What ESPN wants you to know about Patriots rookie Marcellas Dial

The father of the Constitution, James Madison, once said, “As long as the reason of man continues fallible and he is at liberty to exercise it, different opinions will be formed.” that’s as true in football as it is in politics. And nothing forms different opinions quite like the NFL draft. 

In a recent ESPN article that goes to great lengths to highlight how the Patriots’ off-season has focused on fixing the offense, Mike Reiss spoke to the outlier in their draft plan, Marcellas Dial’s defensive coordinator at South Carolina. Clayton White, A former Giants linebacker, had some opinions about the newest Patriots defender.  

White says, “He has the size, strength, and speed to play that level.” Dial isn’t small per se, but the Patriots only have two smaller cornerbacks.

Undrafted free agent Kaleb Ford-Dement out of Washington State is one of them, and the other is utility player and pop star Marcus Jones. 

Gamecocks defensive coordinator White continues, “But more importantly, I think he brings the intangibles and the will. He’s a great locker room guy, great team player, and great special teams player, too.”

ESPN explains that the Patriots were targeting Dial before the draft, as he was one of the players who visited the team back in April. Fate played a large part in Dial’s arrival in New England, too, with the team having to bite their nails for 70 picks while waiting and hoping he would fall to them. 

The article also mentions that one of the things that attracted the Patriots and Jerod Mayo to Dial was his "versatility"; they relate that to his experience playing both in the slot and on the outside. But his versatility will be crucial to his and the team's futures.

Watching Marcellas Dial grow in New England will be exciting

So, how are they going to use him? Well, White believes Dial’s football IQ improved during his college career and relates that to Gamecock's “Cover 4” system.

As much as his former coach is riding the Dial hype train, and the man himself said he is "A sticky corner in coverage," the former Georgia Military College student could struggle in single coverage against NFL receivers. 

Dial is physical, probably too physical (or sticky) for NFL officials. He tends to go through receivers to get to the ball, like a less polished Joey Porter Jr. 

Draft Buzz ranked Dial 26th in the 2024 cornerback class for zone coverage but 16th for man or press coverage. That makes him a sixth-round steal (even if he was projected to go undrafted), but unfortunately, he is not a great fit for the Patriots' defense.

Unlike the Gamecocks, the Patriots' defense rarely uses deep zone coverages. Still, Dial’s experience of zone coverage will help him pick up the scheme quicker than most, and it will transfer if (when) he switches positions. But if he was only ranked 26th in his class, then the Patriots may not use him in coverage much.

Traditionally, New England doesn’t play bump and run against opposing receivers much either, so Dial's skill in getting hands-on and jamming receivers at the line might not help.

However, his experience of playing the "Cover 4" system makes him a strong candidate to line up as a free safety. The Patriots already have a few hybrid players who slot in at free safety, but there isn't much specialist depth after Kyle Dugger and Jaylinn Hawkins.

And his physicality level gives Dial a unique skill set for a cornerback. He has an uncanny ability to blow up screen passes before they even get going. He dominates blockers, effectively taking away the space the ball carrier needs to run into. 

The 23 year old also uses his ability to beat blockers to get into the backfield to put quarterbacks under pressure. He had two tackles for a loss and a sack in his final two years in South Carolina. DeMarcus Covington might even try him as a box safety.

22 NFL cornerbacks were credited with at least one sack last season. That's roughly only 11% of the total active cornerbacks in the league! Myles Bryant and Christian Gonzalez were the only two Patriots cornerbacks who made that list.

Bizarrely, Bryant is an apt, if not unlikely, comparison to Dial. The main issue Bryant had in 2023 was his diminutive stature and subsequent lack of physicality. Dial doesn't suffer from those issues, but they both have similar boom-or-bust tendencies.

Dial won’t be getting easily manhandled by A.J. Brown as Bryant did back in September, but he will be able to get Jalen Hurts on the deck more easily than Bryant did in the same game that Brown rag-dolled him. For his part, Dial missed an open-field tackle on 4th and 11 against Florida that Gamecocks fans are still having nightmares about.

The Patriots currently have 17 defensive backs, so you might imagine a sixth-round pick would have his work cut out making the roster. But Dial looks like he's here to stay, especially with the new kick-off rules the NFL has implemented.

In one of his first press conferences, the Woodruff, South Carolina native said“Where I’m from, not many get out.”. That statement only demonstrates that Dial understands how fortunate he is to be given a chance and wants to reward the faith the Patriots have shown in him.

That level of awareness means he will grasp the opportunity with both hands. And that sort of motivation will make Dial one of the Patriots’ standout rookies.

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