Heading into the 2021 NFL Draft, there were plenty of mock drafts that projected the Patriots to take Alabama defensive lineman Christian Barmore with the No. 15 pick of the first round.
Obviously, New England actually used that pick on his Alabama teammate quarterback Mac Jones and is clearly quite happy with that decision.
But, Bill Belichick also landed a great player and great value when the Patriots traded up in the second round to land Barmore with the 38th overall selection.
And like Jones on offense, Barmore has become a consistent, reliable and important playmaker on the New England defense midway through his rookie season. His first round-worthy capabilities have been on full display most of the year.
In Sunday’s blowout win over the Browns, Barmore led all New England defensive linemen and tied for the most snaps among all front-seven defenders by logging 45 plays (76 percent).
It marked the fourth straight game that Barmore led the Patriots defense line in playing time – he’s seen his play time increase in each of the last five games -- the talented rookie finishing with four tackles against the Browns respected offensive line, though his impressive impact doesn’t always show up on the traditional stat sheet.
“Christian’s a strong player. He’s also got good length, so a combination of those two things can create some power and leverage against the offensive linemen,” Belichick said of Barmore’s work against the Browns. “Cleveland’s got a pretty big group. Their guards are pretty long. Two of them are 6-5, some of the longer guys in the league, but Barmore is a powerful player, and he’s really been kind of doing that all year for us.”
Beyond Barmore’s playing time and contributions to the Patriots defense continuing to increase, here are some other notes from New England’s snap counts in the dominant win over the Browns:
--New England played 67 offensive snaps against Cleveland, with David Andrews and Ted Karras the only two players on the field for every play. Andrews is the only New England offensive player to play every snap this season.
--Right tackle Trent Brown returned to game action for the first time since the season opener, starting on the right side and playing 46 snaps (69 percent). That pushed Mike Onwenu to the bench and a rotational role, seeing 26 snaps (39 percent) combined at tackle and tight end.
--With Jonnu Smith inactive due to a shoulder injury, Hunter Henry played 55 snaps, a season-high 82-percent. Henry scored a pair of 3-yard touchdown catches and leads the team with seven on the season, four more than Kendrick Bourne.
--Both Devin Asiasi and practice squad call-up Matt LaCosse made their season debuts at tight end. Asiasi had been a healthy scratch all year, but logged 12 snaps (18 percent) against Cleveland, while LaCosse saw 9 snaps (13 percent). Neither was targeted with a pass and each saw a single snap on special teams.
--Jakobi Meyers continues to be the Patriots No. 1 wide receiver in terms of playtime with 48 snaps (72 percent), though that’s just one more than Nelson Agholor’s 47 snaps (70 percent). Meyers, Bourne and Henry all tied for team highs with four catches on four targets, with the receiver logging the first touchdown catch of his three-year NFL career.
--N’Keal Harry had a strong day as a blocker, which has been where his greatest contributions to the team have come this season. The former first-round pick played 35 snaps (52 percent) against Cleveland, making a nice 26-yard grab from Brian Hoyer in the fourth quarter on his only target of the day.
--Despite not practicing all week due to a concussion, rookie running back Rhamondre Stevenson started and played 37 snaps (55 percent), notching his first career 100-yard day with 20 rushes for 100 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Stevenson also caught four passes on five targets for 14 yards. He continues to be see a high percentage of carries/targets when on the field, with 25 chances on his 37 snaps (68 percent) this time around.
--With the game being broadcast in his home country of Germany, fullback Jakob Johnson had his second-highest playtime percentage of the year with 25 snaps (37 percent) against the Browns.
--New England’s defense was on the field for 59 snaps. No player was on the field for all them, with Devin McCourty leading the way with 53 snaps (90 percent). It’s just the third time in 10 games that McCourty didn’t play every defensive snap and only the second time not related to injury.
--Linebacker Ja’Whuan Bentley matched Barmore among front seven defenders with 45 snaps (76 percent). He led New England with seven tackles, one of those for a loss, while adding a QB hit.
--With the game well in hand early on, Matt Judon was able to rest a bit seeing a season-low 39 snaps (66 percent). Judon had played in 90 percent of the Patriots defensive snaps in the previous three weeks. He did notch a half-sack on the day, allowing him to match a previous career-best with 9.5 on the season with seven games left to play.
--Defensive lineman Deatrich Wise was very active in his 36 snaps (61 percent), his highest percentage of playtime since Week 6. Wise finished with four tackles, 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble. He also got flagged for a tough roughing the passer penalty.
--Matthew Slater, Justin Bethel, Brandon King and Cody Davis were utilized in their core special teams roles, leading the way with 16 snaps in the kicking game. Recent signing Calvin Munson was right behind them, sliding into a key role in the kicking game with 15 snaps. Belichick highlighted during his postgame press conference that Brandon Bolden continues to give strong play on special teams – 10 reps against the Browns – while taking over a larger role on offense as the third-down back that had him log 18 snaps (27 percent) against Cleveland.
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