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FOXBORO -- It had been a while for Adrian Clayborn, but over the last two weeks he's broken through with a pair of sacks, his first two of the season.
Despite that recent surge on the stat sheet, Clayborn has been one of the team's more consistent sources of pass-rush over the course of the 2018 season. He has 25 total quarterback pressures (two sacks, five hits, 18 hurries), which is second only to Trey Flowers (three sacks, three hits, 20 hurries).
Clayborn knows, though, that he still has plenty of work to do in his role as a sub-rusher off the edge.
"I don't think no football player should be comfortable with where they're at unless you're probably Tom Brady," he said. "I still got work to do. I think the whole d-line feels that way. Just gotta keep getting after quarterbacks and keep stopping the run."
The transition from Atlanta to New England has thrust upon Clayborn a new scheme and a new approach with new techniques. It's not always easy for a player up front, one who's used to getting after the quarterback, to deal with the rules that the Patriots have for their edge players. But, according to defensive line coach Brendan Daly, Clayborn has made the switch from one system to another as smoothly as anyone.
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"Of all the guys we've had come in over the years from other places, that transition is always difficult. It's never easy," Daly said. "Particularly for veteran guys that have been at other places. For whatever reason it may be. It's never easy.
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"I would say he's done as good a job as anybody we've had in making that transition. He is a high-character guy. He's willing to do whatever it is he's asked to do. He jumps in. He asks great questions. He's been a lot of fun to have."
Where perhaps early in the season Clayborn may have had moments where he would sail past the quarterback, those have been stemmed. Now at the midpoint of the season, it's clear, Daly said, that not only does Clayborn understand what the Patriots are looking for when he rushes, but he's able to carry that out in real time.
"There's definitely been progress there with him," Daly explained. "Defensive linemen, inherently, they don't want any line of scrimmage communication. They want to be able to put their hand down on the ground, pin their ears back and come off the ball as fast as they possibly can and run around the edge to get to the quarterback. That's what they want to do. It's great when it works out. That's good. Great. There's a little more to playing the position than that. Some teams have a philosophy of that's how they play. Not that that's right or wrong. It's different. I'd say he's done a very good job of working through that."
The Patriots will have to be cognizant of their rush lanes on Sunday night when they take on Aaron Rodgers. Though the Packers quarterback may have lost a step since the last time the Patriots played him in 2014 -- partly because he's dealing with a knee injury at the moment -- but he's still mobile enough to use subtle movements that take advantage of misplaced pass-rushers.
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"We all just gotta rush as a unit," Clayborn said, "and get to him as quickly as possible. If you don't, he's going to throw the ball pretty much wherever he wants."
Whatever the coaching staff asks of Clayborn this weekend, whether it's to crush-rush, spy, or use his speed around the edge, they have confidence he'll be able to carry it out, because he's shown a willingness to learn behind the scenes.
"He's done a nice job for us, he really has," Daly said. "That can be a hard transition. But you'd have to go find him somewhere well outside of this building before you heard him complain about anything."
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