As a linebacker alongside Tedy Bruschi, Mike Vrabel and several others throughout my years in New England, I felt that our LB group -- which never had an All-Pro honoree (Vrabel went on to win the honor in 2007, when I was with Cleveland) -- had these components when we helped the Patriots win three Super Bowl titles in 2001, 2003 and 2004. We were always on the same page, whether we were watching film or playing on Sunday, because we gave our full attention to preparation. We not only knew our own job but the position of every other person in the unit. We were moved around a lot and interchangeable, and that worked to our advantage. However, we could only play this way with good communication. When you're lacking in that area, there is a lot of confusion, players are frequently a step slower and the defense gets beat on the play. If communication is smooth, players can simply react to what the offense is doing, because they know assignments and can diagnose formations quickly.