Stepping up the Pass Rush
Any good defensive unit should be able to generate pressure on the quarterback, but for the New England Patriots, the question becomes who will be the guy that can consistently get into the backfield?
Chandler Jones was drafted with the 21st overall pick in 2012 to provide that steady pass rush. He has since been traded to the Arizona Cardinals meaning there is a void that will need to be filled.
Last year saw the team tally 49 sacks ranking second in the league behind the Denver Broncos. In spite of that impressive number, the pass rush as a whole can be improved. With the departure of Jones, every other defensive end will need to find a way to step up and fill a bigger role than they did last year.
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When a player such as Jones leaves the team, the easy thing to do for a fan is to say the player sucked and was never any good. While Jones never quite lived up to the expectation of him becoming a dominant, game changing pass rusher, he was a good player whose solid production came in fits and spurts. Either way that production will need to be replaced by someone on the team now. Last season he tallied 12.5 sacks and the most likely candidate to step up, if he can overcome his injury worries, is Jabaal Sheard.
In 2015, he played in 13 games and managed eight sacks, with his highlight game coming against Houston. Based on the reps handed out throughout training camp and in the first preseason game, Sheard has been given the opportunity to step up and take on a more prominent role in this defense. If Sheard is to step up into the primary pass rusher role, then one of the other players will have to take over his 2015 job as the third defensive end.
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Former member of the St Louis/Los Angeles Rams Chris Long is looking to revitalize his career after his time in the NFC West ended with some injury plagued seasons. Based on what has been seen so far, Long will be able to contribute for the Patriots but he may not be an every down player, or even a regular starter, which might suit the veteran quite well allowing him to stay a bit more fresh as the year rolls on.
On the other side of the ball, the starter will be Rob Ninkovich, who looms as the ever consistent presence having taken over as a starter in 2010 and having started all 16 games every year since then. He has been a stabilizing presence proving to be very reliable and able to be counted on for 6 to 8 sacks and a steady presence against the run. The defensive wild cards are 2015 draft picks, Trey Flowers and Geneo Grissom, both of whom have drawn rave reviews for their athleticism but are still developing as football players.
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Flowers is closer to a pure defensive end but missed his rookie season after sustaining an injury in the first preseason game. Grissom meanwhile spent most of last year restricted to special teams play, however he did notch one sack. Their growth as players could be the key to growth of the overall pass rush even if they only play a handful of defensive snaps each game. Flowers is the one most likely to step up in the event of an injury to a player ahead of him but Grissom will be able to step up himself and cover Flowers in that instance as well.
By being able to go five deep at defensive end, it gives the Patriots insurance against injuries and allows them to rotate through and keep the players fresh by limiting their snaps. While they are only technically replacing one player in the departed Chandler Jones, it will require every player to step up a level and make sure that they, as Belichick is known for saying, “do their job”.
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Find out what Cyrus Geller had to say on the pass rush here.