What is it about Brady.,..

[Snarf]

First, this is NOT a knock against TB. TB is the best ever. Just something I've noticed over the years....

He either has a game where his passes are almost PERFECT each play, or he has a game where almost EVERY pass is off / low / high / intercepted every play. The next week it will be one or the other, and the week after tends to have little correlation to the one before.

I've very rarely seen Brady have a game "in the middle". He tends to play either extremely well, or fairly mediocrely.

Does anyone have any idea why this might be? Is it psychological? Is it his "probable" shoulder injury that is ok some days, and not others?

 

[mtbykr]

I heard a reporter say yesterday that many scouts think TB has a shoulder problem....and if it's true it makes what he's doing even more amazing!

 

[oldskool138]

I heard a reporter say yesterday that many scouts think TB has a shoulder problem....and if it's true it makes what he's doing even more amazing!

Yeah, the same shoulder problem since 2002.

If that is the case, he needs to get it looked at seriously this year. Personally, I'm sick of the "Brady- Probable, Shoulder" on the injury report. Okay, Bill! We get it. You don't the NFL's injury reporting system. You can stop now. Jeez!

 

[BelichickFan]

I think things bother him more than the average QB. That's why I think fixing our field helped up more than the opponents - I think the field had deteriorated to the point where it really bothered Brady. I also think that's why Brady has struggled more with new WR than some QB do.

I don't mean this as a slam on him - I just think he lets things bother him more than other QB. It's also why I feel good about this week. He's faced the Colt defense a lot. He's faced the Cover Two even more. He's reasonably comfortable with the WR now. He is comfortable on turf. Get Tommy in his comfort level and he's great - and he should be comfortable this week.

 

[Tunescribe]

First, this is NOT a knock against TB. TB is the best ever. Just something I've noticed over the years....

He either has a game where his passes are almost PERFECT each play, or he has a game where almost EVERY pass is off / low / high / intercepted every play. The next week it will be one or the other, and the week after tends to have little correlation to the one before.

I've very rarely seen Brady have a game "in the middle". He tends to play either extremely well, or fairly mediocrely.

Does anyone have any idea why this might be? Is it psychological? Is it his "probable" shoulder injury that is ok some days, and not others?

I tend to think most of his games are "in the middle," so to speak. His stats tend to be remarkably similar from week to week -- usually something like 24-for-35, 242 yards, 2 touchdowns/1 interception. He'll go through periods each game where he's terribly off-target (usually over-throwing people), then put it together for stretches with remarkable throws. He's more erratic than Peyton Manning, but more "clutch" than Manning as well.

 

[BelichickFan]

I heard a reporter say yesterday that many scouts think TB has a shoulder problem....and if it's true it makes what he's doing even more amazing!

If he had a significant problem, he wouldn't have been throwing the ball 51 times last week. He may need a little touch up in the offseason but the Chargers aren't impossible to run on - a run based gameplan was fully reasonable last week. Putting the whole game on Brady's shoulder shows me that he's healthy enough for it to not be a big factor.

 

[NE39]

Yeah, the same shoulder problem since 2002.

If that is the case, he needs to get it looked at seriously this year. Personally, I'm sick of the "Brady- Probable, Shoulder" on the injury report. Okay, Bill! We get it. You don't the NFL's injury reporting system. You can stop now. Jeez!

The reason Brady is listed is because he misses practice time. For the last few years Belichick has had Brady sit out some passing drills in practice each week so his arm doesn't get worn out. Because the NFL requires any player missing a portion of practice to be listed, Brady is listed. The fact he isn't really injured and is just sitting as a precaution doesnt' matter.

 

[Brownfan80]

I also think that's why Brady has struggled more with new WR than some QB do.

I agree with the rest of your post except for this. I think that this year is proof that Brady does pretty well no matter who the WR are.

The team is fielding an 80% new group from last year and Brady's stats barely took a dip. His numbers are VERY close to his 'normal' high rate of play.

In the past some new WR didn't work out (Bethel, Hayes, etc), but that probably should be put more on the WRs not meshing than on Brady 'struggling' with the new WRs.

Look at this season. Gaffney and Caldwell have both done well as 'new WRs', but Gabriel and Jackson have not. Gabriel and Jackson have different reasons why, I'm sure, but I doubt that either of those guys have been left out of the offense because of Brady.

I think Brady has done a magnificent job this season. He's had his basically his entire passing game replaced, but still has kept up his stride. And lets not forget that his 'stride' is a very high rate of play.

He still threw twice as many TDs as INTs and still threw for close to his normal yardage.

All while adapting to not one, not two, not three, not four, not five, but SIX new regular season wideouts. (Caldwell, Gaffney, Gabriel, Jackson, Childress and Kight). I may actually be forgetting somebody in all of that, I can't remember.

But either way, what Brady has done this season is nothing short of astounding. The fact that he's got us into the AFCC again with the changes he's faced in his passing game is truly amazing.

 

[Jacky Roberts]

First, this is NOT a knock against TB. TB is the best ever. Just something I've noticed over the years....

He either has a game where his passes are almost PERFECT each play, or he has a game where almost EVERY pass is off / low / high / intercepted every play. The next week it will be one or the other, and the week after tends to have little correlation to the one before.

I've very rarely seen Brady have a game "in the middle". He tends to play either extremely well, or fairly mediocrely.

Does anyone have any idea why this might be? Is it psychological? Is it his "probable" shoulder injury that is ok some days, and not others?

To me, its uncertainty about his wideouts. He's accurate as hell when he needs to be (The Caldwell catch vs. SD late is a perfect example)

 

[hwc]

Are we sure that we aren't trying to hold Brady to some mythical standard of perfection?

I've never seen a QB who plays every game like a robot. To absolute perfection. Hitting every receiver in stride. Go back and check the tapes. I recall Montana having a few plays here and there that he probably "wished he had back".

It's football. It's ugly. Imprecise. Improvised. Dirty. It ain't a performance of the Nutcracker Suite.

 

[oldskool138]

Are we sure that we aren't trying to hold Brady to some mythical standard of perfection?

I've never seen a QB who plays every game like a robot. To absolute perfection. Hitting every receiver in stride. Go back and check the tapes. I recall Montana having a few plays here and there that he probably "wished he had back".

It's football. It's ugly. Imprecise. Improvised. Dirty. It ain't a performance of the Nutcracker Suite.

Dude! Brady's not a robot

 

[Patters]

I think Manning, for instance, is better at passing than Brady, but Brady's greatness is not his passing. Though he's quite good at that, what he's great at is reading the D and making decisions based on that. Like any other QB, when he faces a tough D, it's not only harder to read, it's harder for the O to execute. To defeat Manning, you need a game plan that limits his receivers or collapses the pocket. To defeat Brady, you need a more well-rounded game plan. On the rare occasion that happens, Brady has difficulty. I think one of the reasons that Pats are so strong in the playoffs is that it's much harder to prepare against a very good team that can do everything very well, as opposed to a team like the Colts that's real strength is passing. Brady's greatness is that he's very intelligent and understands as well as BB how to adjust to any situation. That said, like any QB, Brady occasionally has bad days.

 

[Snarf]

<< I think Manning, for instance, is better at passing than Brady, but Brady's greatness is not his passing >>

Well what do you expect... the guy's got a "laser rocket arm"

 

[SVN]

i think i heard on radio that he was covering his elbow with a pad so there was speculation that he may have elbow tendonitis or something..of course this was the radio speculation FWIW

 

[Oswlek]

I was watching the replay of the game yesterday and I saw a replay of the Gafney TD that I hadn't before. From the EZ behind Brady it became so much clearer just how impressive that play was. From the side view, it was harder to tell that the DL was right in Brady's face, and in the throwing lane. Because of how short the pass was, but how much velocity needed to be put on it because a defender would have picked a floater, Brady had to wait long enough to give the DL time to get into the play. Brady actually dropped his arm down a little to make sure that the pass wouldn't be tipped.

In addition to that, Gafney had not yet come out behind the defender when Brady threw the ball. I think I forget just how difficult it is to make some pass plays in the NFL. On plays like that one, Gafney was only going to be "open" for a half second, and the ball needed to be thrown a full second before then.

Really impressive play.

 

[Clonamery]

Really impressive play.

A heady play.

 

[5 Rings for Brady!!]

I think things bother him more than the average QB. That's why I think fixing our field helped up more than the opponents - I think the field had deteriorated to the point where it really bothered Brady. I also think that's why Brady has struggled more with new WR than some QB do.

I don't mean this as a slam on him - I just think he lets things bother him more than other QB. It's also why I feel good about this week. He's faced the Colt defense a lot. He's faced the Cover Two even more. He's reasonably comfortable with the WR now. He is comfortable on turf. Get Tommy in his comfort level and he's great - and he should be comfortable this week.

I think this is baloney.

He is less bothered by far than any other QB in modern history by several things.

Lack of skill players. Or Bioli letting them go. WRs running wrong routes.

Inconsistent protection leading directly to his injuries. Talk all you want about Matt Light or whoever in the Chargers game, but notice on film that 6 or 7 blockers where kept in on all but a few plays. And it was a mess when only 5 blocked the Chargers.

Being consistently overlooked in the media and for Pro Bowls.

Being in the country's worst media enviroment. With fans like you questioning him instead of understanding what makes his job tough.

Playing on the worst field in the league and in the worst weather enviroment. Blaming him for bad footing and lack of pass protection in the regular season game with the Jets is an example of the misguided fan speculation I mentioned previously.

The fact that he won two superbowls after getting a bum shoulder and last year played through a hernia is evidence enough to satisfy any rational fan, but they don't come that way around here. How is tough guy McNabb looking these days?

I think that some fans here just can't seem to comprehend what challenges Brady faces from all angles. He has struggled against all odds from the start of his career to this season.

 

[5 Rings for Brady!!]

First, this is NOT a knock against TB. TB is the best ever. Just something I've noticed over the years....

He either has a game where his passes are almost PERFECT each play, or he has a game where almost EVERY pass is off / low / high / intercepted every play. The next week it will be one or the other, and the week after tends to have little correlation to the one before.

I've very rarely seen Brady have a game "in the middle". He tends to play either extremely well, or fairly mediocrely.

Does anyone have any idea why this might be? Is it psychological? Is it his "probable" shoulder injury that is ok some days, and not others?

Errrrr, how about checking how the Offensive line plays each week? They go from crap to decent and back to crap from week to week.

Let's examine the WR situation. Caldwell can't even catch a cold in the preseason. Branch and Givens gone. Gabriel brought in, Gabriel cut. Gaffney brought in, becomes post season hero, but still a low #2 WR at best. Watson in, Watson out. Grambo out, Grambo in. Maroney rides bench. Jackson MIA.

Let's examine the coaching. Run works well against Indy. Solution: don't run the ball. Run works against the Jets. Solution: don't run the ball. Passing doesn't work against Chargers. Solution: Pass 53 times. The two headed monster running game that everybody wanted to nickname during the preseason? MIA.

Brady also suffers injuries that we don't hear about. Or did you think the 99 brutal hits he took during the Broncos, Bills, Jets, Miami games (to name a few) didn't hurt?

I think Brady has done far more than Manning would have done on this team. And that goes for 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 as well.

 

[brady et al fan]

Until this year I would have said Brady is remarkably consistent and a bad game was an extreme rarity. This year he has had a number of bad games for whatever reason (new receivers, injury, girlfriend problems, whatever).

Hey, he's still my fave and there's noone better in the clutch but admit it, he's had more off games this year than any other year. And I don't think we can use the "new receivers" excuse for last week's game. He missed on a lot of passes for whatever reason.

 

[Oswlek]

Errrrr, how about checking how the Offensive line plays each week? They go from crap to decent and back to crap from week to week.

Let's examine the WR situation. Caldwell can't even catch a cold in the preseason. Branch and Givens gone. Gabriel brought in, Gabriel cut. Gaffney brought in, becomes post season hero, but still a low #2 WR at best. Watson in, Watson out. Grambo out, Grambo in. Maroney rides bench. Jackson MIA.

Let's examine the coaching. Run works well against Indy. Solution: don't run the ball. Run works against the Jets. Solution: don't run the ball. Passing doesn't work against Chargers. Solution: Pass 53 times. The two headed monster running game that everybody wanted to nickname during the preseason? MIA.

Brady also suffers injuries that we don't hear about. Or did you think the 99 brutal hits he took during the Broncos, Bills, Jets, Miami games (to name a few) didn't hurt?

I think Brady has done far more than Manning would have done on this team. And that goes for 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 as well.

I agree with some of this, but I think that the bolded part is largely off base. I thought that NE went away from the run too quickly in the Indy game watching it, but when I went back and looked at the numbers, Indy actually had done a decent job in the second half. Their moving of Sanders into the box in the second half precipitated the pass heavy set, partially because Indy's improvement, but mostly because NE got what they wanted. Indy countered to stop the run and NE countered right back. The problem is that the WRs were terrible in that game.

In the Jet game something similar happened, but I do think that the entire NE team was taken behind the woodshed in that game, coaches included.

In the SD game, BB himself discussed how nothing NE did made SD get out of their base set. Against that type of D, the best way to attack it is to spread the field and take advantage of coverage mismatches. The problem in that game was that SD's secondary played one of their best games of the year. Brady did miss a few passes, so he deserves some of the blame as well.

That is how NE works, run what the D is not designed to stop. Hopefully you aren't hoping for NE to come out pounding the ball, because if Indy continues with the same D that they have played in the POs, NE is going to run the spread until Indy adjusts, even if it is not immediately successful.