Week 4 Patriots vs Dolphins: plays today Offseason departures Authentic Ja'Whaun Bentley Jersey , injuries, ineffectiveness, and a four-game suspension have thinned out the New England Patriots’ wide receiver group over the past six months. And while the group that remained – Chris Hogan, Phillip Dorsett, Cordarrelle Patterson – has plenty of athletic upside, it failed to consistently produce over the first three weeks of the regular season and take some pressure off others in the lineupAs a result and to bolster its depth and overall positional quality, the Patriots added numerous receivers from the outside. Not one of them, however, was able to stick so far. The latest acquisition to try its luck is also the most hyped-up: Josh Gordon, whom New England acquired via trade on September 17. Unfortunately for the Patriots, though, the veteran missed his first potential game due to a hamstring injury.Today, there appears to be a realistic chance that Gordon finally suits up and plays his first game since joining the team in exchange for a fifth-round draft selection – at least according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport:While Gordon should not be expected to single-handedly turn the Patriots’ offensive fortunes around, having him in the lineup would still help the unit overall. Not only does the 27-year old bring outstanding athleticism to the table, he also comes with the reputation of being a big-play receiver. If nothing else, this should force the Miami Dolphins to take some of the attention away from Rob Gronkowski and the rest of the pass catchers today.But, who knows, maybe Gordon’s debut will look like that of another big-name trade acquisition? One that also was slowed down by a hamstring injury before his debut against an AFC East team: Randy Moss. As noted above, this should not be expected – but if there is a place and quarterback to make it happen at least to some extended, New England is it.Football Outsiders: Will Dont’a Hightower fix the Patriots run defense? Every year, Football Outsiders releases their Almanac to preview the upcoming NFL season. We spoke with Rivers McCown of Football Outsiders to get the inside scoop on the New England Patriots. Click here to purchase the Football Outsiders Almanac!The Patriots run defense was exceptionally weak last year. Will Danny Shelton and Adrian Clayborn help fix the problem? Or will the return of Dont’a Hightower mean the most?The New England Patriots ranked 31st against the run according to Football Outsiders’ DVOA rankings and so I was curious to know where the team could improve and whether the addition of Adrian Clayborn or Dont’a Hightower would have a larger impact.But McCown’s point is interesting in that he considers the Patriots run defense to be a down-year for what is typically a great run defense and for the unit to regress back towards its usual high-quality self.Over the past decade, the Patriots have typically fluctuated between “really good” and “really bad” against the run. The team ranked above-average in 2008 (11th), 2009 (13th), 2012 (6th) Authentic Trey Flowers Jersey , 2014 (13th), 2015 (10th), and 2016 (6th). They ranked below-average in 2010 (23rd), 2011 (25th), 2013 (27th), and 2017 (31st). It’s worth noting that in four of the past six years, the Patriots run defense has been good, if not great. In the years they’ve struggled, the Patriots have dealt with some serious injuries, notably with stalwart linebackers Jerod Mayo, Brandon Spikes, and Dont’a Hightower and defensive linemen Ty Warren, Mike Wright, Vince Wilfork, and Tommy Kelly missing time. So I think the return of Hightower will have a bigger impact on the Patriots run defense than the addition of Clayborn.One of the trends of the Matt Patricia defenses is how they improved over the course of the season. Do the numbers suggest any changes in styles of play (zone vs man, more blitzes, etc), or just an improved performance?Weeks 1-650% Man, 18.5% Blitz (5+ Pass Rush), 27.8% rush only 3 Weeks 7-12 55% Man, 22.2% Blitz, 18.6% rush only 3 Weeks 13-17 59% Man, 25% Blitz, 22.3% rush only 3 This is an interesting read into how Matt Patricia developed his defense over the course of 2017 and how he adjusted for the skill sets of his players. The Patriots didn’t have a pass rush last year Womens Joe Thuney Jersey , but they had solid depth at cornerback. That allowed the team to draw resources away from coverage and put them into getting after the quarterback.How will this play out in 2018? Will Brian Flores follow a similar season-long developmental strategy?I think the Patriots have the best depth on the defensive line that they’ve had in a while, so I would expect the team to rely less on blitzing to get after the quarterback. That said, I think the linebacker depth is questionable in coverage and I wouldn’t be surprised if the linebackers crashed the box in order to keep the opposing running backs in pass protection instead of running their routes.It feels like both Devin McCourty and Patrick Chung have had incredibly unique career trajectories. McCourty was an All Pro at cornerback, and then twice at safety, while Chung flamed out in his first stint in New England, busted in Philadelphia, and then has thrived in his return. Who are some historical players that have had the most similar careers?What makes Devin McCourty so interesting and unique is how he was named Second Team All Pro at cornerback as a rookie in 2010, moved to safety midway through the 2012 season, and was named Second Team All Pro at free safety in 2013. He also earned another Second Team All Pro nod in 2016 for his work as both a free safety and as a strong safety on roughly 50% of his snaps with Duron Harmon on the field.As McCown notes, it’s not weird for a cornerback to move to safety during their career, but it’s usually at the tail-end of their career when they’re no longer physically capable of playing coverage, but they still have the football intelligence to be of value leading a defense- like a Charles Woodson. But McCourty was playing like an elite cornerback in 2012 before he moved to safety after the acquisition of Aqib Talib. McCourty moved to safety because that was the Patriots’ Achilles heel on defense and his presence on the back-end immediately solidified the secondary.Ronnie Lott is clearly a high-achieving comparable as the defensive back moved to safety in his fifth season after being an All Pro as a rookie, and then ripped off six-straight All Pro seasons at safety.Chung, on the other hand, did not have as glamorous of a start to his career in New England and was ultimately benched and cut for reasons I blame more on the coaching staff and front office than on Chung himself. Chung was never a great deep-safety, but thrived when asked to cover tight ends and to play in the box. Injuries in the Patriots secondary- injuries that also led to McCourty ultimately playing deep safety- forced the Patriots to play Chung at free safety instead of in-the-box and it was a disaster.Now, Chung has a perfect role on the Patriots defense as a jack-of-all trades, where he can cover running backs in the flat and tight ends in the slot, help stuff the run in the box, and even rush after the quarterback. He’s the perfect type of defender that allows the Patriots to play both the run and the pass while keeping the same personnel on the field.As opposing teams start to rely more on running backs to attack the lighter defenses built to defend the pass, Chung’s role will be in even greater focus, highlighting his perfect skill set for this era of football.