FOXBOROUGH - After his first preseason game in August, Patriots rookie Keion White told us, "I want to play faster." That wasn't about the way he was attacking the opposition - he nearly ruined a couple of Texans that night. What White was really talking about was getting to the point where he could get the game to slow down. That was the true path to letting his natural physical gifts shine through. Guess what? White's getting there, showing real growth Sunday in Miami.
"I feel like I'm starting to slow the game down and being able to play my game better," White told me. "That was one thing you could say was the benefit of being out with the concussion (he missed the Bills game). I took a lot of time to self-scout and kind of slow the game down for me, and I guess it's showing up."
Now look, it could have been better. White still needs to improve his pad level - it showed up from time to time against the Dolphins - and his pass-rush moves are rudimentary. He's not super "bendy" at the top of his rush; then again, at that size, he probably never will be. But you still see those raw tools find some success in passing situations, which whets the appetite for what it could eventually look like.
Right now, White can translate speed-to-power to drive tackles backward - it happened on several occasions versus the Dolphins - but mostly, he's about playing with high energy and relentlessness. I had him for two-and-a-half hurries on 42 pass-rush snaps (the half was borderline. Tua definitely saw him and reacted, but he was also reacting to pressure off the opposite side). That was the most on the team (not saying much but for point of reference). The Pats had just a half-dozen total (vs. 19 by my count against the Bills).
What I was more impressed with was how well White handled himself as a run defender, and that's where I thought his play recognition pre-snap or immediately after the snap showed his mental acuity for the game. It is developing rapidly, and he did so against a scheme that took advantage of him a couple times in their week two matchup.
"I see more now," said White. "I just have a little more game experience, and the game is not moving as fast, and I'm not locked in on one thing. I can see multiple things at one time now. I still have work to do with that, but it's just trying to improve my game, game by game, and try and grow."
There is growth. It's right there in the film (below). And it's also there in White's head. If his physical abilities and his brain for the game align properly, the Pats will have to be contended with for a long time. In the meantime, the rook is taking the proper steps.
"Finding out where I fit in on the defense and doing that to the best of my ability instead of focusing so much on doing the right thing that I end up doing wrong. Just go out there and play free."
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