FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Ever since the New England Patriots had a run of injuries at defensive tackle in 2013 -- losing starters Vince Wilfork and Tommy Kelly and getting caught short-handed for most of the year -- it's almost as if Bill Belichick has said to himself, "We have to protect ourselves better and ensure that will never happen again."
The supply of capable, big-bodied defensive tackles who can clog up the middle and potentially collapse the pocket isn't plentiful during a season, so Belichick has been loading up at every turn possible the last three years.