Classy move by Ocho

[JoeSixPat]

NFL.com news: Ocho rewards fan for tolerating years of Twitter silence

Of course it's part shameless self promotion but I'll give Ocho the credit he's due for flying a devoted twitter fan up from Florida to see the game...

"Bundle up young Jedi" indeed!

 

[MSU]

So glad the team gave up draft picks and six million dollars to pick up this guy so he can be classy and talk about how intense Tom Brady is.

 

[The_Chuck_Rule]

Maybe that will be Chad's inspiration to catch 2 passes in this game.

(sorry, I had to do it...)

I'll "brick" myself for that :bricks:

 

[JoeSixPat]

So glad the team gave up draft picks and six million dollars to pick up this guy so he can be classy and talk about how intense Tom Brady is.

I agree, he's not earned his salary... Every other NFL team has some busts too... though unlike other veteran busts out there he's not been a problem or a distraction.

Clearly he's "due" for a decent game. My gut tells me this may be it.

 

[Ring 6]

I wonder if they will sit together to watch the Patriots play.

 

[Mainefan]

Say what you will, Ocho is a good guy. I hope he scores.

 

[Armchair Bronco]

I had Ocho on my fantasy team to start the season and was expecting good (but not great) things from him. But he lived up to his Ocho "Stinko" reputation.

What the heck happened with Ocho? Why didn't things work out, at least during the regular season? Seems like he had a hard time picking up the Patriots lingo, and never got the wheels rolling.

My own view is that he needs to be "The Guy" to thrive, but that's not how the Patriots operate. So it was a bad fit from Day 1. He should have stayed in Cincy or found a smaller team where he could be "The Guy".

 

[CheekyDave]

Why be cynics? I think its great when he interacts with fans, and does things for them, if you are the fan, I bet you feel pretty lucky eh? As far as his performance, someone beat me to the punch as I was going to post I expect a big catch from him tonight, which will shock and please everyone.

 

[strngplyr]

I wonder if they will sit together to watch the Patriots play.

Won't lie, got a good laugh from this.

 

[Jozef]

It sounds like he's a great guy. I'm glad to have him on the team- no matter how overpaid he is.

 

[Ring 6]

I had Ocho on my fantasy team to start the season and was expecting good (but not great) things from him. But he lived up to his Ocho "Stinko" reputation.

What the heck happened with Ocho? Why didn't things work out, at least during the regular season? Seems like he had a hard time picking up the Patriots lingo, and never got the wheels rolling.

My own view is that he needs to be "The Guy" to thrive, but that's not how the Patriots operate. So it was a bad fit from Day 1. He should have stayed in Cincy or found a smaller team where he could be "The Guy".

Someone here had posted a great analysis of this. I wish I could find it.
Basically 85 produced what he did in Cincy because the offense revolved around designing plays to get him open. It augmented his limited quickness and separation ability. When he came here he is just one of the receivers and his skill rather the play design is what is needed to get him open.
I bet that if the Patriots had decided to set their offense up this season to feature 85 and run plays designed to draw coverage from him, and make him the target, he would have been productive. But when they got him out on the field they realized it wasn't best for the team to give him that role, as Welker, Branch, Gronk and Hernandez were all better receivers who would be more productive.

 

[Ring 6]

Won't lie, got a good laugh from this.

Im not anti-85 really, just took the shameless opportunity at humor.

 

[Jared]

But he lived up to his Ocho "Stinko" reputation.

What reputation is that?

 

[warx]

At least he's been classy and a good guy to have around in spite of his lack of catches, the Jets have Holmes who is the better player, but kills the team.

 

[Shevy]

The Pats run a very difficult system on offense. Even if you have lots of skill, you still need to be very smart to flourish as a reciever. Chad is very skilled, but obviously the system in New England is a little too hard for him to grasp....

 

[convertedpatsfan]

How is this classy? Ignore a fan for two years, then the minute he complains, reward him. Or is that part of Ocho's thinking? Whiners and complainers should be rewarded. Now you're all best friends. Awwwwww. :bricks:

 

[RobertWeathers]

Someone here had posted a great analysis of this. I wish I could find it.
Basically 85 produced what he did in Cincy because the offense revolved around designing plays to get him open. It augmented his limited quickness and separation ability. When he came here he is just one of the receivers and his skill rather the play design is what is needed to get him open.
I bet that if the Patriots had decided to set their offense up this season to feature 85 and run plays designed to draw coverage from him, and make him the target, he would have been productive. But when they got him out on the field they realized it wasn't best for the team to give him that role, as Welker, Branch, Gronk and Hernandez were all better receivers who would be more productive.

I agree with this. I think Ocho knows the offense now. Maybe in the beginning he has some issues but hes fine now. You don't have the type of career he has had without being able to read an offense or a defense. His skills are not what they were in 2005. Plain and simple.

The other issue is that there are 4 other players with 50 or more catches that are either A) more talented playmakers or B) who skill sets are better fits in this offense.

Not a knock on Ocho but he just isn't a special player anymore who by simply touching the ball he is a TD threat. In addition there are only so many balls to go around...

 

[Ring 6]

The Pats run a very difficult system on offense. Even if you have lots of skill, you still need to be very smart to flourish as a reciever. Chad is very skilled, but obviously the system in New England is a little too hard for him to grasp....

If that was the case, he would be inactive and would never get on the field.
Its skill not knowing the offense that has him on the pine.

 

[BigMike]

Maybe that will be Chad's inspiration to catch 2 passes in this game.

(sorry, I had to do it...)

I'll "brick" myself for that :bricks:

Chuck Rule....nice name....thank goodness for Chuckie bankrolling the Jacksons tour so the Sullivans ended up losing control of the team....so Kraft could eventually be our owner. But I digress...

 

[LetsGoPats36]

I can't help but like Ocho. Here's to hoping he makes positive waves in the playoffs this year and earns a spot on the roster next season.