Reciever Situation,Really that bad?

[PatriotsFanMatt]

With all this talk about our recievier situation this upcoming season being such a concern what with Branch being a possible holdout,Givens to Tennesee,No Legimate depth beyond troy,chad,and reche.I start to wonder,are we really in that bad of shape granted there is no injuries to these guys?We are looking at a backfield that given the chance to stay healthy along with the Oline,could very well rush for a large amnt of yards.Possibly breaking the old rushing mark set as a team that I believe still is an NFL record for most yards for a team in a single season?any takers???

 

[BelichickFan]

I think we're fine. We'll be running more anyway and should have more receiving threats at TE if Graham/Watson can stay healthy plus Thomas should be more of a receiver than Fauria. Ignoring the insignificant loss of Tim Dwight, we still have our #1 and #4 WR in Branch and Brown. That leaves #2 and #3 to replace, Givens and Andre Davis with Caldwell and Jackson. Although it's a stretch to confidently say one of them can replace Givens, I think the two can replace last year's two as Davis was mostly a non factor.

 

[BelichickFan]

Brady should also have more time to through when combining the running threat and an OL which almost has to stay more healthy this year.

 

[patsox23]

You guys are right, a far better running game will definitely help. Also, whether or not we're "thinner" at WR, Brady's receiving options may well be expanded this season - the WR's, plus Dave Thomas, Garrett Mills, an improved Ben Watson, a healthy Kevin Faulk, and at times Maroney. Depth at wideout could be an issue, I guess, but the passing game is more than fine.

 

[DarrylS]

I agree, the passing game will be fine, also believe that this roster is not complete yet SP & BB are still working on some options.. if nothing more than training camp fodder.

 

[Bostonian1962]

With all this talk about our recievier situation this upcoming season being such a concern what with Branch being a possible holdout,Givens to Tennesee,No Legimate depth beyond troy,chad,and reche.I start to wonder,are we really in that bad of shape granted there is no injuries to these guys?We are looking at a backfield that given the chance to stay healthy along with the Oline,could very well rush for a large amnt of yards.Possibly breaking the old rushing mark set as a team that I believe still is an NFL record for most yards for a team in a single season?any takers???

I think it's unrealistic to assume there will be no injuries.

When was the last time Brown was NOT injured in a season. His skills too, have dropped off drastically. What has Reche ever done in this league? Nothing. Plus, he's been hurt alot as well. As Patriot fans, we all know how fragile Branch is. Heck, they don't even let him play in the preseason, he's so fragile. I'm excited about Jackson, but overall this is not a WR corp to get excited about.

I would agree that if they all stay healthy we'll be fine. Now, let's see if they do.

 

[c_nice_37]

The concern at WR is less of available talent, and more of system knowledge / cohesiveness with Brady.

I thought the passing game lacked last year with Givens out, a guy who knew where to be and when to be there, something Brady counts on before picking his target ( a great example being Ben W's difficulty in the system last year, which made him disappear in games albeit he had the ability to break some plays.)

The running game WILL be dominant this year, and so maybe we can cover up until the newbies learn the system.

 

[JoeSixPat]

With all this talk about our recievier situation this upcoming season being such a concern what with Branch being a possible holdout,Givens to Tennesee,No Legimate depth beyond troy,chad,and reche.I start to wonder,are we really in that bad of shape granted there is no injuries to these guys?We are looking at a backfield that given the chance to stay healthy along with the Oline,could very well rush for a large amnt of yards.Possibly breaking the old rushing mark set as a team that I believe still is an NFL record for most yards for a team in a single season?any takers???

Depth is the real concern:

Depth if Branch holds out through all of the pre-season and isn't 100% on game day

Depth if Caldwell has a typical Caldwell year

Depth if Jackson needs time to adjust to the NFL - as should be expected

Depth if Troy should begin to show his age

Depth if any of our starters should be out with an injury, like Branch was for a good part of the 2004 season.

So if everything goes PERFECTLY there is NO concern

Depth IS a concern however if any of the above scenarios play out, as any or all could.

And while RBs, TEs - even LBs - can catch passes, they are NOT WRs.... WRs are an important and vital part of the team and you need depth at that position to stretch the field so the short yardage guys can get open.

 

[BelichickFan]

So if everything goes PERFECTLY there is NO concern

I disagree with that - perfectly means that both Jackson and Caldwell do really well. If Branch stays healthy, we only need one of them to come through to equal last year as Davis was pretty much a non factor.

 

[Remix 6]

i think were fine aswell

we have 3 young WRs atop the chart...1 is a SB MVP and Brady's favorite target, 2 is our rookie who was the best/2nd best WR in draft and hes been great and 3 is a guy who was going to step up as #1 in SD but injuries set him back. Then, we have always reliable Troy Brown. Hes been here for so long, hes got great hands, great route running and hes a great teammate. His speed has decreased over the years because age but hes still a great 3rd down guy.

Now you look at RBs..Faulk can very well be put in as a WR and have Maroney in backfield or vice versa. Faulk has been great for us as a receiver out of backfield, good hands and so he can line up on LOS and run some patterns. Maroney has shown his hands, his speed and i would say put ihm in backfield and then its a bigger threat to run and get more out with him than we would with Faulk running if its a draw on 3rd down. So throw in 2 more good pass catchers.

Mills and Pass...Mills set records for receiving yards or catches for a TE..hes going to be our H-Back. If #s are correct..and reports say he has good hands..then he can catch the ball aswell as a TE/FB if he start as the H-Back. Pass has been there with us..hes caught ball..hse versatile.

TEs are fast..Watson is going to create mismatches with his WR speed ..hes having a great camp and we expect a breakout from him. Graham isnt as bad as people think..hes made big plays in the past .. hes strong..a great blocker..decent hands. Thomas can catch everything like our WRs..hes not a big TE but hes a little faster than most and his hands are great.


We spread ball around a lot..looks like its going to be fine..we have a lot of capable guys..with addition of Maroney..we can let Faulk line up in the slot or anything like that if we need him there.

 

[World Champs 3X]

Okay if you go back and look at the stats from last year and see what we lost from are receiving corps. Givens had 59 receptions I think between
Jackson and Caldwell they can make up that production. Then after them Brown had 39 I think he will have about 25-30 so we need to make a few there after that between Dwight Davis And Superstar Johnson we need to make up 32 more caches very easily done adding some to the TE and the fourth receiver. So I’m not to concerned with the receivers.

 

[Jacky Roberts]

With all this talk about our recievier situation this upcoming season being such a concern what with Branch being a possible holdout,Givens to Tennesee,No Legimate depth beyond troy,chad,and reche.I start to wonder,are we really in that bad of shape granted there is no injuries to these guys?We are looking at a backfield that given the chance to stay healthy along with the Oline,could very well rush for a large amnt of yards.Possibly breaking the old rushing mark set as a team that I believe still is an NFL record for most yards for a team in a single season?any takers???

Dont forget about the Tight Ends, they are basically receivers in this offense, too.

 

[BelichickFan]

The only legitimate concern I have is if Branch is out for an extended time. But that risk can't be helped, most teams are in the same situation. That's what I like about having the TE and the depth at RB, our offense would have to change if Branch got hurt but I think it could still be successful in a more ball control kind of way.

 

[Feep_FLA]

I think we look good this year EVEN if no additions are made. What makes an offense dangerous? When there are no weak spots and all options are viable. Branch, Caldwell, Jackson and Brown are all capable receivers, Graham, Watson and Thomas are all effective pass-catchers. I think we are all gonna love the Thomas pick by Christmas. He's a vacuum cleaner. Add in Faulk, Mills and Maroney and ALL passing options are in play. If, and this is the key, IF we can run the effectively, Brady will be picking apart defenses with relative ease. Dillon needs to plow for 5 and 6 yards like the beast he's always been and Maroney needs to keep defenses honest by just hitting the cracks with speed and I have no doubts whatsoever our passing game will be fine!:rocker:

 

[JoeSixPat]

I disagree with that - perfectly means that both Jackson and Caldwell do really well. If Branch stays healthy, we only need one of them to come through to equal last year as Davis was pretty much a non factor.

"Perfectly" in my eyes is that Jackson and Caldwell exceed expectations.

Keeping reasonable expectations - that Caldwell will have one of his typical seasons and Jackson will need time to adjust to the NFL like the vast majority of rookie WRS - requires we have depth.

This dynasty was built on quality depth - not rosy scenairos or positive assumptions.

 

[5 Rings for Brady!!]

Got to agree with sixpat on this one! We really could use some kind of a veteran to come in, and I almost would bet the house that Bioli is going to bring somebody in thru a trade or training camp cuts or something.

We have ON PAPER a good line-up if things go well for lots of rookies and Caldwell. But we can't be too optimistic, we still need proven depth.

It would be a surprise to the league, for sure, if we fielded a great offense this year with a solid run game!

 

[DaBruinz]

I think it's unrealistic to assume there will be no injuries.

When was the last time Brown was NOT injured in a season. His skills too, have dropped off drastically. What has Reche ever done in this league? Nothing. Plus, he's been hurt alot as well. As Patriot fans, we all know how fragile Branch is. Heck, they don't even let him play in the preseason, he's so fragile. I'm excited about Jackson, but overall this is not a WR corp to get excited about.

I would agree that if they all stay healthy we'll be fine. Now, let's see if they do.

Your assessment of Reche Caldwell is very flawed. You claim that he's done nothing and has been hurt a lot is false. In 2004, he won the starting job opposite Eric Parker in San Diego and was playing very well before he tore his ACL. When he came back, Caldwell was the 5th option in the passing game because Eric Parker and Keenan McCardell were #1 and #2 on the WR chart. But the receiving options also inlcuded All-Pros Antonio Gates and LaDanian Tomlinson. Not to mentin that the Chargers us a 2RB/2WR/1TE set as their primary offensive set. Caldwell has only been injured once. His knee.

I will admit that he struggled his rookie year, like many rookie WRs do. But he did show improvement each year until his injury.

 

[5 Rings for Brady!!]

DABruins: So do you think that Reche and Branch are not injury prone? It just seems like we have the absolute minimum of depth and a lot of 'hope' that everybody works out. Or are you just suggesting that we are underestimating Caldwell?

 

[SunnyDenmark]

I am not as concerned about WR as I am about some other positions: Kicker, ILB (bring it on Monty!), Return (KO & Punt). Yes we are 'thin' but how many WR do you want the team to carry (with 53 roster spots)? Pats are NOT going to carry more than - say 5 WR and we have 4 pretty good WR's: Branch, Caldwell, Jackson, Brown and ???. So even if you are pretty sure one or more are going to get injured during the season- you dont add them (several more quality veterans) in training camp only to cut them by the 53 roster deadline. At MOST maybe they will get one more vet to compete for the 5th and final spot. Anything else is a waste. With a 2 TE set and a HB and FB - then you only need 1 WR on the field. Other sets can get by with 2 WR's. Plus, I still believe the run sets up the pass and we will emphasis that more this year. John Lynch (Broncho) said in the Denver playoff game - that they knew NE had no credible running game - so their game plan was just to blitz him all day long. Brady is great at going through his progressions - but that takes time. I see NE going back to a power game and increasing the throws to TE, HB/FB and deemphasizing the WR's this year. So I am not overly worried as long as Branch is there by opening season (and his options are limited).

 

[RayClay]

I think we pick up a vet late.

With the new CBA, there were no june cuts, but teams still have to fit their draft picks.

Maybe a low round trade deal so we can get somebody in in time for camp.