Let’s face it – the Patriots secondary never scared anyone. The last time they had won a Super Bowl was back in 2005. They played with a patchwork of personnel as both Tyrone Poole and Ty Law suffered from season ending injuries. In order to compensate for the battered secondary, the Patriots promoted rookie Randall Gay, Asante Samuel (who only played in dime packages) and Troy Brown who played Wide Receiver. On paper, the Patriots secondary was as threatening as an old lady at bingo. Yet there was a singular presence in that backfield that hailed instincts, intelligence and pain to opposing offenses. That presence would be Rodney Harrison.
Rodney Harrison was voted the dirtiest player in 2004, 2006 and 2008. Number 37 even received a vote for being the dirtiest player, a year after his retirement. However, Rodney Harrison was not a thug in pads, he was trained assassin. But it was not the record, stats or honorary awards that made Rodney, it was his intangibles. The last time the Patriots won a Super Bowl, Rodney Harrison was leading a secondary of misfits with Samuel, Gay and Brown. Yet the fiery presence made them better by simply playing better. Enough so that that they would procure the Patriots last Super Bowl.
Since then a plethora of safeties had gone through the Patriots system, hoping for the next coming of a great safety.
Eugene Wilson, Brandon McGowan, James Sanders, Brandon Meriweather, Josh Barrett, Sergio Brown, James Ihedigbo, Ross Ventrone & Patrick Chung. Out of all those names, only two stood a chance of emulating glory.
Current Chicago Bear safety, Brandon Meriweather had a chance to become that safety. Instead he finds himself being benched in favor of second year safety, Major Wright and for good reasons. Bad angles, getting beat deep, illegal hits have him warming the pine. Yet the same could be said about Rodney as he became notorious for his hit on Jerry Rice back in 2002. Despite being a two time Pro-Bowler, Harrison’s accolades continue to overshadow his former student. Rodney Harrison has the most sacks of any defensive back in NFL history with 30.5. Currently, he holds the Patriots team record for most playoff interceptions with seven. Additionally, he was the first member of the 30/30 club where players had attained 30 interceptions and 30 sacks. Rodney got to choose how he left his career while Sergio Brown decided Brandon Meriweather.
As far as the closest predecessor, Patrick Chung is the only the ray of hope. After all, Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft invested their top 2009 draft pick after they realized a huge void was left without Harrison. Chung has shown flashes of grit and intelligence but only when he is healthy. Four games into the 2011 season, Chung missed a game because of a broken thumb which required surgery. To his credit, the game in which he broke his thumb, he returned to the game to play with a cast on. In 2010 when he started to make his presence felt, Chung injured his knee in week 7 and missed two more weeks. Against the Cowboys, Chung was the only Patriots player to get knocked out of the game because he got his “wind knocked out.” Chung would later return but the Patriot’s nation have seen Chung come in and out of defensive sets.
Yet the increasingly reliance of safeties have evolved in the NFL as they have been asked to do more than stop runs. Now they must defend the pass in various schemes, more involved in blitz packages while being able to defend the highly evolving Tight End position. Paradoxically, NFL safeties have become the Quarterback of the defense as oppose to the middle linebacker. Recent trends have suggested the growing importance of safeties as they are getting drafted higher and requiring higher salaries.
Despite the comfort of Tom Brady heading the offense, the Patriots are aware of their secondary concerns and have been actively seeking defensive backs that can adapt to an evolving climate of NFL offenses. Until they find a consistent and cable enforcer, the Super Bowl will remain a favorite pastime.