PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

Mike Dussault

Ups and downs for the New England Patriots – ESPN

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Ups and downs for the New England Patriots – ESPN

Good list. Overall it’s hard to really read too much into this performance and what it means for the 2014 Patriots. Though there are some key depth spots where I was hoping to see some better performances.

Overall, the play of the linebackers was a little disconcerting, along with no real stand outs at defensive end. Michael Buchanan and/or Will Smith will likely be counted on as a third defensive end and neither wowed.

There’s still time though and a lot of these guys are just getting their feet wet coming off major injuries. We’ll see how they progress in coming weeks.

Obviously Jimmy Garoppolo was one of the guys who will get the most hype in the next week. Garoppolo has been up and down in camp, so it was a bit of surprise to see him play so well. But it does speak to how good of a fit Garoppolo is for the Pats’ offense. He showed promise.

Malcolm Butler made some good plays and showed good jump on the ball. Sounds like he’s been doing this a lot in camp. He is pushing to pick up a roster spot in the secondary. Special teams will be key for him.

Not much time to think about this one, it’s on to the Eagles and I’m looking forward to getting a closer look at some of these guys in person next week.

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“This week was an opportunity for him to re-up the treatments and less on the field work,” Belichick said. Belichick applauded Gronkowski’s hard work and dedication in the team facilities to reach this point, but knows that the tight end still has work to do.

Bill Belichick: Patriots’ Rob Gronkowski to practice next week – ESPN Boston

https://www.patspropaganda.com/this-week-was-an-opportunity-for-him-to-re-up-the/

How will Patriots employ Darrelle Revis? – Sports – The Boston Globe

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How will Patriots employ Darrelle Revis? – Sports – The Boston Globe

It’s a good question and I think there’s some interesting elements in this article but I think it’s missing the forest for the trees.

I’ve said before this offseason that Revis might not necessarily just man-up the #1 WRs. Using Browner at the line and McCourty over the top certainly makes sense against bigger #1 WRs. And what #2 would Revis not completely eliminate from the game?

But here’s the thing – the Pats want to run a healthy mix of coverage. They’re not going to be the Seahawks. They’re going to multiple from game to game and even snap to snap.

So where Revis is lining up right now, in the first 10 days of training camp doesn’t mean much. Why? Because it’s not hard to learn man-to-man coverage. There’s your guy, go cover him.

In the early days of camp, the team is learning the defense, and the hard defense to run is zone. Getting down communication with the rest of the secondary, recognizing route combinations and learning how to work together.

Nobody’s learning much if Revis was just following Edelman around all training camp.

So I think we’ll see it all this year, Revis staying on a side, Revis following the #1 around, probably even Browner following the #1 around.

Once again it’s a recurring theme of this talented defense. We don’t know exactly what to expect and neither do opponents. It’s just the way BB likes it.

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New England’s defense once again utilized a lot of odd-man fronts against Washington. That 34 look had Vince Wilfork over the nose with Tommy Kelly at left end and either Chris Jones or Will Smith on the right. The linebackers included Jerod Mayo and Jamie Collins on the inside with Dont’a Hightower and Rob Ninkovich on the outside. Chandler Jones actually saw time at both end and linebacker in these segments. The same, in other groups, was true for rookie Zach Moore.

Tom Brady shines, defense dominates and other Patriots camp blogservations from Washington

https://www.patspropaganda.com/new-englands-defense-once-again-utilized-a-lot-of/