5 best training camp battles for Patriots in 2019

2. Linebacker

Elandon Roberts vs. Ja’Whaun Bentley

This past season, the Patriots’ defense certainly took its lumps on more than one occasion. During the regular season, Bill Belichick’s club finished 21st in the league in total yards allowed per game. The team was 11th vs. the run and late in the year struggled against the ground attacks of the Miami Dolphins and Pittsburgh Steelers. The Pats did come up with a solid 28 takeaways but also finished tied for last in the NFL with just 30 sacks.

So much for numbers. Belichick’s squad got enough stops at the right times to secure another Super Bowl victory. New England held all three of its postseason opponents below the century mark on the ground. The Patriots sacked Philip Rivers, Patrick Mahomes and Jared Goff a combined 10 times in three outings. And on Super Sunday at Atlanta against the Los Angeles Rams, the team held the second-highest scoring team in the league in 2018 to only three points.

There’s already been reference to some changes on the defensive front. But could there be a duel setting up at one of the linebacker spots, where veterans Dont’a Hightower and Kyle Van Noy are fixtures? A year ago, then-rookie Ja’Whaun Bentley played in the first three games (2 starts) and finished with 13 stops, an interception and one pass defensed. But he spent the remainder of the season on injured reserve. Three-year pro Elandon Roberts has made a combined 25 regular-season starts the past two years and in ’18, finished fifth on the team with 63 tackles and one sack while knocking down four passes. So could the fifth-round pick from a year ago pose a challenge to Roberts?

Next: No. 1