Tag Archives: Tom Brady

Patriots Film Study: Pats Pound Dolphins in Miami

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It’s amazing to me how negative the media can be after a tough loss. As media journalists and analysts, everyone should have known right away that the Patriots were going to bounce back against a divisional opponent and a crucial game to the playoff positioning of the team. Sure, they’re 2-2 now, but the Pats started 2-2 last season, as well. That didn’t stop them last year, did it? Thank God for a 38-7 win over the Miami Dolphins to silence the critics for a little while.

The Patriots are still the best team in the AFC. Nobody has the caliber and number of weapons that Bill Belichick has in New England, nor the ability to find weapons like Belichick. Before we start diving into the film from this week, let’s look at the players who scored touchdowns this week:

Do any of these players look like dangerous threats if they are playing for other football teams? Probably not.

Bill Belichick uses his players to their absolute strengths. It’s one of the many things that makes ‘ole Bill special. Because of that trait, it makes absolutely zero sense why the media should go after this team over a 2-2 start.

Oh yeah, and Julian Edelman returns this week.

Let’s dive into this film.

Play One: 2nd Quarter, 12:11

Patriots ball. 3rd and 6 from the New England 45. Patriots lead 3-0.

The Patriots always do their homework. Bill Belichick hires young wanna be scouts and coaches to watch tape forty hours a week, a strategy that is very well documented by the media. He knows that if he stretches the Dolphins and forces them into a nickel or dime package, he is going to have mismatches. In this case, it’s the left side of the formation (bottom of the screen).

Tom Brady knows that he has the Dolphins in man coverage. On the bottom of the screen, James White lines up wide with Cordarrelle Patterson in the slot. The rookie safety from Alabama, Minkah Fitzpatrick, is on James White while Patterson is covered by Xavien Howard.

Fitzpatrick plays free safety normally. In this case, he’s being used as the nickelback. TJ McDonald is the only safety back, as they are paying cover one to drape over the man coverage below. What the play is designed to do is set a pick at the bottom of the screen. The wide receiver slants inside and sits as a dump off option. The slot guy runs a fade pattern outside, and the unwitting man coverage will most likely let him slip by unnoticed.

What happened?

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Fitzpatrick did exactly what the Patriots hoped. He played White down low instead of switching to Patterson. Because the Patriots had another deep route attacking the middle of the field, McDonald over the top didn’t notice Patterson leak out. The end result? A wide open Cordarrelle Patterson with one man to beat in a thirty yard footrace.

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This is the type of work that Belichick does so well. He finds his mismatches in the film room, finds ways to bring them onto the field, and then has a quarterback in Tom Brady who is so smart that he can make the decisions on the field.

Minkah Fitzpatrick has been a vital player on the Dolphin defense all season, and has looked very solid on the field, but Belichick knows he’s a rookie and is liable to make mistakes. Brady cashed in on that one too.

Play Two: 3rd Quarter, 6:55

Patriots ball. 3rd and 4 from the Miami 14. Patriots lead 24-0.

The Patriots really like this five wide look on third down. Now, they’re going to send a receiver to every level of the field. The Dolphins are playing a zone coverage with four deep players, and three underneath. That means that they are trying to protect against a touchdown. The Patriots know they have zone, even though it’s disguised and it looks like cover two, and the play call works perfectly into that.

There are a few certain routes that are known as “Zone Busters” that receivers run to be more effective against zone. The post and slant are both zone busting routes as they generally slip between multiple zones. An in route would be a good zone buster, too. This play is designed to penetrate through zone coverage.

What happened?

When a defense is playing zone coverage, zone integrity is everything. What does that mean? Easy – Stay in your zone and read the quarterback. The double post route from the left side (bottom screen) made things very confusing for the defense. Then, they had another deep post route coming from the right (top of the screen) and that made everything worse.

Safety Maurice Smith, a second year player out of Georgia, was suppose to play the left corner of the end zone. Instead, he drifted right with the double post. James White leaked out of the backfield and was wide open, and Smith knew exactly what he had done. It was too late.

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What a throw by Brady to hit White in stride with a defensive player about to blow him up. That 41-year-old man keeps making the same throws we’ve seen for years!

Let’s look into the very near future

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This week, the Patriots get back Julian Edelman. This offense is about to be borderline unstoppable. The addition of Josh Gordon from the Cleveland Browns is going to be explosive. He played his first game in a Patriots uniform on Sunday, and looked good in his couple of catches. Sony Michel just ran for over 100 yards. James White had over 100 yards from scrimmage. Rob Gronkowski will have Gordon as a downfield threat and Edelman as a valuable threat out of the slot.

Anyone still diving off of this bandwagon?

How hyped should we be about Josh Gordon?

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When a six foot, three-inch wide receiver that weighs 225 pounds can run a 40-yard dash in 4.3 seconds, that’s special. Definitely lives up to the moniker of “Flash”! Josh Gordon has always been a freak in the measurables department. He has always produced on the field, and he has always been suspect about making good decisions. What are the chances that the New England Patriots get Flash Gordon of 2013? Will he keep his nose clean and buried in the playbook?

He has to. This is his final NFL chance. If he screws up here, he is pretty much done. Not only will his suspension be exponentially worse than a first time offender, but not working out with the all-business Patriots would signal the rest of the league.

The Numbers

What does the talented wide receiver bring to the table? How about 1,646 yards and nine touchdowns? In 14 games? 18.9 yards per reception? These are literally video game numbers! No, not video game numbers, you have to have a cheat code in order to produce like that. Everyone likes to point out that it was ages ago! Did you see who he was playing with?

Old Willis McGahee was pounding the rock in a geriatric way. Jason Campbell and Brandon Weeden striking fear in the heart of defenses. Greg Little, Travis Benjamin, and Davone Bess were providing the cover that a premium #1 wideout needs in order to produce like that? No, to put it into perspective the Cleveland Browns produced 5,423 yards. As a team. The whole team. That was it. Josh Gordon’s yards accounted for over 30% of the team’s total. That’s good.

The 2013 Tape

Let’s all take a breather and bask in the glory that was Josh Gordon’s season:

The 2017-2018 Tape

If you managed to watch that bit of NFL porn and still contain yourself, you’ll notice a few things. He can do it all. Slants, Go routes, Deep ins, and outs, screen passes, and end arounds. People will say that you are not getting that version of Josh Gordon. You are getting this guy:

Sign. Me. Up! This guy is still an amazing highlight reel all game! You still see a guy with an instinctual ability to find a soft spot in a zone defense. That’s still a guy that can box out physically inferior cornerbacks. That catch radius is bordering on unlawful for an offensive player. And remember who was throwing him the ball. If you look at that poor soul’s jersey, you’ll see Deshone Kizer and Kevin Hogan. Josh Gordon’s talent transcends poor quarterback play in a way that we haven’t seen since Randy Moss. And much like the Hall of Famer, he now heads to a situation more befitting his talents.

What the Patriots See

I started writing this article determined to keep a level head and not get sucked into the hyperbole about his talents. Both my football brain and my fan brain came to the same conclusion; that the optimism may be understated. There is a saying for the truly elite players that I love; If your system does not allow this player to flourish, it’s a bad system. I know, I’m butchering the paraphrase.

The biggest criticism about the move to New England is that the system is difficult for wide receivers to learn and contribute right away. My thought is that if he has trouble learning the system, dumb it down. I’m serious. This isn’t some street free agent that may or may not be able to catch the football or tie his cleats. This guy has been stuck in football purgatory playing for a franchise that just recently celebrated its first win in 635 days!

 

And this is not even taking into account the current Patriots wide receiver corp. Phillip Dorsett and Chris Hogan had a golden opportunity to prove that they could rise to the occasion. Cordarrelle Patterson could have made an impact as a pass catcher. Edelman is on his way back from suspension and season-long rehab from a torn ACL. When Gronk is being double and triple teamed in order to take him away and cause the offense to sputter. It’s working. This offense needs a spark. The fire needs to be lit and only a Super Bowl win can quench it! Let’s go Patriots!

 

All photos courtesy of Getty images unless noted otherwise.

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Should Quarterbacks Start Early? A Writers’ Debate.

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The most pressing debate of our time reared its head when Baker Mayfield stepped onto the field in relief of the injured Tyrod Taylor. Mayfield led the Cleveland Browns to their first victory in 635 days! The clamor to start him from Day One began when he was selected with the first overall selection in the draft. John Vogel maintains that a select few rookie quarterbacks should start early and Andy Lykins maintained that there is much to be gained from allowing a rookie sometime before throwing him into the NFL fire. Below is our debate presented in the finest philosophical format you’ll find anywhere.

Question 1: What’s the single biggest reason either for against starting a rookie quarterback early?

Andy Lykins: For me, the biggest reason is that their development could be stunted by being forced to play in a bad situation for a majority of a season with an unusual off-season. Taking a rookie quarterback high in the draft prevents the prospect from enjoying a full year worth of development. College Bowl games, and combine exercise preparation result in a truncated off-season.

Their grasp of the playbook, while certainly impressive for the conditions is not that of an NFL veteran with multiple years experience in the system. They may have a memorization of a certain segment of plays and can be expected to learn more as the season goes on. However, this does not account for all the nuances and expectations of the different defenses you may encounter.

Early playing success does not account for defensive coordinators learning some tendencies and adjusting game plans to counter. It doesn’t allow you to set in stone your “new” throwing motion that you worked on in order to make yourself more appealing. That’s why a limited exposure for a rookie works best for me in year 1. Less than a handful of games no matter what for nearly all rookies is my ideal plan.

John Vogel: Normally, I agree that it is wise to sit and learn as a young rookie quarterback. Many quarterbacks come into the league and aren’t ready to yet take the rigorous grind of an NFL season. However, some rookies provide clues, in camp and preseason, outside of their college tape that shows they are indeed ready to take on the NFL.

Baker Mayfield is a great example of this. All through camp and preseason, he showed us all of the little things we like to see in NFL quarterbacks that proved he was ready to play. His technique, his footwork, his form, his decision making and his measurable’s. Nothing had changed from his move from college to the NFL. When a young rookie shows all of this, then I can easily presume that he is ready to play in the league.

Andy Lykins: While Baker Mayfield may have initial success, you may be stunting future growth by forcing him to rely on athletic skills. And as a general organizational philosophy is it a good idea force a valuable asset into a risky situation, when waiting a short time can increase his chances of success?

John Vogel: Baker isn’t the most athletic guy to begin with. His athleticism worked in college and allowed him to dominate against lesser talent, but the majority of NFL players are more athletic then he is. That means that he will not be able to trust his athleticism, as he won’t see initial success base on his athleticism.

The places that we have seen Baker Mayfield dominate so far are in the good traits that you want to see in your quarterback. His decision making through the preseason and in the Jet’s game was off of the charts. The problem that the Browns offense had dealt with while Tyrod Taylor was playing quarterback is that the intermediate and deep passing attack wasn’t there. Tyrod doesn’t like to take chances so the ball didn’t go to those areas of the field. Baker does, and that intermediate passing game popped as soon as he entered the game. That forced the Jets to back out of the box and opened the Browns’ run game.

The main point here is Baker was pro ready when he finished his junior year. Another year of experience only helped him. In the case of Mayfield, there is hardly a chance of hindering his future success.

Question 2: What are other factors that account for your position?

Andy Lykins: After a rookie season with an unusual schedule, I want them to be fully healthy and ready to compete for a significant role in their sophomore campaign. A rookie starting a full season against the vastly higher physical makeup of the average NFL defense men has a great chance of suffering an injury. This could result in a complicated surgery and lengthy rehab. This will affect his practice reps and playbook retention.

Navigating through an injury-free rookie season will allow him a normal off-season filled with professional nutrition and strength training to prevent injuries. It will allow him the full complement of practice time and building rapport with teammates. And it will allow him to have the full confidence of his coaches that he can compete at a high level going forward. Getting playing time is valuable for a rookie, in order to learn about game speed and processing on the field. But not at the expense of his future, healthy development.

John Vogel: The college football season has gotten longer. To win a championship, teams have to play fifteen games. That’s one shy of the NFL regular season. Granted, it’s spread out a little better over college football, but it’s not like it used to be. College football has also become a more even playing field then it used to be. Sure, you will always have the Nick Saban’s and Urban Meyer’s who simply dominate the recruiting trails. College football is much more sophisticated then it used to be.

Dan Orlovsky, an eleven year NFL quarterback, said that it’s so hard to learn from the bench to take over an offense because of the NFL’s practice regulations. Orlovsky was a fifth-round pick in 2005 out of Connecticut. He was taken to grow to the role of starter over a struggling Joey Harrington. Most of the work a quarterback needs to learn is out on the field, recognizing coverage’s and learning how to make good decisions quickly while keeping your form intact – Valuable repetitions. Sitting on a bench, you can look at paper and diagrams all you want. The field level is completely different.

Andy Lykins: With all respect to Dan, he is a product of a generation or two ago. The current crop of rookie quarterback prospects has been brought up in an entirely different environment. The rise of spread concepts, limited high-end athletic opponents, and lack of training for the NFL game all conspire to make a rookies transition exponentially more difficult.

John Vogel: (I do not have anything to add to that. That was pretty damn good.)

Question 3: Who are the best examples in the NFL to prove your points?

Andy Lykins: So many to choose from. Andrew Luck and David Carr had unusual career paths due to injury. And prospects like Mark Sanchez and Blaine Gabbert all had some success in their rookie seasons, enough to warrant optimism. Probably, my best example would have to be JaMarcus Russell. The holdout, the big money, the fame and the injuries which led to the substance abuse. When that was coupled with an inability to progress in his mental development, he became the highest profile bust since Ryan Leaf. Learning to be a high-level quarterback in the NFL is hard. It is equally talent, development, and an ideal situation. You can control certain things and one that can help is not forcing a young prospect to develop ahead of his curve.

John Vogel: Andrew Luck was a guy who looked really good in training camp and preseason as a rookie in 2012. He’s now considered by most to be a top ten quarterback in the league, leading the Indianapolis Colts, almost single-handedly, to three straight playoff appearances. Peyton Manning is another rookie that comes to mind who showed a lot of promise and lead his team to work. Russell Wilson had an excellent rookie season in 2012 when he took over for Matt Flynn. Cam Newton was very ready for NFL ranks in 2011. He set rookie records his first two games.

It’s really all about the mental conditioning a player is in. If he wants to work to be great, he will do so. If he doesn’t, he will probably bust. When I see guys like Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, and Josh Allen, these are all guys who put extensive work this off-season to get better. You can get by with natural talent in college, but not the pros.

Andy Lykins: No question about that, John. And why would you risk that mental conditioning to fail when you can allow a natural maturation? Allowing a rookie to dip his to and immerse himself in the pro game his rookie year before then also adding pressures of winning and leadership to his plate. Pat Mahomes is currently being an exhibit of my thinking right now?

John Vogel: Because, Andy, the only way to evaluate mental conditioning is to be around the player. Personally, I have not been around Baker, but I have had the opportunity to speak to people who have. He’s a grinder, a strong kid, a guy who wants to succeed at any level. He loves challenges. The Browns aren’t asking him to win the Super Bowl this year, so there is no pressure to win now. They’re asking him to learn how to play, keep them in games, win a few, and get ready to be the man in the future. That shouldn’t hurt his mental health. The culture in Cleveland is shifting with John Dorsey as the general manager, who comes from Kansas City.

Speaking of Kansas City, Pat Mahomes was extremely blessed to have landed in a very good situation. He was the back-up to Alex Smith, who had an incredible start to the season. While it didn’t last, Chiefs fans weren’t calling for Mahomes to start, especially since he was drafted as a project quarterback who probably couldn’t impact the game well enough straight out of school.

Let’s say the Browns made the mistake of continuing to start Tyrod Taylor this year, while they are struggling and fans are calling for Baker Mayfield to start all season long. Everyone knows that the first win was because of Baker. Don’t you think that leaving him on the bench to hear all the Browns fans calling his name behind him while his boss, Hue Jackson, ignores them? The boss would continue to tell him that he doesn’t have the confidence in him, Baker isn’t his guy. To me, that would hurt mental conditioning and strength more than anything.

Question 4: With the Patriots eventually transitioning to a younger quarterback sometime in the future. Layout your transition plan for the team.

Andy Lykins: It revolves around continuing the course that they have been going on the last few years, minus the trading away of the young talent. We have Danny Etling develop on the practice squad. If he looks to be ready to take the next step, bring in some lower cost competition to see what they have. If they want to upgrade, escalate your price for acquiring. Draft in the second, third or fourth round if you find a worthy prospect. The other options attempt a trade of a player on another roster or dive into the pricey backup quarterback market.

And above all make sure the backups or potential backups get extensive preseason playing time and actual game reps in a limited capacity. You do need to know how they react in live games. The worst thing would be to wait a year too late, draft a high first-round pick and start them early. That has a potential for disaster.

John Vogel: They have to. Father Time has always caught up to even the best players across any league. Tom Brady is now 41, and there really isn’t a future on this team. I watched a lot of Danny Etling at LSU last season, he isn’t the answer. I think the best plan is to keep Brian Hoyer around the team. Hoyer is a capable quarterback who the Patriots could easily use as a stop gap to transition to younger talent. This 2019 NFL Draft Class will have a lot of quarterback depth, but all the prospects need serious work. Potentially, they could draft someone like Drew Lock from Missouri, Justin Herbert from Oregon or Jarrett Stidham from Auburn to learn behind Brady. If Tom would be alright with keeping a bench role for a year, while Hoyer plays on the field getting someone ready.

Andy Lykins: I’m not going to acknowledge that you are advocating benching Tom Brady in favor of playing Brian Hoyer, ha! Unless Tom Brady begins to show signs that he may not play in 2019 I would advise to sticking to my plan. Allow Etling to compete for a backup role if he is advancing or bringing in serious backup/prospect competition for. Applying increasingly valuable assets every year in order to ensure that you will not be caught unprepared.

John Vogel: You’re right, I should have specified. If Tom Brady’s health falls apart, I would ask him to stick around for a year or so as the backup quarterback to help train the new guys I bring in, especially from this class of quarterbacks. No one appears to be pro-ready at the moment. So that’s why I would use Brian Hoyer as a stop gap.

Question 5: A prospect’s consistency is one of the most important traits when advancing through the levels of competition. If a player dominates in college, how can you tell if he will dominate at the next level?

Andy Lykins: I have an inexact method of looking at quarterbacks when scouting for the NFL. You can look at all the aggregate stats and QB wins you want and decide whether they are worthy. We can marvel at their ability on the whiteboard and how they dissect plays in a classroom setting. You can gush over their intangibles and how they command the room like a CEO. All of these traits are needed to a certain degree. But many have failed or struggled even when they possessed them in spades.

For me, I watch a handful of their hardest games. Those that are against the schools that have a defense that resembles what they will face in the NFL. The games that they threw 5 picks and had a rough day. I look at those and watch how frazzled they are. Do they play tentatively? Do they still look and act like they believe they can still win the game. Are they playing like the game is slow for them? The worst games of their college careers tell me a lot more about their chances than when they throw seven touchdowns in a cupcake match-up. This allowed me to key in on Dak Prescott as a second-round target when others were projecting day 3.

John Vogel: Honestly? You can almost never tell. The overwhelming majority of people thought that Ryan Leaf, Jamarcus Russell, Robert Griffin III, and Blaine Gabbert couldn’t be busts. Looking at their college tape, they looked like they could dominate at the next level. Measurables are important. I want a guy who is going to grind to strive to be better. A smart guy who understands football. A guy who can make every throw and put it on the money 75% of the time. Scouting from college is all about projecting how good the talent can be at the next level. Sometimes, it’s easy to tell. Other times, it’s downright impossible.

Andy Lykins: Agree, so many more factors than just looking on tape. Coaching, situation, and mental makeup. If you try to predict what young men will do when you pile on all the money, expectations and pressure that come with a high profile quarterback job you will lose, as many coaching staffs can attest.

John Vogel: (I have nothing to add to that. It seems we are in agreement.)

Conclusion

There you have it, folks. In the finest philosophical tradition, John and I have presented our case and responded to our opponent’s. What do you think? Do you think the New England Patriots will be able to transition smoothly into the next era? Is it going to be the Belichick and Etling show or the McDaniels and (insert hottest college quarterback here)? If there is one thing that this argument has shown, it’s that the issue is complex and that there is no one right answer. Picking a number one overall prospect can be fraught with peril. And selecting a sixth-round pick can turn into the greatest quarterback of all time.

 

All photos courtesy of Getty images unless noted otherwise.

Be sure to check out other great articles for all your favorite Boston sports teams on Bostonsportsextra.com

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Tom Brady is frustrated

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Tom Brady hints that he is frustrated

Via Tom Brady’s Instagram

Things aren’t so great In Foxborough, and it shows with the slow start. For the first time publicly, Tom Brady is frustrated with the team especially the offense. The Patriots have had slow starts before like the 2014 loss to Kansas City. Kansas City is a tough place to play and the Patriots responded the next week beating the Bengals. They also had a much better defense that season with Revis and won the Super Bowl. The week two loss to Jacksonville was a rematch of the AFC Championship game, and the Patriots couldn’t get anything going on offense against a tough Jaguar defense.

 With losing Amendola, Cooks, and Dion Lewis, the Patriots lost 2,637 yards.

However, this past off-season has been a strange one. The question is was Bill Belichick in rebuilding mode this off-season? He lets one of Brady’s best target in the AFC Championship game Danny Amendola who had 61 catches last season for 659 yards walk to get more money with the Dolphins. Second, he gets rid of Dion Lewis who rushed for 896 yards and six touchdowns last season. Third, he lets Brady’s left tackle go to the New York Giants in Nate Solder. Fourth, he let Brandin Cooks walk who last season had 65 catches for 1,082 yards. Since the league year started they’ve had 25 receiver transactions the latest is Cleveland Brown Josh Gordon.

With Brady still, here you can’t build for the future you have to get players to win now.

Brady has every right to be frustrated. Belichick didn’t replace anybody remotely close to the talent they had last season to what they have now. Patterson runs the wrong routes and can’t connect with Brady. Dorsett is average at best and also is having a hard time connecting with Brady. For the 2018 NFL draft class, the Patriots have six players on the IR. Danny Etling is on the practice squad and Michel can’t understand the playbook which is frustrating Brady. Brady admitted he wanted White in the game plan more after the loss in Detroit

The Patriots had a bad receiver core in 2006 with Jabar Gaffney and Reche Caldwell but at least those two could catch and connect with Brady. I really think Belichick is in rebuilding mode trying to get as much draft picks as he can. He almost traded Gronkowski to the Lions for draft picks. Belichick thrives in doing what’s best for the team to win now. However, it doesn’t feel like he built a team to win now. It feels like he wants to win years from now with the team they have which is frustrating to Brady. Brady wants talent around him and right now it’s very weak and worse than the 2006 group of receivers. Brady’s Instagram post yesterday says it all “it’s not one thing… It’s everything.” Hopefully, the issues get worked out soon or a frustrated Brady could get ugly.

Patriots Film Study: Positives Shines in Loss to Lions

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The New England Patriots suffered a serious loss to the Detroit Lions on prime time Sunday Night Football on NBC. A humiliating 26-10 loss to an 0-2 team can rock an organization, especially when the opposing team is headed by a former employee. While the loss may have been extremely humbling, there were several positives to take away from the contest. Let’s dive into a few of these plays.

Play One: 2nd Quarter, 3:16

Patriots Ball. 2nd and 10 from the New England 36. Lions lead 13-0

It took a while for the Patriots offense to even begin moving the football. They opened up the game with three consecutive three-and-outs before managing a field goal drive down the field to end the first half. The fifth play of the field goal drive, New England fresh off of their first 1st down of the game, the Patriots lined up in an unbalanced line to the left of the formation.

An unbalanced line is a challenge to a defense if they are lining up in a zone defense. It puts the majority of the play-makers on one side of the field, forcing the defense to pick and choose who to cover. On this play, running back James White is lined up at the top of the screen, Chris Hogan is in the slot, while Rob Gronkowski is lined up in the H-Back spot. Rex Burkhead is to the left of Brady. Tight end Dwayne Allen is anchored on the right side of the line.

White is going to run a “clear-out” go route down the field, taking the immediate attention of the safety, who is not pictured. Hogan runs a stick route, where he settles into the zones underneath or in between the linebackers. Gronk runs a deep out and attacks the cornerback playing low, in this case that would be Quandre Diggs. Because Diggs expects Burkhead to swing out of the backfield, he is going to leave both White and Gronk to the safeties, thinking the help on the back end will cover them.

What happened?

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The cornerback did exactly what Belichick wanted him to. He waited for Burkhead to leak out of the backfield. Instead, Tom Brady had all day to let the play develop and Gronk was wide open for 15 yards. The safety wasn’t in position to cut off his route because of the deep go that White ran down the sideline.

The bright spots here: Brady had all day to throw on this play, and for the most part of this game. When Gronk isn’t bodied relentlessly, he reminds us why he is the best tight end in football. He finds those spots in between the zones and is a tough man to bring down in the secondary.

Play Two: 3rd Quarter, 13:34

Patriots Ball. 1st and 10 from the New England 48. Lions lead 13-3.

New England took the field for the first time in the second half after forcing the Lions offense into a turnover, a horrible interception by Matthew Stafford. I know that Sony Michel has taken some heat in the Boston media for not producing early, but this play should make you feel a little bit better about him.

This is a simple toss play. It’s designed to get a running back into space and pick his way for a few extra yards. The edge is sealed by the receivers (Cordarelle Patterson and Gronk) and then the left guard pulls to the outside and becomes the lead blocker for the running back. Nothing extravagant.

This is where Michel makes his money. From what we know of his days splitting time in the Georgia backfield with Nick Chubb, Michel is electric in space.

What happened?

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaUKDOkhjVQ?rel=0&showinfo=0&start=317]

Michel had space, and he managed to pick his way through the Lions defenders for 12 yards. This is what Sony Michel normally looks like on the field. His main issue so far has been that he missed the entire preseason due to an injury, and the first game of the season. He’s being asked to be the focal point of the running game in just his second game of NFL action and out of mid-season form.

He’s explosive and electric in space. You can only image what he will look like as the season progresses.

Play Three: 3rd Quarter, 10:10

Patriots Ball. 3rd and 8 from the Detroit 10. Lions lead 13-3.

Later that drive, the Patriots find themselves in a third and medium inside the red zone. Down by 10, they need at least a first down. The Patriots are going to go to that overload to the left side of the field again, only this time Gronk and White both line up to the right. The Lions are showing a simple cover two, meaning that the safeties are defending halves of the end zone.

Gronk is double covered here. The Lion’s best cornerback, Darius Slay, is the man up on Gronk with the red line. The safety, a former Patriot himself, Tavon Wilson, anticipates Gronk going to the end zone. He is the other coverage, represented by the yellow line. James White ends up getting covered by the nickelback, Quandre Diggs.

What happened?

White made a nice double move and gained a step on Diggs. Because Gronk was indeed going for the end zone, there wasn’t a safety to help Diggs on the back-end to cut off the route. All Brady had to do was lay the pass nicely in the breadbasket of White, which he delivered perfectly. It’s a touchdown every time.

Gronk can be such a valuable decoy. Teams know how critical he can be in the red zone and will put too much effort to cover him up and not allow the play to go anywhere near him. Players like White, Michel, Hogan and Julian Edelman (when he returns from his four game PED suspension) can seriously capitalize off of the attention put on Gronk.

Other Notes: Brady, Edelman, and Gronk

Brady still has a cannon

Tom Brady has withstood Father Time better than any quarterback in modern NFL history. Now at 41 years old, he looks like he has another good year left in him, possibly even two. Brady let this bomb go deep in the fourth quarter. Even though it was incomplete, it shows off what kind of Cannon he still has.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaUKDOkhjVQ?rel=0&showinfo=0&start=590]

The offense without Julian Edelman

This offense is truly struggling without Julian Edelman. The receivers can’t seem to get open, and although the offensive line can give Tom Brady all day to make a throw, the receivers can’t get in space for him to pull the trigger. Teams right now can afford to body up Rob Gronkowski, because they don’t have much else of a downfield threat. I’m warning you, this offense is going to look completely different once Edelman gets back.

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Shutting down Gronk

The NBC crew did a great job showing this on their broadcast of the game. The Lions double covered Rob Gronkowski for almost the entire game. The worst part is that the rest of Brady’s receiving options couldn’t get open even with the attention taken away from them.

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To summarize, the Lions simply out-coached the Patriots. Despite knowing this, we all know how Bill Belichick is. He is going to come back in full force next week, and game plan something great for their upcoming match-up next week on the road against the 3-0 Miami Dolphins. It’s early in the season, and we see this every year. They’ll be in mid-season form soon enough.

Gronk spikes trade deal – No Brady, No Dice

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TRADE TALK BEFORE THE 2018 DRAFT

Rob Gronkowski was almost traded to the Detroit Lions during the offseason, leading up to the Draft. After Sunday’s loss to Detroit, Rob Gronkowski was asked about all the rumblings of the trade. Gronk casually answered saying, “Yeah it happened, Tom Brady’s my quarterback, that’s all. Wasn’t going anywhere without Brady.”

Gronk and Brady

Staff photo by John Wilcox.

Before the 2018 NFL Draft, Bill Belichick was looking to deal Rob Gronkowski. Rumors of talks with the Lions and Titans were being thrown around. Bill was talking with his ex Patriot friends in an attempt to move the All World tight end. Adam Schefter went on WEEI’s morning show ‘Kirk and Callahan’ Monday for an interview about the situation. According to Schefter “It would’ve been a trade involving draft picks, that was the basic trade.” He continued on about Gronkowski, “He was the only player involved in the trade and it would’ve been a combination of picks.”

HOW GRONKOWSKI NIXED THE TRADE

During the offseason Rob Gronkowski was uncertain about things, he made that clear minutes after the Super Bowl. Since Gronk showed signs of uncertainty, Bill had to keep thinking about the team and its future. Bill has never been one to wait and see about a player, he makes the necessary moves for the team. Apparently, he did and the trade was pretty much done until Gronkowski caught wind of the situation. Schefter again noted, “Basically the deal was all but agreed to, he was going to go to Detroit, and when he found out he called the Patriots.”

Now, this is coming from an NFL insider, not the Patriots or Rob Gronkowski, yet it does seem to line up with the offseasons timeline of events. Gronk and the Patriots did have a meeting before the draft, which was newsworthy because it ended the trade speculation. As Rob Gronkowski said Sunday night, he wasn’t going anywhere without Tom Brady. So what was said during the meeting is unknown to the public, but the end result is clear. New England was the only team Rob Gronkowski would play for, it did not matter if it was the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles. If Brady wasn’t throwing him the ball, he was ready to retire.

Gronkowski

Via USA Today

NO TRADE WITH A HAPPY ENDING

For Patriot fans, the meeting between the Patriots and Gronkowski’s camp, right before the draft worked out. Rob was adamant about what he wanted, which led to Bill Belichick and the Pats agreeing to keep the tight end. I’m sure Bill had his own demands for Gronkowski as well, in the end, it all worked out.

Rob Gronkowski wasn’t traded, his deal was reworked with incentives again. If he reaches those incentives he will receive $4.3 million this season. New England doesn’t have to worry about the cap hit because of Gronkowski’s new deal, it barely changes. So, in the end, both sides seem to have benefited from that meeting before the draft. For fans of the Patriots, everything turned out great. If it wasn’t for Gronk calling the team to have a meeting, a lot of things in New England could’ve changed not just the TE. Luckily this is in the past, everyone has one goal in 2018 and that’s bringing home the Lombardi.

Matty P the Magician?

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“I think we’re talking about something that’s pretty common to when you have to face an opponent, there’s going to be things there that you’re very familiar with”

The Patriots New Nemesis

Detroit Lions head coach Matt Patricia was quoted as saying this in response to several Jets players “knew what plays were coming”. However, this also applies to the upcoming Sunday Night matchup with his former employer, Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots. Even with beginning his career as head coach 0-2, he still possesses an undeniable advantage. Patricia has been a benefactor of seeing Tom Brady every day in practice for 14 seasons. The last six was in his capacity as defensive coordinator and crafting the plays and philosophy charged with stopping him. In case you haven’t heard, #12 is pretty good.

So, will Matty P enjoy success and give his new team in the Motor City a puncher’s chance to win? All depends on his defense. Having the bend, but don’t break schooling drill into him can have its advantages. With him manning the controls, the former aeronautical engineering can apply every complex algorithm that he can muster. He will have to.

A Team with Nothing to Lose

The Lions are entering crisis mode. Injuries to two of the most talented players on the defense will limit their impact. Darius Slay (concussion) and Ezekiel Ansah (shoulder) will either be out or severely curtailed in effectiveness. This is today’s NFL and getting to the quarterback and covering his favorite target are premium positions. Will he be able to hold Brady enough to give his own gunslinger in Matthew Stafford a chance to score some points? He’s gonna have to get weird.

The Patriots can be stumped by unique and unusual formations. The Wildcat offense allowed the late Tony Sparano to eek out a win in 2008. Rex Ryan often deployed a new defensive wrinkle in order to even the odds. Sometimes they worked and sometimes they don’t.

The Plan

In order to roll the dice and come away with the win, Patricia is going to have to gamble. Disguising pressure with pre-snap movements will be the order of the day. A phrase that has often been heard in New England is “manufacturing” the pressure. Stunts and exotic rush combinations can confuse an offensive line group and make Brady feel uncomfortable in the pocket. This can be done without exposing defensive backs to big plays and reducing coverages. Overloads on one side of the line can saturate the blockers without blitzing. And finally, delayed blitzes can allow someone who was not initially on Brady’s radar as a rusher to suddenly appear and force him into sub-par throws. I expect Patricia to explore any and all of these in the desperate attempt to get hands on Brady before he throws.

Could we see some strange and unusual personnel groupings? Two down linemen, two or even one linebackers and the remainder defensive backs? He could just flood the field and play the hand on the run and see what happens. Patricia could go the other route and blitz five, six or even seven players. The hope that one of them could get home before Brady can find the open man throw an on-target pass. Double-teaming Rob Gronkowski, especially in the end zone has proven to be effective for stretches. This would work particularly well as the Patriots are still sorting out the pecking order and effectiveness of its wide receivers.

The Counter Plan

All of these thoughts and ideas carry their own risks and rewards. The Lions are around a single touchdown underdog with what should be a high octane offense playing against an underperforming defense. I could see this as a signature game for Matt Patricia the head coach as he plays his “Super Bowl” against this old boss. A win, or an unveiling of a new defense that can flummox two Hall of Famers, will go a long way to quieting the Lions fans. You can bet that he is spending extra hours watching film, eating his meals at his desk and scribbling with his signature #2 pencil. Doing the same this week will serve the Patriots well.

 

All photos courtesy of Getty images unless noted otherwise.

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FLASHback to 2007’s Offense

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COMPARING THE 2007 SEASON TO THIS YEARS TEAM OFFENSIVELY

In 2007, New England was a juggernaut on offense. As far as regular seasons go, well, the Patriots went undefeated. Of course, this season won’t be perfect, the offense could look quite familiar. Josh Gordon recently picked up by New England, has many fans very excited. First and foremost, he is not Randy Moss 2.0. I want to make that clear.

However, if Gordon can fall in line, keep his nose in the playbook and contribute all season, then we could be in for quite the show. The comparisons this year to the undefeated regular season are fair, hear me out.

Let’s compare Offenses

(Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

DIFFERENT NAMES – SAME GAME

New England’s offense in 2007 was unstoppable, mainly because of Randy Moss and Wes Welker. Other key players had their roles as well, only one player remains – Tom Brady. 2007 will go down as one of the best complete football teams of all time, if not the best. Here is what the offense looked like.

Starting off is Tom Brady, who has seemed to have gotten better with age. As he admits himself, “I feel like I’ve played better the last eight years then I did my first ten.”

Next, let’s look at the running game. Laurence Maroney handled the heavy workload. Patriots HOF’er Kevin Faulk and Sammy Morris as the 3rd down change of pace backs. Heath Evans was the fullback.

Jumping ahead to this season, SB hero James White, Rex Burkhead, and rookie Sony Michel can all either be RBs or receivers in the slot or split out wide. In today’s NFL, I’d give the slight edge to this season’s RB core, as moving the ball through the air is more important than ever. Defenses can’t tell whether it’s a run or pass play when any of these players step on the field. Also, James Devlin is used at FB to open up running lanes and catch the ball as well.

SB hero James White

Photo Courtesy of Sports Illustrated

PASS CATCHING COMPARISONS

Randy Moss is in the HOF, Josh Gordon is not Randy Moss. However, if Gordon is the best version of himself, he will fill the Moss role, which is taking the top off the defense with his size and speed. Brady hasn’t had this since Randy Moss, with the obvious edge going to Moss, with one caveat – the rest of the pass catchers overall compared to this year.

With Gordon attempting to do his best Moss impersonation, Brady now has a real deep threat. His targets also include Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan, and Philip Dorsett with special teams ace, Corderelle Patterson, being involved in some packages each game.

Josh Gordon opening up the field for these receivers will not allow defenses to double. If they do, Brady will find one of the open players. Looking at this year’s pass catchers and 2007 receivers, it’s the same concept with similarly skilled players except for Moss. Now, 2018 now has a beast like him plus Rob Gronkowski. That alone is scary for opponents.

JE11 in the slot

Edelman will be back in the slot, with Gordon opening up the field. Just like Welker did in 2007

Patriots offensively in 2007, besides Randy, had an aging local legend in Troy Brown, another Patriot HOF player, along with Wes Welker, Donte Stallworth, and Jabar Gaffney. They didn’t have a huge part of this comparison in Rob Gronkowski. Ben Watson was good along with Brady, but it’s not close to Gronk alone.  2018 also adds Hollister in the mix. So, can this year’s team look anything like the 2007 Patriots?

IN CONCLUSION, WHERE DOES THIS SEASON’S OFFENSE STACK UP?

Going through it by positions was interesting, and all these comparisons depend on one player, who’s never been dependable. In the event Josh Gordon does click with Tom Brady, this year’s Patriots team will do some serious damage. As I see it, this years RB group can be better than 2007.

Pass catchers; if everything goes to plan, will put up eye-popping numbers. Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman, Josh Gordon and Chris Hogan with the RBs will keep defenses up at night.

No, this season won’t be as prolific as the undefeated team but will have a similar feeling to it. As always, health will play a factor as well of the offensive line.

Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are still here, with players comparable or better to the 2007 team. Still, it’s too early to tell what will happen next.

No Tom Brady led offense will ever be as good, but this year is the closest it will get. Imagine all of this coming after the recent WR drama throughout the last few months.

Bill Belichick and Tom Brady will always put the team first

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There is no I in Team

Bill Belichick and Tom Brady have been on the same team for a long time. We should be grateful at how many championships the Patriots have brought the city. Since 2001, the city of Boston has won 10 championships not many states can say that. For Belichick and Brady, they always will put the team first no matter what differences they may have. Brady has taken lots of pay cuts, so the Patriots can spend money on other high-end talents. Also, Belichick will make moves that he may not agree with. But he does what’s best for the team for example trading Jimmy Garoppolo.

Brady and Belichick have made sacrifices

So this latest book coming out is just another version of the drama that we’ve already known about. As long as Brady and Belichick are here, they are going to do what’s best to bring Super Bowls to New England every season. They may not get along all the time but they share the same goals. All this background noise is really never going to take away from what they do the best. They are both great at handling distractions and dealing with the media.

For example, people want to paint a picture of Belichick and Brady as this couple who wants to get divorced or break up. So say two people had a baby but didn’t get along that well. They would do what’s best for the child, so they may form a relationship and stay together even though they have differences. It is the same with the Patriots. The whole team is Belichick’s and Brady’s child. They’ve stayed together for this long because that’s what’s best for the team even though they have differences. If you want the team to succeed, you have to make sacrifices or it may fall apart.

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Tom Brady Appears Questionable About Josh Gordon

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Tom Brady speaks about Josh Gordon

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady seems questionable about the trade the Patriots made for Josh Gordon. Josh Gordon has had his troubles on and off the field. Gordon told GQ in November that his ritual before and after games was drinking, smoking, and partying.

“We would stay at the team hotel and then players are allowed to go back home, get what they need, and then go to the game. So I’d leave the hotel early morning, go home, eat breakfast, do my little ritual, whatever it may be, some weed, some alcohol, and then go to the game. And then, I’d definitely be partying after every game, win or lose. Every game.”

Brady hasn’t had a big name receiver since Randy Moss

Tom Brady hasn’t really had a deep threat since Randy Moss. Moss was different because he never was into hard drugs off the field or in trouble with the law. Brady told Westwood One yesterday

“I hate to make projections and expectations, That’s not fair. I’ve never met Josh, personally — just like I hadn’t met some of the guys who have come in the last couple of weeks. We’ll see how it goes this week. Hopefully, he can work hard, put the team first, and end up helping us in any role that he can find for himself on the team.”

It doesn’t seem too promising, but Brady realizes at this point the Patriots are desperate and needed to do something at the position.

I can see why Brady would be questionable about the move. Gordon could be just like Chad Ochocinco or have a great season as Moss did. Belichick doesn’t put up with the distractions or the nonsense, so if Gordon does miss a meeting you can expect to see Gordon off the team quickly. Gordon is quick and can get open which is what the Patriots need especially with Edelman out until October.