Patriots Secondary May Take Time To Gel in 2015
 With changes at all three cornerback positions in 2015, the Patriots will be leaning heavily on safety Devin McCourty to be the steady hand until the new unit gels. (USA TODAY Images) |
We now take a break from our regularly scheduled Deflate-gate coverage to bring you some football talk.
With the release of CB Kyle Arrington this week, the Patriots have parted ways with their three starting corners from Super Bowl XLIX. Had not the Deflate-gate hysteria been in full swing, this latest move would probably be looked at a lot more closely.
Arrington had a $3 million dollar salary in 2015 with a cap hit of $4.6 million. It is easy to see why the Patriots weren’t going to pay that kind of money, although Arrington was always one of Bill Belichick’s favorites.
Arrington blanketed T.Y. Hilton in two games against the Colts but was benched in the Super Bowl after Chris Matthews, who had a seven inch height advantage was having his way with him. Still, Arrington was a very productive member of the secondary in the slot and joined Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner as former Patriots secondary members that have moved on since Feb.1.
So Now What Do They Do?: There is no doubt the Patriots secondary will look markedly different in 2015 when the team hits the field, and most fans worry that the secondary will have big time issues stopping offenses from throwing all over the field.
To paraphrase a bit, Bill Belichick has always said that pass defense is a combination of pass rush and coverage, that they go hand-in-hand. With the selection of some versatile players picked in the 2015 NFL Draft that can play on the edge as well as signing Jabaal Sheard in free agency, the outside pass rush should be improved.
The healthy return of last season’s #1 pick Dominique Easley along with this season’s top choice Malcom Brown should give the Patriots an improved inside push of the pocket; something that’s been missing for the past several seasons…but what about the secondary?
The team brought in Bradley Fletcher from the Eagles with the hope that a clean slate with a fresh start will erase some of the bad memories he had in 2014. Fletcher won’t be left out to dry as he was with Philly last season, and with over the top help from Devin McCourty should be in-line for plenty of first round reps.
Super Bowl hero Malcolm Butler will definitely be vying for reps on the other side. Butler was no flash in the pan. He earned his way onto the roster with solid play during training camp and didn’t get a ton of snaps because he was behind Revis and Browner.
Those two will compete with Logan Ryan for the outside slots. Both are comfortable with man coverage, so the days of strictly zone of 2011 shouldn’t be returning as many feared. Expect to see the Patriots play both, much like 2014.
What about the slot?: The Patriots brought in Robert McClain from the Falcons during free agency and he and this season’s sleeper candidate Darryl Roberts will compete for the inside position. McClain has been a productive player in his career and he’ll provide the veteran presence that Belichick loves in his teams. But don’t go to sleep on Roberts; he was initially viewed as kind of an afterthought being selected with the 247th pick in the 7th round, but has the potential to be much more.
A shade under six feet and slightly spindly at 182 pounds, Roberts is extremely gifted athletically. At Marshall’s Pro Day, he ran a 6.66 Three-Cone Drill which would have been 2nd best of all corners at the NFL Combine. He posted a fast 4.36 time in the 40, a 39 inch vertical leap and a 11’1” Broad Jump.
He too is comfortable playing man coverage and at some point may take over starting duties in the slot in 2015.
The off-season workouts, OTAs and mini-camps will show who is ready to step up initially once training camp begins in earnest in July and who isn’t. But whoever is getting first team reps in July shouldn’t be anointed as the starting secondary just yet.
McCourty is the glue that holds everything together on the backend and his partner at the second safety position will have plenty of competition. Last year’s starter Pat Chung will get pushed by newcomer Jordan Richards (2nd Rd Pick), Duron Harmon, Tavon Wilson and Nate Ebner.
Much like Belichick did in the first quarter of 2014 with the offensive line, expect the Patriots to mix and match with different combinations in the secondary early in the season looking for the right fit.
With an improved pass rush, and a vastly different secondary, the defense will look much different in 2015.
Now back to Deflate-gate and the Brady appeal….
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