Quietly Hostile

Quietly Hostile

It’s not often that we see a Chinese football player.  It’s not often that we see a Jamaican football player either.  Perhaps that explains why it is not often that we see a player like Patrick Chung in the NFL. 

Chung, born in Kingston, Jamaica, came to America and in 1999 went to Rancho Cucamonga High School in Rancho Cucamonga, California.  In high school, Chung played safety but was chosen to the All League team twice as a wide receiver.  In 2004, Chung attended the University of Oregon where he earned All-Pacific 10 honorable mention twice (in his freshman and sophomore year), Third Team All-American once (senior year), Second Team All-American once (junior year) and First Team All-Pacific 10 twice (junior and senior year).  He entered the NFL draft that year.

The Patriots never take a chance when it comes to their players: Instead they are deeply invested in making sure they know everything about that player before even thinking of drafting them, especially if they are going to use a valuable second round pick.  Chung, showing speed and strength in his NFL combine (ran a 4.49 sec 40 yard dash and bench pressed 225 pounds a whopping 25 times).  For his size (5’11, 215lbs) Chung was clearly a force.  He didn’t get to prove this however until his sophomore season in the NFL, when Chung became a full time starter at the safety position for the Patriots.  Chung finished his 2010 season with 96 tackles, 9 deflected passes, and 3 interceptions, one of which were a game changing 51 yard interception return for a touchdown during a Monday night game against Miami. 

The only flaw on the season for Chung was the admitted call of the fake punt in the divisional playoff loss to the New York Jets.  Chung was taught to count the men on the line of scrimmage and should they be short, he had the right to change the play to a fake punt in hopes to take advantage of the short handed defense.  It didn’t work, and while it was a devastating mistake, the fact that he took responsibility for it shows his strength in character, making him a true New England Patriot in my book.

Chung has become a fan favorite as the tandem of Pro Bowl safety Brandon Meriweather and Chung has become a feared defensive backfield in the NFL.  The speed and force behind their hits make going deep difficult and running the ball nearly impossible on the Patriots thanks to the aggressive nature of coach Bill Belichick’s defensive style.  Let’s hope that we go from having one to two Pro Bowl safeties in the 2011 season.

Greg 2011 Prediction for Patrick Chung:

104 Tackles

4 Interceptions

7 Deflected Passes

1 Successful Fake Punt against the Jets

Projected Overall Grade: B