2019 Pats: In-Season Roster & Injury Discussion

jercra

No longer respects DeChambeau
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I love Develin, and maybe it’s just me, but I can’t imagine it’s incredibly difficult to find a useful Fullback or to convert someone. Nobody uses them, which is why I think Develin’s stood out as much as he has.

I still have significantly more concern about the OL.
4 posts above yours is a link to an article where BB praises the progress made by Jakob Johnson. Seems to me Develin's replacement is already on the active roster.
 

TheoShmeo

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It’s too bad they didn’t use Jakob Johnson down the stretch yesterday. It would have been nice for the kid to have gotten some live reps during extended garbage time. Given Bill’s high praise and how he in fact looked in the pre-season, I assume he’ll eventually get a shot at fulfilling the Develin role and it seems like a lost opportunity to not have done that yesterday.

I assume Bill had a good reason, however.
 

BigSoxFan

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I feel completely the opposite, but I wonder if it even matters - I have a bad feeling Develin won't be coming back this year or maybe ever.
His body has been through a ton of punishment. Wouldn’t surprise me if he’s done. It might actually be best for him.

I love his blocking but I think they can get Johnson there. I don’t want to be one Gordon relapse away from Jules/Dorsett/Meyers WR group.
 

E5 Yaz

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Kyed: Patriots FB James Develin's neck injury isn't thought to be season-ending, per sources. The Patriots will have to decide between Develin, Isaiah Wynn and N'Keal Harry. Only two can come off of injured reserve.
 

jsinger121

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Another reason why the NFL owners need to amend the IR again. It shouldn’t be limited to 2 players that could return.
 

Saints Rest

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Another reason why the NFL owners need to amend the IR again. It shouldn’t be limited to 2 players that could return.
Agreed.
If they set it up as something like 6-week, 8-week, and 10-week IRs, it would curtail any shenanigans. Maybe make it so you could have one guy eligible to return after 6, 2 after 8 and 3 after 10. And the weeks start counting once you place him on.
 

InstaFace

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Hyperbole but you know what I meant. Pats couldn’t run the ball and they didn’t even try with Johnson.
Getting any snaps at all on the field for this team as an undrafted, international FA rookie - after first making the 53, for which he doesn't have an advantage (just in staying on the roster in camp/preseason) - is an incredible achievement and suggests he's come along very quickly.

Develin's rookie year, he was active only for game 14, seeing 12 ST snaps only. His next action was as an every-game starter his second year, but even then exceeded 26% of offensive snaps just twice in his first 11 games before getting a little more involved for the last 5.

Jakob being active for snaps in game 2 of his rookie season, even a few offensive snaps, is very promising. It might be half the season before he's a contributor on the run game, but his arc to his career so far (to say nothing of getting gushing praise from Belichick) is impressive.
 

sonofgodcf

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Jul 17, 2005
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The toilet.
Damn. I've always thought that Develin was extremely underrated and think we would have made the Super Bowl in the 15-16 season if he were healthy. That said, Johnson seemed to stand-out in preseason, so maybe the drop-off won't be that severe.
 

Van Everyman

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I’m almost wondering if Johnson being an option is why they’re IRing Develin instead of just riding the next several weeks out.
 

DJnVa

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It’s too bad they didn’t use Jakob Johnson down the stretch yesterday. It would have been nice for the kid to have gotten some live reps during extended garbage time. Given Bill’s high praise and how he in fact looked in the pre-season, I assume he’ll eventually get a shot at fulfilling the Develin role and it seems like a lost opportunity to not have done that yesterday.

I assume Bill had a good reason, however.
Because they likely thought he wasn't actually game ready, but wanted him in case of emergency. I can't figure out what that emergency might be, but perhaps they thought he wasn't quite ready and putting him in there too soon and he gets hurt because he's not ready and they're really up shit's creek. Perhaps they wanted him to get a feel for game day as part of active roster.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

Found no thrill on Blueberry Hill
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I think the question of who comes back could depend on how the timing works out and how everyone is doing.

Harry is eligible to come back for week 9 (game 9) and would have the bye to practice with the team. Wynn can't come back until week 11 (game 10) and Develin can't come back until week 12 (game 11). If Harry is ready in week 8 and Wynn or Develin is still in an unknown status they might go with the bird in the hand theory. If Harry isn't ready before the bye anyway you have an easier time waiting until after the bye. Of the three, Develin is likely to need the least practice.

And, of course, there are still 5 more weeks where players could get injured and still be put on IR with the hope of coming back.
 
Apr 24, 2019
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I understand the roster flexibility that comes with trying to manage the 53, but in a situation like Develin’s, I’m not sure why they can’t devote ONE of the 7 game day inactives to a guy who’s valuable to the run game and whose long or short-term injury status is difficult to immediately evaluate. They can’t just say, Ok, for the next handful of weeks (or until it becomes untenable), Develin’s going to be inactive? Even just for now? They can always do what they did today sometime down the line. Why?

That said, if JJ can be a reasonable facsimile, let’s coach him up and get down to it.
 

DeadlySplitter

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Every year has injuries. O line could be a killer though.

But if the D remains healthy I remain optimistic.
Just feels like every significant injury is a significant player.

If Wynn was 100% healthy, I wouldn't be saying this. that was the huge one.
 

Super Nomario

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I love Develin, and maybe it’s just me, but I can’t imagine it’s incredibly difficult to find a useful Fullback or to convert someone. Nobody uses them, which is why I think Develin’s stood out as much as he has.

I still have significantly more concern about the OL.
OTOH the last time Develin got hurt, they didn't even attempt to replace him. It's a weird market for fullbacks - there really appear to be only 10-12 people in the world who can do the job, yet it is not really valued. That rarity, in contradiction of basic economic principles, has made fullback even less valued in the long run, as more and more teams run offenses that don't even have a nominal role for FBs.
 

k-factory

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BB values depth and roster flexibility as well as year to year economy. In order to build that the backups need reps.
Having a remarkable defense and a relatively cupcake early schedule affords them time to develop Johnson and see if he can seamlessly slot in after Develin’s inevitable exit this year or next.

The running game seems to be more impacted by the loss of Gronk and the makeshift line. Izzo is clocking in at 53% of the offensive snaps and Watson is average at best run blocking at his age. They really will need to solve that challenge to get Michel going.
 

DJnVa

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I would prefer to see Meyers continue to integrate into the offense than bring back Hogan.
Sure, but I was responding to the Crabtree post. I'd rather hold where we are as well, but I was speaking to the point of *if* they want a veteran WR, I'd prefer someone that knows the system.
 

Jed Zeppelin

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I think teams don’t want other teams using the IR as a de facto taxi squad and manipulating it to “control” too many guys.
What’s funny about this is how many teams in this league can barely field a usable full roster at full health, never mind having enough depth that stashing guys would be worthwhile.
 

Rough Carrigan

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What’s funny about this is how many teams in this league can barely field a usable full roster at full health, never mind having enough depth that stashing guys would be worthwhile.
But, that's just it, isn't it? The have nots don't want the haves to be able to stash extra players on their roster. They want some of them to be released and diminish the overall talent of the haves. It's a mild parity promoter.
 

InstaFace

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What’s funny about this is how many teams in this league can barely field a usable full roster at full health, never mind having enough depth that stashing guys would be worthwhile.
or that they already have a literal taxi squad in the form of the practice squad (Paul Brown invented the "taxi squad", which after a bunch of iterations became the modern practice squad. The early history of the Browns is fascinating to me). Practice squadders in theory could be poached if someone is willing to sign them straight to their 53 for the 3 required weeks, but in practice they almost never are. If 10 second-class-roster players aren't enough for you, I find it hard to believe Injured Reserve is going to be worth the bother.
 

lexrageorge

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The concept of "stashing" players on the injured reserve dates back to the pre-salary cap era. I believe it was the Cowboys who put some players on IR with "injuries" back in the early 1990's when the IR rules were initially relaxed. Soon after, being placed on IR once again became season ending for a player. But with the salary cap it's really not much of an issue. Still, having two players eligible to return from IR is much better than what it used to be.

My assumption is that this will all work itself out. Chances that all 3 players are healthy and able to consistently contribute later this season seem slim anyway.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

Found no thrill on Blueberry Hill
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I've heard Belichick give essentially the same answer three or four times including earlier this year for why he values his flexible guys so highly. He notes that he needs coverage and backup for 66 positions in the kicking game and he only has 46 roster players to do it with. When you take out the players who never play special teams (like Brady obviously) and the players who can't really be backups (like the punter the kicker and the snapper), you're really looking at 30 something roster spots.

Belichick notes that players like Chung, Burkhead and Develin are really important because they can cover multiple positions and provide backup in these areas without needing reps. Belichick explains that even if you never need them to play a single down in the actual games, having that flexibility means you don't have to take reps in practice that you could be devoting to other things. He notes that you only get X reps every year, and every rep you don't need to worry about getting someone else up to speed on the hands team is a rep you can devote to something else.

Bedard has been following the team way too long not to understand how the greatest coach in professional sports operates. The truth is that under Belichick this has been a team where the entire season can and often does come down potentially to a small number of plays. Belichick isn't just saying this stuff. If you listen to the points he's insistent about you can separate the true coaching philosphy nuggets from the noise. Develin is great at making a hole for Sony. But even if that's replaceable what might not be is the fact that he gives his coaching staff time and freedom to maybe run the Edelman double pass enough that they have confidence in it and can add it to the game plan to eek by Baltimore after being down two scores en route to a Super Bowl. Or maybe it gives Malcolm Butler one more rep on the Malcolm Butler play.

I'm not saying that they won't go with Wynn or Harry if it makes the most sense to do so. But there's a reason the Develin is top 10 in snaps. Belichick is playing chess and Bedard tweets like he thinks his job is to cover checkers.