New England Patriots: Sterling Moore a Key Component to Patriots Super Bowl Run

When Sterling Moore joined the Patriots roster prior to their Week 6 game against the Dallas Cowboys, there was no evidence to suggest he'd make a key play in the AFC Championship Game to send the team to the Super Bowl.

That evidence came later, when he picked off two Ryan Fitzpatrick passes in the final game of the regular season, returning one for a touchdown, as the Patriots stormed back from a 21-point deficit to score 49 unanswered points.

But long before that, the Patriots saw enough in him that, after being cut multiple times and bouncing back and forth between the practice squad and active roster, he was given the chance of a lifetime in Week 10 against the New York Jets.

Only one problem: it wasn't even his natural position. The cornerback lined up at safety for 73 snaps at MetLife Stadium, according to Pro Football Focus.

Defensive back all the same, right? Not at all, as Moore told us on the PatsPropaganda & Frenz podcast.

"

It was two totally different things. When I first got there, my head was just spinning because I'd never played safety before. But guys really helped me out. I remember I went over to Patrick Chung's house to watch film before that first Jets game during the week, but guys were just giving me tips in the meeting rooms and we would even stay after and watch film.

"

The guys that were with him, though, were changing on a weekly basis.

In fact, the Patriots had 10 different players line up at cornerback during the season. The challenge there is building rapport and communicating with the rest of the secondary, but Moore says it didn't affect him.

"

We knew what we had back there, and it was just a matter of us getting confidence in each other to go out there and play as a unit. Once we settled in—and we had guys in there who we knew were going to be there week to week—we kind of settled in and thought, 'Okay, now we know how guys play. Now we know where they're going to be in certain situations.' So I think that really helped.

"

What else will help? Perhaps actually having a full offseason worth of workouts.

After the way he joined the team in whirlwind fashion, it will be a welcome relief to take the time to acclimate to the system, to his teammates and to his coaches.

"

My biggest thing is just trying to understand the entire defense. I mean, when I first got there and throughout the rest of the season, I was just trying to understand what's happening in the secondary, and I think this offseason I'm going to go in and try to learn the full game plan and understand the concepts behind the game plan—what's going on up front, what's going on with the linebackers—because if you know the full defense, it just allows you to play so much faster.

So that's my goal, along with working on my technique—you can never be too strong in your technique.

"

Moore is truly a rags-to-riches story, having made the most of his opportunity to earn a spot even with the odds against him. Now, he could be a key part of the Patriots defensive plans going forward.

The Patriots have solid depth in the secondary, between Moore, Devin McCourty, Ras-I Dowling and Kyle Arrington.

With the question marks around the future of McCourty and whether he projects at cornerback or safety, Moore's flexibility will go a long way in giving the Patriots their answers in the secondary for 2012.

Hear the whole interview with Sterling below.

Listen to internet radio with PatsPropaganda on Blog Talk Radio