In 2019, the New England Patriots’ defense was a force.
Led by Defensive Player of the Year Stephon Gilmore, New England’s stop troops held opponents to 14 points per game, 4,414 total yards, and 4.7 yards-per-play, all of which were tops in the NFL through the regular season.
The offseason that has followed, however, has spelled for some major departures. The team’s two starting outside linebackers in Kyle Van Noy and Jamie Collins signed elsewhere. Additionally, starting nose tackle Danny Shelton and safety Duron Harmon also left the team. Three of those four players were on the field for at least 65 percent of New England’s defensive snap counts.
Bill Belichick has worked diligently to make sure that “The Boogeymen” remain as a cohesive unit in 2020. Here is how the defense looks now:
Defensive Line
Beau Allen, Tashawn Bower, Adam Butler, Byron Cowart, Lawrence Guy, Derek Rivers, John Simon, Nick Thurman, Chase Winovich, Deatrich Wise Jr.
One part of the Patriots dominating defensive unit last season was their defensive line. Though it did not possess the same explosiveness or name-brand talent of the linebackers and secondary, this group was effective in 2019.
Lawrence Guy has quietly emerged as one of the league’s best defensive linemen and run stoppers. The 6-foot-4, 315-pound beast stuffed run lanes and disrupted passing downs with the league’s best last year, earning a 71.7 rating from Pro Football Focus. He enters a contract year and will look to be a leader in a largely new unit.
New England lost Danny Shelton in free agency, so they replaced him with Beau Allen, a 327-pound nose tackle who spent last season with Tampa Bay. The 28-year-old appeared in 13 games with the Bucs as a reserve, but the 2014 seventh-round draft pick has a grind-it-out mentality that fits the build of Patriots of past.
The 26-year-old Butler posted a career-high six sacks through 16 games last season and will compete with Allen for a starting job in the trenches.
Winovich played more linebacker than defensive line last season, but the 2019 third-round draft choice will serve as one of the team’s leading edge rushers in 2020. He emerged as a fan favorite last season and is now listed as the team’s starting defensive end on their official depth chart. He will be joined by Simon and Wise, who have made names for themselves in New England.
This is a group that possesses a lot of under-the-radar talent. They were overshadowed last season with their teammates in the secondary and linebacking core setting team records, but this unit should get the job done.
Grade: B+
Linebackers
Ja’Whaun Bentley, Shilique Calhoun, Brandon Copeland, Terez Hall, Dont’a Hightower, Anfernee Jennings, Brandon King, Cassh Maluia, Josh Uche
This is the group that has the most to prove in 2020. Kyle Van Noy, Jamie Collins, and Elandon Roberts all signed elsewhere in free agency. Filling their shoes will be a tall task, but the front office has worked hard all offseason to do so.
In the draft, Bill Belichick and Nick Caserio addressed the position in the second, third, and sixth rounds, selecting Josh Uche, Anfernee Jennings, and Cassh Maluia.
Uche is a 6-foot-1, 245-pound edge rusher who possesses fluid versatility on the defensive side of the ball. The 21-year-old, who has explosive speed and pop on the edge, is a strong tackler in the run game who flashed effectiveness in pass coverage against tight ends. While raw, he projects to be a starter within his first two seasons in the league and fits the Patriots’ system well.
Jennings will look to join Hightower as another linebacker to successfully transfer from Nick Saban to Bill Belichick’s system. He was a locker room leader for the Tide last season, being recognized as a permanent team captain, and possesses a high football IQ. His ability to stop the run projects to be higher than that of his pass coverage skills, but he does have a lot of athletic ability and versatility, which can help him develop his skill as a pass rusher.
Hightower will once again serve as one of the team’s biggest leaders on defense and look to build on a strong year in 2019 in which he recorded 71 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and 13 quarterback hits, all of which were his best in at least the last five seasons.
Copeland was signed to a team-friendly deal in free agency after starting last season with the New York Jets. He projects to be a role player off the bench who could get snaps in linebacker-heavy sets. He will likely compete with Bentley to start in the middle next to Hightower, while King and Maluia will be special teams contributors.
This group will definitely see a drop off from 2019 but should improve in the years to come.
Grade: B-
Cornerbacks
Justin Bethel, Stephon Gilmore, J.C. Jackson, Jonathan Jones, Jason McCourty, Lenzy Pipkins, D’Angelo Ross, JoeJuan Williams
The Patriots’ secondary terrorized opposing passing attacks in 2019 as they were responsible for 20 of the team’s 25 interceptions and led the team to a plus-21 turnover ratio.
The good news gets even better: every cornerback who contributed is back for 2020. That includes Stephon Gilmore, whose efforts earned him Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2019. Many consider him to be the franchise’s best player, and he will look to build on his performance from last season.
After contemplating retirement, Jason McCourty was brought back to New England when the team picked up his option. He battled injury last season but was among the league’s best when healthy. J.C. Jackson and Jonathan Jones are also starting-caliber cornerbacks who locked down opposing receivers last year.
The biggest mystery here: Williams. The club used a second-round draft choice on him in 2019 but he was redshirted during his rookie season. With McCourty starting to feel the effects of his older age, fans should expect to see Williams on the field more in 2020.
Bethel is a three-time Pro Bowl special-teamer who thrived in his time with New England last season, and he’ll look to continue that in 2020.
There’s no other way to put it: this unit suffocated their opponents in 2019, and the same should be expected in 2020. Top to bottom, this might be the most talented group of cornerbacks in all of football.
Grade: A+
Safeties
Terrence Brooks, Patrick Chung, Cody Davis, Kyle Dugger, Malik Gant, Devin McCourty, Adrian Phillips, Adarius Pickett
Like their colleagues lining up at cornerback, the Patriots group of safeties was among the NFL’s best in 2020.
They were lead by 10-year veteran Devin McCourty, who has spent his entire career and started every game he has appeared in with New England. He stifled opposing quarterbacks, recording five interceptions and seven pass deflections while holding them to a 61.0 passer-rating. He also serves as a leader of the entire team, not just the defense.
Joining McCourty will be Patrick Chung, who is entering his 11th year with the Patriots. He looks to achieve somewhat of a bounce-back year in 2020. He was one of a select group who did not thrive in the Patriot defense, though he was still effective enough.
Bill Belichick and Nick Caserio replaced Harmon with Kyle Dugger, whom they selected with their first selection in the draft. The former Division II standout pounced on opponents throughout his collegiate career. Dugger possesses a rare combination of size, speed, and explosiveness. His pass coverage skills have been dubbed superb, with scouts gushing about his ability to body up downfield to contest throws. Dugger is extremely versatile and can be used in blitz and pass coverage as well as run-stop packages. He has even been used as a returner on special teams.
The team also added Adrian Phillips, a former All-Pro special teamer in 2018 with the Los Angeles Chargers. Phillips is a young and versatile safety who should help improve the defense. New England also added Cody Davis, a special teamer from Jacksonville. He will likely fill the void left behind by Nate Ebner.
All in all, this group was among the league’s best in 2019 and got younger and more versatile this offseason. They still have two leaders in McCourty and Chung and offer extreme depth and talent top to bottom.
Grade: A
Specialists
Jake Bailey, Joe Cardona, Justin Rohrwasser
Bailey emerged as one of the league’s premier punters in 2019, with 44 percent of his punts landing inside the 20. The 2019 fifth-round draft pick beat out Ryan Allen for the team’s starting job at the position and faces no competition in 2020.
The Patriots used their only fifth-round pick in last week’s draft on Rohrwasser, a 23-year-old placekicker from Marshall. He made nine of ten kicks of 40 yards or more and 79 of 82 extra point attempts through his collegiate career. He also flashed an ability to make some clutch kicks in less-than-ideal weather, something you need if you want to be a kicker in New England.
Aside from Bailey and Rohrwasser, the Patriots’ special teams unit is a deep one and one that Bill Belichick has spent a long time grooming. While they lost Joe Judge to the New York Giants, this is a group that shouldn’t skip a beat in 2020, with the right leg of Rohrwasser being its only mystery.
Grade: B+
