Socci's Notebook: Brandon King Proving He Can Cut It In The NFL
BOSTON (CBS) -- Halfway through the first hour of Tuesday morning, following their 20-13 win over Buffalo on Monday night, all but a few Patriots had vacated the Gillette Stadium premises.
Left behind were folded chairs leaning against their lockers. One such stall, situated along a row also inhabited by several members of New England's practice squad, belonged to rookie Brandon King.
Immediately to the left, for instance, was the space assigned to recently-signed Brock Vereen, a developmental safety who suits up for practice but not games. In other words, the same spot King occupied in the Patriots' plans nearly two months ago.
But on Oct. 10, the day the team departed for Dallas, King was signed to New England's active roster. He debuted the following afternoon. In the seven weeks since, King's remained with the team in a role both narrow in scope and vast in its versatility.
Though listed as a defensive back, King has often gone unnoticed appearing solely on special teams. That changed Monday when he showed up in the final few minutes of the third quarter. With the Patriots ahead, 17-10, Ryan Allen punted to Buffalo's Leodis McKelvin at the Bills' 30-yard line.
McKelvin caught the kick in the middle of the field and started toward his own sideline in search of an opening upfield. He couldn't outrun King, who approached from McKelvin's back side and applied a hit that pried the ball loose. It bounced to Jonathan Freeny, who gained possession before his own fumble hopped out of bounds.
The wild finish to a sequence started by King resulted in New England's offense taking over fairly deep into Buffalo territory. A subsequent field goal produced the only two-score differential in, ultimately, a one-score contest.
"I really feel like that turned the tide for us," special teams captain Matthew Slater said afterwards, "so I can't say enough good things about Brandon."
Nor, relatively speaking, could head coach Bill Belichick at his post-game press conference. Belichick credited assistant Joe Judge for discovering the undrafted free agent out of Auburn University and detailed how King's confinement to special teams doesn't limit his impact to a single specialty.
"Brandon is kind of an interesting guy," said Belichick, before noting that the 6-foor-2, 220-pound King played everywhere on Auburn's defense from tackle to safety. "It's hard to imagine him as a defensive tackle, but he was, and he actually didn't play bad. He was just obviously undersized, but he had good playing strength and could definitely run.
"We've used him inside on the punt team. (Tonight), we used him as a gunner...he's given us big plays in the return game blocking and also (on) kickoff and punt coverage. He's kind of given us some versatility. He's bigger than a lot of the speed guys and he's faster than a lot of the big guys, so he's kind of a mismatch guy whether he's inside or outside if you will."
As a gunner against the Bills, King was on the outside opposite Slater, a perennial Pro Bowler who drew added attention as Buffalo tried to establish returns.
"If they double Slater – they actually had three guys on him on one play tonight – then that creates some opportunities on the other side," Belichick explained. "(King's) taken advantage of those and helped us."
"Having a guy like Brandon, you're going to have to decide who you want to double," added Slater. "They left him out there on that island on that one, and he was able to get free and make a huge play in the game."
This time of year, as the schedule shortens and the list of injuries lengthens, games typically tighten. Especially come postseason. Every play becomes more important. So does every player, whether household name or virtual unknown.
More plays like his forced fumble on Monday will help King eventually make a name for himself outside the organization. On the inside, he's recognized and respected for both his stylings and substance. Recently, NESN's Doug Kyed learned that King, who began cutting hair as a 12-year-old, is resident barber for much of New England's defensive unit.
Slater's yet to request the service of the rookie's shears, so he can't be counted among King's clipper clientele. However, Slater is first in line to attest to King's athleticism, acumen and ability to cut it in the NFL.
"I wish I was that good when I was that young. He's an impressive player," Slater says of King, who ran the 40-yard dash in 4.49 seconds on Auburn's pro day last spring. "Physically, he's a tough matchup because of his size and his ability to run. He's really joined our group like he's been here four or five years. He's picked up things really fast and really bought into what we're doing. He's asked a lot of questions.
"In my whole career, we haven't had a guy that can play on the perimeter and then play inside like that. Again, I think the good Lord's given him a lot physically that enables him to do that. A guy his size, with his strength, usually doesn't run that well. But there's Brandon King, big time player for us, really a big part of what we're doing here."
Bob Socci is the radio play-by-play voice of the New England Patriots. You can follow him on Twitter @BobSocci.
