Rodney Harrison doesn't seem to be high on the Patriots defense, at least through the first four games of the season.
The NBC analyst joined Merloni & Fauria Thursday for his weekly appearance and called the Patriots linebackers "slow."
“You’re spot on. It doesn’t seem like they’re slow, and I love those guys and have so much respect for those guys, but yeah, they are slow," he said. "When you start watching LaVonte David, you start watching Devin White move and blitz and move from sideline to sideline, it’s night and day difference.
"And that was the thing that really stood out to me. I’m like, 'Look how fast and athletic Tampa Bay linebackers look.’ And the Patriots linebackers, the defense just looks slow. It’s always kind of looked like that, and it starts with those backers, man. Those guys have experience and things like that, but that’s something the Patriots definitely need to upgrade a little bit moving forward. That’s speed.”
New England did bring back Jamie Collins for his third stint with the team this week, but it was a move that didn't really seem to do anything for Harrison.
“I don’t think it’s anything that — it didn't move me any when they said they were signing Jamie Collins," he said. "Maybe [Bill] Belichick can get that fire back in him and he’s probably the only coach that knows how to really utilize him. I don’t know, man. This might be it for Jamie. He needs to show that he can still play, that he still wants to play."
The Patriots will take on the Texans in Houston this week.
