The Ongoing Tom Brady Post-AFCCG Ist Half (Framegate) Performance Thread

Chiuba E. Obele said:

• Brady has 20 touchdowns and one interception through seven games (the interception was a bobble that should have been caught). In the Super Bowl era (since 1966), there have been 13 instances of a quarterback throwing at least 20 passing touchdowns in the first seven games of a season, and Brady is the only one with just one interception.

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Most of Brady's deep passes have gone to Rob Gronkowski down the seam. There have been others when the receiver has settled into a soft spot deep in the field, as Julian Edelman did on a crucial 3rd-and-17 against the Jets a few weeks ago. Rarely ever do the Pats attack vertically on the perimeter, but that's likely because they lack a great deep threat on the outside. Brandon LaFell, who had an excellent year in 2014, is a big, physical possession receiver. He doesn't have Calvin Johnson-type speed.

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robertweathers said:

Not sure I'd call 21-30 "The Deep Ball"

In 07 he was 8-17 for 243 yds from 21-30. He was 7-17 for 31+

This year he is 6-13 21-30....1-3 for 31+

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This is a group that masterfully zeroes in on an opponent's weakness and figures out how to exploit it.

And this year, that weakness -- for every defense, it appears -- is against shotgun spread formations. The Pats have been unstoppable spreading the field, particularly in the empty set when they send as many as five receivers out for routes (in some cases, Rob Gronkowski or another tight end will motion to the end of the line and block, giving Brady four options instead of five).

Through four games, Brady was 40-for-48 (83.3 percent) for 469 yards (9.8 yards per attempt) in the empty set. Through seven games, the efficiency has dipped a bit, but the formation has still been wildly effective. Brady is now 66-of-88 (75 percent) for 761 yards (8.6 per attempt) with an empty backfield and five receivers. He is completing 66 percent of passes in all other situations.

Dion Lewis has proved to be extraordinary as a receiver, and his presence -- both out of the backfield and split -- has undoubtedly taken the Pats offense to a new level. Between Lewis, Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola (both of whom are in the midst of their best seasons as Patriots), Brady has all kinds of mismatches at his disposal.

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FourierSeries said:

But I thought he only threw short passes and relied on deflated footballs for his success.

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patchick said:

So extrapolating to the full season, more "longish" passes and fewer bombs?

It's pretty hard to attribute that to Brady per se, given the switch in WMD from Moss to Gronk.

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FourierSeries said:

But I thought he only threw short passes and relied on deflated footballs for his success.

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Nehalem said:

Its obviously easier to throw properly inflated footballs downfield. This is just further proof that Brady has been deflating footballs for years.

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Having an under-inflated ball also allows quarterbacks to throw the ball farther, Tompkins explained. When developing the grip for Baden’s footballs, the company’s R&D team found that by adjusting the RPM of a spiral from 5,400 to 7,200, it made a difference of four feet in distance traveled. Thus, a higher spin rate equaled more distance.....“When you deflate a ball, you allow that finger to depress even more into the ball, which allows a quarterback to spin it faster and throw it deeper with more accuracy,” Tompkins said.

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JMC00 said:

Just for reference the supposed best thrower in the league, Rodgers

4 of 13 (30.8%)on 21-30
2 of 6 (33%) on 31+

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JMC00 said:

Just for reference the supposed best thrower in the league, Rodgers

4 of 13 (30.8%)on 21-30
2 of 6 (33%) on 31+

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Nehalem said:

Its obviously easier to throw properly inflated footballs downfield. This is just further proof that Brady has been deflating footballs for years.

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PatsWSB47 said:

Remember when some idiot reporter from NY wrote the head line in Brady's first preseason game this year "Brady 1 for 4 with properly inflated footballs"?

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