In depth breakdown of the Patriots after Free Agency
So we're only two weeks into the new NFL season, and most activity has slowed down, despite some notable names still available. So the time has already come to assess where the New England Patriots stand after Free Agency. They've been very busy, despite the lack of well known faces coming in, and a very noticable departure. But have we gotten better or worse, and which positions will we be looking at in the Draft?Quarterbacks
For a team with a settled 2012 QB situation, the off-season has been rather busy for the Patriots. Tom Brady extended and restructured (if you had forgotten), which is obviously brilliant. We keep Brady, and we get more wiggle room in the coming years - perfect. There was also a lot of talk about Ryan Mallett being traded to the Cleveland Browns, but this hasn't materialized yet, and rumors have certainly died down, which is wise in my view - Mallett is the future, so why trade him away for a 2nd?
Running Backs
Danny Woodhead is gone. He is much loved by Patriots fans, but while he will be missed, his departure won't affect the team too much. Stevan Ridley will still be the number 1, but expect Shane Vereen to fill the void of Woodhead, he showed great signs in the passing game last season, and I think he's a better at running the ball than Woodhead. And Brandon Bolden will be the rotational guy. I don't expect Leon Washington to do much on offense, he'll be a full time Special Teams guy.
Wide Receivers
Now we come to a biggie. Wes Welker and Brandon Lloyd out, Danny Amendola and Donald Jones in so far. Not exactly promising. Who knows whether Amendola can stay healthy, but I'm sure he can be a consistent weapon for Brady when he's on the field, he's got speed and agility to get open, and good hands too. Jones is a bit time player, who with Brady throwing the ball can be a decent receiver.The key though is "so far". The Patriots are still expected to make a move for Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Emmanuel Sanders once they're sure they can outbid his current team, which would cost a 3rd round pick, but for a proven WR at NFL level, it's probably a good move. Who knows what's going on with Julian Edelman, and I expect the Patriots to spend a pick on a Wide Receiver, regardless of whether we get Sanders or not. Where in the draft, I have no idea. I think Bill Belichick will be back to his regular, trading down self, so predicting that will be hard. But Brady has certainly worked with an average WR group before, and the Patriots have been successful - besides, we've got some good Tight Ends too...
Tight Ends
Speaking of Tight Ends, we've got a couple of handy ones in the form of Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. Freak injuries have been stopping Gronk, so don't be worried about him going into 2013 - he'll be his usual beast-like self. It's Hernandez's injuries, and drops, which are more worrying. However, he's moved close to Brady to hopefully spend a lot of time playing catch and working on that (maybe it's Aaron in the bunny costume?) Gronkowski and Hernandez can definitely fill the void of Welker and Lloyd, if the current replacements can't.
With Jake Ballard returning as the 3rd option (an option who's actually pretty good at pass catching), and Michael Hoomanawanui probably sticking around as a low tender RFA as a run blocking guy, and Daniel Fells too, the Tight End group is looking stacked, and pretty damn good.
Offensive Line
The Patriots got the big business done, Sebastian Vollmer is sticking around. This leaves the Patriots with the same starting line as last season, which will be great for Brady to have some consistency, and for Stevan Ridley too, who enjoyed some great success thanks to the line play. We did lose Donald Thomas, so depth is once again an issue, especially in the interior of the line, but this can be solved easily. And besides, Dante Scarnecchia is a genius, and will keep this group rolling come hell or high water.Defensive Line
Apart from a couple of Canadians, the Patriots haven't secured any help on the defensive line. Which is an issue, because the AFC Championship game last season showed just how badly a better pass rush is needed. Chandler Jones will hopefully be back to his pre-injury best, but a better interior rush was definitely required to line up next to Vince Wilfork, and that definitely hasn't been addressed, but this draft is deep on the D-Line. And John Abraham and Dwight Freeney have both been brought in, but left without deals. But both also left the Denver Broncos without deals. So they'll be assessing their options, and hopefully one of them will join as a situational pass rusher. If this happens, the front 4 will be scary in New England.
Linebackers
Nothing needed to be done, and nothing has been done. We have a young and very exciting linebacking group, so hopefully all three can make jumps to make this front 7 a top ten NFL front 7. While they're all good in run defense, they'll need to improve in the pass game, though Dont'a Hightower showed a good ability to track the QB outside the pocket and force a bad throw. And Jerod Mayo will once again step up his role as a leader on the team.
Secondary
Well, Aqib Talib and Kyle Arrington are back, which is good, and while I think we got a good deal for Talib, I think we overpaid for Arrington, but he is still good in the slot, so he's going to be crucial to the development of the secondary, with the pairing of Talib and Alfonzo Dennard a good thing for the future. Add to that a full offseason for Devin McCourty and the arrival of the Million Dollar Man Adrian Wilson, it's looking pretty promising. Talib definitely reveled in the role of a leader of the secondary (you could tell by his sideline behavior), so he'll be good for Dennard, and hopefully Wilson can do the same for Tavon Wilson. I still think the Patriots will look for a Cornerback in the draft (
Summary
So in summary: Offense - We've got Tom Brady and a solid run game, we'll be fine without Welker. Draft a WR/get Sanders, and we're set. Defense - A few players short of our best defense in a while. A couple of pass rushing D-Lineman, and a CB, and I'm very confident of a productive defense.
The core of the team (Welker aside) hasn't been changed, which is exactly what we needed. That core has been improved upon in my view at least, and it got us to the AFC Championship game last season. The future is bright in New England.
How do you think the Patriots have done in the off-season? Let us know by commenting below, or tell me on Twitter @BrendanAnnely
