kudzif

A lot of people say oh we should not bring a receiver like Wallace for example because the offence is too complex. Also, there is the theory that receivers have generally failed in NE because they could not grasp the offence. I think this is false because if you really look at the free agent wrs we have brought over the years they have all been Wrs whose best days are gone(Galloway) or were just never really good .As for the draft pick wrs that did not pan out in NE , none of them has ever gone on to do anything significant at any other team with a so called simpler offense, and most of them are out of the NFL. We have never had a wr on top of his game come here (highly regarded free agent WR ) and fail and don't mention Chad he had been declining for years now. Our problem at this position is we have been trying to outsmart the NFL ,but the NFL has valued these guys appropriately , and our drafting at this position sucks. Is our offense more complex than others probably , but the case for it being the cause for the failure rate at the WR position has been overstated.

supafly

It sure seems like it could be the complexity of the scheme itself, although it's likely a combination of multiple factors.

If I had to pick just one theory though, it would likely be the complexity of the system, the ability to read and react appropriately, and the timing that's involved.

__________________
Patiently waiting to defend the next "bubble" player in this summer's training camp.....

Rob0729

It isn't a myth that the Pats have one of the most complicated offenses in the league with more presnap reads and adjustments than most offenses. Also, it is well known the Steelers do not have a complicated offense.

Wallace may be able to pick up the Pats' offense, but it isn't a guaranteed.

Joey Galloway may have been done, although he played the next year in Washington, but it was quite clear that he refused to work to pick up the offense while he was here and Brady was noticeable upset with his lack of understanding of the offense when they were pictured on the sidelines together.

Also, many reporters in this area, including Greg Bedard today have said that Ochocinco never picked up the offense last year and it wasn't as much a skill set thing and more of a lack of grsp of the offense. That is why he isn't getting cut and being allowed to try to earn a spot on the team in August.

patsfan-1982

Talent is Talent if Gronk and hernandez could pick up the system as rookies im sure any WR that can get open will not have a hard time geting the ball from Brady

Rob0729

Or Hernandez and Gronk have football smarts. The Pats have gone through a lot of TEs over the years too.

There are a lot of WRs out there who totally rely on their physical skills and not their football smarts and there are others who rely on their football smarts over superior football skills. That is why smart, less physically talented reeivers like Troy Brown, Deion Branch, David Patten, David Givens, and Wes Welker have thrived in this system.

patsfan-1982

i agree that they are smart but i also think they are two of the most talent TE's in the NFL

Rob0729

Are the two trait mutually exclusive? Can't a player have an extremely high football intelligence and also have extremely high physical skills?

Again, Welker isn't extremely physically gifted. Neither was Branch in his prime. Or Troy Brown.

AndyJohnson

I don't see it as a matter of 'learning' the offense, but a matter of having higher expectations for the mental part of the game.
Yes, we are precise in alignment especially with the 2 TEs, so you have to remember where to line up, but come on that isn't an issue for someone who has played football their whole life.
The issue is that receivers are expected to read the defense and adjust their route to it.
Often it is portrayed that they don't know the playbook, but that isn't the reality.
The reality is they are poor at recognizing the coverage and making the correct decision.
The 2 primary examples 85 and Galloway are WRs who spent their entire careers having plays desgined to draw coverage away from their routes, and were never, ever asked to think while running a route, outside of setting up the Db for your cut.
Both of them spent many years in the NFL essentially ignoring what we told them to now focus on. They just couldn't do it.

Personally, I think it would be foolish to dumb down the offense and make it less effective in order to be able to get results out of guys who just don't understand what a defense is doing.
We have had many, many examples of receivers who have no problem with these decisions. Its kind of silly to think the football IQ required is too high because 2 guys who spent 10+ years playing the game differently didn't learn it right away.

patsfan-1982

you have no Disagreement from me my point is i dont think you need to be Albert Einstein to play for the pats if you have good Football knowledge and can beat one on one coverage you can make plays for the pats

cmasspatsfan

Jabar Gaffney begs to differ. I think they did their homework in picking the two current TE's, football smarts and gifted athletes. Branch is a good example of someome that thrived in this system but didnt do much in Seattle, he'd probably already be out of football if he wasnt with the Pats.