Bill Belichick has added an impressive array of veteran players to his New England Patriots roster in recent weeks.
The coach found a slot cornerback in Leonard Johnson two weeks ago, wide receiver Leonard Hankerson and former starting right tackle La’Adrian Waddle on the same day last week, and now reportedly will add an ex-All-Pro running back in Steven Jackson.
Johnson already has emerged as the Patriots’ No. 3 cornerback, but Jackson might have the biggest impact on the Patriots in their stretch run into the playoffs. Jackson is 32 years old, so expectations that he could produce like he did in his 20s should be tempered, but he has fresh legs, looks in great shape and certainly would help boost a depleted running back corps that has lost LeGarrette Blount and Dion Lewis to season-ending injuries.
The Patriots used Brandon Bolden and Joey Iosefa in their “big back” role Sunday in their 33-16 win over the Tennessee Titans, and the two players combined for 87 yards on 24 carries. Signing Jackson would allow the Patriots to put Bolden back on special teams, where he also can serve as depth in both the “big back” and “sub” role, which James White has manned impressively since Lewis went down.
Jackson and Iosefa could share carries on early downs between the tackles, where the Patriots have had trouble getting production this season behind a young, inexperienced offensive line.
Jackson averaged just 3.6 yards per carry in 2013 and 2014, but there’s hope he could be more productive playing just three to five games this season.
Jackson also has experience in Josh McDaniels’ offense — albeit for only one season in 2011 with the St. Louis Rams — so he wouldn’t start from scratch in the Patriots’ offense. That means Jackson might not only contribute as a running back but also as a pass-catcher. Belichick explained it’s more difficult to acclimate in the passing game.
“If you hand him the ball, (it’s) probably not too difficult,” Belichick said Friday. “Once you get into the passing game — pass protection, pass routes, adjustments in the passing game — you’re talking about a much, much, much, much more complex and a lot more variations. In terms of running the ball, you just get the footwork, get the ball handling and give the player an understanding of the blocking scheme, which he’s probably I’d say in most cases seen before — zone schemes or some kind of gap schemes.
“There are basic fundamentals in the running game. You either basically zone block them or you gap block them. Everything pretty much fits into one of those two categories. I would say most backs have probably somewhere along the line run those, but when you start getting into the pass protections and base defenses and sub defenses and routes versus man, routes versus zone, situational plays and all that, it’s a whole different ballgame.”
Jackson had 260 carries for 1,145 yards with five touchdowns and 42 catches for 333 yards with one score in 2011 under McDaniels. It was Jackson’s fourth most productive season as a pro and his most productive over the last four years of his career.
The Patriots have had experience adding older running backs in the past. Antowain Smith averaged 3.9 yards per carry in three years with the Patriots, Corey Dillon averaged 4.2 yards per carry in three seasons, Sammy Morris averaged 4.4 yards per carry in four seasons, and Fred Taylor averaged 4 yards per carry in two seasons. Only time will tell if Jackson has as much success as some of the Patriots’ previous late-career additions.
Thumbnail photo via Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports Images
