Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Locked On Patriots November 16, 2017 - Talking Patriots with Adam Kurkjian

Episode Date: November 16, 2017

Adam Kurjikan from the Boston Herald stops by on the latest Locked On Patriots. He breaks down what he has seen from the Patriots so far, his expectation for Sunday against the Raiders and dives into the draft quarterback class.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked On Patriots, your daily podcast on the New England Patriots, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Welcome everybody to Locked On Patriots for Thursday, November 16th. Mark Schofield here in the big chair as I am five days a week. Going to start getting ready for Oakland against New England coming up on Sunday. And to do that, I've got a great guest with us today. He is Adam Kirchhen, sports reporter for the Boston Herald. Adam, how are you doing, my friend?

I'm great, man. How are you? Good. It's been too long since we've got a chance to talk, but I was excited to get you on the show, man. I'm looking forward to chatting with you about the Pats. Yeah, it'll be fun. And where I kind of want to start is this, Adam. And for those of you that aren't following Adam on Twitter, please do that. He is at Adam Kirchhan, K-U-R-K-J-I-A-N, on Twitter.

And we can start here. And the Patriots, now they're 7-2, they're coming off the bye week, and they had a big Sunday night win in Denver. Where are your thoughts, Adam, where this team stands right now? I think this is about as good as you can hope for, given where they started. You know, at the beginning of the year, they were so rough on defense and just sort of haphazard. You know, they you know at the beginning of the year they're so rough on defense and

Just sort of haphazard and it seemed like they've got sort of everything figured out for now Their their offense is playing about Sort of the way you expected them to after they lost Edelman like the sort of their bestcase scenario in terms of using the running backs and tight ends, and obviously getting Martellus Bennett back is a big plus for them. So, you know, the defense still hasn't really developed a pass rush too much, but everything else, they're holding teams to field goals, they're keeping teams to low point totals,

and their special teams is playing well too so uh i don't know how you can uh really find too much fault with this team right now adam you know you sort of mentioned that defense i want to talk about that in a second but look at it sunday night's game against denver do you think this was perhaps the first complete game we've seen from this version of the New England Patriots offense, defense, special teams, just an all-around good game. Yeah, probably the most complete. I thought the win over Atlanta was pretty complete too, but this was a little bit more dominant. The special teams, they played well,

and also I felt like Denver know denver played poorly uh on special teams there's a lot of uh instances where you're looking at denver this game and just sort of shaking your head you know how far they've fallen for such a sort of proud franchise but um you know i i think all around you know um the the things that they did well were were really good. Like they ran the ball really well too, you know. I think that's getting a little bit overlooked. They sort of pushed Denver around, I thought,

up front when they wanted to run the ball, which is a really good sign for them going forward, especially when you factor in how much they like to do play action sometimes and how effective that can be. And just the way that they're able to use the running backs when you factor in how much they like to do play action sometimes and how effective that can be. And just the way that they're able to use the running backs as receivers, spreading the ball around to every pass catcher they have in the arsenal, it just makes them harder to defend. So offensively, you have to like what they did there.

And, you know, defensively, you know, we're going to get to the pass rush, obviously. But, you know, their situational defense, if you want to call it that, is doing very well in terms of, you know, keeping teams out of the end zone once teams get into the red area it seems to be again that bend but don't break from from last year and letting teams you know you know move the ball a little bit between the 20s and then after that um it really stiffens up and uh so i think you know that's sort of what we're seeing out of out of both sides of the ball right now adam let's get to that defense and this is a unit that had some poor performances early. Obviously, Kansas City on opening night gave up big plays to Houston, to Carolina. But are you seeing this defense sort of round into form here as we get into November? I really do. I mean, look, I think it was the last four or five games

they've only allowed something like 13 points per game. And I know not every one of those teams they've played is a great offense or anything like that. I mean, the best offenses they faced were at the beginning of the season, but I do also think that they're playing better. You know, even the other day uh against denver with gilmore back you didn't see those you know defensive breakdowns in terms of communication or anything like that uh when they got beat it was you know getting physically beat or something

like that you know it was uh it wasn't it wasn't mental breakdowns, and that was huge once Gilmore got back to make sure that that wasn't a problem anymore. And I feel like this defense is able to do a little bit more of what it wants to do. Obviously not having Hightower for the rest of the year, that is something that could rear its ugly head later. But right now, I feel like the defense is playing about as well as it can given the injuries that it's had. Adam, we saw Malcolm Butler have a bit of a tough night Sunday against Emmanuel Sanders. Gives up, I think, six receptions for 137. Do you think that's a cause for concern going forward?

Or just an example of a good player having a good night against a defender in Malcolm Butler that we've come to know and trust over the years yeah I wouldn't be too I'm not concerned about Butler if if you know I'm looking at this defense and the holes you know I I feel like honestly Emmanuel Sanders one of the best receivers in the league one of the toughest covers a couple of those times, Butler had good coverage. He just didn't make a good play on the ball. And that happens. I wouldn't be surprised to see him come out this week and have a really good game. But that's sort of the nature of cornerback play.

You don't see every cornerback shut down their receiver every week. There's going to be games like that. I still feel like even with Gilmore, I think he's the best cornerback on the team. Out of all the worries about the defense or the team, I think Malcolm Butler, if you're worried about him, then you're in a pretty good spot because I still think he's a very good football player. Adam, you mentioned the loss of Hightower possibly playing a big role for this defense in terms of trying to replace what he means to this unit.

What have you seen so far from New England after Hightower's injury and how they've tried to replace what he does both sort of on the field during the play and what he means to the defense sort of in the pre-snap phase well you know it's interesting because i feel like a guy like kyle van nooy is somebody they're trying to um use in a lot of the roles that high tower had they move kyle around a lot on the inside uh on the edge they drop him into coverage they blitz him uh he's he's used it uh to defend the run a lot he's they just move him all over the place so i think calvin noise is a big uh key to how they can sort of you know replace hightower i you know i don't i wouldn't say he's

even replaceable but you know somebody to try to fill that hole I also put You know have sort of noticed how they've they've moved Trey flowers around a lot more. I Mean he's obviously on the edge, but they drop him in the coverage more than than usual He's playing with his hand not in the dirt anymore and in certain situations, so You know I think those two guys are very important. I believe, you know, David Harris and Landon Roberts are still going to be mostly on the inside, but when you're talking about moving guys around

and using their versatility, mostly Kyle Van Nooyen, also a little bit Trey Flowers, and that's going to be a bit of a transition. That's going to be something that's a process where you're not going to see those guys automatically flourish right away. But I think they've made a lot of strides, especially in the last month with Van Noy, and Flowers is really developing as somebody who can play in space. Adam, you mentioned Flowers. you talked about the pass rush that's sort of been one of the knocks on the patriots over the past couple of years really is the lack of a pass rush do you think they can

generate enough pressure down the stretch with guys like wise guys like flowers to sort of make a difference in games or do you think we're going to just see them playing coverage and getting what they can from the guys up front from time to time? I think the latter, but, you know, I think it's interesting because around this time last year was when the pass rush started to take off. Because, I mean, you remember last year the pass rush was nonexistent until about this point, and then it sort of became what it was, which was a lot better. And when you say generate, I think it's a good word to use because they don't really throw a ton of blitzers at teams.

They don't really use a lot of exotic blitzes. They usually sort of just sort of go basic at teams when it comes to pass rushing. A lot of times they'll rush with three guys. So I don't think they necessarily are trying to, you know, go really hard after the pass. I think they'll go, you know, into coverage a lot. And I think you might see that going forward, you know, going back to a guy like Van Noy, he's a guy that will line up and blitz,

you know, when they do. And, you know, if he's able to get some pressure, then that'll be somewhere where it might come from. I think Wise and Flowers are, are your, your other two real main pass rushers.

And I can see either one of them having a big second half of the season. That's what Flowers did last year. But honestly, I think the main personality of this defense in terms of the bend but don't break and forcing teams to three and not six is kind of what you're probably going to see. You know, if the pass rush comes along, you obviously want to see that because you don't want to just rely on your coverage all the time and let, you know, quarterbacks have five seconds to throw.

But, yeah, I think it can develop, and it will probably come from one of those three guys if it really takes off from either Van Noy, Flowers, or Wise. Next, we're going to look at the Patriots' offense. Coming up on Locked on Patriots. Talking with Adam Kirchhen, sports reporter for the Boston Herald about the new England Patriots, covered their defense a little bit. We'll shift gears now to their offense and

I don't think there's any other place to start but with Tom Brady. And Adam, what more is left to be said about Tom Brady, if anything? I just, you know, it's crazy how well he's doing at this age. I mean, I hate to keep harping on it, but like, you know,

he's, you know, you're not supposed to be this good when you're this age. I mean, I hate to keep harping on it, but, like, you know, he's – you know, you're not supposed to be this good when you're this old. It really is crazy. I don't – and the thing is, is when I look at him, I don't see somebody who's falling off. I don't see – I don't see, you know, decline. You know, it's strange. So, you know, when they traded away Jimmy Garoppolo,

you know, it was almost a move they, you know, pretty much had to make because, you know, it's not like, you know, I mean, Brady right now is, you know, the best quarterback in the league still. So, I mean, what are you going to do? Just keep around this backup, just hoping that sometimes this will come to some sort of resolution somehow. It's really the only thing they could have done, I feel like. So, you know, he's just so good at such an advanced stage

that I really don't know what to say about it. He's just so good at such an advanced stage that it's – I really don't know what to say about it. He's just so good. You really don't ever have to worry about his performance. And especially in clutch and late situations, like he's sort of a baseball term. He's – I mean, when the game's on the line, you just sort of expect him to make plays.

So, and I feel like, you know, his teammates know that too, and that's a big thing. So you're not seeing, for example, a lack of or decline in velocity or anything like that with Tom Brady, are you? Well, I mean, I don't have like a speed gun on me or anything like that. Yeah. But from my own eyes, I just feel like he's just as good as he's been. You know, if there is a decline, it's probably too minute for me to see it. But he's just hitting. He's using his entire arsenal of receivers.

He's good at the end of games in fourth quarters. To me, he's as good as he's ever been. Adam, looking at the running back spot, I see a couple of different ways that this could play out, a couple of ways it's played out for New England over the years. They they've often been sort of a matchup-based decision at the running back spot, whether it's trying to pound the run or maybe use running backs in the passing game. Do you think that we're going to see sort of running back by committee, matchup-based stuff down the stretch? Or do you see Deion Lewis perhaps locking down a bigger role at that spot?

Well, I do think that Deion Lewis is the best running back on this team and i've thought that pretty much um since 2015 um when he broke out like that i don't think you have a player like that um but i do think with a healthy rex burkhead if you can use the two of them like you did against denver you'll continue to do that. It's just a matter of not just matchups, but, you know, forcing defenses to prepare for more. If you force an opposing team to prepare for more than you would otherwise, then it's one of those deals where, you know, it's taking away time from something else. I just feel like these guys, Burkhead and White and Lewis, and even Gillislee if he

comes back off of a healthy scratch is reactivated, which I think at some point he will. I think just that versatility is very useful. They really like it. But if it were me to pick one guy, I would ride Lewis. But as you can see, in that game against Denver, Lewis, Burkhead, they all ran well. And I think a lot of that, too, is the offensive line is really rounding into form as well.

Yeah, and that's where I was going to go next, next adam this offensive line group was under pressure early in the season brady was getting hit his sack numbers were high people were pointed at he was on pace to get sacked well you know the the highest number in his career but it seems like like you said that group is gelling right now at perhaps the right time yeah and I think part of it is that their run blocking is so improved from the beginning of the year too. They're getting good push. It's not just the running backs making good runs. The holes are there.

They're pushing teams back. I was kind of shocked at how well they were able to move the line of scrimmage against Denver. But, yeah, their pass blocking as well is improved. I mean, I was really impressed with how well Ladron Waddell held his own against Denver, even though Von Miller was dropping into coverage sometimes. Even when he wasn't, Waddell was holding his own, and that's the most you can ask for out of a

backup right tackle um and Solder's playing extremely uh extremely well he's playing much much better than he was the beginning of the season um and the interior guys in terms of run blocking are so solid um I still feel like you know David Andrews David Andrews even though he's not the biggest center, he's got such great technique. He's able to get under guys' pads and move them backwards. I just think he's so valuable to this offensive line. I think the group is really rounding into form. I was a little bit questioning how good it was going to be

down the stretch after how they started, like you said. They drafted a couple tackles and it was almost as if they had foreseen some sort of drop-off somewhere. Honestly, I think they're in a really good spot there going forward. Up next, we're going to dive into a little draft quarterback talk as well as Adam's thoughts on this coming game against the Oakland Raiders. That's here next on Locked on Patriots. Adam, we're going to get to Sunday in a second,

but I do sort of want to talk to you for just a brief moment about the upcoming draft in the quarterback position. And you wrote a piece, I think it was last Sunday, looking at some of the top quarterbacks in this class. You're with me that New England goes quarterback in this draft, right? And have any guys sort of caught your eye here early? Well, yeah, it's funny because I don't know who's going to go where. It's still so early. And you know very well, as well as I do, how crazy the evaluation process is and how it can change over the course of just weeks to months to whatever.

So, you know, for instance, a guy like Baker Mayfield, who I really like, who's been, in my opinion, the best college football player this season um you know where does he fit in the pro game you know who likes him who doesn't like him um it'll be interesting because I feel like if he falls somewhere where the Patriots can get him he'll be hard to turn down I think he'll fit good in any system I think is I really like his makeup I think he's a very good competitor there's a lot of guys and guys that might fall a little bit further even you know like the the Riley Ferguson kid at Memphis seems like an efficient play I really like little Greer at West Virginia.

He's thrown a few picks, but he's, I think, second in the nation in touchdown passes. He takes chances down the field. He's got a very strong arm. But, you know, with all these guys, there's at least one thing where you say, I'm not so sure. Like, I mean, for instance, Greer, you know know throws off his back foot a little bit his mechanics aren't so great um even Mayfield is sort of like a sort of a freewheeling kind of guy he almost goes off script too much um so there's a there's a little bit of everything that you you can pick

apart with these guys but I think with this draft when i looked and then when i made up that list it was hard for me to even get it down to 10 because i feel like there's a lot of guys who can who can play in this league uh who are going to be either available or uh just coming out this draft i mean we're still not sure who's declaring yet or not but i just feel like based on who probably will uh the the patriots uh will have a very good shot at getting somebody good even if it's not in the first or second round yeah because i feel like if you're a team like new england and there are some other teams i'd put in this category save pittsburgh that needs a quarterback but doesn't need one to start right away and in a year where

you're going to have these guys that you know like you said guys that have red flags will probably fall down boards a bit it's probably the ideal year to go get a guy say on a day two and just address it going forward yeah i mean yeah i uh i mean i don't know how you feel exactly but i mean i i feel like this is a great draft class for quarterbacks i mean it seems like it uh just in terms of the depth. I mean, the way I was comparing it on another podcast was how we were talking about the running back class of this year. You know, how years ago people were saying, OK, well, this running back class for 2017 was going to be great. And it has turned out great. And so people were talking about this quarterback class like that

for at least the last year, and I kind of feel that still is true and even more so because certain other guys have emerged, like the Ryan Finley kid from NC State. Obviously he hasn't been perfect, but he sort of emerged as sort of this efficient, you know, you know, efficient guy who can, you know, throw a, you know, for a high completion percentage and a good touchdown intercession ratio. And then there's all types of, you know, gunslinger types and stuff like that. There's a little bit of something for everybody in this class. So I think it's going to be very interesting

and yeah, I think you can take a developmental guy and a big part of it is just going to be where the Patriots feel they want to draft the guy and who other teams like and who's going to be available.

I'm with you. I'm excited about this quarterback class. It got a lot of hype, you know, in the preseason about the guys at the top. But I think you look deeper. There's a lot of value, a lot of guys that I think can be spot starters, even starters in this league, sort of in that day three range. So I'm excited about that. I think it's a good year to take a quarterback. Adam, let's sort of close on looking at Sunday and, you know, we'll talk about your expectations

for the game, but interesting schedule for the Patriots this week. They stay out in Colorado. I've been thinking a lot about the 2014 team. They stayed out in California after losing to the Packers before playing in San Diego. After that week. Lots of players and coaches sort of pointed to that experience as a time that the team truly sort of came together. Have you thought about that sort of similarity? Do you see a similarity there? Do you think that's maybe playing a role in how the Patriots approached this week and this schedule?

Yeah, I think it's a big deal. I think Danny Amendola this week uh or or last week excuse me um referred to it kind of like a training camp feel when he was talking about that experience and i think that's big it's a it's a team bonding thing um they're together more and uh i you know i think you know also with the altitude you know know, staying in a place with a high altitude will sort of benefit them in this game. But, yeah, I think as far as a team bonding experience and all that, I think it's very valuable. You know, looking at the schedule when it came out, a lot of people sort of pointed to this game as perhaps you know match between two really good teams seems it would come in with winning records it's played that way for the Patriots but Raiders have somewhat underperformed this year stripping that away though what are your

expectations for Sunday what are you expecting to see in this game um I expect to see the thing is I still think even though the Raiders haven't played well, the way I look at it in a lot of teams in the NFL every year, I feel like this sort of happens where a team with a lot of talent will sort of stumble out of the gate, and then they'll kind of figure things out, and the talent will eventually win out. And that's how I feel about this Raiders team is they haven't played well, but their talent is so good that they're going to figure it out. And by the end of the year, they'll be either in the playoffs or close to it.

They'll be in a much better standing than they are now. So I feel like this will be one of the toughest games of the Patriots' second half, if not the toughest. I feel like the Raiders still have such outstanding talent on offense. I do feel like, other than Khalil Mack, they're not as dangerous on defense. I feel like the Patriots are going to score a lot of points. I think you could see a shootout because I just feel like, you know, with Carr and Cooper and Lynch and Crabtree, I mean,

there's so many weapons on this Raiders offense that, you know, if it starts clicking, then you could see the Raiders get, you know, 27, 30 points, something like that. But I expect the Patriots to come away with a victory. I think it's just going to be hard for the Raiders to consistently defend what the Patriots bring to the table. And the Patriots' defense is just going to do enough in terms of holding them back.

I feel like the Raiders are going to be able to move the ball, but if they limit the big plays and defend well in the red area again, they'll keep them to enough field goals as opposed to touchdowns, and that should be enough. If there's one thing that might give you pause or make you worried about this game, is it that potential of a shootout where Oakland's offense clicks just enough in time for this game where they put up a ton of points and maybe they turn it into a 43-40 type game that they could win in the end? Yeah, I feel like that's the scenario where you can see it. I don't see a scenario where the Raiders hold the Patriots to 20 points.

But if the Raiders are able to win, it's because their offense really just goes off. I feel like it has the – like I said, I mean, you look at their performance this year. They just haven't played well, but it's not like they don't have the guys. It's not like they don't have the talent or the speed or the size or any of that. They have all that stuff. So all it takes is for them to play play a great game and that happens all the time you know when a when a when a team uh you know doesn't isn't putting it together and then they just sort of find it so i think that's certainly possible but uh you know if i'm just

sort of you know putting money on it or gun to my head i'd say the patriots would have the uh have had the advantage they're just more consistent. Adam, tremendous stuff today, my friend. I'm going to turn the mic over to you, plug some stuff, let the people know where they can find you and your work. Well, yep. Again, you can find me on Twitter at Adam Kirkjian. That's K-U-R-K-J-I-A-N. And this week, I'm going to be actually, like we talked about, doing a story on Kyle Vannoy and his role on the defense and sort of why I think he's so important going down the stretch. Fantastic stuff. Everybody, please do follow Adam.

Follow him on Twitter. Check out his upcoming story on Kyle Vannoy. Just a great follow, brilliant football mind covering the Patriots for you. That will do it for today's edition of Locked On Patriots. I'll be back tomorrow for your game day edition. Thanks to Adam for coming on with me. Until then, keep it locked right here to me, Mark Schofield

and Locked On Patriots.