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**Arizing540** · 12-29-2008, 10:24 PM

2016 Preview

I think it is safe to say that QB Joe Flacco is the real deal. New England is hoping that rookie RB TJ Starks is able to beat out the completion. New England should get use to the Flacco to Velevis connection for the next 8 to 10 years. Defenses better not lose sight of WR Irv Buckner. This guy is very good as well. They possess a very young offensive line. I can see this line as the best in the league in about 3 years. DE Austin McDonald, LB Oscar Smith, and CB Malcolm Hardy lead a very good defense. Any contributions from Rookies CB Courtney Brustkern and Earl Watson could make this defense very special.

**Arizing540** · 03-16-2009, 11:44 PM

USFL Network - Season Outlook 2017 New England Patriots
As written by jax

Rich � Hello I am Rich Eisen, we are here to continue our summer special Path to the regular season. Where we give the season outlook on 32 teams in 32 days. Tonight we are going to talk about the New England Patriots. With me, I have some guys that really know the game in Marshall Faulk and Hall of Famer Rod Woodson. OK besides the draft what is the biggest move The Patriots did this off season?

Marshall � You have to look at the move to bring in Mario Williams. He is a very good DT. He does a great job at getting to the QB. I still think this guy has a lot of game left in him.

Rod � I agree with you. I am also going to say a DB. You know I was going to go there. FS Kendrick Jamison. I don�t think Management brought both these older veterans in for talent alone. Both of these players are coming in with a winning attitude. They both have Super Bowl rings. They are going to show these young guys what it takes to get to the big game.

Rich � Ok I don�t know where to go with that one. Could we talk a little more about the Pats before saying they are going to win it all.

Rod � No, I am just saying that is why they brought the guys in. For the hope of winning it all.

Rich � Well say that next time. We have a show here to do. Now how good can this passing game really be.

Marshall � I love this Flacco kid. I really think he is the real deal 31 TD�s last season. We all know he has last years 1st rd pick Adam Velevis to throw to. This is going to a duo that defensive coordinators are going to be dealing with for a long time.

Rod � I will tell you what impresses me about Flacco. His ability to spread the ball around to so many different players. Adam Velevis 54 receptions, RB T.J. Starks 54, TE Fred Davis 51 , WR Matt Forte 48, FB Sam Nelson 41. Starting WR Irv Buckner had a nagging foot injury last season. Now he is healthy add him in the mix.

Rich � Don�t forget to add the two rookies they drafted in Rob Weaver and Alonzo Oskia.

Marshall � This is a real deep team at the WR pos. Is there a better group then Velevis, Buckner and Forte?

Rod � With so many great weapons in this passing game, the statistics will not show how good these guys really are.

Rich � Do you guys think that Flacco is that great or more so the guys around him.

Marshall � I say Flacco. I don�t care who you have throwing the ball to. Over 65% passing and 31 TD�s.

Rod � I think it is everything. The coaching staff, the offensive line, the play calling, the receivers around him, and Flacco himself. Don�t forget Marshall he did throw 21 int�s.

Rich � Rod he said something about the offensive line. Are they really that good?

Rod � I think it starts with the outside guys. Both Giacomini and Stokes are a couple of very good OT�s. Then you look at the guy in the middle. Center Les Newhart started all 16 games and only allowed 1 sack.

Marshall � You try to find a weakness and I guess you could say the OG�s, but these guys only gave up 5 sacks between them last year. Not sure how you would call it a weakness.

Rich � So what you guys are telling me is this team is pretty good on offense.

Marshall � Pretty much yea.

Rich � Ok. So what do you guys thing about the defense.

Rod � This is my wheel house. Last year as a whole they were very good. They were top 5 in rushing and passing defense.

Marshall � I agree they were good last season. With their 3-4 scheme they are going to throw a lot of different looks at you. I didn�t think they had that go to pass rusher. McDonald led the team with 6.

Rod � Like you said earlier about bringing in Mario Williams. This guy pressured the QB last year over 36 times. That was on a bad team. Teams ran the ball more on Jacksonville last season. He might not have the 55 Pressures he had in 2015, but I think over 40 is a fair number.

Rich � Rod tell the kids at home what you mean by pressures.

Rod � Meaning they are going to put pressure on the QB. It could be a knockdown of the QB, a sack, making the QB hurry a throw. That sort of thing.

Rich � The kids at home thanks you.

Marshall � I really like the their 1st rd pick in DE Mike McCulley. This guy is big enough to hold the line in the 3-4 at 285 lbs. He has a great burst off the line. Last season he led the Pac-10 with 14 sacks. I don�t see him getting that many, but look for about 20 to 25 pressures and at least 6 sacks.

Rich � I really like this LB unit guys. Oscar Smith is a guy that proves himself year in and year out.

Rod � Ya, he is a very good player. He runs well, he is very instinctive and he makes big plays.

Marshall � Opposing QB�s want to know where this guy is on the field before the snap. I also really like Jordan Dizon. He was banged up a little last year playing in only 11 games with some mild knee and shoulder problems. With a healthy season I think he is something special.

Rich � They way you guys are talking in seems as if there is no weakness.

Marshall � Don�t forget they are pretty deep in a lot of areas as well.

Rod � They are a good team rich.

Rich � Ok lets talk about the secondary. Can we find some problems here?

Rod - No. CB Malcolm Hardy is as good as anybody in the league. He leads a very solid group.

Marshall � Look for last years 2nd round pick Courtney Bruskern to have a big year. He was playing great till a week 6 triceps injury sidelined him for the year. He is close to 100%. He should be by the start of the season.

Rich � You add SS Earl Woodson, last years 1st rd pick, and you have a very good secondary.

Rod � Told you.

Rich � So realisticly how far can this team go?

Marshall � If their key players can stay healthy this team is one of the top 3 teams in the league.

Rod � I am going to say it now. Get a close up. Your 2017 FFL Champs ��..New England Patriots.

Rich � Wow. What about the J-E-T-S- Jets?

Rod � They are good. I think the Pats are it.

Rich � Well there you have in a look at the 2017 New England Patriots. After this break we will throw in up to Angela at the Sports desk.

**zbuckley** · 03-17-2009, 09:46 PM

Thanks Mike that was awesome. I always enjoy your Q&A style articles especially went the article is on my team :lol: Our passing game should really light up the score board this year a healthy Buckner makes a huge difference.

**Arizing540** · 11-04-2010, 07:42 PM

Re: New England Patriots

New England Preview 2022

Key FA and Trade Losses: QB Myron Herrlich (trade to ATL for three draft picks), LT Breno Giacomini (trade to JAX), LG Chad Rinehart (trade to JAX), FS Chip Vaughn (FA to PHI), MLB Scott McKillop (FA to ATL), WR Riddick Gomez (trade to GB), WLB Jordan Dizon (released, signed with STL).

The Pats dealt off two of their more talented players in Herrlich (a franchise QB in the making) and Giacomini. The end result should be an influx of new talent next year, though, when New England will have three first round picks and six picks in the top three rounds. The team also parted ways with three-time, first-team All-Pro WLB Jordan Dizon, who hasn�t been the same since suffering a serious ACL injury in 2020.

Key FA and Trade Additions: LT Jeff Thomason (trade from DEN), RG Lester Schokora (trade from JAX)

Draft:
New England landed perhaps the most talented player in the draft and had a second round pick cut after camp. Center Maurkice Pouncey should be an anchor for the Pats line for a decade or more and fell all the way to the 25th pick because of the position he plays. Plans for restocking the rest of the line, though, took a step back when LT Russell Okung was cut after a disastrous training camp that left the team questioning whether he had any potential in the league. In the middle rounds, New England added some potential contributors at cornerback, guard, kicker and a possible back-up quarterback. The jury is still out on WLB Perry Riley and SE Carleton Mitchell.

1.25 C Maurkice Pouncey 58/94
2.15 LT Russell Okung 26/30
2.30 RCB Chris Cook 33/48
3.17 LCB Patrick Robinson 26/40
3.29 QB Jimmy Shellhaas 16/45
4.3 WLB Perry Riley 24/29
4.16 SE Carleton Mitchell 20/27
4.32 K Stephen Wheeler, 38/52
5.2 LG Shawn Lauvao 31/54

Last Season:
New England went 14-2 and won their last 10 games of the regular season following their only double-digit loss of the season (a 17-3 defeat loss at Houston. Sorry, had to get that in there...). The Pats captured the top seed in the AFC, but fell in the divisional round to a red-hot Kansas City team. It was their second straight exit in the divisional round following back-to-back Bowl victories.

2022 Outlook
The expectations in New England are the same every year. Win a championship. With the talent they have on the roster, anything less will be a disappointment. The 2022 schedule includes four straight road games early in the year and a tough stretch of five games to the end of the year including Denver, Chicago, Minnesota and a Buffalo team that should be improved.

QB
Joe Flacco has posted a QB rating over 100 in four of the last five years and remains one of the league�s elites. With the departure of Herrlich, though, there is reason to be nervous. Flacco has missed all or part of 15 games in the last two years due to knee injuries. The Patriots� two back-up QBs are are two rookies, one of them, Emmanuel Lynn, is an undrafted free agent. The health of Flacco�s knees will be the subject of many Sunday prayers in the Boston area this year.

Backfield
Running back Ricky Peters rambled for 1,241 yards and 12 TDs last year, but he only averaged 3.91 yards a carry. Backup Richie Kresser had good success as a change-of-pace back (497 yards, 7 TDs, 4.40 ypc). Fullback Sam Nelson remains a solid receiver in his ninth year and is coming off his best seasonal yards per catch total (6.59).

WR
The receiving options available will give the Patriots a myriad of options this year. When Mike Smith, Adam Velevis and Rodney Lyons are all on the field, it will be exceptionally difficult for opposing secondaries to keep track of them all. Expect to see plenty of two tight end sets as well to take advantage of Brandon Pettigrew and Erik Bishop, both of whom are also dangerous receivers.

O-Line
The addition of Pouncey gives a big boost to a line that�s solid, but not spectacular. LT Jeff Thomason and G Lester Schokora are new additions and RT Winston Stokes (a two-time All-Pro) should return to the lineup in a few weeks. G Jeff Otah made the All-Pro team for the second time, this time as a second teamer.

D-Line
The strength of this unit is the depth of talent at defensive tackle where Deon Chandler, Corey Brilz and Edward Connell make a solid rotation of talent. Austin McDonald and Mike McCulley have spend their entire careers manning the defensive end spots for the Pats.

LB
New England has invested two first-round picks, a second rounder and a third rounder in linebackers over the last four years. The result is a young, deep, hungry group led by first-team, All-Pro Travis Ellard (10 sacks).

D-Backs
CB Malcolm Hardy is still going strong in his ninth year and just set a career high in passes defended (17) and pass defense percentage (89.2). Terrell Thomas likely starts on the other side when he returns from a knee injury. It will be interesting to see who emerges as the starting free safety which appears to be the weak spot on the defense.

Special Teams
Punter Patrick Hutton had a career year last season with career highs in net average (42.6) and punts inside the 20 (36). Three-time All-Pro Justin Medlock was cut after training camp and that job goes to Frank Schneider (8.4 yards per PR, 24.3 yards per KR) likely handles the return duties again this year.

**Arizing540** · 11-06-2010, 10:21 PM

Re: New England Patriots

2024 Season Preview

Last Season:
Finished with a 13-3 record and won their 7th straight AFC East title. The Pats were a perfect 11-0 before QB Joe Flacco suffered a season-ending ankle injury. Without Flacco, the Patriots offense struggled to find it's identity. With Flacco, they averaged 31.7 points compared to 11.2 points without. While they earned a first round bye, the lack of offense showed in their Divisional Round loss to Houston.

Key Additions:
Offensive Coordinator Cornell Moore; RG Tyrone Wand (rated 41/41); CB Doug Nichols (rated 62/62)

Key Losses:
C Les Newhart (rated 52/52); MLB Greg Betz (rated 51/56); WR Adam Velevis (rated 63/63)

Draft:
1-29 TE Dixon Pasquarella (rated 31/60)
2-30 NT Darrin Middleton (rated 23/52)
3-13 QB Chad Lusk (rated 9/43)
3-29 WR Courtney Levine (rated 32/38)
4-21 RT Wayne Kamego (rated 25/45)
4-30 C Ricardo Meadows (rated 22/60)
5-1 QB Cris Allen (rated 8/45)
5-29 CB Steven Ravas (rated 21/38)
6-22 SILB Clarence Peterson (rated 21/37)
7-21 MLB Juan May (rated 23/39)
7-26 RG Herb Williams (rated 17/43)
7-28 TE Roger Green (rated 21/33)
7-29 FB Earnest Osborne (rated 21/44)

Quarterbacks:
As mentioned before, this team's success depends greatly on the arm of Joe Flacco. Entering his 10th season, his health will be watched closely. Joe's been injury prone most of his career and is currently nursing a sprained knee that has his status for opening day in question. When on the field though, Flacco is one of the best in the league, racking up a career QB rating of 104.1 and winning 103 games against 25 losses. Emmanuel Lynn enters his 3rd season as the main backup, but will need to cut down on the number of INTs (1 per every 26.5 attempts) if he's going to stay in that role much longer. A pair of rookies will battle it out in camp and the preseason for the number 3 spot.

Backfield:
For the 2nd straight year, the Pats will start the season without RB Rusty Yan, who torn his knee cartilage in the preseason. Yan hopes to be ready after the team's bye week. Until then, look for Ricky Peters to get the bulk of the carries. Both Yan and Peters will need to improve on the ground this season, especially if Flacco goes down again. The run game was 2nd-to-last with an average of 3.62 yards per carry last season. It's been looking like more of the same during the preseason however. The FB spot will be taken over by rookie Earnest Osborne out of Illinois. Osborne has saw raw strenght and will be used mostly as a backing back, although he has the potential to sneak out of the backfield for a dump pass.

Receivers:
The front office traded away Adam Velevis after a career year in which he caught 81 passes for 1227 yards. He was part of a trio of receivers that each had over 1000 yards receiving, along with Mike Smith and Rodney Lyons. Smith has developed into one of the best receivers in the league, but coach Rabih Abdullah would like to see him take his game to a higher level by reducing the number of drops this season. Opposite Smith, Rodney Lyons will line up as the other starter. Lyons is entering his 4th season and his breakout season last year was part of the reason the front office felt confident enough to move Velevis. Lyons has shown some sure hands and a knack for finding the end zone. We except both Smith and Lyons to have another big season, but who's going to step up in the slot receiver role? Some think rookie Courtney Levine will be able to handle that role, but only time will tell. The wildcard here is TE Erik Bishop. Bishop caught 25 passes for 319 yards last season and could find himself a bigger part of the passing game this season. Rookie TE Dixon Pasquarella has the potential to be a star, but will likely learn the game as a backup this season, but could force his way onto the field in 3rd down situations.

Offensive Line
The O-Line is anchored by C Maurkice Pouncey, who is developing into one of the best in the FFL. At the young age of 26, Pouncey is just now entering his prime. During his first two seasons in the league, he's only allowed 3 sacks and is a big part of the successful passing attack. Still has some room for improvement in run blocking, but this could be the year it all comes together. Lining up next to him are LG Shawn Lauvao and RG Jeff Otah. Lauvao was solid last season, his first as a starter, and we look for him to build off that success this year. Otah, on the other hand, is coming off one of the worst seasons of his career, allowing 5 sacks and a key run block percentage of just 20.6%. He'll need to prove he still has something left in the tank. Tyrone Wand was brought in from Cleveland to be the main backup at Guard. Wand is a pass blocking specialist, allowing only 5 sacks covering 1690 pass plays (0.3%) in his career. On the outside, LT Neil James and RT Winston Stokes return as the starters. James was a career journeyman before taking over the starting role for the Patriots last season. He had issues at times (16.7% in KRBs and 7 sacks allowed) and should be a position the Patroits need to upgrade next. Stokes enters his 11th season with the team and while not a superstar, he's been constantly good. You can except a KRB% in the 33% range with a sack allowed percentage around 0.9%

Defensive Line:
Mike McCulley was named to the All-League 2nd team last season with his league-leading 10 blocked passes. 2nd year DE Moe Daughterty struggled his rookie season, but has put a lot of hard work in during the offseason and plans to have an impact this season after looking sharp this preseason. Corey Brilz returns as the NT after putting together a solid season last year with 5.5 sacks and 8 hurries to go along with 29 tackles. He'll be backed up by rookie Darrin Middleton, who was a true nose tackle at ohio State. Middleton had 2 sacks and 2 blocked passes during the preseason, but should be a year away from starting. The main backup DE is Andy Ellison, who was excellant while on the field last season. His 9.9 PRPct was the 3rd highest in the FFL.

Linebackers:
WLB Travis Ellard is one of the best pass rushing LBers in the game today. His PRPct of 11.3 last season was the best ever for a LB. In his 3 seasons as a starter, he's racked up 24 sacks, 63 hurries, and a whopping 70 knockdowns. Curtis Zuck returns as the SLB and looks to build off his breakout season. Zuck had 66 tackles, 6 sacks, 15 hurries, and 14 knockdowns last season. The inside spots will be handled by Lewis Sonneman and Charlie Gerbasi. Sonneman struggles a bit in coverage, but is one of the hardest hitters in the game, who's solid in the run game and has the moves to rush when called upon. Gerbasi is also solid in the run game and is the best coverage LB on the roster. Overall this is one of the most talented group of LBs in the league and will be relied on heavily again this season.

Secondary:
The secondary is lead by 2nd year corner, Willie Hayes. Hayes had 2 picks and a PDPct of 81.8 last season but we think he'll make an All-League team this season due to the pass rush created by the linebackers. He has the skills to be an elite corner and should thrive in this defense. On the other side of the field is Doug Nichols, who was acquired from Seattle. Nichols never lived up to his potential with the Seahawks, but look for him to put up much better numbers than the 0 INTs, 2 PDs, and 31 catches allowed he put up last season. Malcolm Hardy is one of the best Man-to-Man corners in the FFL and should be able to keep his legs fresh with the addition of Nichols. He has double digit passes defensed in 7 straight seasons, but probably won't make it 8 as he'll see a reduced role. If those 3 weren't enough, the Patroits also have Chris Cook, who's another great Man-to-Man corner, who had a knack for making the interception in college but is still looking for his first pick in the pros. Earl Woodson returns as the strong safety and he's been solid back there his entire career. At Free Safety is Michael Mitchell. He's great in zone coverage and one of the best at seeing the play develop. Look for anothe 3 INTs, 9 PDs, and a PDPct of 83% from him this season.

Special Teams:
Punter Patrick Hutton is regularly near the top of the leaders in net punting average, and he's also been known to fill in well as a kicker when needed. Speaking of kickers, Stephen Wheeler will need to put up better numbers than he did last season, hitting just 45.5% of field goal attempts of 40 yards or more. With the Patroits attempting the 3 most field goals from that range last season, he'll be on the hot seat if he starts the season cold (he missed his only attempt from that range in the preseason). Willie Hayes was 2nd in the league last season with a punt return average of 14.3, despite not breaking one for a score. Harris Bruce will once again be the main kick returner, as he averaged 23.2 yards last season.

Outlook:
It's been 4 seasons since the Patriots won their back-to-back championships, so it this the year Flacco stays healthy and they return to the big game? I think that it is. Look for Flacco to lead New England to yet another division title with a 13-3 record and represent the AFC in the FFL Bowl. This is one of the best defenses in the league, which makes games a nightmare for opponents when Flacco & the offense can hang 30 to 40 points each week.

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