TWO NITPICKS
1) 5 or 6 DB's WILL BE commonplace?
We've played the nickel for at least 20 years. Having 5 DB's has been our base for the last few.
Six DB's has also been commonplace for years. We used to call the 6th DB, the dime back.
Sure, this is more of a passing league, so more DB's is indeed more common. And the quality of pass coverage and pressure by our front 7 (now 6) has led the patriots to use safeties more. Obviously, this also happens because we have one of the very best 3 safety sets in the NFL.
2) ONE of the Jones boys will be shadowing ABrown? It will be a major surprise if that player is C Jones.
3) Are you really suggesting sitting Gilmore against the steelers in favor of ONE of the Jones boys, Rowe and McCourty?
QUOTE="patfanken, post: 5314907, member: 3697"]In the evolution of the passing game in football, trying to pigeonhole DB's into specific "position boxes" is over. We have reached the era of "positionless secondaries, where 5 and 6 DB's on the field will be commonplace, and that's why the Pats have loaded up on DB's this season.
So the answer to the original OP question is "who knows". Whatever the personnel assignments that are going to be played will be determined by the individual skill set of the DB, the skill set of the WR's they will be playing against, and the scheme of the offense.
For example, IIRC, JMcCourty has excelled as a zone CB, while Rowe has traditionally fared better against bigger WR's in man. This will be a factor in determining who will play and when.
So when the Pats play the Steelers, one of the Jones boys would likely get the Butler role of shadowing ABrown, while McCourty would be the trap CB, and Rowe covering one of the bigger Steelers WR. Different teams would require different defensive personnel packages and the Pats, I think, will be uniquely positioned to create the matchups that can defend against this new era passing game, or at least defend it as well as it can be expected when a 60% completion rate has become the "Mendoza line" for QB's and 65%+ is the expectation.[/QUOTE]