Michigan defensive coordinator Don Brown has seen nine members of his defense get drafted into the NFL in the past two years, including two to the Patriots - Josh Uche about two weeks ago and Chase Winovich in 2019.
Download the MyTeams app for the latest Patriots news and analysis
Brown, a native of Spencer, Mass., whose coaching career includes stops at UMass (as head coach), Boston College and UConn, talked to Phil Perry on the latest edition of the Next Pats Podcast not only about how those two players fit with the Patriots but also about the influence Bill Belichick's defense has on his own coaching.
Listen and subscribe to the Next Pats Podcast here:
When he was drafted, Uche had talked about how he had studied the Patriots defense. That's because Brown has taken plenty from it.
"That's the first place we go, Phil, in the offseason to study," Brown told Perry. "Because Coach Belichick makes such great utilization of guys and gives them the opportunity to play in different roles in different places. That's the first place we go in the offseason to evaluate, especially on third down."
New England Patriots
Speaking of emulating the Patriots, Brown said there's a linebacker New England lost in free agency whose game is reminiscent of Uche's.
"He reminds me a little of [Kyle] Van Noy [who left after four successful seasons with the Pats to sign with the Miami Dolphins]. I kind of see Josh in that similar type of scenario."
And are his two recent Patriots draftees similar?
"They're carbon copies of each other in terms of playing hard and doing it the right way," Brown said of Uche and Winovich.
Perry also talked to Uche himself in this episode of the Next Pats Podcast, which you can watch on YouTube below: