Football Outsiders on Welker

[stinkypete]

Media types don't seem to understand Welker, he is a role player, not our #1. Welker may very well catch 40 balls and be considered a dissapointment because the media doesn't seem to understand the importance of a solid posession reciever in the slot.

If anyone questions Welker's value in the slot, look at what Rickey Prohel was able to do in St. Louis.

 

[DaBruinz]

I read the article and the comments following it. One thing that stood out is that the author didn't take into consideration how the players line up. We've seen Branch in the slot. We saw Givens move in there. We've seen Brown and Patten line-up there.

Also, I think that the author doesn't recognize the significant differences that occured in the Pats offense from 2003 to 2004. In 2004, the Pats ran the ball MORE than any other time during a Belichick Era team and it has been the ONLY time the team ran the ball more than it has passed the ball. That running the ball more took passes away from everyone, but primarly the slot receiver since the slot receiver is more of a short-yardage receiver.

I also believe that the author short-changed Moss. When you look at Moss' time in Minnesota, he was regularly catching 60-65% of the passes thrown to him. He can't help that the QBs who have been throwning him the ball more recently have stunk.

 

[sieglo]

Media types don't seem to understand Welker, he is a role player, not our #1. Welker may very well catch 40 balls and be considered a dissapointment because the media doesn't seem to understand the importance of a solid posession reciever in the slot.

If anyone questions Welker's value in the slot, look at what Rickey Prohel was able to do in St. Louis.

Exactly what I was about to post. ROLE PLAYER. He's like Danny Ainge back in the day. In there to light up a few three pointers at critical phases of the game and take some defensive pressure off Bird, McHale, Parish who are actually carrying the offense.