Sooo....what happens if Brandon Lloyd or Wes Welker goes down? - Page 8 - New England Patriots Forums

***Brady_to_Moss*** · 09-03-2012, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UofApatsfan

If Welker goes down - Edelman steps in as his replacement as someone who has been productive as a fill-in for Welker. Brady has made no name players productive slot receivers. Naturally the offense takes a step back when its leader in yards and receptions goes down, but

If Lloyd goes down - Brady goes back to almost exclusively using Welker, Gronk, Hernandez, and running backs in the passing game like he did last year when they accounted for roughly 80% of his total yards. Not having a big threat lined up outside didn't stop the team from almost winning the superbowl last year, so a Brandon Lloyd injury isn't some dreadful scenario worth discussing ad-naseum. The way the offense looked without Gronk makes another injury to him much worse than an injury to Lloyd.

The lack of depth at linebacker and at O-line seems like a much bigger concern than the lack of depth at receiver imo. If Welker and Lloyd do stay healthy chances are this group of receivers will be much more productive than last year's group.

No boubt the O line is the major issue this year

***Rob0729*** · 09-03-2012, 01:01 PM

Branch will be back. Mike Giardi says there is a mutual interest for him to return. He likely will be signed after 4PM tomorrow when Shiancoe goes to the new IR designation and frees up a roster spot.

I still think there is still a good chance Gaffney is re-signed next week.

If Lloyd goes down, the Pats are in a slightly better position than the Pats were last year considering I would consider Salas an upgrade over Ochocinco. Branch would go back to the #1 WR position.

If Welker goes down, Edelman replaces him. I think that might not change even if Gaffney and Branch are on the roster.

I think the Pats are in worse shape at other positions if the starters go down, most notably the tackle spot. I think once Branch is re-signed this WR position is significantly upgraded from last year with the addition of Lloyd and Salas.

***Rob0729*** · 09-03-2012, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brady_to_Moss

No boubt the O line is the major issue this year

I don't buy that it has major issues. At least not yet. The only starting roster turnover is Light and maybe Waters. We haven't seen the starting line up play together as a unit yet this year. So we have no idea how they compare to what we saw in the preseason. Based on the limited views of Mankins and Vollmer, it should be much better.

***Brady_to_Moss*** · 09-03-2012, 02:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rob0729

I don't buy that it has major issues. At least not yet. The only starting roster turnover is Light and maybe Waters. We haven't seen the starting line up play together as a unit yet this year. So we have no idea how they compare to what we saw in the preseason. Based on the limited views of Mankins and Vollmer, it should be much better.

It will get better throughout the year as they mesh

ATippett56 · 09-04-2012, 02:22 PM

BostonHerald.com - Blogs: The Blitz» Blog Archive » Are the Patriots too thin at wide receiver? Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels weighs in

Quote:

”We have plenty of players that can make a contribution on offense,” McDaniels said. ”We throw the ball to hopefully every skill player that plays in the game, has an opportunity to make some plays for us, whether that be in the backfield, a tight end, or at the receiver position. No, we’ve played with a lot of different variations, numbers of certain positions over the course of time. The guys we got now, I feel good about and excited to use them on Sunday.”