New England Patriots: Five Players To Watch At Training Camp

Aug 31, 2013; Gainesville, FL, USA; Florida Gators defensive lineman Dominique Easley (2) rushes against the Toledo Rockets during the second half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Florida Gators defeated the Toledo Rockets 24-6. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

3. Dominique Easley

If Dominique Easley can live up to his great potential, the Patriots may own the best defense in football by the time the 2014 season comes to an end. They have a decent edge rush coming from Chandler Jones and Rob Ninkovich, but they haven’t had someone that can push the pocket from the interior in quite some time. Having someone that can do this is extremely underrated in today’s NFL, so if Easley can provide that, this defense will have everything.

Now with that said, there is no guarantee that Easley will come out and dominate right away. He is coming off of two bad knee injuries, and he is a rookie. But that is what training camp is for. He will have an opportunity to go up against a bunch of veteran offensive lineman, where we will then see how he stands among the “big boys”.

I have already set my expectations way too high for this kid, so I apologize to him in advance. I’m extremely optimistic about what he can bring to this team, so how looks in training camp will be big in terms of getting off on the right foot.