Interesting Stat on Woodhead

[DaBruinz]

The number of patsfans who apparently watch these games from their seats in an alternate universe is mindnumbing... Woodhead may be small, but he's a beast. Even moreso than Faulk ever was. What both have in common beyond size is playmaking capacity. He hasn't (yet) shown the return skills, but he's one hell of a gunner... And unlike Faulk in his early years he isn't fumble prone... The proof of how good he is is reflected in the situations they utilize him in and the number of snaps he's out there for and his production. He wouldn't be on the roster let alone active and on the field for a substantial # of snaps if he wasn't a very good blocker. Green Ellis isn't nearly the blocker and it's taken him years and multiple injuries to work his way onto the 53...

Play of the game yesterday was Woodhead showing incredible balance after being sprung by tenacious blocks by two of the next smallest players on the team. That he then upended the kickoff returner on the next play just underscored what this kid is capable of, something the great Ray Lewis discovered, and anyone who can't appreciate that because they've got measurables hangups hasn't got a clue what goes into making a guy a player in this league.

Excellent post Mo.

 

[cstjohn17]

Amen brother, plus he plays special teams. It is so great to see this guy who looks like a kid jacked up on sugar running down full speed and jumping around whenever the Pats make a tackle. Love this guy. What a run against the Colts, unreal.

The number of patsfans who apparently watch these games from their seats in an alternate universe is mindnumbing... Woodhead may be small, but he's a beast. Even moreso than Faulk ever was. What both have in common beyond size is playmaking capacity. He hasn't (yet) shown the return skills, but he's one hell of a gunner... And unlike Faulk in his early years he isn't fumble prone... The proof of how good he is is reflected in the situations they utilize him in and the number of snaps he's out there for and his production. He wouldn't be on the roster let alone active and on the field for a substantial # of snaps if he wasn't a very good blocker. Green Ellis isn't nearly the blocker and it's taken him years and multiple injuries to work his way onto the 53...

Play of the game yesterday was Woodhead showing incredible balance after being sprung by tenacious blocks by two of the next smallest players on the team. That he then upended the kickoff returner on the next play just underscored what this kid is capable of, something the great Ray Lewis discovered, and anyone who can't appreciate that because they've got measurables hangups hasn't got a clue what goes into making a guy a player in this league.

 

[Palm Beach Pats Fan]

...this guy who looks like a kid jacked up on sugar running down full speed and jumping around whenever the Pats make a tackle.

LOL... love the description. That special teams tackle he made AFTER the TD run got me on my feet even faster than the TD. This kid is pretty special.


To remember the first I heard about him---the PFT story saying we picked up a Jets castoff to perhaps learn some of their play calls---well, that makes me smile too. The Jets wanted to be spared the embarrassment of cutting draft pick McKnight for Woody. OK, we'll spare them that embarassment and beat the whole league using the undrafted guy who made McKnight look in comparison like the wasted draft pick that he is probably going to be.

 

[OldEngland]

This quote is from Reiss' first quarter review of the colts game.

5. The Patriots’ offensive tackles generally did a solid job of blocking pass-rushing Colts DEs Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney. One good example came a third-and-6 play late in the first quarter, an obvious passing situation for the Patriots. With the Patriots splitting pass-catchers wide, neither tackle had help from a tight end, but Brady was still able to make a first-down throw to WR Deion Branch without facing pressure. It was a quick drop, something which often helped the tackles on the night, but Brady would have had time for at least a second read on this play if necessary, because of the protection, which included a dive by RB Danny Woodhead to take out a blitzing linebacker.

The images are from 4.00 to go of the 1st quarter of the Steelers game. Woodhead picks up a blitzing Timmons 1:1 on a 3rd and 9 completion to Welker.

 

[Kasmir]

This quote is from Reiss' first quarter review of the colts game.

The images are from 4.00 to go of the 1st quarter of the Steelers game. Woodhead picks up a blitzing Timmons 1:1 on a 3rd and 9 completion to Welker.

Nice one. Dynasty, the other thing you're forgetting is that Kevin sucked at pass blocking when he joined the league. He lost his every-down-back job after the 2000 season primarily because of his 6 fumbles, but he had to work hard to become a great pass blocker. Woodhead is way ahead of Kevin in pass blocking skills at comparable points in their careers.

I actually agree with you that Woodhead is probably shorter than Faulk; he doesn't look 5'7 to me. But your claim that Faulk is "stockier" and has greater lower body strength is not credible. Woodhead is *very* stocky and obviously has short legs and a powerful lower body. I could easily believe that Faulk has greater upper body strength, but I have no clue how anyone could fault Woodhead's lower body strength. Hell, Tedy Bruschi talked about it today:

3. Overlooked aspects of Danny Woodhead's playing style. Woodhead does everything well. He runs the ball well, has good vision and is able to catch the ball out of the backfield or out of the empty set. Sometimes when a running back is so multi-talented, it can create a conflict for the defense: Is he a receiver or a running back? One of the things that is special with Woodhead, and probably isn't talked about enough, is his lower-body strength. It helps him get the extra yard, moving the sticks on third down. You saw that in the second quarter, in the red area, with his 3-yard reception on third-and-3. Overall, when a defense sees a little guy like that, it might not respect the running game. But this Patriots offensive line is playing so well, and with Woodhead's ability to make defenders miss and run through tackles it's a perfect combination.

Bruschi on Tap: Tedy Bruschi makes five observations from the New England Patriots' win over the Indianapolis Colts - ESPN Boston

 

[OldEngland]

This is with 1.00 to play in the second quarter. The play before this is the one where Brady gets hit by James Harrison below the knee. It is also two plays after Woodhead gets blow up by Timmons at the line of scrimmage on a run.

Harrison is on the near side of the formation. Woodhead picks up the blitzing James Harrison 1:1. The final image is of Harrison on the floor from a different angle.

Edit: The commentators clearly stated Woodhead picked up Harrison (92) on this play. However after looking at the numbers in these stills the evidence suggests Woodhead picked up Timmons (94) again.