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The Best/Worst of the Week in Patriots Posts – 9/3

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So every Saturday morning during the season, I’m going to be dropping this “Patriots Weekly Links” piece. To be frank, I haven’t yet decided how to shape it, what angles to attack, or what to prioritize.

Ideally, this piece will bring to light some of the more significant (mostly) Patriots related articles of the week, but at the same time, offer well-deserved scrutiny to some of the dumber ones. Hopefully, the local and national media alike can offer up a handful of thoughtless, nonsensical hot off the grill takes to be added to the weekly bulletin board. Today marks the first go at it, so let’s get the test tubes and graduated cylinders out and start experimenting. Before that though, I need some help from Gronk, you know, to break the ice.

https://vine.co/v/5iZPDAL7Zxp

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Tuesday Patriots Catch-Up

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It’s that time again for a random bunch of Pats notes that I’ve been kicking around or getting into arguments about. With so much in motion at this point in the preseason, it’s impossible to cover everything in every article we put up, so here’s some catch up thoughts as we are just 19 days away from the opener.

— Few people pointed out that I was crazy for leaving Vincent Valentine off my 53-man roster so let’s talk about that a bit. First, I have to disclose that I didn’t get the pick then and I don’t get it now. Not that I don’t understand picking a guy because of the Planet Theory, but when you have two pretty well-paid veterans that are roughly the same amount of huge, not to mention a first-round pick from last season who will rarely leave the field and Valentine was already looking uphill at any kind of significant role this season. Then add in that my untrained scouting eye just wasn’t all that impressed with him from the crappy YouTube highlights, nor has he done much of anything to stand out in two preseason games, nor can I recall a single mention from any training camp practices. So yeah, I see a big body that’s hard to find but that’s about all I’ve seen so far. No, he probably won’t get cut, but does anyone want to bet he gets an “injury” sometime in the next two weeks. A red shirt year this season, then see what happens with Branch/Knighton next year and then the time might be right for Valentine.

— DJ Foster and Keshawn Martin were back in full pads on Monday and they’re two guys we should keep a close eye on over the next two weeks. I have Martin as pretty much a roster lock (Yes, I caught some flack for this too on my 53-man). Why? Because he’s a serviceable backup to Edelman and Amendola, can return kicks/punts, and did show some progress in his first year in New England. Martin’s just a classic BB player — no one’s that impressed with him but he sticks around because he can do a lot of things pretty good. The Pats also gave him a two-year, $3 million contract last year. They wouldn’t throw that money around to a JAG.

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Patriots Day Two Draft Pick Posits

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I stayed up into the wee hours of the morning last night, watching almost everything I could find on the four newest Patriots. I have to say I generally feel more excited that immediately after the draft. I was really only familiar with Cyrus Jones of all the draftees, so it was a process of discovery, and there’s a lot to like from these players.

You can check out some of the videos over at my media-heavy Tumblr site, PatsPropaganda.net. More will be popping up throughout the day.

Here are some general thoughts as I dove in deeper on the new guys:

Cyrus Jones
  • Size is the knock on him and why everyone is only projecting him to the slot, but I think he’s smart enough and quick enough to cover just about type of receiver.
  • His quote to the media that his teammates joked about him needing his own office with the coaches because he studies so much film is so Patriots.
  • This guy is a weapon as a punt returner and that could be a huge help in cutting down on the wear and tear on Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola.
  • He immediately shoots to the top of the slot corner depth chart as I see it.
  • Understands how receivers try to set him up and knows how to counter. Extremely quick in mirroring routes, partly because of his foot speed but also his recognition.
  • Playmaker who is always around the ball.
  • Jones will make this defense better and has all the traits that make him a perfect fit. He plays with some edge and is a sound tackler. Reminds me a bit of the Tyrann Mathieu.
Joe Thuney
  • It’s pronounced “Toon-ey”.
  • Really smart, got multiple degrees as NC State.
  • Played every spot on the line, ending up at left tackle.
  • Really great hip bend. A smooth athlete with loose hips. Not ideal size for tackle, but is athletic enough to play there. Gets good leverage with good technique.
  • Not a mauler, but a technical player who can process the game and has the athletic traits where I think he could beat out Marcus Cannon for the swing tackle role. He is more athletic than Cannon or Fleming.
  • One of the best Pro Football Focus ranked pass blockers, it will be interesting to see what they do if he ends up at guard. Shaq Mason is his mirror image — a great run blocker.
Jacoby Brissett
  • Watched his 2014 game against the #1 ranked Florida State team and he was electric, making plays with both his arm and his feet.
  • Closest pro comparison? Ben Roethlisberger. He’s big and strong and fearless in the face of pressure. This can hurt him too, but he got off a few passes as he was in the clutch, about to be sacked.
  • Not an explosive runner, but an excellent athlete who knows how to make guys miss. Knows when to run and when to stay. Good pocket presence, though in the game I say the offensive line struggled against such a good front as the Seminoles.
  • Good with the short passing game. Can read defenses and knows how to look off throws to set up defenders. With a year or two to develop, Brissett could develop into something very interesting.
Vincent Valentine
  • Of the four picks, Valentine is the one I’m still scratching my head over. I get it from a size perspective, but in the few games I watched of him I didn’t see many flashes.
  • He can hold his ground and if he catches an offensive linemen off-balance he’ll truck them. But many instances I saw where he was pushed out of the way or missed the chance to make a tackle.
  • Personality-wish I got a gentle giant vibe from him, which scares me even more.
  • For those of you who’ve been with the blog since the Shawn “Crazy Legs” Crable days, Valentine is the antithesis of Crazy Legs. He already has the best calves on the team. They’re crazy huge and stand out even on a 320 pound man.
  • If I was scouting calves this guy’d be in the first round, but as a defensive tackle I have yet to see a consistent anything to get me excited.

Patriots Draft Jacoby Brissett and Vincent Valentine

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The Patriots wrapped up the second day of the NFL draft by selecting quarterback Jacoby Brissett from NC State and defensive tackle Vincent Valentine out of Nebraska.

Let’s start with Brissett. I didn’t get too in-depth on quarterbacks this year and I knew I should’ve.  It’s just good business to continually invest in the most important position in the game whether they ever play for you or not.

Brissett has the size you want (6’4″, 231 pounds) and the personality for the position. He was behind a shaky offensive line in college and will need some time to develop. That, of course, is what the Patriots can offer.

I’ll be taking a look at plenty of film on Brissett in the coming days and weeks to get an idea of what he can do.

The interesting question now is whether the Pats will need to add a fourth quarterback to potentially back up Jimmy Garoppolo the first four games of the season. Clearly, Brissett isn’t going to be ready for that.

Tom Brady still has a few more years, but the succession plan must be constant and comprehensive, that’s why if you care about the long-term stability of the franchise beyond #12, you should be okay with this pick.

Another Fatty for DT

Vincent Valentine‘s selection answers an interesting question for me — that the Pats don’t really see the value in a three-technique one-gap penetrator defensive tackle anymore after a brief flirtation with them (aka Dominique Easley).  Now they seem fully focused on size and strength above all else at the position. Granted Malcom Brown is especially athletic and a little more stout, but Alan Branch, Terrence Knighton and now Valentine are all tall and (at least) 320-plus.

This is essentially a 2-5 front now, with two space eaters inside freeing up space for five mobile and athletic players to make the plays.

I missed on Valentine because the red flags were injuries and desire questions. I can deal with injuries, but if it’s a guy who doesn’t work hard I usually reject him for the Patriots. Still, Valentine’s a big guy, and big guys who love to bust their ass are rare. Both Knighton and Branch have had issues with that in their careers.

Generally, I think this pick will be regarded as the biggest reach in a night where the Pats will get plenty heat for reaching. But Valentine’s body type clearly has a fit in this defense and it gives the Pats a developmental player to step in for Branch and/or Knighton when their contracts are up in 2017.

Overall, the names mostly weren’t the ones we thought they might be, but the positions (CB, OL, DT, QB) and traits all fit what the Patriots do. There’s always talent drafted up and down every round of the draft, so just because you draft a guy who the consensus ranked lower than where he was taken doesn’t really mean much.

Tom Brady was the 199th pick. If someone took him first overall in 1999 it would’ve been  monumental reach. So who’s to say what a reach is.

Back for more draft fun tomorrow when I bet the Pats take some of the more popular players we all saw as fits.