The New England Patriots have tough decisions to make when they figure which defensive back should cover which Kansas City Chiefs’ pass-catchers. Tight end Travis Kelce may be the most difficult matchup, up there with receiver Tyreek Hill.
New England had long benefitted from a nightmare matchup like Kelce, a player who is are rare combination of too big and too fast. Rob Gronkowski was just that. So they’re no stranger to this type of player. The Patriots seem to have a few options when they consider which players to put on Kelce. Perhaps last week’s matchup against Las Vegas Raiders tight end Darren Waller could clarify what the Patriots will do.
With Waller, Ne England put him in coverage against cornerback and safety Joejuan Williams, who got benched after committing two holding penalties in nine snaps. Safety Kyle Dugger then took over the job, with cornerbacks Stephon Gilmore and Jonathan Jones occasionally helping. So will Kelce get coverage from Dugger, Williams — or someone else?
Williams was asked what he thought of Waller and Kelce.
“Overall, both of those guys are really good guys, really good tight ends in this league,” Williams said on Wednesday. “At the end of the day, it’s all about the preparation and being prepared to play whoever each and every week. This week, we have Kelce. He’s going to be a big challenge for us.”
Dugger was asked a similar question.
“The similarities I feel like is in their route running,” Dugger said. “They both run routes well even though it’s not exactly the same but they both run them well. I think Kelce is a little more physical at the top of is routes. So there’s definitely some differences in that but they both run routes well and are savvy at it.”
In the past, the Patriots have used Gilmore on Kelce (and also on Sammy Watkins). New England has also made heavy usage of Devin McCourty on Kelce. It seems they have no shortage of options. Perhaps they’ll use all of them, in order to help the defense be more multiple and unpredictable.
Containing Kelce will be one of the most important and challenging tasks for the Patriots in Week 4.
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