New England Patriots: 3 players primed to spook Justin Herbert

3. New England Patriots linebacker Jamie Collins ready for an awakening

If the New England Patriots defense are to make things uneasy for Justin Herbert and the Chargers’ offense, the secondary will have to play lights out…no pun intended.

So, J.C. Jackson and crew should be on this list, but we are going to focus on front seven players who could deliver some quarterback hits on Herbert or at least have him scrambling out of the pocket scared.  One player who should see more snaps in this game is linebacker Jamie Collins.

As one of the more athletic linebackers on the team, Collins hasn’t done much since his return to the team, but Halloween is the perfect time to bring the Boogeymen out of the closet to spook the second-year quarterback.  That means unleashing Kyle Van Noy and getting Collins in the mix.

In speaking to the media Friday, Belichick talked about transitioning the veteran linebacker back in the mix.

"“I think Jamie has transitioned very smoothly,” Belichick said. “Most of us know him, but there are new relationships to be made, and that’s part of joining any new organization or team, but Jamie’s transitioned well. There are some changes in the defense from when he was here in ’19, but he’s acclimated to those, and it’s going well. He works hard. He knows what to do. He’s great to be around. He’s helped us defensively on all downs, and he’s helped us in the kicking game.”"

Collins did deliver a key sack the last time the New England Patriots were on the road as he torpedoed up the middle to knock down Houston Texans quarterback Davis Mills.  Don’t be surprised to see a little more of that in Week 8.