Questions, Comments, Complaints, Compliments, Whatever
It’s a Draft Day 2 Q & A! Questions about Easley, potential picks tonight and tomorrow or whatever else welcome!
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Former Florida Gator Dominique Easley quells nerves, doubts with pro day showing | FOX Sports on MSN
He’s played everywhere along the defensive line,” he said. “You don’t see a lot of guys who do that — he lines up on the nose, he lines up on the guard, he lines up on the tackle, he lines up out wide at times. You can see him playing all those spots.
“He’s an explosive player, very explosive. A very disruptive player. In college, I would say his stats might have been a little bit deceiving because a lot of times he was the disruptive person on the play, but he wasn’t the guy who ended up making the tackle, or it wouldn’t be on the stat sheet. But the reason the play wasn’t successful was his penetration and ability to be disruptive. I think he has a good knack for that.
More from Belichick on Easley, via Mike Reiss’s article on ESPNBoston. (via thegoodthebadandthepatriots)
https://www.patspropaganda.com/hes-played-everywhere-along-the-defensive-line/
Dominique Easley – 2014 NFL Draft profile (by Erick Ward)
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
https://www.patspropaganda.com/dominique-easley-2014-nfl-draft-profile-by/
The reason why we were so successful was because we had guys in the secondary that could cover. … It gives you flexibility, it gives you versatility in your secondary to do so many different things to disguise, to play different coverages. … That’s all Bill Belichick wants. He wants versatility and wants the ability to play more man-to-man coverage and go after the quarterback and hit him in his mouth.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/the-reason-why-we-were-so-successful-was-because/
2014 NFL Draft Close-Up: Florida Defensive Lineman Dominique Easley | NEPatriotsDraft.com – 2014 NFL Draft
Great and thorough read on Easley from Oliver Thomas.
Look, it’s not surprising that some people don’t like the selection of someone who’s had knee issues, but let’s remember who on the Patriots have torn their ACLs: Brady, Revis, Gronkowski, Tommy Kelly, WIll Smith, Logan Mankins just off the top of my head.
Is it a concern? Sure. Is there some risk? Sure. But what draft pick doesn’t have risk? Why not take a shot on someone whose ceiling is that of a high-first round pick, a player who has the chance to be truly special. I’m all for swinging for the fences like that, especially when it’s filling a need that has been on my mind for the last four seasons.
Congratulations on predicting the Easley pick. I was right there with you in hoping for a DL/pass rush double-dip. Questions: can he make an impact in his first year? Who is likely to be a 3-down D-lineman, who will likely be pushed into a more specialized role on the current depth chart, and what does your ideal 3rd down personnel grouping look like?
Thanks, I definitely wasn’t alone in thinking he was a good fit, though I thought it might’ve just been wishful thinking. I do think his selection represents a bit of a departure for the Patriots.
Simply, he is not a 3-4 defensive linemen, not that 3-4 or 4-3 matters, but it’s doubtful he’s ever going to be asked to two-gap. But I’m all for it. He’s specialized, but specialized in an area they desperately need.
Is he a three-down DL? I doubt it. But he’ll play plenty and really, that makes it easier to bring him along slowly in his rookie year. As I wrote earlier, year two is where we should really expect him to wow us.
The Pats have options. For an all out pass rush front they could go Ninkovich-Easley-Chandler-Buchanan (or another DPR DE). Or they could put Wilfork/Chris Jones in there for the DPR for more run protection or a different twist.
Easley played all over the line at Florida and had success against every kind of offensive linemen. The Pats will move their DL/DEs all around and take advantage of whatever weaknesses they perceive. It’s an excellent mix to play any kind of game.