Primary reason for slow starts

I believe they experiment on the first few possessions to see what they can et away with. Eventually resorting to what works for them ,aka Edelman , Gronk etc. In other words they don't put the peddle to the metal until they have to. So I guess its play calls and urgency

KontradictioN said:

Why narrow it down to 3 drives? Why not include them all?

Click to expand...

Because this thread is about the Pats getting off to a slow start and not about the running game in general.

KontradictioN said:

Why narrow it down to 3 drives? Why not include them all?

Click to expand...

Because this is a discussion about slow starts, the first 3 drives are the start, is most cases the third drive ended in the 2nd quarter of the game.

KontradictioN said:

Ridley was, by far, the most dynamic back on this team. Capable of pounding it up the A and B gaps or cutting it outside. The defense couldn't get a read as easily on run or pass when he was in the game like they can when the team uses Blount or Vereen. Yes, his loss has been one of the reasons why the offense is sputtering. But thanks for your important contribution.

Click to expand...

I'm absolutely with you. I always thought and still believe Ridley is a better back than Vereen, Blount, and Gray. He makes really good cuts and hits the holes harder than the other guys. And he is a better goal line runner than the rest of them.

Not sure how big of an impact his absence has made but I do think his presence is missed.

I hated when they throw on a 3rd and short trying to fool the defense. Pound the ^%#$@ football!!! 4th and inches is better than punting!

TinhWoodhead said:

I hated when they throw on a 3rd and short trying to fool the defense. Pound the ^%#$@ football!!! 4th and inches is better than punting!

Click to expand...

Mine's the draw play. Some teams can execute this play...some can't. The Pats can't yet try all the time.

archstanton543 said:

Because this thread is about the Pats getting off to a slow start and not about the running game in general.

Click to expand...

chasa said:

Because this is a discussion about slow starts, the first 3 drives are the start, is most cases the third drive ended in the 2nd quarter of the game.

Click to expand...

Fair enough. I'll keep it within the first three drives to stay within the context of the thread topic.

Based on the drives presented by chasa, the Patriots scored 44 points on 18 drives, meaning they were nearly averaging a field goal per drive. If you throw out the KC game, where he got two touches and the offense went into pass-first mode early on, they scored 44 points on 15 drives and averaged 3 points per drive. I'm not saying that Ridley's loss is the sole reason for the offense hurting, particularly at the beginning of games. But it is certainly something to be considered. You don't lose the most dynamic back on your roster and have your offense be better off for it.

Kdo5 said:

I'm absolutely with you. I always thought and still believe Ridley is a better back than Vereen, Blount, and Gray. He makes really good cuts and hits the holes harder than the other guys. And he is a better goal line runner than the rest of them.

Not sure how big of an impact his absence has made but I do think his presence is missed.

Click to expand...

He's better than Vereen and Gray. Blount can be debated. Blount needs a full three steps before he really gets going where Ridley has a quicker first step. Yet, Ridley is easier to bring down. Blount, if given those three steps, is almost always going to go for extra yardage. So it's a trade off.

KontradictioN said:

Fair enough. I'll keep it within the first three drives to stay within the context of the thread topic.

Based on the drives presented by chasa, the Patriots scored 44 points on 18 drives, meaning they were nearly averaging a field goal per drive. If you throw out the KC game, where he got two touches and the offense went into pass-first mode early on, they scored 44 points on 15 drives and averaged 3 points per drive. I'm not saying that Ridley's loss is the sole reason for the offense hurting, particularly at the beginning of games. But it is certainly something to be considered. You don't lose the most dynamic back on your roster and have your offense be better off for it.

Click to expand...

The coaches disagree with you, based on how little they used him.

chasa said:

The coaches disagree with you, based on how little they used him.

Click to expand...

The only thing that it shows is that the game plan changes based on opponent (Miami) and circumstance (KC). For instance, they used him plenty against Cincy, Oakland, Minnesota, and Buffalo before he left the game.

I'll chalk it up to finishing the year with 3 divisional opponents. Plus I do think that BB definitely put on the brakes a bit these last 3 games with an eye at keeping Gronk (at a minimum) healthy for the post-season. They had a really tough go in the middle of the season, and the whole team needed a bit of "active rest". Game by game;

Mia - Went conservative the first half to see what they could get away with. Unleashed the Gronk in the 3rd when it became apparent that the game was still in the balance. Sailed to a rare divisional blowout win.

Jets - Say what you want about Rexy, but he did known how to set defenses that caused us fits. Always a tough, grinding win in NY over the years. In years past, we lose that game IMO. It had a clearly P4 game feel to it. Never even attempted the win.

Bills - Be serious. BB clearly told the players. DON'T GET HURT and set defensive/offensive schemes that were pretty vanilla (i.e. safe) and limited exposure. OL was complete hot mess though.

Bottom line: I don't think you can put a lot of stock in the last 3 slow starts. Combination of tough divisional games, and BB scheeming to "set-up" this team for the post season. IMO.

I really wish they'd start with the no-huddle

KontradictioN said:

3. Ridley injury.

There you have it. Against softer defenses, the offense can light up the scoreboard like a pinball machine from the get go. Against better defenses we'll continue to see these slow starts.

Click to expand...

The Ridley injury has gone under the radar, but when the OL is sluggish, nobody was better at getting + yardage than him.

TBR said:

I really wish they'd start with the no-huddle

Click to expand...

The Patriots have had some offensive explosions in the divisional round of late. I think between two weeks up to heal & game-plan, and a string of softer Dlines, we've been primed to roll over teams. We've even seen them break-out some things they weren't doing in the regular season, like when A-Hern got in the back-field. I can see them doing a few plays of that sort to get the ball rolling, maybe one of those handoffs to Edelman.

And if Indy is our opponent, I think our offense will be rolling, indeed.

All of the above+.

BradyManny said:

when the OL is sluggish, nobody was better at getting + yardage than him.

Click to expand...

Not to be whiney, but thats the #1 thing that annoys me about the Pats. They don't have the personnel to play smashmouth and impose their will on defenses- even the ones with great d lines. Sometimes the come across as so passive. Drives me nuts. Part of me wants Stork, Cannon, Fleming, Conolly, Vollmer, Solder, etc just come off the ball and start crushing people.

Just an opinion, but, Patriots always seem to do much better, when they do no-huddle, fast-pace offense.

The slower they play, the 3-outs shows up.

IMO