Cory Durden isn’t afraid to be heard on the football field.
So much so that there are times his own head coach needs to tell him to quiet down.
“I’ve got to try to shut Cory Durden up,” Mike Vrabel said. “I’m like, ‘OK, Cory, you made your point.’ ”
Those interactions were not taking place at this time last year. That’s because Durden was a member of the New York Giants before being waived during final roster cuts.
The Patriots signed him to the practice squad and quickly promoted him to the active roster, where he went on to play in every game for the team last season.
“He played hard, has great energy, it means a lot to him, it’s important to him,” Vrabel said. “He’s easy to coach. You can coach him hard, and he usually tries to make the corrections and comes back, and I think he has continued to improve. He’s played well in the run game, flashed a little bit of first and second down pass rush, being able to get into the pocket.”
Under Vrabel in New England, Durden’s game became more that just talking trash. The defensive lineman carved out a role, playing a career-high 383 defensive snaps while posting bests in pressures (30) and run stops (18).
Something Durden was not able to do, however, was record his first career sack. That’s a goal he easily plans on changing this season.
“I feel like I’m a good pass rusher. I want to go get 5.0 sacks this year,” Durden said.
In order to do that, Durden worked with defensive tackles like Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark this offseason out in Las Vegas, picking the veterans’ brains on how they manipulate offensive lineman and more.
Durden and the rest of the Patriots’ defensive front also plan on returning to last year’s early-season dominance against the run. The 27-year-old will be a big part of that success as he takes over the starting role held by Khyiris Tonga.
Through 17 training camp practices, Durden is encouraged by his progress.
“I feel like I’ve progressed the way that I need to,” Durden said. “I’m right on track where I want to be. Just trying to be prepared for Week 1 against Seattle, so I feel like I’m right on track.
“In the scheme, I’m playing fast. I know this defense like the back of my hand. It’s my second year in it, so I know what everybody’s doing around me. So just being able to play fast, it’s very helpful.”