It’s elementary, Watson
Ninkovich: Keep rookie in pocket
PATRIOTS NOTEBOOK
MAPLEVILLE, R.I. — The Patriots have a history of devouring rookie quarterbacks. With Texans rookie Deshaun Watson about to make his second career start, do the Pats think they have an advantage going into Sunday’s game?
“Oh, definitely,” the recently retired Rob Ninkovich told the Herald yesterday.
The reason? All the confusing looks Bill Belichick and Matt Patricia like to throw at untested quarterbacks presnap, Ninkovich said.
Plus, in the case of Watson (who had a 49yard touchdown run in a 13-9 win against the Bengals last Thursday), Ninkovich doesn’t expect the Pats will let him get out of the pocket.
“With a guy like that, you keep him in the pocket, you make him use his arm to beat you,” the former defensive end said at the Matt Light Celebrity Shootout fundraiser. “We saw last week, he was able to get out of the pocket and make plays and score a touchdown. This week (the goal) is going to be to keep him in the pocket, don’t rush lanes, everyone can’t just run up the field and try and get to a guy that’s mobile because he’ll hurt you.
“So keep him in the pocket and let him try and beat you with his arm. Show him different looks to where it’s, ‘What am I looking at, what should I check to, where are the safeties, is it man, is it zone?’”
In other words, make Watson stand in there, think and react.
“That’s the chess match within the game,” Ninkovich said. “When you’re
young in the league, you’re still learning.”
The Patriots got a first look at Watson in the preseason and during joint practices, which should help in their preparations. But while Watson is a new face and his skill set certainly is unique, the formations and packages the Texans will throw at the Patriots won’t likely come as a surprise to Patricia.
“He obviously gives them a whole new layer of things that they can do, but I will say this: Through the years with (Texans coach Bill O’Brien) and even going back a few years when we played them, they will always have something that involves the quarterback,” the defensive coordinator said. “They do a great job of game-planning and putting in different personnel groups, so you have to prepare to defend those things when they do come up. So, I would say it’s a lot of the same as what they’ve done in the past.”
Patricia isn’t resting on the Pats’ history of containing young quarterbacks to help them stop Watson, however.
“His ability to move and his speed and obviously his skill set to make tacklers miss and get out into open space — FORMER PATS DE ROB NINKOVICH On Texans QB Deshaun Watson
‘So keep him in the pocket and let him try and beat you with his arm.’
is definitely at a very high level that we have to prepare for,” he said.
Three’s a charm
Tom Brady did something he never did before in his 18-year career in Sunday’s win against the Saints, throwing three touchdowns in the first quarter en route to the 36-20 victory. It came as no surprise to Light, Brady’s former left tackle who expected the quarterback to come out with fire after the opening loss to the Chiefs.
“The guy does what he does,” Light said. “He’s always done it. I don’t see it letting up. I don’t know why it would be any different. His approach, his knowledge of the game, his attitude . . . when you back a guy like that into a corner, or he’s upset with himself for decisions he makes — nobody’s tougher on themselves than he is — you’re going to see a guy, coming out, on fire, ready to roll, wellprepared, and doing the things that he did.”
A lot on the line
The Texans pose a big threat on their defensive line with J.J. Watt, Jadeveon Clowney and Whitney Mercilus. Center David Andrews isn’t banking on too much from the teams’ meetings last month helping the Pats on Sunday.
“There’s always going to be new wrinkles, things like that,” Andrews said. “You play a lot of people. We’re just going to have to be ready for whatever they throw at us. That’s just part of playing football.”
Chance will come
Through two games, David Harris hasn’t had the type of impact that was expected. The 33-year-old linebacker, who signed a two-year contract with the Pats this offseason after 10 seasons with the Jets, has played just three total defensive snaps, the lowest among all defensive players who have seen the field.
Belichick suggested his opportunities will come.
“We’ll see how it goes going forward,” he said. “Each game is different, each game has different matchups and different requirements. David’s a real experienced player, and I think he brings a lot of positives to our team. We’ll see when those opportunities come, but I’m sure that they’ll be there.”