SEARCH NEILCORNRICH.COM
Thursday, August 11, 2016
Trey Flowers Standing Out At Recent Patriots Training Camp Practices
By Doug Kyed
August 10, 2016
FOXBORO, Mass. — Young New England Patriots pass rushers have a few extra weeks to prove they deserve a roster spot and a role after Rob Ninkovich’s triceps injury.
Trey Flowers, a 2015 fourth-round pick who played just one game last season before being placed on injured reserve with a shoulder injury, has been standing out in practice at the right time.
During full-contact team drills, Flowers is getting into the backfield more than any other Patriots pass rusher. He primarily rushes from the edge, but he’s added interior pressure to his arsenal.
“He didn’t play a lot inside in college,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said last week. “I think there was one game against LSU when he was in there, but for the most part he was on the edge, so that’s an adjustment that he’s making. He’s definitely getting better at it. He has quickness and, again, the play-strength, and I would say the mentality to play in there.
“It’s just going to come down to experience and getting comfortable. It’s a little bit different. You’re not working against as long of a guy usually at guard, and maybe not as athletic a guy as the ones that play tackle, but there is less space. … So, it’s a little bit different but he’s making progress on it.”
The Patriots likely will use three or four edge defenders on the line of scrimmage on third down this season since they don’t have an interior pass rushing specialist, like Dominique Easley, on their roster anymore.
Flowers also could be used on early downs because of his strong run defense.
“That was a strength of his at Arkansas, and for not a tall guy, he has long arms, he has some length as a player even though his stature is not exceptionally long, but he has long arms and he plays the run well,” Belichick said. “He’s a tough kid. All of those guys — Rob, Jabaal (Sheard), Chris (Long), Shea (McClellin), Geneo (Grissom), Rufus (Johnson) — they’re all pretty stout out there, got good playing strength, good length. So, that end position in the running game, so far, I’d say that hasn’t been the major problem for us.”
Flowers hasn’t been able to fully show his ability in the running game or passing game in training camp because defenders can’t tackle or sack the quarterback. So, Flowers is itching to get on the field in the Patriots’ preseason opener Thursday against the New Orleans Saints.
“It’s real life. Some of those sacks that you think that you probably had when you pulled up or something, you can actually go in and be engaged and take that extra two more steps to judge a game, judge your real quickness to the ball,” Flowers said. “It’s definitely important.”
Popular Posts
-
By Austin Belisle September 14, 2017 Duct tape may prove a quick fix for leaky pipes, but as every DIY repairman knows, a patchwork ...
-
By Matthew Coller September 27, 2017 After spending big in free agency and spending their top two draft picks on offense, the Minneso...
-
By BILL REITER March 6, 2010 CLEVELAND | The Mercedes S550 pulls up to the hotel silver and sleek and shining with the gleam of money and po...
-
September 11, 2017 By Kyle Ratke A day before facing off against the New Orleans Saints to kick off the 2017 season the Minnesota Vik...
-
From Peter King's "Ten Things I Think I Think" February 15, 2010 6. I think these are the five unrestricted free agents who co...
-
By Steve Berkowitz January 19, 2011 College football still loses marquee coaches such as Jim Harbaugh to the NFL. But it increasingly is bec...
-
By ALBERT BREER February 04, 2019 3. Patriots pass rusher Trey Flowers—who rapped with Meek Mill on stage at the Super...
-
Ex-players like Jake Coker, who led the Crimson Tide to a national championship three years ago, join others who sell policies By ...
-
The Patriots signed defensive tackle Markus Kuhn to a one-year contract in April. The Associated Press By Rich Garven August 23, 2016...
-
From Nate Davis' "Joe Flacco an overachieving headliner on '09 All-Joe Team" January 27, 2010 THE 2009 ALL-JOE TEAM OFFENS...