Through the first four weeks of 2020, Chase Winovich seemed to be what the New England Patriots have been sorely lacking on their depth chart: a high draft pick that was a star in the making.
Yes, the Patriots unearthed Michael Onwenu, one of the NFL’s most pleasant surprises, in the sixth round of this year’s draft. But for the most part, the Patriots have had their issues with drafting in the top rounds in recent years. Winovich, a 2018 third-rounder, was flirting with star status, as an advanced analytics darling who logged 2.5 sacks in four games. But in the last three games, Winovich’s playing time is way down: 34.4% vs. the Broncos (22 of 64) in Week 6, 19.7% vs. the 49ers (13 of 66) in Week 7 and 8.6% vs. the Bills (5 of 58) in Week 8. What has been the cause of that?
“Just been situational,” Belichick said this week on a conference call. “He’ll play. He’s a good player.”
Did anything change between the beginning of the season and now?
“Just some weekly decisions based on game plans and so forth,” Belichick said.
The most obvious reason for Winovich barely playing in Week 8 is that the Bills ran the ball early and often, with 38 carries for 190 yards and three rushing touchdowns. New England needed to defend the run, and Winovich is more of a pass-rusher. If he’s only put in the game plan as such, then the Patriots were unlikely to get him on the field, if every situation was a running situation. But therein lies a flaw in New England’s game plan.
If Winovich, one of the team’s most promising young defenders, cannot get on the field because the coaches left him off run defense packages, then the coaching staff is probably at fault. The Patriots need to find a way to get him on the field, just like they might engineer touches for an offensive playmaker.
Some of you might argue that Winovich might make things worse if forced on the field for run defense. Belichick is intentionally keeping him off the field because he can’t handle those duties.
But then you have to wonder: Can it get worse?
The Bills averaged 5 yards per carry against the Patriots even though Buffalo entered Week 8 ranked 32nd in rushing offense DVOA. And New England’s rush defense efficiency rating (6.9%) is third-worst in the NFL. It doesn’t get much worse than that.
So maybe if Winvoich is a good player, as Belichick said, the outside linebacker should be playing – even if that means he and the Patriots defense have to deal with some growing pains. The team is 2-5. They might as well get those growing pains out in 2020, so they can get back to winning in 2021.
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