The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard of?

[Ice_Ice_Brady]

Okay, technically they have just two players with 1000+ yards from last year, but three players with over 900 yards. I am not sure I've ever seen anything like this. Has there ever been a team with 5 guys that all even 750+ yards in the previous season?

Welker- 1,569 yards
Gronkowski- 1,327 yards
Lloyd- 966 yards
Hernandez- 910 yards (missed two games)
Gaffney- 947 yards

To put it in perspective, our fifth most productive receiver (TE/WR) had more yards than anyone on the following teams: NY Jets, Baltimore, Cleveland, Jacksonville, Houston, Chicago, Tampa Bay San Francisco, Seattle, (and now you can also throw in St. Louis and Washington, since Gaffney and Lloyd are gone.)

Only 31 players in the entire league had over 900 yards last season.

 

[Ron Sellers]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

Okay, technically they have just two players with 1000+ yards from last year, but three players with over 900 yards. I am not sure I've ever seen anything like this. Has there ever been a team with 5 guys that all even 750+ yards in the previous season?

Welker- 1,569 yards
Gronkowski- 1,327 yards
Lloyd- 966 yards
Hernandez- 910 yards (missed two games)
Gaffney- 947 yards

To put it in perspective, our fifth most productive receiver (TE/WR) had more yards than anyone on the following teams: NY Jets, Baltimore, Cleveland, Jacksonville, Houston, Chicago, Tampa Bay San Francisco, Seattle, (and now you can also throw in St. Louis and Washington, since Gaffney and Lloyd are gone.)

Only 31 players in the entire league had over 900 yards last season.

Those five alone combined for 5,719 yards in 2011.

By comparison the NFL record for passing yards in a season is 5,476.

 

[fumbrunner]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

Those five alone combined for 5,719 yards in 2011.

By comparison the NFL record for passing yards in a season is 5,476.

and that doesnt count any receptions out of the backfield

 

[Metaphors]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

Belichick is ensuring that the Pats can survive preseason injuries and enter week #1 with 5 quality WRs for Brady. By getting old friends Stallworth/Gaffney and returning Branch, Belichick is providing Brady with maximum comfort with his receivers. Says to me that Belichick realizes his 2012 offense, with Gronk/Hernandez improving and young RBs ready to bust out in McDaniels' offense, can be special. Having recent seasons derailed with injuries to Welker (Ravens), Hernandez (Jets) and Gronk (Giants), a natural reaction would be to have extraordinary depth on offense.

 

[Deus Irae]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

The offense seems set to me, assuming BB's willing to go forward with Ridley/Vereen/Woodhead/FB. The only question I have is about where they'll get the one extra roster spot from.

3 TE - (+1)
4 RB - (-1)
7 WR - (+1)
3 QB - (0)

 

[HowardRoark]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

The offense seems set to me, assuming BB's willing to go forward with Ridley/Vereen/Woodhead/FB. The only question I have is about where they'll get the one extra roster spot from.

3 TE - (+1)
4 RB - (-1)
7 WR - (+1)
3 QB - (0)

Where did we get the extra spot from when we had D. Gronk?

 

[RelocatedPatFan]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

Good start, but it won't end that way

But, it has to be a scary proposition to defend our offense with all 3 zones being available.

 

[Sicilian]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

There's only so many yards to go around in any offense. But what this says to me is this offense should be able to sustain an injury or two (outside of Brady) and still field 5 legitimate weapons in the passing game. That's a real nice luxury to have.

Also, the versatility of the weapons makes gameplanning against tougher defenses easier. We have more ways to attack a defense than we did last year.

 

[IllegalContact]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

on the flipside, how does the running game look by those standards?



right now, this team is about as one dimensional as it gets

 

[Sicilian]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

on the flipside, how does the running game look by those standards?



right now, this team is about as one dimensional as it gets

I'm willing to give Ridley a chance to prove otherwise, given his 5+ ypc average last year. That said, I don't think the Pats are one-dimensional at all, they're just lopsided to a dominant dimension.

 

[Ice_Ice_Brady]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

on the flipside, how does the running game look by those standards?



right now, this team is about as one dimensional as it gets

I don't think the running game looks better or worse than any year other than when Corey Dillon was here. We have two young running backs with fresh legs that were 2nd and 3rd round picks last year. The key is whether Woodhead can regain his 2010 form and be a Faulk type of threat on third down. I don't think we are one dimensional just because we have a good passing game. Hoping we land a veteran free agent RB with some good skills and a year or two left in tank. A lot of times those guys get cut before training camp as they are not worth their salary.

 

[BradyManny]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

on the flipside, how does the running game look by those standards?



right now, this team is about as one dimensional as it gets

It was one-dimensional last year. BJGE was a very limited runner and was successful largely due to teams respecting our passing game.

Vereen/Ridley both have much higher ceilings. Worst case scenario, our running game is pedestrian and a non-factor, like it's been for the bulk of the last 7 years, save for when Maroney actually brought his A game.

 

[Ron Sellers]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

on the flipside, how does the running game look by those standards?



right now, this team is about as one dimensional as it gets

At first I was thinking the same exact thing, but I think it really comes down to the play calling and game planning rather than the personnel. The Pats would be smart to utilize this strength to their advantage by running the ball a little more often if opponents are going to sell out to defend the pass.

As for the running back position I wouldn't mind seeing them add one of the available veteran free agents (Tim Hightower, Ryan Grant, Joseph Addai), but on the other hand where would they fit him on the roster? It seems like they would have to forget about keeping a fullback if they did that, so that's starting to seem unlikely.

Aside from better depth making the team better equipped to overcome an injury, it also helps to keep those players fresh. Whether it be over the course of the entire season (we've seen Deion Branch fade a bit in each of the last two years) or over the course of a single game, fewer snaps are going to benefit these players no matter how well conditioned they are. If they're just a bit fresher while the opponent covering them has been chasing three different guys all day, that could be the slight difference between being able to get open to make a late catch and it being deflected away.

 

[Shockt327]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

on the flipside, how does the running game look by those standards?



right now, this team is about as one dimensional as it gets

lolwat?

Sorry, but five 900+ yard options means the team isn't even close to being one dimensional.

People need to stop acting like all passes are somehow the same thing, and thus, can only be offset by the potential for a run. It's becoming less and less relevant as the game moves on...

Edit: One dimensional is when a defense can easily key in on a single player (like, uh, Moss) and know full well that the O simply won't be the same. For this team in 2012; who is that one guy that the scheme revolves around? Forget it. This is no different than what started in 2003 when the Pats have 4 WRs with near equal skill -- Branch, Givens, Brown, Patten -- that defenses simply couldn't key in on. The result? Brady's favorite receiver was the open receiver. It's looking like the same thing for 2012. The difference? This receiving corps simply has a way, way, way higher base-level of talent; and they are currently looking to be loaded with depth too.

One dimensional? Tell that to the defenders that will have to cover these five guys....

 

[NEGoldenAge]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

I think this years offense can threaten the outside much more with the addition of Lloyd and Gaffney, which should realy open up the running game.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Re: The Patriots almost have five 1000-yard receivers (2011 stats)... is this unheard

Well...we always have Ocho to keep the average WAYYYYYYYY down