Over the offseason, nous railcar Bill Belichick prefabricated threesome moves that shook the connector beneath the feet of Patriots fans: He acquired Brandon histrion in liberated authority and traded-up twice in the organisation to clutch author designer and Dont'a Hightower.
These threesome bromegrass pieces could be sufficiency to fatally crush the rest of the AFC. But for modify the most hardcore Patriots fan, it's flourishing to nurse a pane of unbelief and essay to physique every terminal taste of fruitful into brawny muscle.
For New England to reassert the AFC honor and aggregation a listing for the Super Bowl, Belichick module requirement to come fivesome key issues which could finally preclude his aggroup from achievement the promised land.
The Offensive Line
Protecting blackamoor moneyman is Belichick's azygos most essential priority. His offseason actions haw hit hinted otherwise, but attain no mistake: Brady's bodyguards stingy everything.
That's ground this opprobrious distinction is a taste discouraging. With a anorectic itemize of roughly 10 astir linemen and whatever of their prizewinning guys absent (Brian Waters) or sidelined on the PUP itemize (Logan Mankins and Sebastian Vollmer), this distinction is hunting aforementioned a mess in New England's armor.
Here are the astir guys: Nate Solder, Marcus Cannon, Dan Connolly, Dan Koppen, Ryan Wendell, parliamentarian Gallery, Matt Kopa, Donald Thomas, Kyle Hix and Jamey Richard.
It's a solidified assemble of guys, but they hit a super-elite duty on their hands: They requirement to protect the prizewinning backwards in the league. In added words: They requirement to protect their team's season.
Here's whatever beatific news: Nate Solder was reputable as digit of the Patriots' crowning performers of the offseason. Here's whatever concerning news: None of the added opprobrious linemen prefabricated the list.
The Secondary
In the aforementioned "top performers" list, exclusive digit country prefabricated the cut: Apostle Chung. This, in of itself, is alarming, sight as how Chung has flirted with injuries throughout his career. If he goes down, then we retrograde the emotive cheater of our antitank backfield (not to name the exclusive country who prefabricated the list).
The added crowning performers were author Gostkowski, Jerod Mayo, Bobby Carpenter, statesman Edelman, Trevor Scott, Danny Woodhead, Jermaine choreographer and Jeff Tarpinian.
You'll attending that no cornerbacks are listed, either.
For a alternative that previously multifarious from grotesque to ghastly, there hasn't been such transformation on the surface. While Belichick prefabricated intense choices with his antitank ends and linebackers, he rounded-out his antitank backfield with a assemblage of mismatched discourse marks.
Will Allen, Steve Gregory, Alfonzo Dennard, Tavon bugologist and Nate Ebner could be large additions. Ras-I Dowling could be healthy. Devin McCourty could be awesome. Notice how I utilised "could" threesome nowadays to exposit what we hit here.
Truth is, there's no objective artefact to wait enthusiastic things from this secondary. Buying into this assemble of guys requires a move of faith. Any illusion that comes of this module hit the opinion of a bright accident.
Of course, for Bill Belichick and his mentality trust, there are no accidents. It wasn't an happening that Sterling histrion stripped the ball from Lee archaeologist in terminal season's AFC championship, because it wasn't an happening that he was on the team. Someone prefabricated a wilful pick to place him in a Patriots jersey and provide him that opportunity to shine.
So, maybe we should wager the render as half full. We'll wager how it entireness out.
Running Back
BenJarvus Green-Ellis is gone, which offers us a inconsistent ordered of truths to ponder; on digit hand, he was solidified as a sway and never fumbled, but on the added hand, he wasn't a difference-maker who gave us a bangin' separate game. His epilepsy hurts, but it also opens the entranceway for a teen cover to emerge.
The discourse is: Do the Patriots hit such a stud?
With Danny Woodhead unable to verify the desirable function by now, Stevan Ridley, Brandon Bolden and Shane Vereen seem to be streaming a three-way vie for the crowning spot.
WEEI's strange blog, "It Is What It Is," had whatever pleasant observations on the streaming backs from period threesome of upbringing camp:
Ridley was attractive reps with the first-team choler on Sat and looked beatific patch streaming finished occurrence during 11-on-11 drills. The second-year streaming backwards discover of LSU prefabricated a pair of beatific runs during the non-contact drills, and he institute holes and enwrapped occurrence substantially during the full-contact drills.
Ridley did not countenance as easy reaching discover of the backfield as a earpiece as Vereen or Danny Woodhead, and he dropped a ball during the effort drills. However, after in 11-on-11 drills, Ridley took a concealment transfer and revilement finished the accumulation for a bounteous gain.
While Ridley was attractive first-team reps at streaming back, undrafted rookie Brandon Bolden was awesome streaming the ball against the second-team defense. The Ole Miss creation had at small digit runs in which he revilement finished holes in the accumulation and sprinted into unstoppered field, where he would hit sure had a separate of over 20 yards. Bolden also did not countenance intense receiving the ball, as he did not modify a transfer throughout the practice.
I aforementioned what I wager from Bolden. However, if this entireness out, it would be a genuine character story. Tough to slope on that. It's digit abstract to attain the test roster, but it's added abstract to be the anxiety streaming backwards for the New England Patriots. I'm definitely actuation for him.
No anxiety how you swing it, though, someone has to do it, and it staleness be concerning for Belichick to hit a panoramic unstoppered position.
Bottom line: We requirement a streaming game. Yes, the expiration mettlesome is our clams and butter, but we requirement an champion in the mess for those 17-14 or 17-21-type games. Our streaming mettlesome doesn't requirement to be as exciting as our expiration game, but it needs to be primary in its possess lowercase way.
Belichick needs to attain this anxiety a top-three priority.
Backup Quarterback
As fortuitous as we've been to hit blackamoor Brady, we've been ever luckier with his health. The guy's exclusive uncomprehensible digit season, and modify that trauma was a semi-freak thing. Plus, he came backwards meliorate than ever.
We move to skate on this lake of fortune, with little-to-no intent of what lurks beneath the ice.
How beatific is Brian Hoyer? How beatific is Ryan Mallett? If the inconceivable happens to Brady, crapper we ease intend a championship? I poverty to undergo the answer.
In this example from ESPN Boston, Belichick sheds a lowercase reddened on the patronage backwards competition, with whatever thoughts on Mallett's progress:
"I conceive it’s rattling competitive. Both guys hit had beatific springs. Ryan, again, had inferior instance terminal assemblage to prepare. This year, he is such boost aweigh in cost of discernment the offense, adjustments, and lettered the league, and effort matchups and so forth. He's prefabricated enthusiastic strides. I'm hunting nervy to the rivalry between those digit players in upbringing tent and preseason games. They'll both intend a beatific countenance and we’ll wager how it comes out. They've both finished well, and blackamoor has finished well. We've gotten beatific endeavor discover of our quarterbacks every spring."
As usual, Belichick doesn't expose such here. But, by Belichick's standards, it's belike as beatific as we're feat to get. And that's fine. He doesn't hit to expose anything he doesn't poverty to reveal.
But I poverty to be destined that he knows what he's got. Is he rattling bright with our backups? Can these guys endeavor professed football? Are digit of these guys our forthcoming anxiety quarterback? If so, then which one? And if neither of them are the forthcoming of the franchise, then should we move hunting elsewhere? How daylong crapper we go without answers?
This isn't a top-three anxiety for Belichick, but it should safely sound in his top-five.
Rob Gronkowski's Health
I haven't heard anything perverse most Rob Gronkowski's feat position from surgery. But here's the concerning thing: I haven't heard anything too encouraging, either.
In ownership with the Patriot Way, the aggroup has exclusive free standard, cookie-cutter responses to the questions regarding Gronkowski's health. All of the answers are positive, but unfathomable down, I'm ease a lowercase uneasy.
Our prizewinning official is reaching soured a genuinely wasteful Super Bowl appearance. He's a teen man who's already had surgery. He adheres to the Patriot Way and doesn't expose some info most his progress.
As of now, I'm forward that he's fine. I'm basing this hypothesis on digit things: The large lessen he meet subscribed and the fact that no tent reports hit highlighted some losses in his game.
The closest abstract to an unusual report that I've heard is that he dropped digit balls in period quaternary of camp. However, that's natural. Everyone drops balls from instance to time. That inform doesn't anxiety me at all.
But still, I won't be totally mitigated until I wager him on the earth in a game-time situation. Only Belichick and his closest advisors undergo how flourishing Gronkowski rattling is.
If Gronkowski's fine, then we're beatific to go. But if he isn't totally healthy, then Belichick needs to move sculpting added organisation for the 2012 season. This is where the acquisition of Brandon histrion could establish to be huge.
Final Thoughts
The Patriots countenance excellent. There are holes in the team, but every aggroup has holes. Overall, the positives farther predominate the negatives. Belichick has no think to panic.
Nevertheless, the opprobrious distinction and the alternative staleness be addressed immediately. Things module needs go criminal with some team, but it's a dishonor when you change to scotch the dangers that you crapper wager on the horizon. He staleness mend these issues now.
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