As good as the New England Patriots' secondary is, it'll have its hands full Sunday.
The Patriots' defensive backs will be up against arguably the best receiver in the NFL in the Detroit Lions' Calvin Johnson, a 6-foot-5, 236-pound beast.
"He's a man amongst boys out there," cornerback Darrelle Revis said, via CSNNE. "... You can create him on a video game, that's basically what he is. Lot of respect for him, and I do feel like our defense has a lot of respect for him."
We'll see whether the Patriots put the 5-11 Revis up against Johnson or if they opt to match up the 6-4 Brandon Browner with the star pass-catcher due to size. Either way, Johnson should face plenty of double-teams, and New England doesn't expect that to stop Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford from regularly throwing Johnson's way.
"Two or three defenders around him and Stafford will still throw the ball up," Revis said. "And he comes down with it sometimes. We're well aware of that. We just gotta keep on game planning. We're looking forward to the matchups out there."
Johnson missed three games this season to an ankle injury and was limited physically in some others, though he's still managed to haul in 34 receptions for 520 yards and three touchdowns in seven contests.
On the other side of the field is breakout receiver Golden Tate, who has amassed 950 yards on 68 catches so far this year. For Revis, that may be a tall task in itself, though the star cornerback has enjoyed a stellar season of his own and has proven capable of shutting down opposing wideouts in single coverage, much like we saw during his All-World stint with the New York Jets a few years ago.
"Two or three defenders around him and Stafford will still throw the ball up," Revis said. "And he comes down with it sometimes. We're well aware of that. We just gotta keep on game planning. We're looking forward to the matchups out there."
Johnson missed three games this season to an ankle injury and was limited physically in some others, though he's still managed to haul in 34 receptions for 520 yards and three touchdowns in seven contests.
On the other side of the field is breakout receiver Golden Tate, who has amassed 950 yards on 68 catches so far this year. For Revis, that may be a tall task in itself, though the star cornerback has enjoyed a stellar season of his own and has proven capable of shutting down opposing wideouts in single coverage, much like we saw during his All-World stint with the New York Jets a few years ago.
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