Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Patriots do some housekeeping, axe three

Wednesday was a day off for the New England Patriots, their first break from training camp that started last Friday - but for three roster hopefuls, their break will be of the extended variety.
 Lavelle Hawkins had his contract terminated by Patriots Wednesday

An underachiever, an overachiever and an relative unknown were handed their pink slips and shown the Gillette Stadium door, veteran wide receiver LaVelle Hawkins, veteran offensive lineman Nick McDonald and rookie free agent Perez Ashford becoming the first casualties of the Patriots 2013 camp.

Hawkins, the classic underachiever whom the Patriots signed on May 8th, was originally drafted in the 4th round out of California in 2008 and made a few ripples as a punt returner, but was never a factor in their offense despite having electric speed.

Patriots' fans should take Hawkins' early release as a sign of optimism from the coaching staff that the younger receivers in camp are progressing at a good clip, particularly in light of the fact that two of them, veteran Julian Edelman and rookie free agent Mark Harrison, haven't even seen the field yet.  That leaves Danny Amendola and Michael Jenkins as the only receivers on the roster with any NFL experience.

The rest of the wide receiver depth chart is made up of practice squad Jack-in-the-box Kamar Aiken, draft picks Aaron Dobson and Josh Boyce and rookie free agents Kenbrell Thompkins and Quinten Sims - for a total of nine receivers competing for no more than five spots on the roster.

McDonald was a bit of a long shot, despite the length of his tenure and his dependability and versatility.  Released due to a failed physical, Foxboro Forum had the fifth year veteran relinquishing his roster spot to Tyronne Green and would have had a tough time making the 53 man roster.

The Patriots' camp roster now stands at 87 players, and it is nearly a month before the they will have trim their roster to 75 players in accordance with the league mandate.

What Tim Tebow is doing in New England

Many teams use the draft and free agency to bring in athletes that fit their scheme - The New England Patriots are not one of those teams.

The Patriots don't have a scheme.  They've tried having one, but it never worked - too limiting for the sinister mind of Bill Belichick, who doesn't just think outside the box, he lives there with his Game Plan offense that relies on extreme versatility of it's athletes to give it substance.

So when Belichick lost his versatility last season as his two-headed monster at tight end suffered through injury after debilitating injury, it severely limited his options in game planning and the Patriots offense became ordinary - ordinary in the sense that it still had the best quarterback in the NFL running the fastest-paced offense in the league, but lacking in identity and substance...

...all with just essentially two wide receivers, a collection of backup tight ends but also a power running game behind the best offensive line in the NFL - so they had weapons, just not enough to allow Belichick to take advantage of his opponents' every weakness, ultimately leaving him on the outside looking in while the hated Baltimore Ravens walked away with his trophy.

And it was nobody's fault but Belichick's, being so enamored with his dominant two-tight end formations that his vision of the power game blinded him to the fact that he limited his offense by hacking apart his receiving corps to a skeleton crew of Wes Welker and a revolving door of spare parts.

That won't happen this season, as Belichick seems to have retooled his offense, by want just as much as by necessity.

Many people look at Bill Belichick's offseason moves and wonder just what the hell he's thinking when he brings in free agents like Tim Tebow or trades for a guy like LeGarrette Blount - when he brings in rookie free agents like Mark Harrison and Zach Sudfeld...

Versatility is key when running a game plan offense - as we learned last season, the less options you have, the less an opposing defensive coordinator has to game plan for.  So when you bring in a Tim Tebow, an incredibly bright and inspired athlete, it's a move that can potentially open up the playbook a little more for the opposition to consider...

...and given the fact that Belichick's offense is actually a hub that brings all of his weapons into one central game plan, it behooves the hooded one to bring in as much versatility as he possibly can.

He didn't bring these players in because they fit some offensive philosophy, it's because they give him the ability to expand, to experiment and to implement - and in the case of all of these guys listed above, the one common denominator is that fact that they all played from the Pistol formation in college...

...as did Stevan Ridley and Brandon Bolden, so there are plenty of players on the offense that know the formation, have played in it and were successful in it.

And on Tuesday afternoon, there it was.

At the end of the New England Patriots' practice session on Tuesday evening, there was the polarizing Tim Tebow taking snaps in the Pistol formation, running the read option under the watchful eye of offensive assistant Brian Daboll whose presence on the staff was ,until very recently, a matter of some conjecture.

Daboll is considered somewhat of an enigma.  Known as a brilliant offensive mind, yet the results of his innovation has hardly lived up to the potential.

A defensive assistant with the Patriots in his first NFL job, he became the Patriots' receiver's coach during their dynastic run at the turn of the century - jumping ship to become the New York Jets' quarterbacks coach under friend and former Patriots' defensive coordinator Eric Mangini, following Mangini to the Cleveland Browns to become their offensive coordinator...

...then on to Miami after Mangini and his staff were fired by the Browns, then on to Kansas City after the Dolphins fired Tony Sparano and his staff, and now back to New England after Romeo Crennel and his staff were all fired by the Chiefs.

Daboll's road back to Foxboro has been one car wreck after another, working for lame duck coaches who were desperate to find something - anything - to generate offense to save their jobs.

Bill Belichick is nowhere near that desperate, nor is his job in jeopardy, nor is his offense in dire straits - so when Belichick brought Daboll aboard in January, he was given the title of "Coaching Assistant", disappearing into the shadows until mid-June, when the team signed Tim Tebow...

...and the two have been thick as thieves since, seeming to be kindred spirits given each man's recent history of well-traveled failures.  You don't see one without the other as Daboll shares his knowledge in Belichick's base of thinking with the charismatic Tebow, also working on his throwing mechanics and getting him up to speed on the Patriots' terminology.

And Tebow is responding, going from his passes hitting receivers right in the feet to begin OTAs to now throwing nicer looking duck/spirals that are reminiscent of his college throws, participating in ball carrying drills with the backs and receivers and, yes, now practicing in the Pistol.

Does that mean that Tim Tebow is going to make New England's 53 man roster and potentially take snaps away from the best quarterback to ever play the game?

Never say never, particularly where Bill Belichick and his game plan offense is involved.

"That's a very hypothetical question," said Brady, when posed with that very same question the day after the Patriots signed Tebow, "Maybe we'll deal with it if it happens."

And it very well could happen. 

It's not beyond the spectrum of possibility that the Patriots keep three quarterbacks on the roster, particularly when just the presence of Tebow causes the opposition to have to game plan for the possibility of having to defend against the read option - that on top of having to deal with preparing for Brady and his already excellent supporting cast.

Also aiding this process is a rule change that came about in 2011 that expanded game day rosters from 45 to 46 players and was brought about primarily to enable teams to carry a third - or emergency - quarterback on the active roster without sacrificing a spot from another position...

...while also dropping the regulation that if a third quarterback is inserted into the game before the 4th quarter, they lose the option of reinserting the starter.

Before 2011, if a team was inclined or forced to play their 3rd string quarterback at any point in the game before the final period, they could not reinsert either the starter or his backup.  The emergency quarterback would have to remain the quarterback for the rest of the game, and if he became injured, the team would be forced to use a position player at quarterback.

What the "Third Quarterback Rule" means to New England is that it gives them the flexibility to game plan with the ever-present possibility of either making Tebow active for a particular game or making him a healthy scratch...

...and with NFL rules stipulating that an NFL team can hold their final game day roster until 15 minutes before kickoff, it forces the opposing team to game plan for Tebow right up until game time, not knowing if he'll be active or not.

In that respect, Tebow has value for the team without even playing a down - and when he is active and on the sidelines, the rules state that Belichick can throw the other team the Tebow Change Up whenever he feels like it - all while keeping Ryan Mallett the primary backup, never having an injury to Brady dictate a change in philosophy on offense.

There is no one specific reason why Tim Tebow is in New England, but there are many collateral ones, and Bill Belichick wouldn't be Bill Belichick if he weren't looking for every advantage that he can get.

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

New England Patriots 53 man roster (early) projection

As anyone who follows the New England Patriots' knows, it is pointless and often fruitless to try and project who is going to make their 53 man roster, yet here we are.

A few of the roster spots are being absorbed by players on the PUP list or the non-football injury list, and the projection is that they will be ready for the regular season - but if not, it changes the dynamics of the tight end positions and of the defensive line.

One curious thing that arises when projecting roster spots is that one starts looking at the value to the team of one player over another from different positions.  For example, is it better for the team to carry a third quarterback or an extra back or lineman?  How about an extra defensive back or an interior pass rusher?

These things will work themselves out through camp, as some players will unexpectedly surprise or disappoint and, as always, injuries play a key role...

...but as far as initial projections, this is just as good or just as bad as any other, and it will be fun to revisit this initial projection after final cuts are made in late August.

Quarterbacks (3):
Mallett


Tom Brady
Ryan Mallett
Tim Tebow

Really, what do you expect?  Brady is as tough, scrappy and durable as you'd want from any player, Mallett is an emerging gaggle of draft picks for the Patriots and Tebow is one of the best athletes on the team.

Running Backs (5):

Washington
Stevan Ridley
Shane Vereen
Leon Washington
Brandon Bolden
LeGarrette Blount


A focal point on the offense as it returns pretty much intact from last season, when it was a top 5 unit on the NFL.  Washington has indicated that he hopes the team uses him for more than a kick returner.  Bolden and Legarrette Blount are in a battle to back up Ridley while Vereen is getting looks all over the formation.


Receivers (6):
Dobson and Boyce at the Symposium
Aaron Dobson
Josh Boyce
Danny Amendola
Matthew Slater (ST)
Julian Edelman
Kenbrell Thompkins

Dobson is the long-striding real deal and Boyce has a lot of professional polish to his game, and he's greased lightning.  Amendola is as advertised but after those three it's still a question mark.  If Edelman can ever get healthy he'll be on the roster, if not we could see Kenbrell Thompkins or Mark Harrison.  Aiken is having a fantastic camp.

Tight Ends (4):
Sudfeld
Rob Gronkowski (PUP)
Michael Hoomanawanui
Zach Sudfeld
Jake Ballard

For a group that had question marks galore, the tight end positions sure are shaping up well.  Hooman is showing devastating technique in Hback drills and Ballard showing separation, but Sudfeld is going to be the star of this unit until Gronkowski is ready to compete.  Guy has a different gear and good athleticism to take over where Hernandez left off.

Offensive Linemen (7):
Cannon
Nate Solder
Logan Mankins
Ryan Wendell
Marcus Cannon
Sebastian Vollmer
Will Svitek
Dan Connolly


Marcus Cannon deserves a starting nod at right guard, but he is such a valuable all-around lineman that the team may be best served to keep him as the top reserve.  Dan Connelly may be spending the year on the IR. Svitek is a very good swing tackle and Green is a veteran guard that has looked great with the second unit.

Specialists (3):

Stephen Gostkowski (K)
Zoltan Mesko (P)
Danny Aiken (LS)


Kelly
Defensive Tackles (4):

Vince Wilfork
Tommy Kelly
Marcus Forston
Joe Vellano

Some mystery revolves around Armstead and his infection, so it's uncertain how long it will take him to recover from surgery to remove it.  Wilfork is the best tackle in the NFL and Kelly is ripping right past the offensive linemen in pass rushing drills.  Vellano has been a pleasant surprise and is showing short area quickness to back up Wilfork.

Francis and Jones
Defensive Ends (5):

Chandler Jones
Rob Ninkovich
Justin Francis
Marcus Benard
Michael Buchanan

Veteran Marcus Benard seems to have regained his quickness that he flashed in Cleveland and could be the 3rd down rush specialist, and while rookie Buchanan is also impressing in camp, he seems to be a developmental project and a good choice for the practice squad.  Francis continues to improve while Jones and Ninkovich remain solid starters.

Linebackers (6):
Spikes
Jamie Collins
Jerod Mayo
Brandon Spikes
Dont'a Hightower
Dane Fletcher
Steve Beauharnais


A trio of athletic cover backers in Collins, Fletcher and Edds give this group a lot of flexibility while the starters remain solid.  Hightower is looking to show himself as a three down backer, but Spikes is still being pulled in passing situations.


Dowling
Corners (5):

Aqib Talib
Alfonzo Dennard
Logan Ryan
Kyle Arrington
Marquis Cole


Excellent camp for all involved this far, though Ryan has been pushed to the background by default.  Dowling was pressing for the starting gig opposite Talib, and his battle with Dennard had been one of the better battles in camp, but he's on the shelf again - which is not a good thing.  Arrington has the slot locked down unless Ryan starts to assert himself.

Safeties (5):
Adrian Wilson
Devin McCourty
Adrian Wilson
Duron Harmon
Steve Gregory
Tavon Wilson


McCourty is really the only known quantity, and even with the pickup of Adrian Wilson the group looks thin with Tavon Wilson having a miserable camp.  Harmon is starting assert himself and his versatility in being able to play either side makes him a valued member of the corps as a rookie.

Practice Squad:

Mark Harrison WR
Armond Armstead (NFI)
Kanorris Davis SS
George Winn RB
Kamar Aiken WR
Cory Grissom DT
Jake Bequette DE

Monday, July 29, 2013

Leniency from courts is telling in Dennard case

Are we there yet?  Are we there yet?  Are we there yet?

Normally when a member of the New England Patriots is answering questions from the media, he knows what is ok to talk about and what is taboo - most likely the media knows as well.  So why is it that if both parties are aware that a hot topic is under a Bill Belichick imposed gag order, the question is still brought up repeatedly?
Belichick has vouched for Dennard's character more than once

When the athlete or coach says that they aren't going to discuss something, it is inevitably brought up by the next guy, then the next and the next - like a bunch of kids in the back of the car who know they are nowhere even close to their destination, but still ask the annoying question...

It kind of makes one curious as to if the athlete or coach wants to pull the car over and give them all something to whine about - particularly if the coach is Bill Belichick and if that athlete is Alfonzo Dennard.

Dennard is in Foxboro, Massachusetts participating in the New England Patriots training camp after spending last Wednesday afternoon in a Lancaster County, Nebraska courtroom - he and his attorney fighting to maintain his freedom after Dennard potentially violated the terms of his probation from a 2012 assault conviction, and probably was in no mood for the media and their redundant questions.

Careful, boys and girls, this is the guy that slugged a cop in the face last April, causing his draft stock to slip to almost nothing - and if he opens a can on one of Lincoln Nebraska's finest, what makes you think he's going to tolerate you?

In reality, the personable Dennard has been a model citizen in his time with the Patriots, and all indications are that he is primed to make the fabled second year jump to stardom in the New England secondary - which is neither here nor there as long as the potential exists for Dennard to spend time in the country jail instead of on the field at Gillette Stadium.

But as long as he was on the field and accessible to the child-like media, they are going to ask about his pending court case, even though they know what the answer will be.

"I'm not going to talk about that right now." Dennard said, quoting the company line, "It's football right now."...

..."Alfonzo, can you tell us about the night you were arrested?" came a question from another direction, to which he replied, "I'm just here to play football.  I'm not going to get into it."

"Alfonzo, are you confident the judge will allow you to continue playing football this season?"

"I'm not going to talk about it, not going to get into it"...

Alfonzo this, Alfonzo that...Alfonzo, are we there yet?

When Alfonzo Dennard slugged the cop, he was engaged in fisticuffs with another bar patron outside a Lincoln nightclub after being out for a few drinks, and when the plain-clothes officer approached him from behind and tried to pull Dennard away from the scrum, the former University of Nebraska cornerback fed him a knuckle sandwich...

...which had more to do with the cop violating the Rudy Tomjanovich rule of never running up behind someone who is in the midst of a physical confrontation than it did Dennard targeting a cop, but the jury didn't buy it and convicted him of felony assault on a police officer for which he could have received 5 years in the poke, but got off with a wrist-slap month in jail and two years probation...

...something that the Lincoln cops considered a miscarriage of justice - so when they pulled Dennard over early one morning a few weeks ago for straddling a lane line and arrested him on suspicion of DUI, it left his freedom an ambiguous entity, as an arrest of any kind could be considered a violation of his probation and land him in jail.

So given the volatility of the situation, Dennard's attorney asked for and was granted a ruling as to whether his client was still eligible to leave the State of Nebraska to attend Patriots' training camp, or did the DUI arrest place that right in jeopardy.  This question was to be posed at a probation revocation hearing this week, but training camp would have started by then, and Dennard needed clarification.

And District Judge Robert Otte provided just that, not just for Dennard, but also for the Lancaster County Attorney, ruling that Dennard could return to Massachusetts for work, but must return on August 12th for a hearing on the suspicion of DUI allegation - but also putting off the revocation hearing until after the Patriots' camp and all but one preseason game has been completed.

Given the fact that Wednesday's hearing came as a surprise to the County Attorney's office and also to the Parole and Probation folks, one could be compelled to wonder how the leniency shown towards Dennard in allowing him to continue his work despite his pending legal issues reflects the attitude of the courts regarding his DUI arrest.

The facts of the case are in dispute and, in fact, are mirror opposites of each other.  The County Attorney represents the police claim that after Dennard was pulled over for straddling a lane line in the early morning hours of July 11th, he was given a sobriety test, failed it and was given a breathalyzer test, which the cops claim he failed because he didn't blow hard enough to activate the sensors, then he refused a "Chemical test" once at the station...

...while Dennard claims he had two beers early in the evening, fell asleep between 9pm and 1am, got up and drove to his girlfriend's house.  On the way, pulled over, given the sobriety test which he claims the cops said he passed, then took him to the jail anyway where he blew the breathalyzer then refused the chemical test - spending a little time in the detox portion of the facility.

The leniency of the court could have been simple due process in granting a hearing for a person on probation to leave the State for work purposes, but back-scheduling the revocation hearing until after the initial hearing for the Suspicion of DUI charge is telling - because had the court any reservations regarding a suspected probation violation, he would still be in Nebraska, probably in a jail cell...

...and probably not a member of the Patriots secondary any longer.  But team owner Bob Kraft and coach Belichick obviously believe Dennard's account of the Suspected DUI arrest and have lent their weight to the proceedings, vouching for the character of their second year corner via letters to the court.

Since Dennard was convicted last summer for the assault of a police officer and sentenced to those two years of probation, the parameters of which allowed him to leave Nebraska for work, so long as he stayed out of trouble - when he was pulled over and arrested on suspicion of DUI, the courts could have revoked his probation and sent him to jail...

...causing him to miss training camp, the preseason and most likely at least part of the regular season - but it didn't happen.  Instead, Dennard was ordered back to the court on August 27th for the revocation hearing, allowing him to participate in camp and preseason games - and that doesn't happen with a stone-cold lock case against the defendant.

In fact, it appears on the surface that the early morning arrest was more a matter of Dennard being targeted by Lincoln police in an attempt to gain retribution for the flaky "assault" on one of their own than of Dennard being guilty of anything - that the court recognizes that this may be the case and is making it's judgments based on what could turn out to be a damage control effort for both the police and the County Attorney's office...

...and when this episode with Dennard is done, and whatever becomes of his status after the commissioner gets hold of him, you can add another positive on the list of what the Patriot Way means - to stay the course, sticking to your guns and continue to do what has brought your franchise the success that it has enjoyed for a decade and a half...

...not giving in to pressure from those in the local media that have been trashing the Patriot Way since the Hernandez thing came up, not changing the way you do things just to appease that thinking - instead, continue to build the juggernaut that this team should be and save the talking for the field, where questions like these are never asked.

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Kenbrell Thompkins - From Punk to Patriot

Kenbrell Thompkins personifies everything that the New England Patriots would be best to avoid.

After all, the recently completed Summer of Pain for the defending AFC East champions involved much of the baggage that comes with Thompkins, plus a lengthy rap sheet and an unstable home life as a youth that led to a life of drugs and violence.

But at the same time, he also embodies many things that are right about the Patriots - the desire to move beyond his past being the most prominent, rising from the mean streets and above the lure of the rush that the lifestyle of a drug dealer provides - and having decent speed, tremendous size and dependable hands doesn't hurt at all...

...things that go a long way with Quarterback Tom Brady, along with things like being where you are supposed to be either on the field in your pattern or in the film room getting better - things that every receiver in the Patriots' camp brings to the huddle, in some respect or another - though Thompkins' journey is a bit more checkered than most.

And in all fairness, given the seriousness of his crimes, Thompkins shouldn't even be here - and if there was any justice in the justice system, he wouldn't be...

...that said, he is in camp with the Patriots, and it appears that his road from perdition may have found nirvana in the form of Gillette Stadium - five years removed from the nightmare of one of the most crime ridden areas of Miami, five years removed from being the criminal, five years since he last experienced the hate of the culture he was born into.

Back in high school, had your daughter brought Thompkins home to meet the family, anyone with half a brain would have escorted him forcefully from the house, installed a security system immediately and hired a general education specialist to home school her - maybe get a big dog...
Thompkins' mugshot while in high school

...arrested seven times before the age of 19, Thompkins was expelled three times and attended an alternative high school just to get through his Junior year - dealing coke, armed robbery, assault...hell, he even shot himself accidentally when he was very young.

Something is different about Thompkins, though.  Through all of his off field troubles, he always kept football in his life, as if he knew that someday it would rescue him - something that was one of the few ways to break the cycle that he was involved in. 

There is a sincerity in his tone, a quietness, as if he owed the world a respite to atone for his sins - but also a confidence that only bestows itself upon a man that has come from the bottom up - the knowledge that comes with escaping the grip of neighborhood inertia, the knowledge that things could be different, that he could be different. 

Oh, make no mistake, he was a punk, a boil on the backside of society - any negative analogy will suffice - just ask him, he'll tell you.  Sociologists will tell you that Thompkins was a true product of the violence inherent with the culture of the inner city, while in the same breath dismissing the kid as having nothing to offer humanity except pot and coke, of course - helping to destroy the lives of others.  And for a long while, that was the truth...

...and it still may be the truth, but it hasn't manifested for five years, and the Patriots are hoping that the allure of the criminal lifestyle has dulled over that amount of time - particularly in light of the manner in which Thompkins has seized his opportunity in OTAs, the opportunities that were supposed to be for rookie names such as Dobson and Boyce, for veteran names like Jones, Hawkins and Jenkins.

All of them have a story, but none as sorted as Thompkins - which ultimately left him as an undrafted free agent despite his fight to move on from a past that hangs around his neck like an anchor, weighing him down - but, somehow, he keeps moving forward.

Raised in tough neighborhood with four brothers and one sister by his mother, who worked two jobs to keep a roof over their heads and food in their bellies - essentially on his own with no father or like-figure in his life, Thompkins evolved into what the streets offered him...

...nevertheless, keeping football in his life earning him a scholarship offer from one college, signing a Letter of Intent to attend Morgan State University while incarcerated on the armed robbery charge - but once released from Juvenile Detention, he let the scholarship fly away as the allure of his street life of violence and drugs seemed more appealing and more comforting than going away to face the unknown in college.

He became a sort of anti-role model to his younger brother.  Shocked and dismayed by his older brother's indifference to the opportunity to play college football, Kendall Thompkins stayed away from drugs and off the streets, vowing not to waste an opportunity to get out of the neighborhood like Kenbrell did.  He stayed in school, studied and worked hard on the football field - earning a scholarship from the University of Miami...

...a moment that Kenbrell claims changed his life.  Motivated by the thought of his brother getting out of the old neighborhood, claiming the opportunity that he had passed on, Thompkins asked the judge for permission to leave Florida to clean up his life - ending up in California at El Camino Community College, where, for the first time in his life was able to concentrate on football and studies without the lifestyle distractions...

...and started tearing it up, both on the field and in the classroom.  By the time he graduated from El Camino, he had set school records in receiving and attracted the attention of many major college programs, finally following his friend, teammate and roommate at El Camino, quarterback Matt Simms to Tennessee to play for Lane Kiffin.

But he never got the chance, as Kiffin bolted Tennessee shortly after he signed his letter of intent.  Thompkins, not wanting to play at Tennessee without Kiffin as the coach, asked to be released from his commitment to the Volunteers, which started a long, winding road with many sharp turns, eventually ending up at the University of Cincinnati on the advice of his cousin, Pittsburgh Steelers' wide receiver Antonio Brown, whose coach at Central Michigan now coached the Bearcats.

Two years later, Kenbrell Thompkins is catching passes from Tom Brady in training camp with the New England Patriots, five years and many miles removed from dingy jail cells, a changed man.

But that's the thing.  People don't change - they can say they will and may actually be mentally tough enough to resist the temptation of their past transgressions, but the rush that one gets from things like armed robbery, assault, even dealing drugs is a nearly impossible habit to break.

And who knows what happens when the lifestyle that professional football affords presents the man with an avenue back to the things that have dominion over his conscience.  Many can handle it, some can't - as Patriots' fans are well aware.

So when Thompkins' tells his tale of resurrection, that seeing his little brother get the Miami scholarship motivated him to go on the straight and narrow - motivated him to leave the only life he'd ever known or ever wanted to know far behind, motivated him to find the better things in life, there is an obvious caveat. 

Or is it that the person running the mean streets of Miami wasn't Kenbrell at all - just a wannabe doing what people do when restricted by neighborhood inertia, knowing that if they ever got the chance to do good, that he would make good? 

It's a promise made and then broken every day, and only Thompkins knows the answer, but if it's any consolation to those betting against him, the streets of inner-city America are filled with wannabe's, and not many not recognize a legitimate opportunity to become anything other than a thug. 

Thompkins did, and there's something to be said for that, if nothing else.

Patriots' camp preview - Quarterbacks

A few years ago, Tom Brady said that he wanted to play until he was 40.

So Bob Kraft just said "Aw, snap", pulled out his checkbook and wrote down a number that would keep the greatest quarterback in NFL history a New England Patriot until he became a quadragenarian, which is nowhere near as bad as it sounds, but is bordering on being ancient in NFL terms...

...but now Brady is saying that 40 is just a base line, and that's he'd like to play beyond that milestone, if Kraft and coach Bill Belichick will have him.

But what's the limit here?  Bret Favre at 41?  Earl Morral at 42?  Or is George Blanda's record 48 on the line here?

Certainly, Tom will have enough sense to know when the day comes that he can't do it consistently any longer, and won't put Kraft and Belichick on the spot by making them hand him a pink slip and have security toss him out of the stadium - but that day isn't coming anytime soon and, truth be told, Brady looks to be as good as he's ever been.

And now that he has a whole new brace of slippery wide receivers to throw at, Brady's golden years should be filled with first downs and scoring strikes - his fists full of cash, home full of children and his heart full of  joy...

Which is bad news for back ups Ryan Mallett and Tim Tebow, but for entirely different reasons.

For Tebow, this is his third team in four years - which means he's running out of NFL teams who have the organizational strength to accommodate the media attention the charismatic University of Florida product generates...

...in Denver the fans are crazy, so they never really noticed anything out of place.  In the Jets' locker room, he was just another squirrel.  But in New England he is Silent Bob - obedient to a fault, Tebow could thrive in Belichick's Players-should-be-seen-but-not-heard world where distractions disappear like stoolies in the Witness Protection Program.

To most, Tebow is like the black sheep of a prominent business family, the patriarch creating a job for him in order to save the family the embarrassment of a Billy Madison-style organizational meltdown, but to others he is a talented athlete that just needs to either discover himself or to reinvent himself - otherwise an inspired athletic talent will be wasted.

In reality, he is both the black sheep and the seeker, but also has the intestinal fortitude and self confidence to deflect the negativity that comes with either while being able to accept that he's an incomplete product - a trait not lost on Belichick and Kraft.

Also weighing heavily on their minds is what Tebow possibly could bring to this offense should Brady come up lame, which is pretty much what you saw out of him as the starter for the Broncos.  Tebow is adept at the read option which, combined with the talent in New England's backfield, could become a punishing ground attack.

No?  Consider that the read option is small sample of plays run out of the spread offense, designed for a running quarterback to read the weakside linebacker who, because of the blocking scheme will be left on an island and forced to make a decision - and there really is no correct answer. 

The quarterback takes the shotgun snap and reads whether the linebacker is going to crash the line of scrimmage and chase down the running back or whether his key will be on the quarterback.  If he holds his ground to take away the quarterback the ball is handed off to the back who follows the wall of blockers, but if he keys on the back and crashes the line, the quarterback keeps the ball and rolls to the spot that the linebacker vacates.

Imagine Vereen in the role behind Tebow, an all around versatile back that hits the hole hard and could also curl inside the linebackers to give the quarterback a short passing option as well.  This is not to say that the Patriots would incorporate this into a regular game plan, but if Tebow sticks on the roster, the potential is there and preparation is key.

He's not much down the field, but the play action that he could command with the prowess in the running game could open some things up - so don't sleep on the possibility of seeing Tim Tebow on the 53 man roster unless he completely bombs - and a healthy scratch for almost every game unless he reinvents himself into seeing time as an H-back, an intriguing proposition.

As for Ryan Mallett, there is no intrigue.  Everyone knows who he is and why he's here - the only thing we don't know is for how long.

Mallett will get his shot at being a starting quarterback soon, but it won't be with the Patriots.  The only drama associated with Ryan Mallett is how high a price a quarterback needy franchise is willing to pay to take the 6' 6", bazooka-armed Mallett off Bill Belichick's hands - but at this point, he's of more value to Belichick backing up Brady.

He stands tall in the pocket, arm cocked - and nothing is off limits to the gunslinger, at least not in his own brain.

At his best, Mallett is a cyborg in a football helmet, because no organic creature could zip the ball at a velocity that the University of Arkansas product can.  Lots of dense forested areas in Arkansas, easy to hide time portals or alien bunkers - at his worst, Mallett is a scatter-armed interception machine, but either way, his confidence in his arm will never wain.

So, how much we see Tim Tebow at quarterback this preseason depends on how much more exposure Belichick feels he needs in order to properly market his young pocket passing gunslinger.

Besides, by the time the second pre-season game is complete the team will know what it has in Tebow, and his fate could fall anywhere between a place on the roster and being run out of town on a rail.

Patriots' fans need to brace themselves for the former, because Tim Tebow was signed for a reason - and we're about to find out what that reason is.

Patriots Camp Preview - Receivers

If Michael Jenkins makes the 53 man roster of the New England Patriots, that would be an indication that the incoming group of receivers were not as good as anyone thought they were - and if he's starting, the Patriots' passing game is in serious jeopardy.

Not that Jenkins is completely used up, but one gets the feeling that the former Falcon and Viking nicknamed Molasses Mike represents the cut line in regard to the receivers, an walking, talking amusement park sign that reads "You must be at least this good to make the team."...
The Patriots are hoping this is a familiar scene with Josh Boyce

...and with Bill Belichick bringing in oodles of young, fast new greyhounds for his receiving corps, seeing Jenkins in the starting lineup would mean that Belichick has failed miserably and may need to be censured, at the very least...

...as if that's not happening to him already in the media, as some still can't accept that Wes Welker is gone because he was stupid and believed everything his agent told him - and Belichick and Kraft did what they had to do to stop the insanity, essentially firing him... 

By the time Welker realized that his agent had misjudged his market by a wide margin and that Denver's offer was the best that was out there, the Patriots had covered their butts by signing Danny Amendola to pretty much the same as what they had offered Welker - the Patriots getting a younger, bigger and faster player with a similar skill set.

Belichick has also taken some intense heat for his vision in regard to his receivers getting in the way of common sense.  Scheme-wise, at least, there is some fairness to the scrutiny but in the actual contracting of personnel, well, he can't have Jiminy Cricket following his players around, now can he?
Harrison
 

Regardless, replacing an Aaron Hernandez, while difficult, is nowhere near impossible.  Replacing Wes Welker will be difficult, but not impossible - but maybe it's not as much a matter of replacing players than it is populating a new philosophy...

...a philosophy based on a mixture of size and intense speed - in some cases a hybrid between a tight end and a wide receiver, or between a running back and a wide receiver - the emphasis not so much on versatility, rather, quality depth with individual skill sets so that quarterback Tom Brady will be able to create mismatches at the line of scrimmage, to make the offense become anything that they need to be.

Mark Harrison's unique combination of a 6' 3", 235 pound frame and 4.46 speed make him intriguing in an H-back sort of way, splitting the seam with ease at Rutgers when coming out of the slot, and regularly separating from the defender when lined up on the outside. On the Non-football injury list at the start of camp, it is hoped he will be ready for full contact when the pads go on.
Thompkins

Harrison went undrafted after news broke that he trashed his hotel room at the combine, but is a talent of untapped potential, as is Kenbrell Thompkins, who went undrafted for far more than simply trashing a hotel room. 

Thompkin's story has been well documented, the street punk leaving the criminal life behind and turning it all around - and his performances in OTAs drawing raves and much knee jerk excitement, but the fact is that his less than nominal speed relegates him to a possession type role.  If he can impress in camp, there may be a roster spot waiting for him or even a place on the practice squad for the developmental project.
Aiken

Kamar Aiken has been around for a few years, but there just hasn't been a fit for the 6' 2", 215 pound Central Florida product - but with the entire receiving corps getting an extreme makeover, Aiken and his 4.45 speed seems to be just what the offense is evolving towards, and he may just find himself catching passes on Sunday.

Josh Boyce has so much speed that it's continued on the next guy.  At 5' 11" and 205 pounds he has the size to handle significant slot reps, with some usage at flanker or outside the numbers.  Seriously fast at 4.34, he has great physicality coming off the line and can close any cushion within his first three steps, then has video game cutting ability and an extra gear to split the safeties or to pull away from the corner.
Boyce

Boyce has the potential to be the steal of the draft.  There weren't many receivers in the draft class with his combination of strength, command of the route tree and pure speed.  He slipped to the Patriots in the fourth round solely due to a broken toe suffered just before the combine, and there were concerns that it hadn't had time to heal, but he wasn't placed on any PUP lists, so he'll be good to go for contact.

Aaron Dobson isn't as fast as Boyce - few people are - but his intrigue comes in his size and unbelievable hand eye coordination.  At 6' 3" and possessing mad hops and sticky fingers, Dobson is very much a vertical threat that the Patriots have been lacking since - well - since another former University of Marshall alumnus roamed the Gillette Stadium confines, and may well turn into the gem of this receiving corps.
Dobson

Danny Amendola figures as a starter on one side, and with better size and speed than the person that many are looking at him as a replacement for, he is in fact much, much more.  Younger and more explosive than Welker ever was, he will see his time in the slot as well.

Amendola doesn't have blazing speed, but he is a master at finding the hole in a zone coming out of the slot or separating from the corner when lined up on the outside, and he can take a hit, but his slight build does make for some concern, so it's probably a given that he'll remain outside the numbers for the majority of snaps.
Amendola

...as will lone holdover from 2012 Julian Edelman, if he ever gets to see the field.  This offseason has not been kind to Edelman, as a "clean up" procedure on his broken foot has kept him off the practice field and on the active PUP list.  When healthy, Edelman is a play-making freak with good speed, but his durability comes into question, as he missed significant time last season with concussions and a broken bone in his foot.

The longer Edelman dwells on the PUP list, the more likely it is that he will not play as significant a role with the team this season, if any role at all.
Edelman
 

At this point, it is reasonable to expect that Amendola, Dobson, Matthew Slater and Boyce are locks for the 53 man roster, (Slater being a Pro Bowl special teams ace that is a wide receiver for positional purposes only) with Aiken and Harrison being better than Jenkins until they prove they are not.

Thompkins may turn out to be a developmental practice squad type unless he really turns it up a notch in camp and Jenkins leads a group of bubble players that will probably looking for a job at the end of August.

So the question now is not so much how the Patriots are going to replace the production of their departed weapons, but how long it all takes to gel - because with the collective size and speed of this group of pass catchers, once it's on track, it's going to be very hard to derail.

Patriots Camp Preview - Tight Ends

And so much for that.

In Bill Belichick's grand scheme, the Patriots' offense was to operate in a tight end-centric attack centered around athletic freak Aaron Hernandez and athletically freakier Rob Gronkowski, but the New England Patriots' "Summer of Pain" took care of that.

Both stories are well documented, so inclusion isn't necessary - but it is important to understand what a kick in the groin the Patriots offense took as a result of the hard luck the tight end position has taken since a loss to the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship game - and not just the position, an entire philosophy as well.

They were thisclose, the Patriots were, to putting together an attack that was truly the talisman that spawned a thousand clichés , including the standard, "You can't stop them, you can only hope to contain them".

Thisclose.  That has to be ripping Belichick's heart right out of his chest. 

On the verge of something epic, only to see it crash in the flames of injury and felony, his cornerstones for the offense either on an operating table or in a jail cell - Gronkowski will be back but Hernandez may never see the outside world again - so, as far as football is concerned, it's time to move on from the Summer of Pain and concentrate on what could very well be a season of dominance for the Patriots' offense.

At full speed, Gronkowski is the best tight end in football, with the best quarterback from the best offense in the National Football League throwing him the ball and letting him mow folks down on his way to the end zone.  There is not a tight end in the league with the same size / speed combination, especially as gifted a pass catcher and equally gifted blocker.

Gronkowski is the gold standard, but is starting training camp on the Physically Unable to Perform list - and the team needs to let him heal from surgery on his spine just over a month ago.  It's tough to have such a weapon sitting in the owner's booth when he is still better at 75% than just about any other tight end in football, but they must resist that temptation and allow his back and forearm to completely heal.
Ballard

It may mean placing Gronkowski on the PUP list into the regular season and not having him available until week 7, but if the Patriots can get through those first six games without him, just think of what a collection of weapons Brady will have to work with when Gronkowski is 100%.
Hoomanawanui

And it's not like there's nothing to fill the void, as the Patriots got by with Michael Hoomanawanui and Daniel Fells teaming up in his stead, but hardly matching his abilities - but now there's Jake Ballard, a 6' 6" 260 pound machine that has the speed of a sloth but still manages to somehow get himself wide open, catching everything he can reach...

...and is almost as effective a blocker as Gronkowski, so as long as Ballard is recovered from the ACL and microfracture surgeries performed 18 months ago, he's about as good a fill in as the Patriots could ask for.

But beyond that is a tale of uncertainty, though Belichick knows that he hasn't tapped Hoomanawanui's full potential.  "Hooman" has some athleticism and decent speed and mopped up some drives as a short yardage fullback in the red zone, but is also an excellent in-line blocker that negates the defensive end and can get to the next level quickly.
Fells

Daniel Fells is also a holdover from last season, but may have seen his last regular season snap with the Patriots.  With both Gronkowski and Hernandez out of the lineup last season, Fells had the opportunity to rise up and contribute, but instead disappeared, which was difficult to do considering the depth he was hiding behind.  Despite the thin tight end corps, he needs a terrific camp to make the team...

...and rookie free agent Zach Sudfeld may be the reason why.  Though average in just about all areas, his 6' 7" 260 pound frame and sticky fingers make him an excellent red zone target and a weapon up the seam, and his full effort attitude makes him an intriguing prospect.  It's easy to get excited over a rookie free agent who shows up prepared in OTA's, but if he can maintain the level of competitiveness, he will earn a spot on this team.
Sudfeld

Brandon Ford is a camp body that projects in a role primarily set for Hoomanawanui and has comparable size, but it will take an excellent camp and maybe an injury for Ford to see the roster.

The Patriots are still in good shape so far as the position is concerned, good enough to wait on Gronkowski if he isn't ready for the regular season - but if he's close, you may see him on the opening day roster, but as a "healthy" scratch until he is ready, avoiding the week 6 target date for the PUP list...

...but they have to let him fully heal.  If that's by opening day, awesome.  A week or two after that?  Still cool.  Week 6 activated from the PUP list and in football shape?  We'll take it.

Anything short of the Injured Reserved list for Gronkowski is wonderful at this point.

Friday, July 26, 2013

Patriots' Camp Preview - Running Backs

The New England Patriots are deep at running back - so deep, in fact, that word on the street is that the man that Bill Belichick sent a late-round draft pick and Olympic sprinter Jeff Demps to Tampa Bay for, LeGarrette Blount, may not even make the team.

Stevan Ridley has the Bell Cow back gig all sewn up and Shane Vereen is projecting to be a multilevel threat while Leon Washington makes the team as a running back that just happens to be one of the best kickoff return men in the game.

That leaves Blount to deal with fellow enigmatic back Brandon Bolden, who has the advantage of having played in the Patriots system last year as a rookie.  Both bring a needed skill set to the field and either would provide solid depth...

...so with the great camp battle that is about to ensue, why bring in George Winn?  Is George Winn merely a camp body, or does he have a legitimate shot at making the roster?  And, most importantly, who the hell is George Winn?
Winn

Compact and powerful, the 5' 11", 215 pound Winn rode the pine at the University of Cincinnati for three years behind now St. Louis Rams' running back Issah Pead, but once Pead took his act to the NFL last season, Winn exploded onto the national scene with nearly 1400 yards rushing and scoring 13 touchdowns as a Senior

No one really wanted to tackle the guy, the kind of dude that delivers the hit rather than absorbing the punishment from the defender, running folks over like a runaway train - and sometimes you'd swear that you saw a defensive huddle while the play was occurring, when it was actually Winn being gang-tackled.  It was the only way he'd go down.

But a terrible combine and a not-much-better Cincinnati Pro Day destroyed any chance he had at being drafted.  A sore hamstring contributed mightily to a poor 40 time of 4.75, sending Winn sliding down every draft board.

Originally backed by ESPN Draft mouthpiece Mel Kiper Jr. as a sleeper and a potential gem on the second day, Winn found himself fielding phone calls from the Houston Texans after the draft had concluded, signing with the Texans, but being released shortly thereafter due to a log jam at running back in their camp.

A couple of days later, he's in Foxboro as a member of the Patriots - and while he's not going to make Ridley or Vereen nervous, Winn could definitely make for anxious times among the remaining depth - and with his special teams prowess gained when waiting his turn with the Bearcats, he offers what some may consider a measurable upgrade over Blount and Bolden.
Blount

Blount is a back that has been running from his past seemingly for years, and did so to the tune of over 1000 yards for Tampa as a rookie in 2011, but the drafting of the lightning quick Doug Martin by the Buccaneers rendered the bruiser an afterthought in Greg Schiano's offense, and though Martin had arrived and put up awesome numbers, Tampa faded down the stretch, leaving plenty for Bucs' fans to ponder...

...and while that's no longer Blount's problem, he's got bigger fish to fry this season. 

Belichick rescued him out of Tampa and he came to New England with a renewed sense of purpose.  He knows he isn't The Guy in the Patriots' talented backfield, so he has no misconceptions about what he has to do to contribute to the team, provided he's still around when September comes.
Bolden

Like Blount, Bolden has a recent past to live down, being suspended from Mississippi State for an undisclosed team rule violation in his senior season, and then for  violating the NFL's performance enhancing drug policy in his rookie season, earning himself a harsh spotlight in Belichick's dog house - and should probably consider himself lucky to still be on the roster...

...but his performance on special teams kept him around when he returned from his league induced four game suspension.  That being said, with Winn on the training camp roster Bolden will likely have to have a fantastic camp to keep his spot on the roster - as Winn has no history of rebellion and is by all accounts a superior special teams ace.
Vereen

By the same token, there were no behavioral concerns with either Stevan Ridley or Shane Vereen coming out of college. 

Vereen was considered perhaps the best all-around running back in the 2011 draft class, while Ridley came with concerns of being a one trick pony - but that one trick is finding even the most narrow of holes and bursting through for tough between-the-tackles yardage.

After spending his rookie season backing up BenJarvis Green-Ellis, Ridley took on all comers in last season's camp and emerged as the featured back, putting up numbers that have him in the conversation of top 10 backs in the NFL and, combined with the versatility of Vereen and the since-departed Danny Woodhead, gave the Patriots a bruisingly effective running game.

As the season wore on, the running game evolved in such a way that it should become one of the most feared and versatile units in the NFL.
Ridley

Ridley seemed to get stonger as the season wore on, and Vereen lined up at just about every skill position on the offense to take advantage of his sprinter's speed and ankle-breaking moves - sort of a Thunder and lightning approach, though that terminology doesn't do this duo justice.

Vereen will be featured in the passing game, lining up wide, in the slot, in the move and as a change of pace back, his versatility making him a candidate to try and take over some of the duties of a troubled and since departed tight end, as well as giving quarterback Tom Brady a familiar deep threat to counter the unknown factor at receiver.

Neither Ridley nor Vereen have anything to prove to the coaching staff, as they have lived up to and, in Ridley's case, surpassed all expectations.  No one year wonders, they are the base of what the Patriots like to do on offense:  Run hard and setting up the play action...

...because as the play action goes, so goes the Patriots' offense.  Brady is the undisputed king of the play action pass, so with these talented backs finding holes behind the best run-blocking line in the league and forcing the opposing defense to keep an extra man in the box, Brady can go nuts with his up-tempo, no huddle attack...

...and if the defense decides to take their chances and play in the nickel to try and stop Brady, Ridley and Vereen have the ability to make them pay on the ground - the decision is Brady's, and we're about to witness how much faith he has in his running game.

If it's as much as he seemed to have last season, the balance of power in the New England offense could very well shift to the bruising and quick running backs, regardless of who's in the backfield with him.

Patriots' Camp Preview - Offensive Line

Remember when Matt Light announced his retirement?

A day filled with fear, anxiety, trepidation - fear for quarterback Tom Brady's life and limb, trepidation over the fate of the running game and the kind of anxiety that comes with being forced to ponder the unknown...

...not to mention that just weeks later guard Brian Waters refused to report for training camp, and the Patriots offensive line went from being one of the best units in the NFL to a huge question mark. 

And why not?  Both of those guys went to multiple Pro Bowls and both landed on first team All Pro lists in their careers and anchored a Patriots line in their final year that took the prestigious Madden Most Valuable Protector award.  Neither man was at the end of their career, yet their paths in life dictated a change - and both earned the right to walk away with their heads held high...

...yet their individual departures signaled a departure of sorts for the New England Patriots offensive line - but Light, in particular, was such a team-first player that fans and media should have known that he would never leave his team mates in a lurch.  He knew what they had in 2nd year tackle Nate Solder and, as it turns out, the transition was seamless.

The baby-faced Solder represents the new breed of blind side protectors.  At 6' 8" and 320 pounds, the University of Colorado product started his career in Boulder as a tight end, but over the course of his college career put on 60 pounds and transitioned to an offensive tackle so light on his feet that he is able to mirror any speed rusher, yet with a solid enough base to stonewall a bull rusher.

And while Solder's baby face may cause the uninitiated to assume that he can be bullied, teammate and linebacker Brandon Spikes found out during a scrimmage for season ticket holders last season that looks can be deceiving:



If Patriots' fans had any doubts about Solder's grit and determination to take over protecting Brady's blind side, those doubts should have disappeared after this incident and through training camp, as Solder teamed with right tackle Sebastian Vollmer to form perhaps the best set of bookend tackles in the league.
Vollmer

Being the exact size of Solder, the mammoth Vollmer enters his fifth season with the Patriots on a one year "prove it" contract - not to prove that he's an elite right tackle, which he is, but to prove that his twisted back can hold up to the rigors of running folks over in the running game and handling edge rushers in the passing game.

New England's trainers were busy with Vollmer last season, working feverishly on the native German between games as if he were a heavyweight fighter in between rounds of a title bout - sometimes sending him out there with nothing more than athletic tape and a prayer.

When healthy, Vollmer is a road-grading run blocker with a nasty disposition, enveloping defensive linemen and linebackers within his huge frame, teaming with tight end Rob Gronkowski to open huge holes off tackle for New England's nimble running backs to sprint through...

...but where he delivered the blows in the running game, he struggled at times when his back prevented him from moving his feet in pass protection where he had to move laterally and absorb an initial punch from the pass rusher.  Often, Gronkowski would chip the rusher before floating out into the flat in his pass pattern to help him out.

Vollmer entered free agency after the 2012 season, but found few takers on the open market as questions regarding his back made most teams shy away, eventually signing the one year deal to remain with the Patriots.  If he can prove that his back isn't an issue going forward, "Seabass" will earn the nice payday that he should have had this year.
Cannon

That being said, there were times that Vollmer needed to give his back a break, and on those occasions second year TCU product Marcus Cannon was more than up to the task. 

Cannon is massive.  A tackle in college, he was projected more as a right guard in the NFL but has more than held his own backing up both positions with the Patriots - in fact, Cannon enters training camp as the favorite to take over the right guard spot next to Vollmer, his 6' 5", 335 pound frame teaming with "Seabass" and "Gronk" to form perhaps the best strong-side blocking tandem in the NFL.
Connolly

It could also be that Cannon's best contribution to the team is as a versatile back up, spelling Vollmer to give his back a break and also an insurance policy in case 2012 starting right tackle Dan Connolly gets nicked up.  Bill Belichick indicated that this season was Cannon's time to step up, so it would appear that it is Belichick's hope that Cannon wins the starting nod in camp.

The most anonymous name on the Patriots is center Ryan Wendell, who inconspicuously handles the play calls for the line, gets the ball to Brady with no defects in technique and helps clog the interior of the line of scrimmage and keeping the rush out of Brady's face...
Wendell

But the anchor to the best offensive line in football is left guard Logan Mankins, whose nastiness and love of fighting in the trenches have earned him many accolades, including multiple pro bowl selections and inclusion on several All Pro teams.

Mankins is what opponents refer to as "Country Strong", able to manhandle everyone he faces as if he were cow punching, the bruises he leaves on them an impromptu brand that tells everyone that he owns that offensive line.  A victim of aging, Mankins has himself broken down a time or two in the past couple of seasons, but his "Take an asprin and get back out there" attitude represents a toughness that can not be discounted...
Mankins

...so it's a rare occasion that Mankins is banged up enough to miss time, especially considering that he played most of 2011 on two bad knees - one requiring surgery to repair a torn ACL - yet still played through the pain.  Nick McDonald is a serviceable backup for Mankins and for Wendell and should find a roster spot, as should Connolly.

Free agent signee Will Svitek is a versatile swing tackle that will primarily back up Solder, but if he proves to be just as adept on the right side, it opens the door for Cannon to take over right guard knowing that Svitek is capable.
Svitek

Names like Markus Zusevics and recently signed Tyronne Green could also find roster spots, but as a whole, the Patriots' offensive line is as stout a line as you'll find anywhere, with nastiness and depth at all positions...

...which is one of those things that opposing defensive coordinators know, but still can't do anything to take advantage of weaknesses, because there are none - no matter who's in the lineup.