One player who received a lot of playing time during the offseason practices for the Patriots was former Cowboys, Dolphins, and Lions linebacker Bobby Carpenter. It didn’t hurt his cause that Brandon Spikes has been out since having offseason knee surgery, but they don’t play the same position. Spikes is a middle linebacker for the Patriots, while Carpenter can play both outside spots in a 4-3. Jerod Mayo is the weak-side linebacker, so that means Carpenter is in the mix on the strong side. Expect first-round pick Dont’a Hightower to have a say in that at some point. At the least, Carpenter is going to play a large role in coverage. He’s the only legitimate cover linebacker the Patriots have after Gary Guyton departed.
Sherman eases back into NFL with Dolphins – Sports – The Boston Globe
I have two issues with this quote from Bedard.
1. When was Guyton ever “legitimate”?
2. What about Dane Fletcher?
Otherwise I remember everyone clamoring for Carpenter when he came out in 2006. That was about the time the Pats defense was officially “old and slow” and needed a youth infusion at linebacker. Not sure if the Pats can suddenly now make Carpenter into something special, but it looks like he’ll have a chance until we start getting healthy.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/one-player-who-received-a-lot-of-playing-time/