Signing: Patriots sign CB Leigh Bodden

Height: 6-1   Weight: 193   Age: 27
Born: 9/24/1981 Hyattsville , MD
College: Duquesne
Experience: 7th season
High School: Northwestern HS [Hyattsville, MD]

Suddenly, cornerback ain't looking too shabby, know what I mean?  In 2008, you could almost feel Hoodie's angst, like fingernails down a chalkboard.  It wasn't like the Patriots were getting hammered...all...day...long (we were 11th in YPG, but 2nd in most TD passes allowed), but it was a perennial weak spot.  Don't get me wrong, Ellis Hobbs is my man after what he did for us in 2007 (playing hurt since mid-season), but he isn't what I would call a shutdown corner.  Rookies Terrence Wheatley and Jonathan Wilhite were doing pretty OK towards the end of the season, but not nearly what we needed.  And then there was the Deltha O'Neal Experiment.  Uhhmm...moving on.

Leigh Bodden comes to us from Detroit where he spent one year after five years with the Browns.  There is a connection there, folks.  Bodden played under Former Patriots DC Romeo Crennel when Romeo was HC of the Cleveland Browns.  Hopefully, a little bit of Romeo rubbed off on our new man at corner:

The terminology in Cleveland must be similar to what it will be for you in New England:

"Yeah, it's definitely very similar, and that's why I was excited. I spent pretty much all day there the first day of free agency and just looking at what they do, it was very similar to what we did in Cleveland, and I did have a lot of success there. I plan on continuing that success with New England."

This is a good thing, gang.  In the same interview, Leigh goes on to discuss the Tampa-2 deployed in Detroit.  He doesn't think it was a factor in his production, but I would disagree.  You can't go from one system to the next and think it's going to be a breeze.  Be that as it may, I'm glad his Browns experience will come into play; having a similar scheme can't hurt.

I like this signing.  Bodden comes cheap at $750,000.  Plus, his 6-1 height helps ALOT.  Hobbs is, well, a Hobbit compared to guys like Randy Moss and Terrell Owens.  You need a tall corner in red zone matchups to compete and I think a guy like Bodden could be just the ticket.  Bodden, along with new signing Shawn Springs, should add depth and experience to the cornerback spot - something we've been needing for awhile.

[Props to bartHML and his FanPost on Leigh Bodden's signing]