FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- As part of media access to the New England Patriots' offseason program, the club scheduled to make one returning veteran (defensive end Rob Ninkovich) and one newcomer (cornerback E.J. Biggers) available to reporters Thursday. This is similar to what unfolded Tuesday with offensive lineman Sebastian Vollmer and defensive tackle Markus Kuhn.
With this as a springboard, I watched two Philadelphia Eagles games from last season with a focus on Biggers (16 games played, three starts) to get a feel for his playing style and how he might fit in the Patriots' system. The first game came in Week 3, when the Eagles faced the New York Jets and Biggers played 63 defensive snaps and 16 special-teams snaps. The second game came in Week 16 when he played 61 defensive snaps against the Washington Redskins.
Biggers is an eight-year veteran who has played with Tampa Bay (2009-2012), Washington (2013-2014) and Philadelphia (2015). His contract with the Patriots is a one-year deal with a $25,000 signing bonus, which means he is competing for a roster spot.
Some notes:
Physical makeup. Biggers is 6-foot and 185 pounds. He has more length than most of the cornerbacks currently on the Patriots' roster. He plays with a physical edge, which is probably a result of his primary niche coming on special teams. The Eagles used him as a gunner covering punts, and also as a vice player on the punt-return unit.
Strengths. Biggers runs well enough to play a significant role on special teams. On defense, he seems to be at his best when the play is in front of him. He is aggressive in pursuit and a willing tackler in the run game (again, tying to his special-teams background). He lined up inside (Week 3, Jets) and outside (Week 16, Redskins), showing versatility in that regard. His ball skills are competitive, as evidenced by two pass breakups against Pierre Garcon late last season (and seven passes defended on the season).
Weaknesses. Against smaller, quicker receivers (such as Jeremy Kerley), Biggers showed some stiffness in his hips. If he doesn't get his hands on the receiver at the line of scrimmage, he can struggle to recover and mirror the man he's covering. Though he played on the inside part of the field at times last season, he looked more comfortable on the outside against receivers who aren't as quick.
Patriots history. In the Eagles' 35-28 win over the Patriots on Dec. 6, Biggers had three tackles, one pass defended and one special-teams tackle. He played 39 defensive snaps and 20 special-teams snaps. He was with Washington in 2014 when the Patriots held joint practices with the Redskins, and played under Greg Schiano, a close friend of Bill Belichick's, with the Buccaneers in 2012, when Biggers made a career-high 12 starts. So the Patriots had plenty of good intelligence/tape to analyze in signing the 28-year-old Biggers.
Where he possibly fits. The top of the cornerback depth chart looks clear-cut, with returning starters Malcolm Butler and Logan Ryan and top draft pick Cyrus Jones a top contender to be the No. 3 man in the mix. Those three players are locks, and that leaves 2015 seventh-round choice Darryl Roberts and second-year man Justin Coleman as the next in line, along with Biggers. Then there is second-year player Brock Vereen and a trio of undrafted free agents, Jonathan Jones, V'Angelo Bentley and Cre'Von LeBlanc.
Biggers adds a level of experience that the Patriots don't otherwise have, and his potential contributions on special teams -- coupled with whether any of the undrafted cornerbacks flash potential -- will be the key to him possibly earning a roster spot.
