New England Patriots Defense: Versatility is the Name of the Game

Whether or not Bill Belichick watched Rocky II before entering the 2011 NFL free agency frenzy, the similarities between the hooded mastermind and the folk hero are striking.

Striking like left-handed jabs from a right-handed fighter.

In Rocky II, the title hero learns to fight southpaw in order to keep Apollo Creed off balance. The strategy proves effective, as Creed is left reeling and dizzied, never knowing what to expect.

In that sense, no one knows what looks to expect from the Patriots defense in 2011: not fans, not the media and certainly not any of New England's opponents.

One thing to expect, though, is an improved defense capable of attacking offenses multiple ways.

Belichick alluded to all of this in his press conference Monday:

""I don't think our defensive philosophy is going to change. I think how we align and how we handle the responsibilities, I think that could definitely change by game plan or by what we feel are our strengths and weaknesses and how to best deploy the players."

""I don't think fundamentally our philosophy and our techniques are going to change. I think what we're teaching we're going to continue to teach and use on a very consistent basis. How, strategically, we want to move guys around and put them in certain alignments...I think there's flexibility there.""

Of course there's a ton of flexibility right now. With 13 defensive tackles and eight “edge” guys, there are 21 defensive linemen on the 90-man roster. Yes, nearly a quarter of all the players on the roster are defensive linemen. Expect that number to be cut in half or more before the start of the season.

When you look at the various types of defensive linemen the Patriots have acquired this offseason, it's easy to see that they are committed to an unpredictable style of defense.

Maybe that's why Belichick has been so mum on a full-on switch to the 4-3.

The Patriots didn't resign themselves to their base formation last year, in fact having only played in the 3-4 40 percent of the time.

From the looks of it, they're not going to stay in the vanilla read-and-react 3-4 exclusively in 2011, either. That would be showing his hand, and that would just make it too easy for opposing offenses.

Why should a base formation predicate how a team plays defense, when there are so many other factors that play into it? Down and distance, field position, an opponent's strengths and weaknesses and a whole host of other factors will play a role in determining what the Patriots do on defense.

""Depending on how our team shakes up, what our players can do, some of these players I've never coached before so I'm not sure exactly how they'll fit in or what exact roles they'll be able to play in this defense. I just have to wait and see how that turns out. I think we'll have enough defense and be able to do things to put players in a position where they can be productive.""

In the end, it comes down to that final point: Putting players in a position to be productive. The Patriots defense as a whole only registered 36 sacks last year, and ranked dead last in third down defense. With the additions of so many pieces on the defensive front, it's safe to say that anything but a significant improvement in both areas will be unacceptable.

The use of multiple fronts could allow the Patriots to improve on those numbers simply through their opponent's inability to game plan and prepare for the multiple ways the Patriots defense will be able to attack.

The element of surprise proved to be the determining factor in Rocky's triumph over Apollo. Perhaps it will be enough to help the Patriots to victory in 2011.

Erik Frenz is the co-host of the PatsPropaganda and Frenz podcast. Follow Erik on Twitter @erikfrenz.