I was one of the first people to be on the Patchung bandwagon but I’m having mixed feelings about him these days and all the talk of him potentially deserving of a long term lucrative deal has left me scratching my head. There’s no question he has the leadership and work ethic that is vital to the Patriots but his injury history and average-at-best play makes me think this has to be a huge year for Chung.
What I see is a player who is a jack of all trades but a master of none. He’s had to fill in at times in the slot and that’s definitely not his strength, but even when he’s playing safety his performance has been nothing outstanding. I love his demeanor and aggressiveness but his numbers from Pro Football Focus show his performance is lacking in all areas, especially pass coverage.
In 2010, his first year as a starter, he missed two regular season games, and had positive ratings in just three games and negative ratings in four. The rest hovered around the average mark. His pass coverage for the year ended up at -4.3, while his run defense was a solid 5.2.
In 2011, he played in just eight regular season games but all three playoff games. He had two games that rated out positively, and three that rated out negatively including a dreadful -3.7 in the AFCCG. For the season he finished with a -3.6 in pass coverage and a -1.7 in run defense.
Now I don’t want to put too much weight in PFF’s metrics but still these numbers don’t jump off the page as a player who is vital to the future of the franchise. Again, I love what Chung brings to the locker room so that has to count for something, but I still think he has a ton to prove on the field this year and it just begins with staying healthy.
Even if he turns in 16 games he needs to first be put in a position to be successful. His stats point to that being in the box more than he’s in coverage, but with Chung’s size it’s hard to think he’ll ever be a dominant force close to the line of scrimmage. That has also played a role in the injuries he’s suffered the past two seasons.
Despite his numbers Chung is the kind of player you want to go to war with. He has all the intangibles you look for, but ultimately the proof is in the playing. I wouldn’t go so far as to say this is a make or break year for him, but I think that if he wants a rich long term deal he’s going to have to elevate his play this season to a level that we have not seen yet out of him.
