Trevor Scott helping his own cause
27-year-old hybrid DE/OLB Trevor Scott came into the New England Patriots organization this offseason as a little-known veteran signing on the 17th of March after spending the first four seasons of his career with the Oakland Raiders. He recorded 97 tackles and 13.5 sacks for the team in his career, and he is coming off of a terrible 2011 season.
Never known as a good run-stopper, Scott makes his game as a pass rushing specialist who can contribute off the bench. Despite coming off of a disappointing year with Oakland, he was actually a solid contributor for them before the 2011 season. The drop-off last season is likely due to a negative comeback after an ACL injury, as Scott was a very good pass rusher for the team in 2010 and had a good five-sack rookie season in 2008.
The Patriots have used him at strong-side linebacker and as a strong-side defensive end this offseason, and he is certainly a scheme-versatile player on the front seven.
Against the New Orleans Saints in the preseason opener, the 6’5″, 255 pound newcomer was excellent with three tackles, one sack, and three hits on the quarterback. As he showed in 2010, Trevor Scott still gets a lot of pressure even when he isn’t sacking the quarterback. He was a constant threat against the run as well, and he provided a very consistent pass rush output for the Pats.
His impressive showing against the Saints at SDE is another step in the comeback trail from a severe injury, and Trevor Scott looks like the next veteran defensive end to put his career back on the map with the Patriots. He was the team’s best player in the second half, and I’ll choose to ignore that his excellent display came against the Saints backups. That is true, but it’s still great to put up that kind of a pass rushing display against any kind of competition. The Patriots look like they have a quality pass rushing specialist off the bench in Scott, who was extremely disruptive against New Orleans. The injury looks well behind him, and another assured display or two from the 27-year-old will confirm that he is back to his solid form of old.