We wrote last week how the Patriots have mismanaged their secondary over the last few years.
They have spent a lot of resources there, with very little to show for it.
It’s not like Bill Belichick has been on a roll picking players to help the pass rush either. Albert Haynesworth’s release highlights how desperate this team has been to get consistent pressure on the quarterback. For a while.
Remember Adalius Thomas? How about Derrick Burgess? While Haynesworth got most of the attention as a bust this year, he was making a bigger impact than Shaun Ellis this year. Ellis is making $4 million.
Our buddy Tom Curran of CSNNE.com goes through the list of recent Belichick personnel blunders. Most of them are on defense. They haven’t been able to find a pass rusher in the draft.
There have been successes too: Free agent pickups Brian Waters and Andre Carter have brought a lot to the team this year. New England’s 2010 draft was a huge success.
In the end, the Patriots have two big weaknesses: Their pass rush and their secondary. The Patriots were always great at fixing problems in the past, but these issues have plagued them for years now.
Belichick has to go back to the drawing board, because signing Haynesworth didn’t solve anything.