New Patriots nose tackle Davon Godchaux is a big man, with big energy and pretty big plans for his future as a centerpiece of the New England defensive front.
The former Dolphin, who considers former Patriots defensive line great Vince Wilfork a “mentor” after crossing paths with big No. 75 in South Florida, met with the New England media via video conference on Wednesday and sounded like a man who’d found a perfect new home via free agency.
“Of course I felt like I had to weigh all my options, but I just feel like it was a no-brainer for me because of the scheme,” Godchaux said. “I’m familiar with the scheme with Brian Flores in Miami. So it’s kind of the same scheme. I played the same scheme in college, too. It’s kind of a no-brainer for me. I feel like I fit best in this scheme, I thrive in this scheme and I feel this scheme best fits my skill set. I can play any scheme, but I feel this scheme best fits my skill set. And being able to be coached by arguably the greatest coach of all time, that was a no-brainer.”
While Godchaux is clearly aware of what Wilfork accomplished as a Pro Bowl defensive tackle in New England, the newcomer made it clear he wants to create his own history in Foxborough.
“The standard is set pretty high, the standard is set pretty high by pretty much just coming here,” Godchaux said. “All the accolades, all the championships they’ve already won, that’s the past. But the standard is set high just by just coming here. I’m here to write my own legacy. Big Vince Wilfork, can’t take for granted what he’s done for this program and what he’s done for the NFL in general. I mean he dominated the game at that position. Hopefully God blessed me to do the same thing, to dominate the game at this position. He’s one of the guys I look up to when I talk about striking them with your hands and things like that. He dominated that. I actually had a chance to spend some time with him in South Florida, I think he has a house in South Florida. When I was training down there I actually had some time to spend some time with him. He’s kind of like a mentor to me.”
Godchaux was also told by former Patriots pass rusher and one-time Dolphins defensive line coach Andre Carter that the defensive tackle would “love” New England and “thrive” in its scheme.
That’s clearly what the free agent addition plans on doing. Godchaux is a big believer in the importance of big bodies in the middle of a defense, especially for a team like the Patriots that struggled against the run a year ago.
“I’m happy to get back to it,” the 6-3, 311-pound Godchaux said, motivated by a pectoral injury that forced him to miss the final 11 games of 2020. “When you talk about nose tackle position, I think a lot of people in football…New England, like I said you guys had Big Vince, so Big Vince was kind of like the masterpiece of their defense for a long time. But I think a lot of people don’t really value that position in football because you don’t get the stats, you don’t get the accolades, you don’t get the numbers that the Aaron Donalds get. But when it comes down to it in the 3-4 defense the nose guard in my opinion is the most pivotal position because it sets up everything. The linebacker reads off that guy. You have to have, in my opinion, in the 3-4 position at nose tackle you have to have a dog in the middle. Somebody who’s going to take up double teams, somebody who’s going to win one-on-one blocks, somebody who you just can’t deal with. He’s a wrecking force. He’s a middle linebacker with his hands down, basically. But at this position at nose tackle you have to have a key guy, a pivotal guy and a guy who is ready to dominate all day.”
Godchaux obviously expects to be that guy now at Gillette Stadium.
