collins on the other hand had an uncanny ability against the pass game and very fast...his coverage skills are much better than these two guys. My concern is, who do we use now to cover linebackers? We are thin at LB coverage wise...

Chung or Mcourty on TE or RB, maybe Rowe at some point. Mingo and Mclelin role?
Is Mingo Collins replacement? He is athletic, they liked him in predraft. We ll see. That D must improve.

 

[edkk323]

No No No... Jamie Collins is not going to win games for us by himself. He is not that great at stopping the run and would not generate a lot of pressure rushing the passers. For his covering skill, I can remember he got burned so bad in the SB covering Lynch near the end of the first half and it resulted a quick TD. He blocked a field goal..... that is just about it. He is super athletic but he is not Von Miller nor Luck Kuechly... He is never our best defensive player at any point. A third round is a decent return.

 

[Le Numéro Douze]

I had two major concerns about the defense before today:

(1) A lack of pressure on the QB.
(2) Quality LB depth.

Even if the trade was wise as BB only knows it is, trading Collins doesn't help either of these. I'm fine with Hightower, Ninkovich, Roberts, and Mingo as the primary LBs, but the group simply cannot afford any injuries to key guys now.

Against Buffalo, they didn't try to. They mostly played contained and forced Taylor to stay in the pocket, read coverage and execute passes. What they did work because, most often than not, he would miss his target. If you go after him, you might pad your stats, but you will also give up more points because he can escape more often than not. The times they DID bring pressure, they got to him for a hurry or a hit (because they surprised him).

Against inexperienced QB, they often don't try either. They stuff the run and force them to pass. They give up yards in the process, but very few points.