Chung returns as a key member of New England’s secondary." Patriots AnalysisPatriots Player ProfilesPatriots Offseason CoverageNew England Patriots 2019 roster breakdown: #23 SS Patrick ChungNew White Danny Shelton Jerseys ,9commentsChung returns as a key member of New England’s secondary.EDTThe New England Patriots, who will be off until training camp starts in late July, currently have 90 players on their active roster. However, only 53 of them will be able to survive the cutdowns on August 31 and ultimately make the team. Over the course of the summer, we will take a look at the players fighting for those spots to find out who has the best chances of helping the Patriots defend their Super Bowl title.Today, the series continues with one of New England’s team captains.Name: Patrick ChungPosition: Strong safetyJersey number: 23Age: 32Experience: 10Size: 5’11, 215 lbs.2018 review: The 2018 season started and ended in style for Patrick Chung. The story of his tenth year in the league and ninth with the Patriots — he spent 2013 with the Philadelphia Eagles — essentially started in mid-March, when the veteran defender and the club agreed to a two-year contract extension worth $7.8 million. The deal ran through the 2020 season and was shaped to reflect Chung’s role in New England: he is a core defender.2018 was a perfect example of that. Chung, who was voted a team captain for the first time in his career, again filled his role as the Patriots’ undisputed starting strong safety — a valuable player that serves as a defensive back/linebacker hybrid — admirably and was again a durable and reliable contributor: he played the fourth-most defensive snaps on the team and appeared in eighteen of New England’s nineteen games over the course of the season.If not for a concussion suffered in the second week of the regular season that also forced him to sit out the Patriots’ next game, Chung certainly would have been on the field for more than his 887 regular season snaps (of 1,043; 85.0%). Nevertheless, he made the most of his comparatively limited playing time: the former second-round draft pick was a productive and physical presence in the Patriots’ defensive backfield.His role looked like it did ever since he returned from Philadelphia in 2014. Chung played primarily close to the line of scrimmage as a quasi-linebacker when the Patriots were in a nickel or dime formation, and in coverage of tight ends, slot receivers and running backs. The three-down defender played the same role in the postseason, when he was on the field for 149 of the Patriots’ 188 snaps (79.3%). If not for a broken arm suffered in Super Bowl 53, Chung likely would have played 100% of New England’s defensive playoff snaps.Chung’s defensive statistics are proof of his versatile skill set and usage by the Patriots. All in all, he finished the year with 97 tackles — the second most on the team behind Kyle Van Noy — and also regularly showed up as a pass rusher: Chung registered a half-sack, three quarterback hits and five hurries. Furthermore Danny Shelton Jerseys 2019 , he recovered a fumble and was active as a coverage player. Chung allowed only 56.9% of passes thrown his way to be completed (37 of 65) for 359 yards, four touchdowns and an interception.On top of it all, the 31-year-old also was a regular member of the Patriots’ special teams units. Over the course of the season, he played 228 of a possible 545 snaps in the kicking game (41.8%) and registered a combined five tackles. And even though his special teams statistics are not outstanding, they still played a role in New England ending the 2018 season as Super Bowl winners.2019 preview: Coming off another productive season as the team’s top strong safety, the Patriots and Chung agreed to a new contract: the two sides agreed to add an additional year to the defender’s existing deal that brings its total value over the next three seasons to $11.8 million. Chung’s role in 2019, when he hits New England’s books with a $4.5 million cap hit, is therefore projected to remain unchanged.Chung will again serve as a starter in the Patriots’ defensive backfield and as the club’s top option as a box-safety — despite breaking his arm in early February. As such, the three-time Super Bowl winner will again see regular playing time on defense and special teams. Even though he is getting up there in age, Chung is projected to play around 90% of New England’s defensive snaps as well as an additional 40-ish% in the kicking game yet again.Once more, he will be a key player on the Patriots from stopping the run and defending the underneath areas in the passing game, to playing on all four units in the kicking game, to serving as an off-field leader and team captain. New England has one of the best secondaries in all of football, and Chung’s role in it is a big reason for that — something that is not expected to change in 2019. Caserio stepped in front of the media right after the pick was made."WhitePatriots News Opinion and Analysis Contribute! FanPostsFanShotsAbout the Site List of Patriots Twitter AccountsWrite For Pats Pulpit!New User Welcome and Commenting GuideCommunity GuidelinesMastheadTopics Patriots Off-Season CoveragePatriots Opinion/AnalysisPatriots NewsPatriots Draft CoverageSportfolio ManagementNFL DraftPatriots Opinion/AnalysisPatriots 2019 NFL Draft Coverage“He’s been a pretty productive player”: Nick Caserio opens up on new Patriots wide receiver N’Keal HarryNew,12commentsRead more: 5 reasons why the Patriots drafted Arizona State WR N’Keal HarryEDTShareTweetShareShare“He’s been a pretty productive player”: Nick Caserio opens up on new Patriots wide receiver N’Keal HarryMark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY SportsThe New England Patriots’ biggest need to address entering the 2019 NFL draft was their pass catching corps. Especially after the retirement of Rob Gronkowski, the team lacked a physical presence able to win against press-man coverage on the boundary and come down with a contested catch if need be. With the 32nd and final pick of the first round, the reigning world champions addressed the issue by drafting wide receiver N’Keal Harry.Shortly after the selection, Patriots director of player personnel Nick Caserio stepped in front of the media to discuss his team’s pick — and Harry’s physicality was apparently a key selling point for the 21-year-old. “One of the things he does well is that he plays the ball in the air,” Caserio noted. “I’d say the coverage in this league is tight regardless of the type of receiver that you are — you’re going to have to make some plays in tight corners.”“Big White Josh Gordon Jerseys , strong receiver, good hands, good with the ball after the catch. He had a chance to play against some decent people out in the Pac-12,” Caserio also said about Harry. “He’s a strong guy, he’s hard to tackle. He actually has a little bit of an ability to make people miss. You get the ball in his hands and he’s been able to make some yards. We’ll see if that translates over to us here.”At Arizona State, Harry did make plenty of plays: during his three collegiate seasons, he caught a combined 213 passes for 2,889 yards and 22 touchdowns — productivity Caserio immediately pointed out in his opening statement: “Productive player over a three-year period, played for a couple of different coaches — played for coach Graham a couple of years and then coach Edwards came in — but he’s been a productive player in their system.”The Patriots were not only drawn to the 6’2 wideout due to his outstanding college production, though, but also because his top-30 visit to Foxboro. “He came in and presented himself a pretty mature kid, [he] seems like a smart kid,” said Caserio about a key attribute for any wideout playing in an offense as challenging as New England’s and alongside a quarterback demanding his wide receivers to be perfect on any given snap.For Caserio, however, the approach towards the Patriots’ new first-round investment is clear: take things one step at a time. “We’ll get him out here, trying to get him into the program, get him moving,” he said about Harry. “The expectation will be no different than it is for any other player: come in, try to get started Josh Gordon Jerseys 2019 , build a foundation and go from there. That’s really the focus, more than anything else. Anything beyond that is a little much.”That being said, Caserio was clear to point out what Harry — and any player combing to New England — will have to do to find success in the system. “Show up, work hard, take coaching, and just try to improve each day. Honestly, that’s a formula for every player. If you do those things — show up, work hard, develop a routine, have good habits, get into a consistent day-to-day, you take coaching and you improve — you’re probably going to become a decent player,” said Caserio.Whether or not Harry will be able to do that remains to be seen. Given his track record and the foundation he brings to the table, however, it would not be a surprise to see the rookie quickly find success in New England — and help the Patriots’ offense stay on course even after losing its best player to retirement one month ago.