My takes

[Oswlek]

I often have a long post after a game, but I am going to keep this short. The board seems quite busy, and I don't see the need to rehash the other points.

* If any team the rest of the way doesn't flood the LOS with press coverage and blitzes on obvious passing downs vs. the Pats, they should seriously consider firing those responsible for the D game plan on the spot. NE has no answer for this. None of the WRs are good enough to consistently get free with only 2-3 seconds to work with and the OL is having some serious problems with blitz pick-up right now. Not only that, but having so many people at or near the LOS also effectively negates the screens and quick hitches that NE likes to run.

* Relating to the above post, in hindsight it isn't that much of a surprise that NE would have so much difficulty against Miami yesterday. They basically did just what NY did, except that Miami has far better personnel.

* That said, prior to Graham's fumble it seemed to me that NE's offense was doing OK.

* Was is just me, or did Miami keep running that "delayed psuedo-screen where the RB lined up off to the left runs toward the middle of the line and is given a toss or pitch" play successfully? I think the last three times that play was used, I called it from the get go based on formation and situation...and is still worked.

* I think I overestimated the DL depth. I like Green and Wright a lot as players, but whenever one of the big three goes out, the dropoff is obvious.

* You know the blocking is bad when a QB can't even get a throw off on a designed roll out play.

* Does anyone know if the Faulk-Brady-Graham play was intentional? It seemed to me that it started as a regualr pass to Brady that Miami defensed well. But if that was the case, why did Brady then throw the ball? And if it was intended to be a lateral from the beginning, why were the players positioned in such a way that a forward pass was a possibility?

* The difference between Dillon of 2004 and Dillon of 2006 is remarkable. The guy looks like he is running in cement shoes right now.

I guess I didn't keep this very short at all. Sorry about that.

 

[BelichickFan]

* The difference between Dillon of 2004 and Dillon of 2006 is remarkable. The guy looks like he is running in cement shoes right now.

That said, he averaged 4.9 YPC on his 16 carries yesterday. When Maroney is back, hopefully this week, we HAVE TO base our offense around those two.

 

[Michigan Dave]

* Does anyone know if the Faulk-Brady-Graham play was intentional? It seemed to me that it started as a regualr pass to Brady that Miami defensed well. But if that was the case, why did Brady then throw the ball? And if it was intended to be a lateral from the beginning, why were the players positioned in such a way that a forward pass was a possibility?

Yup. It's a play commonly known as "Seminole." The positioning wasn't wrong- if you saw CBS' replay from the side, Brady was behind Faulk, Faulk just screwed up as he was throwing on the run, and the ball went forward. Brady hesitated, and looked like he was confused as to whether the ball went forward or not, saw he was behind the original line still, and threw it because he was being pressed.

The most common variation of this play will have the QB throw a quick passback to a WR, who throws deep. We just ran it with Faulk at "QB."

 

[MoLewisrocks]

That said, he averaged 4.9 YPC on his 16 carries yesterday. When Maroney is back, hopefully this week, we HAVE TO base our offense around those two.

Unfortunately I don't think this Oline will allow for that. And I agree with Oswlek that Dillon has lost any speed and even his stiff arm packs little punch as a result. I think Miami made a strategic decision yesterday to let Dillon get what he could. They were intent on pass blocking because they knew Dillon could always be tracked down were he to break one. He's fine around the goal line, but Maroney needs to be the feature back only this blocking scheme is ill suited to his natural talent. It's like asking a Formula 1 driver to operate your plow.

 

[Brownfan80]

I often have a long post after a game, but I am going to keep this short. The board seems quite busy, and I don't see the need to rehash the other points.

* If any team the rest of the way doesn't flood the LOS with press coverage and blitzes on obvious passing downs vs. the Pats, they should seriously consider firing those responsible for the D game plan on the spot. NE has no answer for this. None of the WRs are good enough to consistently get free with only 2-3 seconds to work with and the OL is having some serious problems with blitz pick-up right now. Not only that, but having so many people at or near the LOS also effectively negates the screens and quick hitches that NE likes to run.

This is so correct that it's frightening. Our WRs are not getting open as fast as the passrush is getting to Brady. If Watson is down for a length of time then we can officially pronounce our passing game dead. But then, the run blocking has been just as spotty from this OL as has been the pass protection, so until the OL plays better I'm not sure that any of our tactics are going to work very well.

You're right 100% about how to destroy the short game though. We need to invest heavily in the WR position this offseason. Somehow, someway, we need better WRs.

* Relating to the above post, in hindsight it isn't that much of a surprise that NE would have so much difficulty against Miami yesterday. They basically did just what NY did, except that Miami has far better personnel.

It was frustrating to watch how easily all of our recievers got covered up. The WRs were shut down by CB play, the TEs (mainly Watson) got doubled by the LBs and Ss, and Faulk was routinely covered well by Thomas. Frustrating.

* That said, prior to Graham's fumble it seemed to me that NE's offense was doing OK.

I thought that too. It was as though his fumble said to the offense: "No, we're no better, we've tried, but we're still sloppy and ineffective." And the rest of the offense responded in kind, including Brady.

* I think I overestimated the DL depth. I like Green and Wright a lot as players, but whenever one of the big three goes out, the dropoff is obvious.

Amen. And I saw Hill on one of the sideline shots, but never noticed him in the game. It seems that Warren and Wilfork are the truly dominant players as Seymour has missed some time off and on without anything going amiss, but with Wilfork out yesterday the difference was immediate and obvious.

* You know the blocking is bad when a QB can't even get a throw off on a designed roll out play.

I'd say that his final passing statistics are also pretty good confirmation. Unfortunately.

* Does anyone know if the Faulk-Brady-Graham play was intentional? It seemed to me that it started as a regualr pass to Brady that Miami defensed well. But if that was the case, why did Brady then throw the ball? And if it was intended to be a lateral from the beginning, why were the players positioned in such a way that a forward pass was a possibility?

It looked that way live, but Brady's comments after the game make it seem as though it was intended to be a lateral to Brady and then a Brady pass. I think it was just a poor toss by Faulk (or maybe the wind took it as Brady suggested, but I didn't see that at all).

* The difference between Dillon of 2004 and Dillon of 2006 is remarkable. The guy looks like he is running in cement shoes right now.

He's lost alot of his pop, he looks stiff. That said, he was running well yesterday and I think we went away from the run too early. Oh well.

I guess I didn't keep this very short at all. Sorry about that.

Always a good read, always provoking good conversation, so no apologies needed.

 

[SVN]

* If any team the rest of the way doesn't flood the LOS with press coverage and blitzes on obvious passing downs vs. the Pats, they should seriously consider firing those responsible for the D game plan on the spot. NE has no answer for this. None of the WRs are good enough to consistently get free with only 2-3 seconds to work with and the OL is having some serious problems with blitz pick-up right now. Not only that, but having so many people at or near the LOS also effectively negates the screens and quick hitches that NE likes to run.

* Relating to the above post, in hindsight it isn't that much of a surprise that NE would have so much difficulty against Miami yesterday. They basically did just what NY did, except that Miami has far better personnel.

So true. The free blitzer running right up the middle reminded me of the jets game.

* That said, prior to Graham's fumble it seemed to me that NE's offense was doing OK.

They were ok but our field position didnt help,and josh miller is being missed big time .

* You know the blocking is bad when a QB can't even get a throw off on a designed roll out play.

Brady was surrounded by white shirts all day even on roll outs.

* The difference between Dillon of 2004 and Dillon of 2006 is remarkable. The guy looks like he is running in cement shoes right now.

Probably but i think when we have 3-4 backs active in each game we should run more than this. We try to maintain balance and all that is good but when the passing game is not working , why not run the ball even more. ? Dillon wasnt doing bad...

I guess I didn't keep this very short at all. Sorry about that.

you thought this was long ? ..look at my thread .-
http://www.patsfans.com/new-england-patriots/messageboard/showthread.php?t=46034
i guess i should apologize too...

anyways good pts all around

 

[Oswlek]

This is so correct that it's frightening. Our WRs are not getting open as fast as the passrush is getting to Brady. If Watson is down for a length of time then we can officially pronounce our passing game dead. But then, the run blocking has been just as spotty from this OL as has been the pass protection, so until the OL plays better I'm not sure that any of our tactics are going to work very well.

You're right 100% about how to destroy the short game though. We need to invest heavily in the WR position this offseason. Somehow, someway, we need better WRs.



It was frustrating to watch how easily all of our recievers got covered up. The WRs were shut down by CB play, the TEs (mainly Watson) got doubled by the LBs and Ss, and Faulk was routinely covered well by Thomas. Frustrating.



I thought that too. It was as though his fumble said to the offense: "No, we're no better, we've tried, but we're still sloppy and ineffective." And the rest of the offense responded in kind, including Brady.



Amen. And I saw Hill on one of the sideline shots, but never noticed him in the game. It seems that Warren and Wilfork are the truly dominant players as Seymour has missed some time off and on without anything going amiss, but with Wilfork out yesterday the difference was immediate and obvious.



I'd say that his final passing statistics are also pretty good confirmation. Unfortunately.



It looked that way live, but Brady's comments after the game make it seem as though it was intended to be a lateral to Brady and then a Brady pass. I think it was just a poor toss by Faulk (or maybe the wind took it as Brady suggested, but I didn't see that at all).



He's lost alot of his pop, he looks stiff. That said, he was running well yesterday and I think we went away from the run too early. Oh well.



Always a good read, always provoking good conversation, so no apologies needed.

You brought up a few points that I wanted to elaborate on.

* I still have high hopes for Watson as this is essentially his second year, but he has a few issues that I think might need an offseason to work on. First, it seems to me that he isn't "explosive" enough for a guy with his power and speed. I can't give any great examples, because it is kind of anecdotal, but I think he has troubles with getting through jams and getting up to top speed quickly. Second, I'm not sure how much he likes contact. We've all seen him bowl over guys, but he is prone to dropping balls when a hit is coming.

* Light is struggling. We all see that. But what is with the OL problems? Is Mankins being used differently to cover up for Light? I ask because a lot of the issues that come up appear to be due to miscommunication. And that shouldn't be happening this late in the season with guys who have proven to do well in the past.

* We obviously agree about the need for playmakers on the outside, but I wanted to make this clear: I agree with the decision to trade Branch. I think NE made a mistake by not knowing how strongly Branch wanted out of the 5th year, but not from there. I have a strong suspicion that we would be talking about a worse season had Branch been a lingering issue.

* Does anyone know why Hill is on the team? Sure he was a young rookie in need of seasoning. Sure he's been behind a strong set of DLs since he came in. But shouldn't the guy be off the regular inactive list by his 3rd year, especially considering the injuries of this year and last? Watching him last year in the PS, I was tempted to post something about how Hill was going to be the next Rohan Davey in that we all could see he stinks, but he inexplicably keeps making the team. Alas, I passed and now I cannot prove how smart I was at the time. d%#*!@t!

* I honestly think that Warren has been better than Seymour this year. I'm no expert in this, so I'm sure that it could be because Warren is given more opportunities than Big Sey to make plays. But IMHO Sey has not been a top 10 DL this year, let alone best in the league.

* Thanks for your kind words. You are one of the main guys that makes me keep coming back.

 

[Brownfan80]

You brought up a few points that I wanted to elaborate on.

* I still have high hopes for Watson as this is essentially his second year, but he has a few issues that I think might need an offseason to work on. First, it seems to me that he isn't "explosive" enough for a guy with his power and speed. I can't give any great examples, because it is kind of anecdotal, but I think he has troubles with getting through jams and getting up to top speed quickly. Second, I'm not sure how much he likes contact. We've all seen him bowl over guys, but he is prone to dropping balls when a hit is coming.

I've noticed this too about Watson, but I think some of it is Brady's overthrows. Watson has had to leave his feet far too often when he had space to slow down for the ball if Brady'd thrown it to a shorter spot. Consider the play where he was injured:

Watson had beaten the underneath coverage and the seam was WIDE open. Watson's route was either too deep towards the safeties or Brady threw too high, because Watson should have never had to go up for that football. It led him directly into the oncoming safety when there had been room for him to stop in the dead space and make a safe catch.

Brady may have been playing off of Watson's route, or Watson might have been fishing for an overthrown ball, but either way Watson got injured on a seam play that went too far into the seam for how the safeties reacted in coverage.

* Light is struggling. We all see that. But what is with the OL problems? Is Mankins being used differently to cover up for Light? I ask because a lot of the issues that come up appear to be due to miscommunication. And that shouldn't be happening this late in the season with guys who have proven to do well in the past.

The OL in all is playing pretty badly, but Light seems to be the one struggling the most, which is strange. Before his injury he was a very consistent player that only had trouble with speed rushers in the passing game. Now he seems to have problems even maintaining a block. Very strange to watch. If he keeps playing this way I think the Pats will have to look at some other options. You've got to keep Brady cleaner than Light has been keeping him.

* We obviously agree about the need for playmakers on the outside, but I wanted to make this clear: I agree with the decision to trade Branch. I think NE made a mistake by not knowing how strongly Branch wanted out of the 5th year, but not from there. I have a strong suspicion that we would be talking about a worse season had Branch been a lingering issue.

On the Branch issue: The FO didn't make a mistake. (clarification: they didn't make a mistake once Branch made it known he was holding out). Branch wanted out and was going to get it at all costs. They did the only things they could do. Now, they have to deal with the fallout. Brady has no help, and they need to find him some.

* Does anyone know why Hill is on the team? Sure he was a young rookie in need of seasoning. Sure he's been behind a strong set of DLs since he came in. But shouldn't the guy be off the regular inactive list by his 3rd year, especially considering the injuries of this year and last? Watching him last year in the PS, I was tempted to post something about how Hill was going to be the next Rohan Davey in that we all could see he stinks, but he inexplicably keeps making the team. Alas, I passed and now I cannot prove how smart I was at the time. d%#*!@t!

I have no idea why Hill is on the team, maybe he makes for a good practice dummy playing as the other teams DEs during the week.. He sure has never done squat on Sundays.

* I honestly think that Warren has been better than Seymour this year. I'm no expert in this, so I'm sure that it could be because Warren is given more opportunities than Big Sey to make plays. But IMHO Sey has not been a top 10 DL this year, let alone best in the league.

You're not stretching it. Seymour hasn't been playing like Seymour. Even before his injury, Warren was outplaying him. I couldn't help but think to myself: Well, maybe Seymour always played with a chip on his shoulder because he was underpaid, and now that he's paid.... well, you get the idea.

* Thanks for your kind words. You are one of the main guys that makes me keep coming back.

Well, with what you bring to the table, people should be lining up to thank me for helping keep you around. haha.

 

[PatsFanSince74]

i just got out here because of work (darn that work!) and i see that most of what i'd like to say has already been said. anyway, here are my takes, which will repeat what a lot of other have said, so i'll be brief:

1) I had this game down as a possible L since the schedule came out last spring. The Fins in Miami give me nightmares, especially in December. I wish I could say I'm surprised, but I'm not.

2) What surprised me was how confused the Offense looked by the blitz and coverage packages and how we didn't adapt as the game went on while the Dolphins threw some variation of the same thing at us every time we had the ball. Time for a new O-coordinator. Maybe too disruptive to replace him right away, but maybe it's better than the alternative.

3) We're still 9--4 and if we win out we still might have a chance at a Bye. The minute we clinch the Division but it's clear that a Bye is a pipe dream, BB should start resting starters. It doesn't matter whom we play in the Wild Card Round at Home but it does matter if we lose and don't get to the Division game.

4) Assuming we get to the Division Game, I still, despite yesterday, like our chances in January. The Colts are fading fast, and I'll take Brady over Rivers and Air McNair any day of the week.