A look at the snaps played by defensive players over the course of the 2008 season (defense only, not including special teams):
ILB Jerod Mayo -- 857 of 950 snaps (90 percent)
CB Ellis Hobbs -- 849 of 950 (89 percent)
OLB Mike Vrabel -- 825 of 950 (87 percent)
S Brandon Meriweather -- 811 of 950 (85 percent)
S James Sanders -- 758 of 950 (80 percent)
DE Richard Seymour -- 652 of 950 (69 percent)
CB Deltha O'Neal -- 636 of 950 (67 percent)
NT Vince Wilfork -- 597 of 950 (63 percent)
OLB Adalius Thomas -- 466 of 950 (49 percent)
DE Ty Warren -- 448 of 950 (47 percent)
DE Jarvis Green -- 439 of 950 (46 percent)
DE Mike Wright -- 413 of 950 (43 percent)
ILB Tedy Bruschi -- 399 of 950 (42 percent)
CB Jonathan Wilhite -- 344 of 950 (36 percent)
S Rodney Harrison -- 305 of 950 (32 percent)
ILB Gary Guyton -- 300 of 950 (32 percent)
CB/S Lewis Sanders -- 284 of 950 (30 percent)
OLB Pierre Woods -- 247 of 950 (26 percent)
ILB Junior Seau -- 178 of 950 (19 percent)
DE Le Kevin Smith -- 167 of 950 (18 percent)
OLB Rosevelt Colvin -- 161 of 950 (17 percent)
CB Mike Richardson -- 112 of 950 (12 percent)
CB Terrence Wheatley -- 74 of 950 (8 percent)
CB Jason Webster -- 36 of 950 (4 percent)
OLB Vince Redd -- 35 of 950 (4 percent)
S Antwain Spann -- 19 of 950 (2 percent)
S Matthew Slater -- 17 of 950 (2 percent)
S Randy Moss -- 1 of 950 (0.1 percent, Hail Mary play)
(snaps include some penalties that don't officially count as plays)
ANALYSIS: In terms of consistency, ILB Jerod Mayo, OLB Mike Vrabel and CB Ellis Hobbs proved they could be counted on to be in the lineup, from the start of the season until the end of it. ... That Mayo led the defense in terms of playtime is reflective of how quickly he adapted to the team's scheme, and that he was part of most every defensive package. ... S Brandon Meriweather did not miss a single snap from the time he stepped in for an injured Rodney Harrison (Oct. 20), as his numbers spiked. ... The late-season performances of Junior Seau and Rosevelt Colvin were impressive considering they had not been with a team and were thrown right into the fire over the final four games.
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I don't see Mike Wright's name in the defensive snapshot.
Thanks Corey. I had mixed up Jarvis Green and Mike Wright. It is now fixed.
--Mike
46% for jarvis green? wow was he invisible or what?
What would be real interesting to do would be to look at who is on the field on 3rd down, or in the red zone, and how the opposition got the first down or scored. Obviously being 26th or 31st in the league in these areas is NOT a goal of the team, and although we have some ironmen ( pointed to the numbers above ) obviously some of them are NOT getting the job done.
My perception is the issue is on PASS defense, and is a combination of not having a pass rush, and not being able to cover people ( ignoring the coaching/ play calling aspect of it.). So although Vrabel and Hobbs are iron men, we're not getting the performance out of them that we need. Probably even more so with the other outside LB and other CB. Should be interesting if Bill stays the course with these players and defensive coaches next year, or goes in a new direction. May be nice to have Pioli around for the player side of that. How about picking up Crennel as a coach?
Jason Webster was a waste!
I see Ellis Hobbs is in on nearly every play. That must make opponents like Plaxico Burress, Ted Ginn, Deon Branch, etc very happy. Shall we call him 'touchdown' Ellis for his defense and kickoff returns? Yes, he giveth and he taketh away.
The durability of Mayo and Vrabel are definitely good things. Having Hobbs on the field for 89% of your defensive snaps, on the other hand, is not a good thing. He is one of the worst starting corners in the league. I love what he brings to the return game, and would keep him around for that alone (and maybe for some of the alternate defensive packages), but clearly the Pats need a major upgrade at the cornerback position.
Great analysis Mike.
For all the talk of an old defense the future got some good work this year:
Mayo (R) - 90%
Merriweather (2nd) - 85%
Wilhite (R) - 36%
Guyton (R) - 32%
Wheatley (R) - 8% **hurt
Plaxico is very happy. He'll be writing Ellis from jail/unemployment line next year.
Jarvis Green had a monster game last sunday
I bet these Ellis Hobbs bashers don't know that Asante gave up more touchdowns last year than Hobbs did.
Len, the Hobbs bashers (including Mrs. Hobbs - Mike Allen) wouldn't know football if it were painted on their Doug Flutie jerseys. As Mike often points out - Hobbs gives everything he's got and isn't a whiner. He's got a lot of talent too.
I bet these Ellis Hobbs bashers don't know that Asante gave up more touchdowns last year than Hobbs did.
Posted by Len January 2, 09 01:46 PM
You have the data to back that statement up?
Mike--
Minor correction 1/950 = 0.1% (= 0.001, not 0.001%).
I don't have the data to back it up, but supposedly these are the TDs allowed by each player in 2007:
Hobbs: Roscoe Parrish Dan Wilcox Greg Camarillo
Samuel: Laverneus Coles T.J. Houshmandzadeh Terrell Owens Patrick Crayton Plaxico Burress and was partially faulted for a blown coverage assignment against Kevin Boss (team failure)
Of course the quality of the opposing player is also a factor,..
This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.
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