RayClay
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Greg Knopping chimes in on the Farrar article:
Complexity of the Patriots Passing Offense - Pats Pulpit
I agree with Knopping's answer. But perhaps the Pats need to be more selective in which college and veteran WRs they target. Bethel Johnson, Chad Jackson, Joey Galloway and Chad Ochocinco/Johnson - not guys who distinguished themselves by their precision route running, their ability to read defenses, or their ability to make in-play adjustments. Taylor Price came out of a system which poorly prepared him for the kind of schemes the Pats run and which cost him a late start in 2010 to boot. And maybe we should alter our expectations a bit and expect a certain failure rate intrinsic to the complexity of the system. Even under the best of circumstances it's probably unrealistic to assume that every veteran or rookie targeted will pick up the system and develop a rapport with Brady. Given how successful the results have been, that seems like an acceptable price to pay, as long as the team limits its investment and exposure and moves on. Unfortunately, it may have cost us a shot at a ring or two when things didn't work out as planned, but I'm not sure how to change that without going back to the drawing board. At least 28 other teams would love to have this problem.
I think it might be more of a knack, which makes it difficult to predict. What advantage did Deion Branch or Givens have over some of these guys?
Part of it's study and hard work, but part is reaction. You definitely have to get beyond the mechanical so it's second nature.
Also, the quick twitch guys seem to excel. If you don't get jammed at the line, only the last 1% of the route matters and that one quick step is it. (maybe)
Of course, multiple receivers in concert are creating either/or situations that can be uncoverable if the receiversmake the right adjustments for the play (not to get themselves "open.")
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