The focus of the Patriots' offseason has been their offensive and special teams units - and rightfully so. After a 2022 campaign with a former defensive coordinator calling your offense's plays and a special teams bunch that ranked dead last in DVOA, where else would you put your brain power?
What may be flying under the radar, however, is just how good New England’s defense can be.
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Don’t put ESPN NFL analyst Mina Kimes in the “sleeping on the Patriots” category. She’s incredibly bullish on New England’s defense:
“I’m just so obsessed with this defense” said Kimes on her ESPN podcast, The Mina Kimes Show.
The Patriots, who Kimes says have the third-best defense in the NFL, used April’s NFL Draft to add even more young talent to their already daunting core, selecting CB Christian Gonzalez, EDGE Keion White, and LB/S Marte Mapu with their first three picks.
Former NFL defensive end Chris Canty, who joined Kimes on the show, is equally as bullish about their class:
“I absolutely loved the Patriots draft,” said Canty. “Christian Gonzalez, he was the second-best corner behind Devon Witherspoon but I think he’s going to be a phenomenal player… I love Keion White who’s that classic stack defensive end… reminds you a little bit of Richard Seymour in terms of the athleticism… and then Marte Mapu from Sacramento State. This is a guy that’s more of a tweener, he’s gotten reps at safety and at linebacker in OTAs and minicamp but just a guy that’s just going to fly all over the place… he fits exactly what Bill Belichick wants to do in the back end of that defense, back seven, you’re not going to know what these guys roles are… a lot of guys can do a lot of different things.”
“I compare them to the 49ers on offense in a way,” Kimes continued, building off of Canty’s point. “There’s like four or five safeties, I guess, or linebackers but who the hell knows? They might be blitzing, they might be playing in the box, they might be playing in the post. They have so many of these dudes.”
“Defenses always talk about how they want to be multiple, but the Patriots are like living it and building it in a way that I think is so modern and allows them to dictate to offenses, rather than being reactive.”
Last season, the Patriots gave up just 20.4 points-per-game (good for 10th in the NFL), were second in the league with 30 takeaways, and led the NFL in defensive touchdowns with seven.
They also had two linebackers with 11+ sacks in Matthew Judon and Josh Uche, and safety Kyle Dugger led the NFL with three defensive touchdowns.
Built on these three along with All-Pro flex player Marcus Jones, combo DB Jonathan Jones, and DT Christian Barmore among others, New England's defense will have both added pressure and high expectations in 2023. They should be able to exceed them.
Make sure to follow Mike on Twitter @mikekadlick, and follow @WEEI for the latest up-to-date Patriots and Boston sports news!
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