Patriots running a RARE 4 man rotation at CB successfully

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Something we may not really think about is the implementing of the very Rare 4 man cornerback rotation from Pees which has really been successful this season.

Bodden has been on the field 75% of the snaps while Wilhite has been on the field for 66% of the snaps,The rookie Butler has 55% of the snaps and surprisingly the player with the most experience Shawn Springs has seen the field the least at 49% of the time.

The team had not had the talent to run this type of defense rotations before because some of thier corners in the past were simply backups to come in emergency situations, but this year we have Wilhite,Springs,Bodden and Butler all sharing nearly equal time and giving the players of this secondary some time to remain fresh while others go in and avoid injuries that occur like in the past when starting CBs were playing every snap.
The more rotation usually equals the less chances of injury to the CBs and we have seen why the secondary has been so good and nearly injury free so far this year not to mention that offenses never know who BB and Pees will send out there.
No longer can they pick on Hobbs or focus on a rookie on the other side,they now have to guess.

Its a priviledge that few teams are seldom able to do, and to do it well as a defense in the top tier on pass defense makes it even more statisfying.

 

[JSn]

Can't discount Wheatley either. I think he's a decent corner, he's just got heaps of competition (and might be working though a minor, but nagging injury).

Agreed though. Team-wide, there is some pretty amazing depth.

 

[WhiZa]

It's rare because starting the season (or even starting last season) there was no definite #1 CB. After 2 years of roster changes and some good drafting I think the Pats found the best rotation they've had in several years. It is not common though as players get seen around the league. Next year I don't think they can keep Bodden (unless he takes a Pats discount), and with the depth the Pats have they don't need to pay him.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Can't discount Wheatley either. I think he's a decent corner, he's just got heaps of competition (and might be working though a minor, but nagging injury).

Agreed though. Team-wide, there is some pretty amazing depth.

Wheately does have talent from the little we have seen and should be able to take over Springs position when healthy but thats another issue - Springs really needs to step up and show these guys some great play that we all know he is still capable of when healthy,Springs has fit well in this rotation but I think we should see a little more from him on the field as the season progresses.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

It's rare because starting the season (or even starting last season) there was no definite #1 CB. After 2 years of roster changes and some good drafting I think the Pats found the best rotation they've had in several years. It is not common though as player get seen around the league. Next year I don't think they can keep Bodden (unless he takes a Pats discount), and with the depth the Pats have they don't need to pay him.

Maybe not having a definitive #1 corner is a blessing in disguise for this team.

No longer can Manning watch highlights and film of Samuel,Hobbs,Poteat,and god forbid Starks and know what to plan against,He now must look at all 4 players moving in and out and have no idea when they are coming in.

This is like the old BB we all know and love when teams were second guessing who was going to be on defense for a particular play and who was not,Confusing teams and making them wonder usually causes problems for the opposing offense and plays a large part in victory.

 

[Patspsycho]

Not only that, but our CB's will remain fresh and sustain into the 4th quarter.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Not only that, but our CB's will remain fresh and sustain into the 4th quarter.

Exactly and that is what caused that loss in 2006 and 2007,guys were exhausted and not physically fresh and ready to complete the 60 minutes.

If we had this 4 man Corner rotation in the 2007 SB we would have had the 4th lombardi right now,Not saying Hobbs was all at fault but he was not fresh and able to keep up with Burress and word out was that he was injured during that last series but they had little depth to provide a replacement.

If the LB corps had this type of quality depth like it does in the backfield it would be a dream.

 

[Kontradiction]

Not only that, but our CB's will remain fresh and sustain into the 4th quarter.

That's also why I think Springs is seeing the least amount of playing time right now. They want to keep his old legs fresh for the 4th quarter of the season.

Really want to see more of Butler as well...

 

[DarrylS]

Maybe not having a definitive #1 corner is a blessing in disguise for this team.

No longer can Manning watch highlights and film of Samuel,Hobbs,Poteat,and god forbid Starks and know what to plan against,He now must look at all 4 players moving in and out and have no idea when they are coming in.

This is like the old BB we all know and love when teams were second guessing who was going to be on defense for a particular play and who was not,Confusing teams and making them wonder usually causes problems for the opposing offense and plays a large part in victory.

Agree, really like the unpredictability of this Defense... suspect will continue to see more and different formations as the season progresses... a consequence is that everyone is up to game speed....

 

[ctpatsfan77]

That's also why I think Springs is seeing the least amount of playing time right now. They want to keep his old legs fresh for the 4th quarter of the season.

Really want to see more of Butler as well...

Yeah, somehow I think the Pats saw that Springs' services wouldn't be essential in those close matches against the Titans and Bucs. . . .

 

[patchick]

Bodden has been on the field 75% of the snaps while Wilhite has been on the field for 66% of the snaps,The rookie Butler has 55% of the snaps and surprisingly the player with the most experience Shawn Springs has seen the field the least at 49% of the time.

Good stuff, that distribution is mighty interesting. Though I wonder if the cumulative totals might be a little misleading? My impression is that Butler's snaps have been steadily increasing as the rookie learns the ropes, so the counts for games 1-3 could look very different from 5-7.

Regardless, take that 4-man CB corps and the safety group of Meriweather, McGowan, Chung and Sanders, and you have a tremendously deep secondary that's one of the team's real strengths. 180-degree turnaround from last year. Pioli who?

 

[JSn]

Good stuff, that distribution is mighty interesting. Though I wonder if the cumulative totals might be a little misleading? My impression is that Butler's snaps have been steadily increasing as the rookie learns the ropes, so the counts for games 1-3 could look very different from 5-7.

If I had to guess I'd say you're right about the snaps shift over a few games. However, it might also be that with the younger players getting better and having a couple of games against poorer teams, maybe that skews the stats a bit too, making it easier to test run some guys. The only thing is how that doesn't explain Wheatley's low snap count.

Regardless, take that 4-man CB corps and the safety group of Meriweather, McGowan, Chung and Sanders, and you have a tremendously deep secondary that's one of the team's real strengths. 180-degree turnaround from last year. Pioli who?

Technically a 5-Man CB corps... but agreed; If these guys all stay on course and avoid injuries this might well become the NFL's best secondary by December. Trips to Indy and NO will say a lot. Hold those teams to 14 and I'd be willing bet the farm on this team going to the SB.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

I wonder if Springs is being conserved for the playoffs. He has been better than Wilhite IMO.

This depth is what seperates this defense from the '07 version. Really opens up alot of options especially with McGowan at safety. Our best secondary since '03.

 

[mystrymaster]

So I haven't seen many pats games and admittedly I do not know the roster very well but is there really no fall off in all four of these guys are they becoming situational corners?

Are any of them better in run support on first and 3rd and short? Are any of them better at bump and run?

Is there a trend in the snaps they are playing?

 

[JSn]

So I haven't seen many pats games and admittedly I do not know the roster very well but is there really no fall off in all four of these guys are they becoming situational corners?

Are any of them better in run support on first and 3rd and short? Are any of them better at bump and run?

Is there a trend in the snaps they are playing?

Other guys will have better reads on this, but really, our corner rotation is "unscary" this year. The drop-off to even our number 5 guys is less than it was from #1 to #2 last year, imo.

These boys do seem physical, but Springs and Bodden jump out at me as the guys who can ruin WR's routes at the line.

When the Pats are on D, passing is getting to be very risky business. The instincts and closing speed of the young guys makes up for their inexperience and the experienced guys are just excellent thus far.

Our #6 corner is major low point though...

Also, if ANY of your guys have fumble-itis, watch out for the Brandon's at safety. They are LOVING to blow guys up this year.

 

[Patspsycho]

I wonder if Springs is being conserved for the playoffs. He has been better than Wilhite IMO.

This depth is what seperates this defense from the '07 version. Really opens up alot of options especially with McGowan at safety. Our best secondary since '03.

Since the corp is deep, we have the luxury of doing game-specific matchups so you will see plenty of Springs in one game, then almost none in another- not because of where he is on the charts, or for lack of effort, but because his skills aren't suited to the opponent we are playing.

That being said, expect him to be active this Sunday.

 

[unoriginal]

Good stuff, that distribution is mighty interesting. Though I wonder if the cumulative totals might be a little misleading? My impression is that Butler's snaps have been steadily increasing as the rookie learns the ropes, so the counts for games 1-3 could look very different from 5-7.

Posted by Synovia in last week's Defensive Snaps thread:

 

[mgteich]

If we had a shutdown corner and another clear NFL starter, the numbers of our top two would be closer to 100%. I think that it is a credit to Belichick that he had developed a fine rotation that takes advantage and uses all four of our corners. And yes, I am aware that we have a 5th developmental corner who apparently still not good enough to be active.