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Reiss: Do Patriots’ D-line moves signal shift?

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Reiss: Do Patriots’ D-line moves signal shift?

Here’s Mike Reiss with a little more insight into what kind of defensive shift the Patriots might be considering. Some further quotes I found interesting:

“I think it looks like they’re trying to get away from the 3-4,” Warren said of the base alignment that has been a Patriots staple since early in coach Bill Belichick’s Patriots tenure.

“When I heard about the different defensive deals they’re going to be doing, I didn’t see me in that big picture of things, or at least not a huge role in that deal. 

"Before, it was more like ‘Let’s try to do something different and if this doesn’t work, we’re going back to base.’ Now it’s more like ‘This is what we’re doing’.

Belichick evolving Patriots defense?

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Ty Warren’s quote below to Tom E. Curran after being released got me just as excited as another blockbuster free agent addition.

 "I think the team was looking to do some things differently on defense and I wasn’t in the plan. It doesn’t have anything to do with the test or anything else or related with Bill. You can see by the acquisitions they made. Plan on doing different things I’m not in the plans for and with my salary, they weren’t going to keep me around as dead money.“

As those who followed this blog last season know, I’m a defense guy, and it seems pretty clear that Warren is insinuating the Pats are up to something on defense.

The Patriots defensive system in 2010 was pretty straightforward as far the dynasty Patriots is concerned. They were in a base 3-4 when they wanted to stop the run, and the rest of the time they were in some fairly basic forms of nickel or dime defense. They never even got as crazy as the Five and Dime defense from 2009. I do not recall seeing a legitimate 4-3 defense run once.

In 2009 we did see attempts at using a strange 4-3 defense that had six players along the line of scrimmage (OLBs at the ends standing up) and Jerod Mayo standing solo at MLB. But after Mayo went down the Pats put this alignment on the backburner.

It feels like every preseason we wonder if the Patriots would ever make a move to a base 4-3 defense if their personnel became more suited for it, and though they flirted with it a bit in 2009, it was pretty much out of the playbook in 2010. Plus it was a lot easier to go into a normal 4-3 when McGinest and Seymour were in the fold.

But Warren’s comment raises the question of where exactly is the defense going this year?

Clearly the struggles on third down had to be addressed. Warren’s pretty much the prototype LDE for the 3-4 defense the Patriots run and he’d probably be a pretty good traditional defensive tackle in a normal 4-3 defense if he needed to be.

So what can’t Warren do that the Patriots would need him to?

It’s impossible to know the answer until we see the scheme in a meaningful game (don’t expect to see it in preseason), but let’s speculate for a minute.

I look at the defensive linemen and I see a majority of guys who look like traditional 3-4 nose tackles. Wilfork, Brace and Love are massive men with low centers of gravity who can take on double teams. Mike Wright and Myron Pryor have also both played nose for the Patriots though it’s not the specialty for either of them.

Brandon Deaderick and maybe Kade Weston are the only two guys on the roster who resembles the physical example of a 3-4 defensive end. Obviously Haynesworth is something unto himself and, if motivated, can play any defensive line position in any scheme.

Could we perhaps be looking at a 2-4-5 double two-gapper defense that would be used on early run downs and be expected to stop the run consistently? A base nickel defense with only two down lineman and hand-up or hand-down defensive ends depending on the situation? Why not?

The Patriots weakness was clearly the passing game and runs against their subpackages. Would a formation like this allow them the improve in both areas?

Again, all speculation. But I’ve long wondered if Belichick would ever come up with his own innovation to the 3-4 defense to counter the way the game has evolved into a passing league. Just like Buddy Ryan and the 46 defense or Dick Lebeau with the zone blitz, the NFL has a long history of schematic adjustments to shut down offenses.

And with NFL teams being even more unprepared than ever this season, how much of an advantage would the Patriots have (especially early on) if they’re running a new twist on their defense?

Perhaps now, with a bounty of handpicked players who have experience in his system and with each other, Belichick feels comfortable enough to start innovating. I can’t wait to see what he’s come up with.

Patriots release Ty Warren, Alge Crumpler & Nick Kaczur

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As always there’s never a dull moment for the Patriots and moments ago they released three players, moves that ran the gamut of expected to shocking.

First let’s start with Kaczur and Crumpler. With the emergence of Vollmer, Solder waiting in the wings, his injury history and huge salary the release of Kaczur was predictable.

As for Crumpler it’s not a total shock. His biggest asset was his leadership and clearly the Patriots must believe that rookie Lee Smith is ready to step into the third tight end role. I can’t imagine Crumplers dropped touchdown in the playoff game helped his cause either.

Both of those holes should be already filled, or relatively easy to fill but that’s not really the case with Ty Warren.

I didn’t believe any of the rumblings this off-season that Ty Warren could be cut. Yeah his salary cap hit was a little high and he had been injured a lot lately. But he also plays at one area the Pats have their biggest need, defensive line, and when healthy he was a pretty dominant player. I’m pretty shocked to see him go.

We’ll probably never know all the reasons behind why Warren was cut, but Belichick seemed unhappy with his decision to focus on finishing his degree in the 2010 off-season instead of working out with the team, which likely played a role in the injury he sustained in camp last summer. Warren was placed on the PUP list last night. We hoped it was just to buy him a little time to get fully healthy, but with his release it looks like there was a longer road ahead than anticipated.

The Patriots made due with a patchwork defensive line without Warren in 2010 and it looks like they feel okay moving forward with what they have, though Ron Brace, the next in line at LDE in 2010, is on the PUP list himself, along with second year DL Brandon Deaderick.

Not sure what the Patriots defensive line will look like when the season opens in a little over a month, but if Haynesworth works out they have two really strong pieces to build around with him and Wilfork.

Still, this makes three surprising moves in three days of Free Agency, and I’m sure there’s even more to come. My biggest question right now is whether or not Gerard Warren is back.