Mike Dussault

Final Patriots 53-Man Roster Projection

September 1, 2017 by Mike Dussault

Time to give a Patriots 53-man roster one last shot before all craziness breaks loose this weekend and everything it turned upside down by a trade or a release or a signing that no one can see coming.

After the injury to Cyrus Jones I see about 50 total locks for then roster with three open spots to play with. Since there’s some significant veteran turnover on both sides of the ball, I stuck with some of the veteran special teams guys to maintain some consistency in that aspect of the team.

WIthout guys like Ninkovich and Edelman I’m keeping guys like Bolden and Grissom around for some additional leadership.

Here are my 50:

Pats Posits: The Preseason Is Over. Here We Go.

August 31, 2017 by Mike Dussault

The Patriots’ 2017 preseason is over. We can stop worrying about premature injuries (we actually got a couple of those this year) and focus on the real football campaign which the team is about to undertake.

Yes, it’s September and as Bill Belichick says “it’s football time.”

The preseason finale against the Giants, featuring a full 90-man Patriots roster, was actually a fun game, albeit one that we’ll all instantly forget. The Patriots fell into a big hole, clawed their way back only to give up a game-winning field goal in the final seconds, losing 40-38.

Though a meaningless loss, there were some real issues to come out of this one. Unfortunately an injury to Cyrus Jones could cause significant problems when the Pats open up against Kansas City in less than a week. Without Julian Edelman and very possibly Jones now, the Patriots are missing their top two punt returners.

The mostly-scrub defense turned in another gross performance early on, picking up where they left off last week. At this point at least it makes a good chunk of the cuts a little easier. Jacoby Brissett, who was treading water as a possible cut in some people’s minds, turned in a roster-locking performance. His touchdown throw to Devin Lucien was a thing of beauty and it was a reminder how much promise Brissett showed in 2016 when he was thrust into the fire.

Otherwise, we can pick out a few players to focus on, but chances are most of those who played against the Giants are on the outside looking in.

Let’s wrap up the preseason with a final look at those who showed up in finale.

.@JBrissett12 finds @D_Lucien15: pic.twitter.com/PpeOrTqnT4

— New England Patriots (@Patriots) September 1, 2017

Comparing Loss of Julian Edelman to 2013’s Offensive Turnover

August 31, 2017 by Mike Dussault

Julian Edelman is one of Tom Brady’s closest friends. So naturally, Brady was one of the first people in the Medical tent after Edelman was carted off following a knee injury. The New England Patriots dominated last Friday night’s preseason game against the Detroit Lions. But the injury Edelman suffered just two minutes into the game left a dark cloud over the otherwise impressive (in the first half) win.

Naturally, the Patriots odds for the 2017 season are unlikely to be drastically affected. But Edelman’s importance to the offense, especially in some of the biggest moments has already been well documented.

It is likely that the Patriots will get by without him. The 9.8 targets per game average the shifty receiver posted last season is impressive. But the Patriots have plenty of players on offense that they can rely on in Edelman’s absence.

If we dig further into Edelman’s numbers, his value becomes even more apparent. In the second half of games since 2013 where the Patriots are losing or up by one score or less, Edelman has been the most targeted receiver. He caught 14 of 22 targets in those situations, converting 11 into first downs.

That’s then kind of critical receiver Edelman is, but this isn’t unprecedented territory for the Patriots.

Do or Die Patriots vs. Giants

August 30, 2017 by Mike Dussault

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyg3JotQsfY

We’re in for a bit of a weird one Thursday night. With NFL rosters still at 90 players for week four (instead of 75 in previous years), teams have even more flexibility to play their scrubs who will be on the street within 48 hours of leaving the Gillette Stadium field turf.

Still, the Patriots’ depth players looked pretty atrocious against the Lions, leaving the door open for some roster battles that will likely play out against the Giants. On my recent 53-man roster I saw only 48 spots that looked like locks to me. That leaves five roster spots to be won, or to be filled with other team’s castoffs or trades over the long weekend.

Yes, things are still as fluid as they get in terms of NFL roster management.

Let’s take a closer look at where some of the final roster battles will be playing out, and five specific areas where roster spots could be won or lost.

Review: Belichick and Brady by Michael Holley

August 29, 2017 by Mike Dussault

I had the chance to review a copy of the championship edition of Michael Holley’s Belichick and Brady book and really enjoyed it. It was fun to re-live the past decade-and-a-half of Patriots football but solely through the lens of the two biggest characters at the center of it.

It’s really been such a remarkable ride and one that shifted drastically from when the Patriots were the darlings of the football world to when they became polarizing figures at the center of controversies both real and manufactured. Now you either love Belichick and Brady or hate them and the book does a good job of breaking down why.

I thought both Spygate and Deflategate were evenly handled. I know that will win points with many readers, others not so much, but Holley does an excellent job during the Deflategate episode of really breaking down how terribly the NFL handled the situation, how biased it was from the get go and all the many conflicts of interest just continued to pile up as the saga wore on.

Most of all it’s fun to get some small glimpses behind the curtain. There wasn’t an overwhelming amount of information that I hadn’t already heard or read about, but there was just enough to keep it feeling fresh. Holley is an excellent writer and really did justice to the drama of every season without getting too bogged down in the unnecessary details.

It’s definitely worth checking out if you like these kind of historical perspectives, but it’s exciting to know that significant chapters of it are still unwritten.

Pick up a copy of Belichick and Brady here.

Check out Patshow Episode #3!

August 28, 2017 by Mike Dussault

In case you missed it live earlier today, here’s episode three of Patshow! Plenty of Julian Edelman discussion, a visit from our first guest (a puppet Fitzy) and a 53-man roster projection.

Next show will be Wednesday but in the meantime if you’ll be tailgating for Patriot-Giants this Thursday be on the lookout for yours truly shooting some fan interviews for next week’s show. Thanks to all for tuning in and be sure to follow/fave/share all things @Patshow6!

What Happened With Ealy?

August 28, 2017 by Mike Dussault

When the Patriots acquired Kony Ealy this offseason by moving down eight spots in the draft, it was a low risk move that made a lot of sense.

With the departures of Chris Long and Jabaal Sheard, New England had a need at defensive end, no matter how nebulous that position name is within their defense. The retirement of Rob Ninkovich only furthered that need, which made Ealy’s slow start to camp, when he was missing in action the first day, even more troubling.

Ealy was remarkably unspectacular in the training camp practices I witnessed. In early preseason game action he looked just as bad. Yes, he started to make some plays here and there but it just wasn’t enough and Ealy was released after the Patriots third preseason game.

He was slow off the ball, unable to defeat blocks and was just generally ineffective and not impactful.

What happened? How can an experienced pro who was a standout in Super Bowl 50 get completely untracked in New England? When Bill Belichick says it just didn’t work out, no hard feelings, what’s at the root of why it didn’t work out?

Most of it fits into New England’s defensive scheme, which is unique. It’s not the first time a promising veteran defender hasn’t been able to do what the scheme requires, with Terrence Knighton being the latest example last season.

Let’s look a little deeper at what the Patriots ask their defensive ends/outside linebackers/edge players to do, and why it can be difficult for some players to grasp.