Dwayne Allen

[Jackson 2]

Have to wonder if Hollister can develop into a decent #2 TE .....it's still very early in his development as a NFL caliber TE....

Hollister, in my opinion, is as much a WR as TE. I don't think he has the bulk to be an effective blocker.

 

[BlueThunder]

He has the hands of a decent WR and the toughness of a TE IMHO......but that's just to my untrained eye

 

[goheels22002]

Does this guy acctually do anything but take up space? He can't catch and watching him last night it doesn't look like he can block either.

Allen was a terrific TE with Clemson in college - good hands, good separation, okay blocker. It will be interesting to see if he has a breakout game.

 

[Tony2046]

The Captain may have a valid point, and I've also been pointing out how this whole idea of great blocking seems to be something of a mystery, so far.

For instance, where was he on those last 2 key running plays? Sitting on the bench, which seems to be a bit of a pattern. I think if he were that efficient as a blocker, he'd have gotten more than 9 snaps last week.

That said, I haven't watched the film as much as you have, so I'm just going by the eye test, the snaps or lack thereof, and the beat reporters that have pointed out some missed blocks. Definitely something to keep an eye on, but he hasn't gotten off to a good start.

I'm really not trying to defend the guy or say that he's a stud. The reality is the guy hasn't been on the field or targeted (except when Gronk is out) for a reason. I don't know what that is.

His blocking has looked good to me but I could be wrong. I'm not the head coach.

Anyway to me the guy hasn't caught a break. One or two big plays would do him some good. One thing is for sure is that he is giving full effort on every play. He's also , career wise, an average to good receiver so 0% percent catch has to improve. Hoping he gets a few more chances.

 

[mgteich]

I'm really not trying to defend the guy or say that he's a stud. The reality is the guy hasn't been on the field or targeted (except when Gronk is out) for a reason. I don't know what that is.

His blocking has looked good to me but I could be wrong. I'm not the head coach.

Anyway to me the guy hasn't caught a break. One or two big plays would do him some good. One thing is for sure is that he is giving full effort on every play. He's also , career wise, an average to good receiver so 0% percent catch has to improve. Hoping he gets a few more chances.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Meanwhile Bennett made a great key long catch Sunday vs Dallas. Wide open.

 

[ALP]

Meanwhile Bennett made a great key long catch Sunday vs Dallas. Wide open.

it was an amazing catch...but not really wide open so that part confuses me

im referring to the long one down the right sideline where he jumped and caught it with one hand on each hand while diving

 

[Tony2046]

Unfortunately, the only time I heard or saw the name Duane Allen tonight is when he got run over and Brady got crushed and fumbled. I suppose that was Brady's fault too? As I said somewhere above, Brady didn't even bother to look for him tonight, although he didn't have much time to look for anyone. Good game by Amendola (again), Ghost and the D until TB's scoring drive in the 4th. Glad we got a win.

Just an FYI the Sack Fumble came from the LB who blitzed from the offensive right side. He was untouched. Brady was in the process of stepping up in the pocket. Not sure if the guy Allen was blocking would have gotten to him if Brady could have continued to step up.

My new motto: I post the video facts and you decide.

 

[ohiopatsfan]

Allen has, even to his supporters I suspect, been at least mildly disappointing. Especially with Gronk still getting dinged on a regular basis, a #2 TE with the talent to step into the #1 slot is becoming more important every day. Allen does not appear to be that guy and there are not many suitable bodies available. One I can think of is Mike Williams, the 6-6, 305 lb former Pat TE. I remember him as a solid blocker and the few times Brady threw the ball in his direction, he seemed to have decent hands. Williams spent last year on IR with an ACL injury. He is currently a free agent. Getting him in for a tryout might be a good idea. Also, he has had some experience at playing left tackle in the NFL. With Solder's troubles this year, that might be an added bonus.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Allen has, even to his supporters I suspect, been at least mildly disappointing. Especially with Gronk still getting dinged on a regular basis, a #2 TE with the talent to step into the #1 slot is becoming more important every day. Allen does not appear to be that guy and there are not many suitable bodies available. One I can think of is Mike Williams, the 6-6, 305 lb former Pat TE. I remember him as a solid blocker and the few times Brady threw the ball in his direction, he seemed to have decent hands. Williams spent last year on IR with an ACL injury. He is currently a free agent. Getting him in for a tryout might be a good idea. Also, he has had some experience at playing left tackle in the NFL. With Solder's troubles this year, that might be an added bonus.

I've defended Allen at every turn and I'm disappointed he hasn't done something offensively.

With that said I knew if Gronk was healthy he wouldn't be seeing much action.

 

[MassPats38]

Allen has averaged about 25 receptions per year over 5 seasons and is about 3 inches shorter than Marty (45 receptions per year). Article on the trade seemed to indicate he could block (a claimed upgrade on Marty) more than catch (with a long range passing game, and more running backs on the roster, that would seem to make sense).

With all the blocking issues this year, it is tough to see if Allen is an upgrade over Marty in that category. I hoped he could add a dimension to the passing attack, but if the plan was he would play the Daniel Graham role this year (almost the exact same height and build) then his contributions to fantasy football stats would be minimal. I'm a big fan of Marty, but I am not sure Allen was ever meant to replace him in the passing game.

I am not writing Allen off, but am also not expecting he will flip a switch and offer more than 20 -25 receptions this season. At this point if he can stop a few blitzers from decapitating Brady, then he is money well spent. I am not sure with the general mayhem and chaos resulting in the current Brady beatings that he is part of the solution or part of the problem.

 

[mgteich]

If Williams is healthy, he'd be a good addition to the squad.

Allen has, even to his supporters I suspect, been at least mildly disappointing. Especially with Gronk still getting dinged on a regular basis, a #2 TE with the talent to step into the #1 slot is becoming more important every day. Allen does not appear to be that guy and there are not many suitable bodies available. One I can think of is Mike Williams, the 6-6, 305 lb former Pat TE. I remember him as a solid blocker and the few times Brady threw the ball in his direction, he seemed to have decent hands. Williams spent last year on IR with an ACL injury. He is currently a free agent. Getting him in for a tryout might be a good idea. Also, he has had some experience at playing left tackle in the NFL. With Solder's troubles this year, that might be an added bonus.

 

[Tony2046]

I've defended Allen at every turn and I'm disappointed he hasn't done something offensively.

With that said I knew if Gronk was healthy he wouldn't be seeing much action.

Man I hope Allen has a big game or two.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Man I hope Allen has a big game or two.

Me too.

Clearly things aren't pointing the right way but if he does zip this year the good news is they can cut him next year and have $0 dead money count towards the cap.

For the sake of argument, while Marty is a better player, his cap $s are really high as are his dead money totals.

 

[supafly]

His blocking has looked good to me but I could be wrong. I'm not the head coach.

According to Jeff Howe, his blocking has been "marginal."

Like I said in another post, it's not like he's a liability, but he certainly isn't living up to his reputation as being an excellent blocker, either.

Howe: 3 up, 3 down for Patriots this week

 

[Tony2046]

According to Jeff Howe, his blocking has been "marginal."

Like I said in another post, it's not like he's a liability, but he certainly isn't living up to his reputation as being an excellent blocker, either.

Howe: 3 up, 3 down for Patriots this week

Not sure what to make of that article.

In his first "3 down" he says Allen is responsible for one QB hit all season. But maybe he thinks Allen's overall blocking, including run, has been marginal.

I won't argue with Howe because he knows more than I do so there's that.

I will say that I think that Allen is capable of being an effective offensive weapon. Not to Bennett's level but close.

I say that but also recognize that he hasn't seen the field and hasn't been targeted which means the team is seeing something else during practice. So that's concerning.

I'll keep pulling for the guy because his effort is there and his misfires are just **** luck imo. He's been hit square in the hands once which could be a result of poor route running or whatever but I just wish I had something clearer than a guess to judge him with..

 

[supafly]

Not sure what to make of that article.

In his first "3 down" he says Allen is responsible for one QB hit all season. But maybe he thinks Allen's overall blocking, including run, has been marginal.

The Herald itself has been rather harsh with their weekly grading of his blocking in their after the game breakdowns from "the staff," so perhaps Howe has a lot of input, there.

Other than not seeing him in on the obvious short yardage plays in the back to back situation, and the poor block on the Lewis screen from the CAR game, I honestly can't say that I've noticed that much.

 

[Tony2046]

The Herald itself has been rather harsh with their weekly grading of his blocking in their after the game breakdowns from "the staff," so perhaps Howe has a lot of input, there.

Other than not seeing him in on the obvious short yardage plays in the back to back situation, and the poor block on the Lewis screen from the CAR game, I honestly can't say that I've noticed that much.

Yeah I could be overly optimistic on the guy. We'll see. Hopefully he has a breakout game against the Jets. At least then I can post a video of him catching something. haha

 

[luuked]

According to Jeff Howe, his blocking has been "marginal."

Like I said in another post, it's not like he's a liability, but he certainly isn't living up to his reputation as being an excellent blocker, either.

Howe: 3 up, 3 down for Patriots this week

And according to the last two Chatham podcasts his blocking has been great. Make of that what you will..

It boils down to almost exactly what Chatham is saying. The expectations for Allen should be around 25-30 catches a year (think Crumpler). If he can provide 1-2 targets per game this is all that is necessary. Everyone that expects more from him should only blame themselves for being disappointed.

I also see his contract brought up often but that just doesnt matter. You traded for a player on a contract that you never negotiated. It was either that or potentially grossly overpaying a Bennett who would have leveraged his situation to the max via a bidding war between teams. Or even worse, missing out entirely on having a real TE in addition to Gronk.

 

[supafly]

And according to the last two Chatham podcasts his blocking has been great. Make of that what you will..

For me, it's going to depend on how much pull Howe has with those weekly breakdowns that are credited to the Herald staff, because they've been hard on his blocking for at least 3 games, now. If multiple reporters are sharing the same opinion, that would probably be more concerning that just Jeff Howe's take.

I thought it was terribly odd that he wasn't in on the back to back short yardage plays where they ran the ball last week, but I'm not going to pretend that I know what the coaches wanted, there. The video breakdown on the failed Dion Lewis block was from last week vs. Carolina though, so if that's really Chatham's opinion two weeks in a row, he may be giving him the benefit of the doubt.

He's here to stay, though, so unless Hollister puts on weight, muscle, and experience, we're going to continue to let the sample size increase and hope for the best.