Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
Remember the 2006 New England Patriots and the debacle that was the wide receiving corp? Remember how they went out the next season and acquired both Randy Moss and Wes Welker? I do, and I think that type of aggressive off season is needed for the New England Patriots to return to the teams of the early part of this decade. In this article, I will highlight many areas where change is needed.
1. Hire a real Offensive Coordinator
I believe Belichick had his worst coaching season with the Patriots because his coaching staff lacks someone who has the cache to stand up to Bill and tell him no. If Charlie Weiss or Romeo Crennel were on this staff, there is no way they go for 4th and 2 against the Colts. Bill may be an evil genius, but even genius's need someone to temper their decisions sometimes. The kind of change I am talking about is the removal of Bill O'Brien . On offense, the play calling has been very conservative and very predictable. Tom Brady and the offense never looked comfortable this season. How many times did you see the offense prancing to the line of scrimmage while looking at the play book on their wrists.
2. Find a new Defensive Coordinator
Now that Dean Peas is no longer calling the shots for the defense, I think it's time to fill that position with someone who actually has NFL experience at the position. I am well aware the defense was riddled with old, slow players last season and this season dealt with a young and inexperienced defensive backfield. They also were unable to produce a healthy pass rush throughout the entire season. Realistically, Dean Peas is not the one who's at fault the most, but he's never been able to really build a consistent defense. I would have loved the return of Romeo Crennel, but that is not possible now that he's taken the same position with the Chiefs. If you've paid attention to the new since Peas was fired/let go/stepped down, the two most talked about candidates are Matt Patricia and Pepper Johnson. Both are in house candidates with zero experience at the coordinator position. Pepper Johnson, who played for Belichick and Parcells at the NY Giants, has been a long time defensive assistant for the Patriots, and is currently the defensive line coach. Patricia, sometimes referred to as the defensive version of Josh McDaniels, and has spent the past 3 seasons as the Pats linebackers coach. Since the Patriots are firm believers of hiring from their own ranks, I expect one of these two to get the job.
3. Rebuild the Foundation
It has been a long standing philosophy of Bill Belichick, Bill Parcells and many others that a successful football team is built from the inside out. What does that mean? That means a solid offensive and defensive line is the critical to a championship team. Think of the two lines as a foundation of a house. If the foundation is strong from the bottom up, then the rest can take care of itself. The two biggest Patriots entering free agency this off season fall into this category. On defense, the Patriots must resign Vince Wilfork if they want to run the 3-4 defense. He is, by far, the best defensive tackle on the market and has become the MVP of the Patriots defense. Even if they resign Wilfork, they will still need to add another lineman. Wilfork and Warren are a good start, but a pass rushing lineman, like Julius Peppers, would give them one of the best defensive lines in the game. This line is a possibility with an uncapped year on the horizon. If you watched the Pats playoff loss to the Ravens, than you know the offensive line is not nearly as good as most people think. Logan Mankins, like Wilfork, is a player the Pats must resign. He's one of the best guards in football. After "The Mank", there are still many questions about the line. Nick Kazcur signed a an extension that runs through the 2012 season, but has been relegated to the bench the past quarter of the season. He is due $2.7 Million next year. Sebastian Vollmer is clearly the Left Tackle of the future, as in 2010, so the Patriots need to make a decision on Matt Light. Light will be entering the final year of his contract, so I wouldn't be surprised if he isn't brought back. He's already mentioned that he would not move to Right Tackle, so you either have to keep him at Left or dump him. Personally, I'd dump him. There are rumblings that Stephen Neal may decide to retire, so that makes 4 major decisions that need to be made on the offensive line.
4. Fix the Pass Rush problem
The only consistent pass rusher for the Patriots this season was Tully Banta-Cain with a career high 10 sacks. The team total for the season was a measly 31 sacks which was good for 23rd in the NFL. While Banta-Cain had a fine season, there isn't one player on the defense that strikes fear in an opposing team as a legitimate pass rusher. Adalius Thomas is a huge bust, much like Roosevelt Colvin was before him, and is expected to be let go during this off season. With an uncapped year expected, why not spend the money to bring in Julius Peppers. He is versatile enough to play either at defensive end or outside linebacker in the 3-4 system.
5. Revamp the Wide Receiver Corp
Randy Moss is one of the best wide receivers of all time, but as far as I'm concerned it's time to move on. He was either hurt or dogging it at times this year, but the one thing we know was he wasn't at 100%. Why not bring in another talented, yet troubled receiver in Brandon Marshall? Belichick has showed he can work with players who have baggage, and the Broncos may just let him go rather than trade him. Can Julian Edelman be Wes Welker next season? No one can match what Welker has done in this offense, but Edelman will be able to be a very good receiver for them next year. I don't expect any meaningful contribution from Welker next season, so the Patriots need to add more depth at the position than Sam Aiken and Isaiah Stanback.
6. Brady does Deserve some Blame
Tom Brady had a major knee injury last season, we all know that. Realistically, he will still not be fully recovered until 2 full years after the injury. The balky knee definitely threw off his timing and pocket presence this season. At times it looked liked Brady would not take that step up into the pocket, avoid a defender, and make the pass. That is exactly what happened when Terrel Suggs strip sacked him in the playoff loss to the Ravens. Still, Tom Brady made some terrible decision throwing the ball this season, and played terrible in late and clutch situations. As long as the offensive line can keep defenders off his back, he will enter next season healthy, and ready to be the Brady of old. He's the least of my worries, but a point needs to be made that no one, especially Brady and Belichick, are above criticism.
Well, there you have it. It's somewhat amazing the New England Patriots went 10-6 and won the AFC East despite being in a transition year.
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