More photos » by Stephan Savoia - AP

2 months ago: New England Patriots rookie defensive back Darius Butler (27) works on a drill during football minicamp at the team's football facility in Foxborough, Mass., Friday morning, May 1, 2009. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)

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Back to the defensive side of the ball, the Patriots have been accused of having a weak defensive backfield for a few years.  Injuries to key players like Rodney Harrison and Tank Williams are, I believe, part of the problem.  Another issue?  Average corners.  Since the departure of Asante Samuel to the Eagles, it could be argued we've lacked a shutdown corner.  I liked Ellis Hobbs because he was one of the most dangerous kick return men in the business.  But he was serviceable corner, not the "don't come over here" guy we needed.  To his credit, he did play hurt most of 2007 and that says something about the man.  But I believe we need a risk taker at this position, a cowboy, if you will.

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Sure, we're #27 on the list, but I still think it's pretty cool to be #2 amongst New England Patriots blogs.  Who's #1?  Well, Mike Reiss with Reiss's Pieces of course!  If we have to come in second to a professional sports writer in a big market town with a huge newspaper behind him, then that's ok. ;-)

SB Nation blogs pretty much own this list and it's not a surprise to me.  Props to cassieper over at Stampede Blue for this fanpost on the rankings.

via oromantic.files.wordpress.com

View full size photo uploaded July 4, 2009

I love this picture.  In the forefront of a spectacular fireworks display is the welcoming silhouette of the Statue of Liberty.  At its base is an inscription, the most famous portion being:

Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.  Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!

In the 1920's, my paternal great grandparents left Ireland for a life in America.  Settling in the Irish dominant community of Boston, they started a family.  At almost the same time, my maternal great grandparents arrived from Wales.  This is a story repeated over and over with many cultures and people of all backgrounds planting roots in this great country.

It's something the founding fathers envisioned when they fought and won their independence from British rule.  Declaring independence on July 4th, 1776, they put forth the Declaration of Independence.  It's an amazing document filled with towering statements:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Today, the document still rings loud and clear, but it is best read with an understanding of the events leading up to that point in history.  That way, you can get a sense of the magnitude of what was said and written.

Whatever you choose to do today in celebration of this nation's declaration of independence, I hope you enjoy yourself and are safe.  Me?  I'm celebrating the fourth at a marriage celebration for my extended Filipino family.  There'll be plenty of great Filipino dishes along with family and friends.  It's gonna be a good day.

Before I go, a special THANK YOU to our service men and women who KEEP us safe.  Your bravery and dedication to this country is a lesson to us all.

More photos » by Elise Amendola - AP

about 1 month ago: New England Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker stretches during football practice in Foxborough, Mass., Thursday, May 28, 2009. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

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Here we go again; another "I love Wes" story from MaPatsFan.  This will, no doubt, be the collective response from long time readers.  They know, all too well, about my giant man crush for Wes Welker.  In my humble opinion, he is one of the most influential New England players to put on a Patriots helmet in recent years.  Many point to Randy Moss' 23 TD record and his many circus catches, but Wes is the chain mover, the guy grinding it out underneath, game after game.

We all know the history by now.  Considered too short to by many colleges, he finally landed at Texas Tech where he went on to be one of there most prodigous athletes.  Originally drafted by the Chargers in 2004, he was waived and picked up by the Dolphins in September of that year.  After the 2006 season culminated in a very disappointing AFCCG loss to the Colts, Belichick went about the business of acquiring targets for Tom Brady.

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Tom Brady with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and head coach Bill Belichick during training camp on August 2, 2008. Can McDaniels succeed without them?

View full size photo uploaded July 3, 2009

Andy Hart wonders if Scott Pioli and Josh McDaniels will be able to have success duplicating Belichick's system.

Belichick's "one-voice" approach and tight organizational measures have worked to supreme success in New England.  But that success has included two very important factors -- it's taken place under Belichick's direction and with Tom Brady at quarterback.  Winning begat winning and with more winning came a more stringent faith in the way things are run in Foxborough.

Derek Zetlin asserts short, quick receivers might be key to NFL success.

Conventional wisdom says you need more size at the NFL wide receiver position. The numbers, however, hint otherwise.

Like its collegiate counterpart, professional football is transitioning to more of a speed-dominated game. Sure, 330-plus-pound defensive tackles are needed to nose the popular 3-4 defensive scheme, but that’s only to make up for a lack of size on the ends of the D-line, which have been replaced by more versatile (and speedier) outside linebackers. Look at the success of the Wildcat formation last season. The Wildcat’s fundamental principles are speed and spreading the field (much like the NCAA’s triple option), as opposed to the fullback-led I-Formation, pounding for every earned yard.

Adrian Hasenmayer (Fox Sports) ranks which teams are best positioned to not just survive, but flourish at quarterback in 2009.  Patriots rank 6th in his opinion.  His argument is off in mine.

The man is back, and all of New England can breathe sighs of relief. But what if Brady, the three-time Super Bowl champion, gets hurt again? Well, we scoffed at the Pats' chances last September when Mr. Perfect got injured because Matt Cassel — a dude who had not started a game since freaking high school. Then Cassel turned in a Pro Bowl season. Could Bill Belichick do it again with NFL mysteries O'Connell, Gutierrez and Hoyer? Highly unlikely.

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Renaissance rookie George Bussey ready to cook up some tackles at mini-camp.

View full size photo uploaded July 2, 2009

Jeff Howe looks at who will fill the Mike Vrabel void.

Even though Vrabel’s exile seemed to have caused widespread panic across New England, the Patriots are still loaded at 10 other starting positions on defense. Not to mention, Pierre Woods and Shawn Crable should be more than ready to fill in. Vrabel, who turns 34 in August, has seen his skills diminish in recent years, but he was still more than capable on the field. He finished fifth on the team with 67 tackles last season, according to coaches’ film review.

Woods and Crable may be able to match Vrabel’s statistical production, but they can’t account for his leadership. That duty will fall in the hands of linebackers Tedy Bruschi and Adalius Thomas, along with a number of the other veterans on the defensive side of the ball.

Gayle Fee and Laura Raposa report on the renaissance qualities of the Patriots 2000 Rookie Draft Class.

First off, there’s defensive tackle Darryl Richard, picked in the seventh round of the draft, who earned his bachelor’s degree from Georgia Tech in three years and already has an MBA.  Richard, BTW, is also an accomplished piano player. Show off . . .

Then there’s defensive lineman George Bussey, taken in the fifth round. He gave up a full scholarship to culinary school for a chance to kick it up a notch as a walk-on to the Louisville football team.

Top pick Patrick Chung, a safety from Oregon, loves to draw in his spare time. And snapper Jake Ingram, a surfer dude from Hawaii, is also a certified fork-lift operator. So he’ll never starve.

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via cache.boston.com

View full size photo uploaded July 1, 2009

Watching the 2009 NFL Draft, many of us thought, and rightly so, that Bill Belichick and Nick Caserio would grab a pass rushing OLB after sending Mike Vrabel to the Chiefs in a package deal with Matt Cassel.  BZZZZZZTTTTT!!  Were we wrong.  When questioning the collective sanity of the Patriots organization, I often try to remind myself that they're much smarter than me about this business called Professional Football.  After all, I wouldn't want Hoodie building Linux networks with hundreds of clients now would I?  Scratch that.  Belichick probably co-wrote Linux with Linus Torvalds during an off-season.  Moving on...

I believe we have lacked a serious pass rush since the 2007 season and I don't think I'm alone in this belief.  Mike Vrabel will always be one of my favorite Patriots, but I am of the opinion he began to lose a step in 2008.  At 34, age is certainly a factor and the trade to KC was a good one for the Patriots, who were looking to get younger, and the Chiefs, who needed a veteran presence on the field and in the locker room.

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Vince Redd works on rushing the passer.

View full size photo uploaded July 1, 2009

Andy Hart feels the Patriots' answer at outside linebacker is already on the roster.

While I would never rule out the summertime addition of a veteran presence to the OLB spot (probably a lesser name, not a Peppers) I think the team is going with what it has at this point. But I don’t see any one player taking over the bulk of the reps at the spot opposite Adalius Thomas. My guess is that a combination of Pierre Woods and Shawn Crable will be given the chance to fill Mike Vrabel’s All-Pro cleats. Woods has solid experience in the system, got some playing time before breaking his jaw last fall and looks to be a decent edge-setter against the run. But I think he’s lacking in the pass rush department. That’s where Crable comes in. He’s got an impressive build and has a great first step off the edge, although we never got to see it in his injury-shortened rookie season. His teammates rave about him. I’m intrigued to see what he’s learned in a year in the system and what kind of impact he can make in his first action in the big leagues. Throw a wild card like Vince Redd into the mix and I think you have the names who’ll be battling for playing time on the outside. It’s a youth movement. There may be some growing pains along the way, but Bill Belichick seems to be willing to endure those and must see an upside in the group that’s worth working toward. Time will tell if he’s right.

Christopher Price talks about the annual Rookie Symposium, an intensive four-day seminar that runs through today and is designed to educate all 256 members of the 2009 draft class in the rules of the NFL.

Defensive lineman Richard Seymour spoke to the first-year players in 2002 -- after his rookie season -- and talked about the sort of rookie hazing players should expect. In a story he later related to reporters, he talked a night where the rookies had to take the veterans out to dinner. Seymour, a first-round pick in 2001, had to fork over $15,000.

"That was when I decided to put myself on a budget," Seymour later said.

Last year, the rookies from each team participated in the "Ultimate Rookie Challenge," a trivia contest at the end of the symposium that featured questions on the materials they learned. The seven New England rookies -- led by quarterback Kevin O’Connell -- scored the highest. For their efforts, they all walked away with a 32-inch TV. In addition, O’Connell (who finished finishing fourth overall out of the 252 rookies) was also awarded an iPod for his personal performance on the exam.

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