{"id":37401,"date":"2021-07-27T06:30:11","date_gmt":"2021-07-27T10:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/?p=37401"},"modified":"2021-07-26T18:58:09","modified_gmt":"2021-07-26T22:58:09","slug":"patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/","title":{"rendered":"Patriots 2021 Training Camp Primer – Safeties"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Patriots\u2019 defense wasn\u2019t great a year ago, but the play in the secondary was strong and safety could arguably have been the strongest positional group of the team. And this was despite Pat Chung, opting out of the season due to the COVID-19\u00a0 pandemic.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The unit was anchored by Devin McCourty who remains the quarterback for the secondary as well as one of the unquestioned leaders on and off the field. But as rock steady as his play has always been, the play of the strong (box) safeties jumps off the page, even with Chung missing (and who now has retired).<\/span><\/p>\n

Adrian Phillips was asked to play as a dime linebacker for much of the season and did a fine job although when it comes to being a linebacker in run defense, it wasn\u2019t fair for him to take on blockers who outweighed him by 100 pounds. Kyle Dugger was a rookie from a tiny school in N.C.(Lenoir-Rhyne University) but he logged in a terrific rookie season and played snaps in the box as a strong safety, free safety, as a single deep-high safety, and as a dime strong side linebacker.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With both Phillips and Dugger in their second seasons in Foxboro, they should be even better. Dugger looks to be a playmaker that has a long career ahead of him. Those two and McCourty could be the makings of a great position group in 2021.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Adrian

Adrian Phillips was a great addition to the Patriots in 2020. Brian Fluharty-USA TODAY Sports<\/p><\/div>\n

And there is depth as well. Jalen Mills, who played a ton of cornerback in the spring actually played more snaps at safety last year (565 to 409) than at cornerback. Myles Bryant has played both at corner and safety, so the versatility factor comes into play as well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Colbert seems to be a long shot to make the roster, the 6\u20192, 205-pounder has had trouble staying healthy but if so, could compete for a backup job to McCourty. Bledsoe with two-H\u2019s in his first name is a 6th round pick but is also a versatile defender as well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Patriots Check back with <\/span>PatsFans.com<\/span><\/a> as we\u2019ll go thru the entire roster as our primers for training camp continue before the heavy lifting starts on July 28.<\/span><\/p>\n

Current roster –<\/b> Devin McCourty; Adrian Phillips; Kyle Dugger; Cody Davis; Justin Bethel, Adrian Colbert, Joshuah Bledsoe.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Roster Locks:<\/b> McCourty, Phillips, Dugger, Davis, Bethel<\/span><\/p>\n

Discussion –<\/b> When it comes to the Safeties on the team, <\/span>Devin McCourty<\/b>, entering his 12th season on the team is a lock for a red jacket when his playing career is done. He shows little sign of wearing down but at 33, it is time to find or groom someone to take his place.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

McCourty is the leader who fires up all of his teammates and then backs it up with his stellar play on the field. He\u2019s in the last year of his contract. Will this be it for him? I wouldn\u2019t be surprised…however, if the team looks like it\u2019s turning things around quickly, he may be convinced to play another year. But that conversation is for another time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Kyle Dugger<\/b> is the next star waiting in the wings. As a rookie, he was already being used as a movable chess piece by the coaching staff. Who would have thought that the transition from a tiny school to the NFL would have been so easy-looking?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Now with a year under his belt, he is primed to have a big year. When it comes to looking for McCourty\u2019s eventual successor, with the athleticism that Dugger possesses, he\u2019d be a natural to take over McCourty\u2019s role. Especially with the depth, the team seems to have at strong safety. But we\u2019ll have to see.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Adrian Phillips <\/b>came into Foxboro with a reputation as a Special Teams maven and a versatile player who can and will line up anywhere. And that he did. Phillips was a great addition last year, especially after Chung opted out. Despite being asked to play out of position he did so ably and eased the loss of Chung a year ago.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Phillips is a versatile, aggressive playmaker who will no doubt benefit from having a second year in the Patriots system. With the nice additions at linebacker, he\u2019ll be freed up to play more of a box safety role.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Davis and Bethel are locks for the roster but won\u2019t contribute much if anything on defense. They were given new contracts for their prowess on Special Teams. Both only saw one snap each on defense in 2020. That won\u2019t change.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

Kyle Dugger lays a big hit during the 2020 season against the Chargers. (USA Today photo<\/p><\/div>\n

Adrian Colbert<\/b> was thrilled to be picked up by the Patriots this spring. He has four years in the league and has had stops in San Francisco, with the New York Giants, and Miami. While he\u2019ll have a tough time cracking the defense, his special teams\u2019 acumen may just earn him a spot. Keep an eye on him once the preseason starts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Joshuah Bledsoe<\/b> is an intriguing player whose draft stock took a hit when he broke his wrist at the Senior Bowl this winter. The Patriots picked him up in the 6th round. He had surgery to repair his wrist before the draft. He was obviously limited during the spring and was seen with a cast on his wrist. He was placed on the NFI list to start camp.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But he has a lot of potential as both a cover and box safety and is another core special teams\u2019 player while he was at Missouri. However, like Cameron McGrone, we may not get to see his true potential until 2022.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With help from Mills and\/or Bryant, the Patriots’ safety position looks to be even stronger than it was a year ago\u2026 Who\u2019s ready for camp to begin?<\/span><\/p>\n

Follow me on Twitter @SteveB7SFG or email me at<\/span><\/i> stevebpatsfans@gmail.com<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n

Listen to our<\/span><\/i> Patriots 4th and 2<\/span><\/i><\/a> podcasts on Stitcher radio as Russ Goldman, Derek Havens, and myself from<\/span><\/i> PatsFans.com<\/span><\/i><\/a> discuss the latest Patriots news and game analysis.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Featured photo of Devin McCourty: Steve Balestrieri PatsFans.com<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kyle Dugger is the next star waiting in the wings. As a rookie, he was already being used as a movable chess piece by the coaching staff.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":343,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22261,22266,1198,11,10],"tags":[48,22695,21909,34,21783,121,22590,2199,2303,44,70,8,848],"class_list":["post-37401","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2021-nfl-offseason","category-2021-patriots-draft","category-nfl-commentary","category-patriots-commentary","category-patriots-news","tag-53-man-roster-projection","tag-adrian-colbert","tag-adrian-phillips","tag-bill-belichick","tag-cody-davis","tag-devin-mccourty","tag-joshuah-bledsoe","tag-justin-bethel","tag-kyle-dugger","tag-new-england-patriots","tag-nfl","tag-patriots","tag-patriots-safeties"],"yoast_head":"\nPatriots 2021 Training Camp Primer - Safeties Ready to Roll<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Kyle Dugger is the next star waiting in the wings. As a rookie, he was already being used as a movable chess piece by the coaching staff.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Patriots 2021 Training Camp Primer - Safeties | PatsFans.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Kyle Dugger is the next star waiting in the wings. As a rookie, he was already being used as a movable chess piece by the coaching staff.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"PatsFans.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pfans\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/steve.balestrieri\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-07-27T10:30:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg?fit=1145%2C640&ssl=1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1145\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"640\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Steve Balestrieri\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@SteveB7SFG\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@patsfans\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Steve Balestrieri\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/71433b60b6fa7632bd955481ae49f3da\"},\"headline\":\"Patriots 2021 Training Camp Primer – Safeties\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-07-27T10:30:11+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1060,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/08\\\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"53 Man Roster Projection\",\"Adrian Colbert\",\"Adrian Phillips\",\"Bill Belichick\",\"Cody Davis\",\"Devin McCourty\",\"Joshuah Bledsoe\",\"Justin Bethel\",\"Kyle Dugger\",\"New England Patriots\",\"NFL\",\"Patriots\",\"Patriots safeties\"],\"articleSection\":[\"2021 NFL Offseason\",\"2021 Patriots Draft\",\"NFL Commentary\",\"Patriots Commentary\",\"Patriots News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/\",\"name\":\"Patriots 2021 Training Camp Primer - Safeties Ready to Roll\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/08\\\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-07-27T10:30:11+00:00\",\"description\":\"Kyle Dugger is the next star waiting in the wings. As a rookie, he was already being used as a movable chess piece by the coaching staff.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/08\\\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/08\\\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg\",\"width\":1145,\"height\":640,\"caption\":\"Steve Balestrieri - PatsFans.com\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/27\\\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Patriots Commentary\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/category\\\/patriots-commentary\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Patriots 2021 Training Camp Primer – Safeties\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"PatsFans.com\",\"description\":\"Patriots Blog with News and Analysis\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"PatsFans.com\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/01\\\/PF_Social_Logo.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/01\\\/PF_Social_Logo.webp\",\"width\":300,\"height\":300,\"caption\":\"PatsFans.com\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/pfans\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/patsfans\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/patsfans\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pinterest.com\\\/patsfans\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/patsfans\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tiktok.com\\\/@patsfans.official\"],\"foundingDate\":\"2000-06-17\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/71433b60b6fa7632bd955481ae49f3da\",\"name\":\"Steve Balestrieri\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/dfc4c29c648a043b9caafa2dddd23d6eff929a8dee4095b872f8bdd1a072f2cd?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/dfc4c29c648a043b9caafa2dddd23d6eff929a8dee4095b872f8bdd1a072f2cd?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/dfc4c29c648a043b9caafa2dddd23d6eff929a8dee4095b872f8bdd1a072f2cd?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Steve Balestrieri\"},\"description\":\"A former US Army Special Forces NCO and Officer, Steve has been following the Patriots since their days at Fenway Park. Steve has worked in the film industry and wrote as an Military Editor at SpecialOperations.com, 1945.com as a reporter for the Millbury Daily Voice, Millbury-Sutton Chronicle, and the Grafton News. He's also a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/steve.balestrieri\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/SteveB7SFG\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.patsfans.com\\\/patriots\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/sbalestrieri\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Patriots 2021 Training Camp Primer - Safeties Ready to Roll","description":"Kyle Dugger is the next star waiting in the wings. As a rookie, he was already being used as a movable chess piece by the coaching staff.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Patriots 2021 Training Camp Primer - Safeties | PatsFans.com","og_description":"Kyle Dugger is the next star waiting in the wings. As a rookie, he was already being used as a movable chess piece by the coaching staff.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/","og_site_name":"PatsFans.com","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pfans","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/steve.balestrieri","article_published_time":"2021-07-27T10:30:11+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1145,"height":640,"url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg?fit=1145%2C640&ssl=1","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Steve Balestrieri","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@SteveB7SFG","twitter_site":"@patsfans","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/"},"author":{"name":"Steve Balestrieri","@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/71433b60b6fa7632bd955481ae49f3da"},"headline":"Patriots 2021 Training Camp Primer – Safeties","datePublished":"2021-07-27T10:30:11+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/"},"wordCount":1060,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg","keywords":["53 Man Roster Projection","Adrian Colbert","Adrian Phillips","Bill Belichick","Cody Davis","Devin McCourty","Joshuah Bledsoe","Justin Bethel","Kyle Dugger","New England Patriots","NFL","Patriots","Patriots safeties"],"articleSection":["2021 NFL Offseason","2021 Patriots Draft","NFL Commentary","Patriots Commentary","Patriots News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/","name":"Patriots 2021 Training Camp Primer - Safeties Ready to Roll","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg","datePublished":"2021-07-27T10:30:11+00:00","description":"Kyle Dugger is the next star waiting in the wings. As a rookie, he was already being used as a movable chess piece by the coaching staff.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg","width":1145,"height":640,"caption":"Steve Balestrieri - PatsFans.com"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2021\/07\/27\/patriots-2021-training-camp-primer-safeties-ready-to-roll\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Patriots Commentary","item":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/category\/patriots-commentary\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Patriots 2021 Training Camp Primer – Safeties"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/","name":"PatsFans.com","description":"Patriots Blog with News and Analysis","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/#organization","name":"PatsFans.com","url":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/PF_Social_Logo.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/PF_Social_Logo.webp","width":300,"height":300,"caption":"PatsFans.com"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pfans","https:\/\/x.com\/patsfans","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/patsfans","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/patsfans\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/patsfans","https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@patsfans.official"],"foundingDate":"2000-06-17"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/71433b60b6fa7632bd955481ae49f3da","name":"Steve Balestrieri","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/dfc4c29c648a043b9caafa2dddd23d6eff929a8dee4095b872f8bdd1a072f2cd?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/dfc4c29c648a043b9caafa2dddd23d6eff929a8dee4095b872f8bdd1a072f2cd?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/dfc4c29c648a043b9caafa2dddd23d6eff929a8dee4095b872f8bdd1a072f2cd?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Steve Balestrieri"},"description":"A former US Army Special Forces NCO and Officer, Steve has been following the Patriots since their days at Fenway Park. Steve has worked in the film industry and wrote as an Military Editor at SpecialOperations.com, 1945.com as a reporter for the Millbury Daily Voice, Millbury-Sutton Chronicle, and the Grafton News. He's also a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/steve.balestrieri","https:\/\/x.com\/SteveB7SFG"],"url":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/author\/sbalestrieri\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/2015-Camp-Devin-McCourty-080415-d9VJzEla.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37401","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37401"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37401\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37407,"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37401\/revisions\/37407"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/343"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37401"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37401"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37401"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}