Indianapolis — All around the NFL, there is a Patriots influence. The nearly two decades of championship success in New England has led to the branches of coach Bill Belichick's tree spreading far and wide.
Teams with a former Patriot staffer as head coach or general manager are Atlanta, Detroit, Houston, Miami, Tampa Bay and Tennessee. Among those teams, Detroit, Houston, Miami and Tennessee all have defenses run by Belichick disciples.
So as free agency and the draft approach, it's a reasonable to ask, will there be added competition between these teams for the same players?