Post by PatsFan on Aug 7, 2012 22:12:53 GMT -5
Notable players that have not participated in practed yet (PUP/IR/ETC):
Brian Waters - No known injury. Probably veteran laziness
Logan Mankins - ACL
Sebastian Vollmer - Back
Markus Zusevics - Pec
Daniel Fells - PUP
The Patriots have had 2 fights over the span of camp, but that is a territory that comes with football, so nobody on the team is making a big deal about them. I will break down the progress of position groups during camp:
Offense:
QB: Tom Brady is the obvious starter with Hoyer as his immediate backup, with Mallet also on the roster. During early parts of camp, Brady looked to be struggling with his accuracy. During the mid days of camp, he seemed to be in midseason form. But as of late, he has again been struggling with his accuracy and has thrown many overthrows, underthrows, off target throws, and interceptions, including 2 against the Saints in joint practice. Hoyer seems to have a better understanding of the offense than he did last year during camp. He is accurate at times, squeezing in balls where they seem almost impossible, but he is very inconsistent. Mallet seems to struggle with timing and accuracy, but he has one hell of an arm.
RB: Ridley has been the expected starter since the departure of BJGE. He shows the ability to be a solid runner between the tackles with the ability to bounce the play outside if need be. He has improved his ball security, but he still needs to catch the ball better. Vereen was the expected backup, but as of late, it seems as if Woodhead has been taking the reps in passing situations out of the backfield. Vereen has shown the solidest hands of all the backs though when in comes to catching. Bolden might have a spot on the roster since it looks like the Patriots aren't really dependent on a full back at this point. Kettani is the only practicing Full back, and Aaron Hernandez is seeing a lot of reps at FB, HB, slot, TE, WR, you name it, he plays it.
WR: The locks on this squad look to be Welker and Lloyd. Players who must fight for roster spots are: Branch, Stallworth, Gaffney, Edelman, and Slater. They most likely wont have room for any other special teams type WRs. Welker looks the fastest he's been since his ACL tear, and Brandon Lloyd creates good separation at the line with his moves, then makes spectacular catches like it's his job. Lloyd should make a big impact on the offense. Both Gaffney and Stallworth are impressive. Brady seems to trust Stallworth a lot on deep throws and they have connected for many deep balls. Stallworth is a trustworthy target on sideline throws. Branch also is another trustworthy target, although it looks like his age is catching up to him. Edelman and Slater will most likely see special teams work only, unless injuries occur. I could see the Pats carrying 7 receivers on their roster as Stallworth has actually improved tremendously and makes the most of his opportunities.
TE: Gronk and Hernandez are still the beasts they were. Hernandez seems more elusive now and jukes defenders like a running back in a game of madden on rookie. The summer of gronk seems to have taken its toll. Gronk is not as explosive as he used to be, and seems a little shaky at times. He drops balls that he would've caught last year (not all those balls are easy balls though). During joint practice with the saints, graham was more productive than the two tight ends combined. Nonetheless, the were both extremely productive, and the addition of Ballard, Fells, and Shiancoe adds 3 other starting caliber tight ends. Ballard is unlikely to play this season, and Fells is on PUP. Recently, Shiancoe has been out due to injury. Alex Silvestro used to be a DE, but Belichick changed him over to a TE.
OL: Three starting offensive linemen are out right now: Logan Mankins (LG), Brian Waters (RG), and Vollmer (RT). The offensive line right now is very thin as in terms of health. The line is so thin right now, camp starters also need to get extra reps with the 2nd oline to fill in a few gaps. there is no 3rd oline. The key to the team's success is keeping brady healthy, and that requires a very good oline, which the patriots have if everyone's healthy, which could feature a starting week 1 lineup of: Solder, Mankins, Connolly, Waters, Vollmer. Solder has looked solid on 1v1 drills, as many of the backups also have under the coaching of DS.
Defense:
DE: Maybe the position with the most changes since last season. Rookie Chandler Jones has been extremely impressive and looks like a veteran of the NFL. His rushing moves are impressive, his strength has improved, and his size is eye catching. Andre Carter has yet to sign, but the other DE spot belongs to Rob Ninkovich for now. Backups include Trevor Scott, Jermaine Cunningham, Jake Bequette, and Justin Francis. If carter can return, the Patriots look like they will improve tremendously on their outside passrush.
DT: Vince Wilfork is obviously the biggest name for this position, but the pats have shown that they are using a 4-3 for their base defense. Along side wilfork at the other DT position is Kyle Love, who has made some impressive run stuffs and nice pass rush moves during drills and team sessions. Jonathan Fanene is one of the biggest free agent acquisitions for this positions, but he has been out for a long time with an unknown injury.
LB: The starters seem to be a youthful SEC exclusive linebacker corps that consists of rookie Dont'a Hightower, Brandon Spikes, and Jerod Mayo. All of them are capable of delivering huge blows to runners out of the backfield and they have the strength to shed the best of blockers. Hightower seems to be the best pass rusher, while spikes is the best in coverage. Mayo is the best overall backer in terms of experience and overall ability. He is also one of the defensive leaders on the team. Backups include Dane Fletcher, Bobby Carpenter, and Tracy white. The others should only see action on special teams. Overall, they might be the best trio of linebackers at the end of the season, as long as Hightower can adjust quickly to the NFL and spikes stays healthy. Mayo has been the team's leading tackler since he arrived as a rookie.
CB: The starters look to be McCourty and Arrington. When they move to the nickel package, Dowling comes in at Arrington's spot, and Arrington bumps down to the nickel. McCourty has shown improvement from last season, but is nowhere near his rookie season form. Dowling has shown his size is a huge advantage, but guys who are quicky with their feet like Lloyd and Hernandez have given him trouble because he cannot adjust his taller frame quick enough. Arrington came off the best season of his career with 7 INTs, tied for most in the league, but he is really struggling. When he plays in the slot, he is constantly being embarrassed by Welker and Hernandez, and occasionally Edelman. On the outside, he has had some nice plays though. Of all the corners, Sterling Moore did best in the joint practice. He has also has a solid camp to this point. He constantly jumps routes and breaks up the ball, and has occasionally INTs. If arrington continues to struggle, Moore may take his nickel role. Overall the group is struggling a lot and Brees was able to pick them apart like he was playing a middle school team.
S: Chung and Gregory are the projected starters. Gregory has picked up the system quickly and Chung is starting to remind me of rodney harrison in many ways, both bad and good. Chung is the longest tenured DB, so he needs to show leadership help the younger guys communicate, and most importantly, stay healthy. Gregory hasn't made any real nice plays, but he hasn't given up many big plays. There should be a mojor improvement in this department than last year. Also, Tavon Wilson has drawn a lot of attention. He is quick on blitzes, he has decent play recognition, and reads the quarterback well. He needs to work on his man coverage though. He is also a decent tackler. He should be able to rotate in with the starters to keep them fresh.
K/P: They're good
ST: The returners look the same as last year, Woodhead, Edelman, and Welker. Surprisingly, Hernandez is getting reps as a punt returner. He has the ability to juke people out with ease, but he has a hard time judging where the ball is going to be
Brian Waters - No known injury. Probably veteran laziness
Logan Mankins - ACL
Sebastian Vollmer - Back
Markus Zusevics - Pec
Daniel Fells - PUP
The Patriots have had 2 fights over the span of camp, but that is a territory that comes with football, so nobody on the team is making a big deal about them. I will break down the progress of position groups during camp:
Offense:
QB: Tom Brady is the obvious starter with Hoyer as his immediate backup, with Mallet also on the roster. During early parts of camp, Brady looked to be struggling with his accuracy. During the mid days of camp, he seemed to be in midseason form. But as of late, he has again been struggling with his accuracy and has thrown many overthrows, underthrows, off target throws, and interceptions, including 2 against the Saints in joint practice. Hoyer seems to have a better understanding of the offense than he did last year during camp. He is accurate at times, squeezing in balls where they seem almost impossible, but he is very inconsistent. Mallet seems to struggle with timing and accuracy, but he has one hell of an arm.
RB: Ridley has been the expected starter since the departure of BJGE. He shows the ability to be a solid runner between the tackles with the ability to bounce the play outside if need be. He has improved his ball security, but he still needs to catch the ball better. Vereen was the expected backup, but as of late, it seems as if Woodhead has been taking the reps in passing situations out of the backfield. Vereen has shown the solidest hands of all the backs though when in comes to catching. Bolden might have a spot on the roster since it looks like the Patriots aren't really dependent on a full back at this point. Kettani is the only practicing Full back, and Aaron Hernandez is seeing a lot of reps at FB, HB, slot, TE, WR, you name it, he plays it.
WR: The locks on this squad look to be Welker and Lloyd. Players who must fight for roster spots are: Branch, Stallworth, Gaffney, Edelman, and Slater. They most likely wont have room for any other special teams type WRs. Welker looks the fastest he's been since his ACL tear, and Brandon Lloyd creates good separation at the line with his moves, then makes spectacular catches like it's his job. Lloyd should make a big impact on the offense. Both Gaffney and Stallworth are impressive. Brady seems to trust Stallworth a lot on deep throws and they have connected for many deep balls. Stallworth is a trustworthy target on sideline throws. Branch also is another trustworthy target, although it looks like his age is catching up to him. Edelman and Slater will most likely see special teams work only, unless injuries occur. I could see the Pats carrying 7 receivers on their roster as Stallworth has actually improved tremendously and makes the most of his opportunities.
TE: Gronk and Hernandez are still the beasts they were. Hernandez seems more elusive now and jukes defenders like a running back in a game of madden on rookie. The summer of gronk seems to have taken its toll. Gronk is not as explosive as he used to be, and seems a little shaky at times. He drops balls that he would've caught last year (not all those balls are easy balls though). During joint practice with the saints, graham was more productive than the two tight ends combined. Nonetheless, the were both extremely productive, and the addition of Ballard, Fells, and Shiancoe adds 3 other starting caliber tight ends. Ballard is unlikely to play this season, and Fells is on PUP. Recently, Shiancoe has been out due to injury. Alex Silvestro used to be a DE, but Belichick changed him over to a TE.
OL: Three starting offensive linemen are out right now: Logan Mankins (LG), Brian Waters (RG), and Vollmer (RT). The offensive line right now is very thin as in terms of health. The line is so thin right now, camp starters also need to get extra reps with the 2nd oline to fill in a few gaps. there is no 3rd oline. The key to the team's success is keeping brady healthy, and that requires a very good oline, which the patriots have if everyone's healthy, which could feature a starting week 1 lineup of: Solder, Mankins, Connolly, Waters, Vollmer. Solder has looked solid on 1v1 drills, as many of the backups also have under the coaching of DS.
Defense:
DE: Maybe the position with the most changes since last season. Rookie Chandler Jones has been extremely impressive and looks like a veteran of the NFL. His rushing moves are impressive, his strength has improved, and his size is eye catching. Andre Carter has yet to sign, but the other DE spot belongs to Rob Ninkovich for now. Backups include Trevor Scott, Jermaine Cunningham, Jake Bequette, and Justin Francis. If carter can return, the Patriots look like they will improve tremendously on their outside passrush.
DT: Vince Wilfork is obviously the biggest name for this position, but the pats have shown that they are using a 4-3 for their base defense. Along side wilfork at the other DT position is Kyle Love, who has made some impressive run stuffs and nice pass rush moves during drills and team sessions. Jonathan Fanene is one of the biggest free agent acquisitions for this positions, but he has been out for a long time with an unknown injury.
LB: The starters seem to be a youthful SEC exclusive linebacker corps that consists of rookie Dont'a Hightower, Brandon Spikes, and Jerod Mayo. All of them are capable of delivering huge blows to runners out of the backfield and they have the strength to shed the best of blockers. Hightower seems to be the best pass rusher, while spikes is the best in coverage. Mayo is the best overall backer in terms of experience and overall ability. He is also one of the defensive leaders on the team. Backups include Dane Fletcher, Bobby Carpenter, and Tracy white. The others should only see action on special teams. Overall, they might be the best trio of linebackers at the end of the season, as long as Hightower can adjust quickly to the NFL and spikes stays healthy. Mayo has been the team's leading tackler since he arrived as a rookie.
CB: The starters look to be McCourty and Arrington. When they move to the nickel package, Dowling comes in at Arrington's spot, and Arrington bumps down to the nickel. McCourty has shown improvement from last season, but is nowhere near his rookie season form. Dowling has shown his size is a huge advantage, but guys who are quicky with their feet like Lloyd and Hernandez have given him trouble because he cannot adjust his taller frame quick enough. Arrington came off the best season of his career with 7 INTs, tied for most in the league, but he is really struggling. When he plays in the slot, he is constantly being embarrassed by Welker and Hernandez, and occasionally Edelman. On the outside, he has had some nice plays though. Of all the corners, Sterling Moore did best in the joint practice. He has also has a solid camp to this point. He constantly jumps routes and breaks up the ball, and has occasionally INTs. If arrington continues to struggle, Moore may take his nickel role. Overall the group is struggling a lot and Brees was able to pick them apart like he was playing a middle school team.
S: Chung and Gregory are the projected starters. Gregory has picked up the system quickly and Chung is starting to remind me of rodney harrison in many ways, both bad and good. Chung is the longest tenured DB, so he needs to show leadership help the younger guys communicate, and most importantly, stay healthy. Gregory hasn't made any real nice plays, but he hasn't given up many big plays. There should be a mojor improvement in this department than last year. Also, Tavon Wilson has drawn a lot of attention. He is quick on blitzes, he has decent play recognition, and reads the quarterback well. He needs to work on his man coverage though. He is also a decent tackler. He should be able to rotate in with the starters to keep them fresh.
K/P: They're good
ST: The returners look the same as last year, Woodhead, Edelman, and Welker. Surprisingly, Hernandez is getting reps as a punt returner. He has the ability to juke people out with ease, but he has a hard time judging where the ball is going to be