Disco Volante

Last week, the Chargers were ranked last in pass defense (32nd) but moved up to 31st after the game.

With the Chargers move up, the Denver Broncos now take their place as the statistically worst pass defense in the NFL. By the conclusion of Monday night Cassel will have faced 4 of the bottom 5 worst pass defenses in the NFL. (Broncos, Chargers, Jets, Dolphins)

Do you see Cassel being able to take advantage of this, or another night of shakey protection and misfired passes?

I feel if the protection can be better, the stage is set for Cassel to have his best game yet this Monday night at home.

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fumbrunner

Ouch. Didn't think that he has faced 4 out of the 5. Wow.

Deus Irae

The Chargers problem, for example, has been a lack of pressure on the QB. Sound familiar? Well, last week, they were able to put pressure on the QB, and the pass defense looked vastly improved. The Broncos are a similar team, with good/great cornerbacks being killed by a defensive line that can't apply pressure.

Once again, it's going to be a battle of the resistible force vs. the movable object.

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"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane."
- Marcus Aurelius

Disco Volante

Indeed, strange to see a secondary with Champ Bailey being statistically worst in the NFL.

I'd be more concerned with a bad night from the O-Line than a average/bad start from Cassel. I'm expecting the O-Line to bounce back and Cassel taking advantage of his time.

However a good night by the O-Line and the mentioned average/bad start would worry me.

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Jimke

To test the Broncos' defensive backfield, Cassel has to throw the ball

more than 4 yards. Also, give Shanahan enough credit to have an all out

blitz against Cassel to rattle him.

It will be business as usual with the Patriots, elaborate schemes with

no pass rush.

Leave No Doubt

That's probably everybody's gameplan unfortunately-take the 'weakness' then do your best to hammer at it all night long so that even a mediocre pass defense can eventually succeed. Shanahan's one of the best coaches in the league-some say he gameplans a lot like BB-this will be another tough one for us I think. Plus traditionally Monday nights in general haven't been the kindest to the Pats.

Our OL's got their work cut out for them-again-and that'll probably be the case for a lot of the season. But as Cassel improves that burden should lighten a bit? At least that's how I HOPE it works out

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edit...2012 BABY!

NYCPatsFan

Subtle but insightful criticism indeed. If he and our offense can't get it done against the lowest rated defenses, what realistic chance will they have against the better ones? Good one.

Positive way to look at your point: better that he first gets valuable real time experience against poor defenses, which will hopefully improve him and our offense as they play the better ones.

PatsFanSince74

He needs better protection and a running game that keeps the defense honest. He could be playing against a respectable Division I secondary and have trouble if he's getting bullrushed by an NFL D-line that doesn't have to worry about the run. Clearly, he needs better pocket presence (aka, happy-feet NOT) and to get rid of the ball faster, but these things come with time and experience, which BB clearly wants him to get.

I'm still mystified by the play of what, for most of last season, was considered the best O-line in the league. For now, I'm sticking with my view that its bodies were inhabited by Aliens on SB day, that the Aliens now like playing in the NFL and that they decided to stay...

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It is what it is. It wasn't what it wasn't.

PatsFanInVa

Who's healthy on the O-line right now? I'm not dumb; I don't think Cassel's "as good as Brady" as Uminyura says.... but he'd be a damn sight better, I think, with an O line keeping him upright. I know Kaczur got banged up, but honestly other than getting distracted by the whole "no start this guy no trade for that guy" debate, I just realized I have pretty much ignored the day-to-day details. So I am going by vague impressions...

- Is the O-Line doing for Cassel what they did for Tom?
- Is that O-line further diminished by injury? Again, from vague recollection.
- If the O-line IS healthy, how long until the league discovers a gambling pool among Pats O-line players putting thousands of dollars on how long it takes before O'Connell starts, spurred on by an anonymous message board poster?

#3 is a joke. Seriously guys, catch me up on the O-line points if you would. I'll start looking around at posts on the subject. It seems that even when healthy, they've been getting beat not on the edges, but straight up the gut, since the super bowl.

Stats-wise... how many hurries and sacks have they given up? We all know that offensive production can generously be termed as "off" right now.... but I remember during the season last year, this was supposedly the best O-line in football. Didn't believe it, but we were definitely top-10.

What about now? Is the drop-off in reality as steep as my vague impressions say? How much of it is being out of synch somehow? How much of it is some undefineable "I'll do it for Brady, not Cassel" or "I'll do it if we're on fire, not if we're struggling" bullhockey? Or is it the exact same weaknesses we saw last February in the Game That Shall Not Be Named?

Or, how much of it is injury?

Asking serious questions here, from the POV of a guy who's been distracted by work and the elections. After all, it's the political "playoffs" right now.

PFnV

TheGodInAGreyHoodie

Most games it was an outstanding passo-line last year. But the SB plus the Ravens, Eagles and Colts they looked somewhat suspect. And they were not a great rushing o-line last year.

Part of the decline of the o-line is it sounds like the Patriots didn't just lose their starting QB, but o-line coach as well. One of the criticism of Cassel is he is not as good at directing the o-line. It might be our o-line can't figure out how to block unless the QB tells them how to do their job. That burden should not lie so heavily on the QB but be a greater responsibly of the o-line coach, OC and O-line players themselves.

It is also possible that TB absence from the film room might be hurting the team. Maybe Tom was doing much of the job that should be being done by the OC, because he is a better game planner than the guy getting paid to be an OC.