Training Camp Positional Battle Preview: Safety

The safety position could provide a much different look to New England's defense in 2020.

One of the positions that needed to be addressed on the New England Patriots this offseason because of age purposes was safety. With Duron Harmon being traded, that left Devin McCourty and Patrick Chung as the aging veterans on the roster that were still playing a big role on the defense. McCourty is 32 years old and Chung is also 32. 

That's why New England went out and signed Adrian Phillips -- 28 -- formerly of the Los Angeles Chargers, and also acquired Cody Davis via free agency. They then went and spent their highest draft pick on Div. 2 standout Kyle Dugger of Lenoir-Rhyne. 

Now, there's a bit of a competition at safety for reps. The grouping now consists of McCourty, Chung, Phillips, Davis, Dugger, Terrence Brooks and Joejuan Williams (who has been learning to play the position this offseason). 

But how will the on-field reps be distributed, and how will the safety grouping be used in 2020? Let's try to break down how the safety competition will play out this summer. 

What Will Defensive Scheme Be?

To determine how the safety position will shake out, we must first project the kinds of schemes the Patriots will use on the defensive side of the ball. 

PatriotMaven's Max McAuliffe wrote earlier this offseason about how New England could potentially adopt Iowa State's defensive philosophy, which includes having three safeties on the field at the same time. Three safeties on the field allows two of the safeties to cover the deep halves, while the third safety is a mike linebacker of sorts that can find himself in man coverage, covering a running back or helping against the run. 

While that's only a defensive scheme that is used situationally, it can help us determine to an extent how snaps will be distributed amongst the safeties. 

A typical defensive scheme for the Patriots is a base 3-4 defense, but they are often seen running a nickel defense or Cover 1 in passing situations. What those schemes consist of is having one safety in the deep middle, and the other playing up near the line of scrimmage, typically covering a tight end or bigger-bodied receiver. McCourty is typically found deep and Chung near the LOS. If you sprinkle in the three-safety technique, there's a chance that New England could put 5-6 different safeties on the field in a single game based on that grouping's versatility. 

How Does Scheme Dictate Playing Time?

If we were looking at a defense that wanted to put two safeties on the field, one playing deep and the other one near the LOS, it would be relatively easy to figure out how the snaps would be distributed. McCourty -- who is coming off one of his best seasons in the NFL -- would take most of the reps at free safety, and Chung would take most of the reps at strong safety, with Phillips, Brooks and Dugger being situational options for them throughout a game. 

But that won't be the case this year. 

Based on the abilities of the newly-added safeties and the ones already on the depth chart, we should expect to see a heavy rotation at both free and strong safety. 

Phillips is as versatile as they come at the safety position, having played deep, in the box as a linebacker, and in man-to-man situations, and does well in all of those spots. Dugger excels in coverage, but is also very effective inside the box, against the run. Brooks has been used primarily in the box during his time in New England, and Williams -- at 6-foot-3, 208 pounds -- seems more like a free safety option based on his frame. Because of this, it seems as though we could see a rotation of Chung-Phillips-Dugger-Brooks in the box and McCourty-Williams-Dugger(?) deep. Davis is more of a special teams player, so his reps at safety will be minimal, if that. 

The Verdict

Because the Patriots have a glaring weakness at linebacker and stocked up their safety room this offseason, it won't be surprising to see more than two safeties on the field during any given series moving forward. 

That's why a "traditional" starting lineup of Chung and McCourty to begin games will be in the works, but Adrian Phillips will be frequently rotated in for Chung or play alongside him, as well as Brooks being subbed in/playing alongside them occasionally. If Chung has another down year like he did in 2019, then Phillips and Brooks could absorb even more reps in the box. 

Since there is so much help at box safety, second-round pick Kyle Dugger could see action as a box safety, but could also sub in for McCourty. My belief is that Dugger needs a year to acclimate himself to the NFL style of play, so he will be more of a situational player in 2020. 

Joejuan Williams will be the guy to play Duron Harmon's role. Situational, reserve option for Devin McCourty. If Williams wants to earn playing time it will likely have to be at safety because of the loaded cornerback room, so this will be the way to get the 2019 second-round pick on the field.