I expect a big 2015 is on the horizon for Andre Johnson with Andrew Luck.
NEPD Staff Writer CJ Sousa
As time goes on, things change. It’s one of the few true facts of life.
The Houston Texans will be experiencing some big changes going into 2015, but can they bank on beating anyone other than the Bengals in the first round to get a playoff win? (more…)
Patriots’ Head Coach Bill Belichick walks the sideline during the second half of New England’s 41-13 win over the Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium last month. (Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports)
Chris Ivory and the Jets broke ground against the Patriots on Thursday night in Foxborough, and it wasn’t all through the middle. (Mark L. Baer – USA Today Sports Images)
NEPD Editor: Oliver Thomas
The New York Jets ran the ball 43 times against the New England Patriots last Thursday night. In the process, 218 rushing yards were gained, and that output marked the most a Jets team had registered versus a Patriots team since 1990.
It could have been the four days of preparation. It could have been the fact Rob Ninkovich and Vince Wilfork had combined for 288 defensive snaps since Week 6. It could have been alignment and tackling technique. Or, it could have simply been the urgency of a 1-5 Jets squad on the road versus a division rival.
Whatever was at play, 14 of New York’s carries went through the right B- and C-gaps of the offensive line to the tune of 87 yards while New England fought for containment. (more…)
The Patriots walked away with a win against the Raiders on Sunday. But the team remains in flux on both sides of the ball. (Winslow Townson – USA Today Sports Images)
NEPD Editor: Oliver Thomas
They don’t award style points in the NFL. The New England Patriots’ 16-9 win over the Oakland Raiders evidenced why.
The Week 3 home opener at Gillette Stadium netted a total of 10 punts between Oakland’s Marquette King and New England’s Ryan Allen. It saw a total of six field goals between Sebastian Janikowski and Stephen Gostkowski. And by the time defensive tackle Vince Wilfork clung onto his third career interception and the Patriots clung onto the victory, every point in the game had been scored by a player whose last name ended in “-kowski.”
Neither backfield crossed the century mark in rushing. Neither passing game threw for over 235 yards. And combined, the offenses of the Patriots and Raiders converted on just one of six red-zone opportunities.
It wasn’t how it was drawn up. It was, however, more of what it has been for head coach Bill Belichick and the Patriots thus far in 2014.
Upon second glance, here are seven observations from Sunday’s tilt. (more…)
The Patriots showcased 17 different personnel combinations along the defensive front versus the Dolphins. Rob Ninkovich was part of nine. (Brad Barr – USA Today Sports Images)
NEPD Editor: Oliver Thomas
Over the course of 2013, the New England Patriots defensive line altered through 58 personnel groupings.
Part of it was scheme, as some players departed to the sidelines during short yardage or passing downs. Part of it was attrition, as some stayed on the sidelines for the duration.
Rob Ninkovich was not one of them.
His No. 50 jersey was spotted on the field for 1,114 snaps last season – according to Pro Football Focus – second to only teammate Chandler Jones among the league’s 4-3 defensive ends. And by the conclusion of Week 17, there were only 54 snaps in which Ninkovich hadn’t been seen on it.
In Sunday’s 33-20 loss to the Miami Dolphins in 2014 regular-season opener, there were 39.
Ninkovich was one of the first 11 on the field for the tilt at Sun Life Stadium. But the 6’2”, 260-pound edge-rusher was not a constant across from Jones.
That wasn’t necessarily a deviation from the 2013 campaign, which saw Ninkovich step back to outside linebacker when the Patriots moved from a four-man line to a three-man line. Yet something was different on Sept. 7. (more…)
The defensive line of the 2013 Patriots shifted in waves. Its components changed by the week, and in some cases, by the snap. (NFL Game Rewind)
NEPD Editor: Oliver Thomas
The 2013 New England Patriots defensive line was one of adaptation.
It was one of many faces and many alignments. And it was one composed of 15 players, forged by attrition.
For the collection of former draft picks and undrafted free agents, waiver claims and veteran free agents, it was about being greater than the sum of their parts. For head coach Bill Belichick, defensive coordinator Matt Patricia and position coach Patrick Graham, on the other hand, it was about being interchangeable.
From Week 1 through Week 17, the New England’s defensive line was just that. But its identity remained unknown. There was no true first-team. There was no true base defense.
Its contributors and alignments shifted with each opponent, with each snap. (more…)
Vince Wilfork’s restructured return to New England was a compromise on what lies ahead. (USA Today Sports Images)
NEPD Editor: Oliver Thomas
For 14 days, it seemed imminent.
It seemed as if his success in holding the point of attack on the field and the organization’s success in doing the same off the field would be their unraveling.
For Vince Wilfork and the New England Patriots, it seemed to be about pride.
But as two weeks of uncertainty wore on, so did the semblance of hope that the 10-year NFL veteran would restructure his $11.6 million salary cap hit to return to the team that drafted him 21st overall in 2004.
In the afternoon hours of March 27, that came to fruition, as ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the 32-year-old defensive tackle had re-signed on a one-year, $8 million deal with $2.6 million guaranteed and a two-year option worth up to $22.5 million.
His cleaned-out locker and torn-off nameplate would not spell the end of his stay in Foxborough, Mass.; it would only catalyze a new one. (more…)
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