Patriots Roster Prediction #49: DE/DT Ron Brace

by Richard Hill on Jul 12, 2010 12:00 PM EDT in Patriots Player Profiles

Player Name: DE/DT Ron Brace

Experience: 1 Year in the NFL, with the New England Patriots

Past Role: Brace was a bench player as a rookie. He was a 4-3 DT in college at Boston College, where we was second fiddle to Green Bay Packers NT B.J. Raji. He was drafted as insurance in case the Patriots were unable to resign franchise NT Vince Wilfork, but with Wilfork's contract extension, Brace was left without a certain position. As a rookie, Brace learned how to handle football at the professional level, even going as far as admitting that the NFL game was "a big shock" to him. As Wilfork was injured in December with an ankle injury, Brace played the bulk of his downs.

In the game against Buffalo, the thoroughly injured and usually unimpressive offensive line ran up the middle at will, averaging 6.3 yards/carry to the left of the center and 5.4 yards/carry to the right of the center. However, not only was Brace facing normal double coverage, but the Bills were also throwing three guys in front of him, in order to slow the rookie.

Predicted Role: With a full year in the system, and a more defined role in the defense, Brace should become a part of the rotation at defensive end. Brace should play defensive end on running downs, splitting downs with Gerard Warren, and Brace should come off the field on obvious passing downs for a better pass rusher. Brace should also remain on the field when the defense plays the 4-3 defense.

Also, look for Brace to come on the field to give Ty Warren breaks at Left Defensive End and Vince Wilfork at Nose Tackle.

Predicted Season Numbers: 2 Starts, 14 Games Played. 25 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble.

Predicted Depth Chart: #2 LDE, #3 RDE, #2 NT, #2 DT

Summary: Look for Brace to see greater playing time this upcoming season as he becomes an active member in the defensive line rotation. He'll be the top back-up for many positions and should prove invaluable as a DE in the 3-4, and a DT in the 4-3 as either Derrick Burgess or Jermaine Cunningham moves up from OLB to DE.

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i think brace makes a big jump

in year 2 i think the game slows down for him a little and he can react more fluidly and has worked out in a full offseason. i think a lot of year 2 players are going to make a huge jump this year chung brace butler edelman and well vollmer made the year 2 jump in year 1 lol.

by brady12mvp3 on Jul 12, 2010 1:16 PM EDT reply actions

I think he will be cut

He totally sucked in his first year. He was over taken in training camp by pryor (who, btw was injured for over half of training camp coming into the first post season game). I think he came to camp and NFL standard linemen just destroyed him in camp just like the regular season.If part of his value was to be potential replacement (or at least ‘leverage’ for the contract) for wilfork – then he was a colossal failure. besides there are too many player at the thin end of this roster to turn brace into the next crable. lets just call a bust a bust and move on. do you really want him taking a roster spot away from a promising rookie or arrington or akien?

leave the gun, take the connolis

by injuredrightshoulder on Jul 12, 2010 2:17 PM EDT up reply actions

while Brace admitted that the vast chasm between college and the pros

caused him more trouble than he expected, he has that big rookie-to-second-year jump waiting for him at Training Camp. Given the veteran talent he’s been working with and a year of film study and conditioning under his substantial belt, I want to see what he brings to this year’s Camp.

No sense labeling him a bust and cutting him now while they need a deep roster to get ready for the season. The more competition the better. As Belichick says, the players themselves decide who stays and who goes.

Keep the faith!

by Marima on Jul 12, 2010 2:33 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs

Exactly right.

There is huge potential for Brace elbow to elbow with Vince as a DT in the 4-3. There is even bigger potential for him as a big man at RDE where there is currently a huge hole.

Someone’s gotta step up, and it’s going to be the guy that wants it the most. Could be Brace.

He only saw parts of 9 games last year, and no he wasn’t Vince Wilfork. Those are big shoes to fill. However he doesn’t have to step in for the big man, when there are other holes open. Vince has been taking Brace under his oversized wing this pre-season. If holding the point can be taught, the Vincester’s the man to teach it.

He needs to be able to win in one-on-one matchups (which he really never saw last year), and hold his own in double teams (which he’ll have more experience doing). If he can do that, Warren, Wilfork, and Brace ought to be able to eat up the entire O-line. That leaves our OLB’s and ILB’s to deal with RB blitz pickup and TE help. That’s very doable.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on Jul 12, 2010 2:43 PM EDT up reply actions

highly doubt he gets cut just yet

he has too much talent to give up after one year.

by brady12mvp3 on Jul 12, 2010 2:35 PM EDT up reply actions

Even Vince didn't make a huge impression in his first year

In his rookie year, Vince arguably had better talent outside him (Seymour and Warren, both young) and still shared starts and snaps with Keith Traylor. In other words, even a bona fide future stud first-round draft pick guy in Vince wasn’t good enough/trusted enough to earn all the snaps his rookie year; complaining that Ron Brace couldn’t do it seems a little anomalous. Sure, Myron Prior jumped up the depth chart, but that’s a good thing, not a bad – a low-round guy played well enough to earn starts over a 2nd rounder. That’s a sign of strength, not of weakness, at least in their respective rookie years.

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.

by Comedic.Sans on Jul 12, 2010 8:41 PM EDT up reply actions

Whoa get off the juice!!!!

Vince’s first year was very good and really showed that he was going to be great. to compare vince’s first year to brace’s first year is asinine. brace was really really bad whenever he played he got manhandled EVERY time he played, he probably cost the pats a couple of mil extra in the wilfork contract. why does everyone here have such reason for optimism for him??? 2nd year jump, vince will show him how to do it, too much talent to let go…… mating cries for losers. looking like a bulldozer and being paired with a great NT may work in collage but not in the NFL.

leave the gun, take the connolis

by injuredrightshoulder on Jul 17, 2010 2:12 PM EDT up reply actions

Vince's first year still wasn't good enough for the Pats to get rid of Traylor immediately

Brace happens to be a very big man with surprising athleticism and a decent college career. He’s got the physicals; it’s the mental side he struggled with. That can and will be taught, or he’ll be cut. But it won’t be this year – the guy’s too much of a physical anomaly to give up entirely on after only one season.

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.

by Comedic.Sans on Jul 18, 2010 12:20 AM EDT up reply actions

bizarre

by that line of logic the pats could show they are really really strong by cutting brace????
we could say we are so strong we can toss 2nd round picks out after a year and not care!

leave the gun, take the connolis

by injuredrightshoulder on Jul 17, 2010 2:24 PM EDT up reply actions

Pretty much...

Pats tossed aside a 1st round, 1st pick guy in Drew Bledsoe solely because a 6th rounder outplayed him. That’s a bad thing? I’d rather have the luxury to cut underperforming players than need a guy who’s only 60% of what you’re paying him to be because that 60% guy is still better than the next one.

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.

by Comedic.Sans on Jul 18, 2010 12:18 AM EDT up reply actions

yeah but..

I thought we were talking about brace here. I do think pryor looked ok but he wasn’t that good and he blew past brace in training camp – i think your put forward the idea that pryor is playing better than a 2nd rounder – technically true – but in reality brace playing worse than a 6th rounder – not good.

leave the gun, take the connolis

by injuredrightshoulder on Jul 18, 2010 1:28 PM EDT up reply actions

Brace said he had issues with the playbook...

Pryor (and 7th round pick Darryl Richard) both came into the Combine with impressive Wonderlic scores – they’re both pretty bright. Pryor’s a smart lad, so he picked up the playbook pretty quickly, but he’s less physically gifted, so he didn’t look amazing.

Brace ought to have a higher ceiling – he’s got serious physical gifts – but he’s going to learn slower than Pryor, so his development will be correspondingly slow. I don’t think that means he won’t develop, though – the Pats have a great success rate with high-round D-linemen (Seymour, Warren, Wilfork). If they do anything well, they draft D-linemen.

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.

by Comedic.Sans on Jul 18, 2010 6:16 PM EDT up reply actions

ok if your right

and chung pans out and vollmer and bulter continue to bulid on their rookie year and edelmann and pyror do likewise and any of the other draft picks pan out (tate and mackenzie) then 2009 will be a draft for the ages!

leave the gun, take the connolis

by injuredrightshoulder on Jul 21, 2010 7:42 AM EDT up reply actions

I hope so

And I definitely like the looks of them thus far.

Chung has a bit of ability (2 sacks and a pick in his rookie year makes him at least an interest sub), Butler got three picks, including a looooooong pick-6, which also makes him more-than-useful.

Vollmer looks like a stud at both LT and RT, which is more than you could ask from any NFL O-lineman, let alone a second-round rookie.

Edelman ought to get better – he’s only had one year as a WR and Kick/Punt returner, after all. Pryor’s useful, although probably limited physically to being a super-sub D-lineman. Tate looked interesting on limited snaps, and McKenzie looks like a tank in his 2010 interviews (he’s put on some beef from his abortive rookie campaign).

I’m not crowning them all All-Pros in July, a la the Jets, but at the very least the bunch will be very useful substitutions. Some will be starters. And if they are subs, then there’s a lot of depth in the team.

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.

by Comedic.Sans on Jul 23, 2010 1:31 AM EDT up reply actions

brady passing bledsoe was very very good-

leave the gun, take the connolis

by injuredrightshoulder on Jul 18, 2010 1:56 PM EDT up reply actions

but bledsoe was a NFL starter-

pryor passing brace is nowhere near the same thing!!!!
and as far as your odd economic argument – brace has cost the pats millions – if he was as good in his position as bulter or vollmer then maybe wifork is let go and our NT position is ok and we save 8 mil a year.

leave the gun, take the connolis

by injuredrightshoulder on Jul 18, 2010 2:01 PM EDT up reply actions

Big Ron

I think you nailed it.

He’s gonna improve a lot and will be a great off the bench sub for Ty and Vince. Never gonna be a good pass-rusher but he’ll clog the lanes and draw the double teams.

by hoyaeagle on Jul 12, 2010 8:26 PM EDT reply actions