Mike D. note – Thanks to Cody Lachance (@HailtotheHoodie) for this report from training camp.
Saturday and Sunday marked the first time that the Patriots got to put their pads on and make some noise. I was fortunate enough to attend Saturday and Sunday’s practice sessions and I had many takeaways from the practice sessions. Today’s edition will focus on the defensive side of the ball.
The defense was where the team improved the most this offseason, the additions of Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner made Patriots fans excited for how great this defense can be this year. Add in a potential stud first round pick in DT Dominique Easley and this could be a truly special unit. If this group is as good in season as they showed this weekend, we are all in for a truly great defense this year.
Darrelle Revis is absolutely living up to the hype. He makes playing the cornerback position look like an art. His ability to not only cover any receiver he lines up on, but also play the run well makes him an all-around great defender. On one play, he drove Julian Edelman back four or five feet on a quick halfback draw showing how great of a run defender he is. He also added two interceptions on Saturday with a few defended passes; that is when the quarterback actually threw to his side of the field. One of the most impressive aspects of this weekend for Revis was how the New England quarterbacks would just stay away from his side of the field. If healthy, Revis will be an absolute stud in New England and remind people of the days where a different #24 used to roam the backfield for the Patriots.
The rest of the secondary looked strong. Browner looks like an absolute giant out there and towers over nearly everyone on the field. He did have trouble keeping up with players that ran deep routes on him, but anything in the short to intermediate range was where he excelled. With some additional safety help for deep routes, Browner should be able to lock down the short passing game. The hit he put on rookie running back James White was truly impressive and it seems like the rest of the defense will start to follow Browner’s lead and take pride in making big hits like that in games. Browner is definitely showing how he’s bringing some Seattle defensive culture to New England.
Logan Ryan looked outstanding, and is proving why both Revis and Browner have mentioned playing with him as a reason to come to New England. Devin McCourty should have a great yearwith all the new help in the secondary and capitalize on a great chance to play with great players.
Duron Harmon, Patrick Chung, and Tavon Wilson all took snaps with the first team defense and I think the competition for the starting safety alongside McCourty is pretty open. Tavon has been one of the offseason MVPs as he has put in the work, but I would still expect to see Duron Harmon alongside McCourty to start the year.
An interesting development over the weekend was the play of rookie cornerback Malcolm Butler. He kept up with the first team offensive wide receivers, and even picked off Mallett in a live play drill. He plays with a lot of emotion and competes at a high level and we should really see what the Patriots might have in this player in the preseason games. If Butler can play like he did this weekend, there’s a good chance that he’ll earn a spot on the practice roster at the minimum.
The linebackers and defensive line seem primed to take advantage of the help from what is now a top secondary in the NFL. Chandler Jones was the most notable of this group as he should continue to improve and could very well notch nearly 15 sacks this year. Vince Wilfork participated in contact drills and at times looked to show flashes of his old self, but on other plays looked like a 30+ year old, 300 pound lineman coming off a torn Achilles. With a reduced workload, Vince should still be able to perform at a high level. Rob Ninkovich does what he has always done in New England, do his job every single snap. The line has a lot of depth, and players like Will Smith, Michael Buchanon, Jake Bequette, Chris Jones, Sealver Siliga, and Joe Vellano all look to contribute. It was disappointing not being able to see Dominique Easley out there, but it’s better to be safe than sorry with him coming off an ACL tear. If he can stay healthy, he can be an absolute game changer on passing downs for this defense. The major takeaway from the linebacker group was how Jamie Collins does appear to have bulked up during the offseason and looks even more physically intimidating than he did last year.
He should be primed to make a big impact on defense, especially with the return of Jerod Mayo and more improvement out of Dont’a Hightower. Mayo was out there in contact drills which is a great sign that he will be just about back to his normal self for the season. James Anderson and Steve Beauharnais both took reps with the second team defense and it will be interesting to see how the competition for the number four linebacker plays out.
Another great development was how well the defense seemed to work together and support each other on the field. The defense was taking great pride in being able to make a stop during 7 on 7 and 11 on 11 drills. The group seems to be forming a strong chemistry which is key in having a cohesive unit that will be able to work together and make big plays when they need to.
This defense is as good as it has been for nearly ten years and this weekend is only scratching the surface of what kind of potential they have. This can easily be a top 5, maybe even top 3 defense in the entire NFL and could have players like Darrelle Revis and Chandler Jones potentially even be in the debate for Defensive Player of the Year honors. For Patriots fans, it’ll be great to finally be able to sit back and enjoy watching a true hard-nosed, outstanding, Belichikian defense looking like it was straight out of the dynasty years.a