Idle thoughts: the "so far so good" edition

[upstater1]

I wonder if Leftwich and Christensen ( QB coach) are intimidated by Brady and are afraid to 'coach' him.......

I wondered the opposite. I wondered if they are too invested in the long ball game because I didn't see short routes. On the one hand, the long game worked well for the Bucs, but on the other, a lot of drives stalled. Their run game was rather pathetic as well.

 

[sb1]

Great write up and thanks for looking at the play of the DL. Must admit my eye was on the backend much of the time, especially looking at the backers and safeties who are my big concern this year.

As Cam becomes more familiar with the playbook, the passing game will take shape, and hopefully he'll preserve himself so we won't rely on his runs. BUT I'm still very concerned about our WR situation and yesterday did nothing to give me more confidence there.

With Taylor, Burkhead, and White, I am starting to believe that Sony Michel may see fewer and fewer snaps as we go forward. He just didn't seem as effective as the others.

Let's work the TEs into the game more since they may loosen up the sad WR situation.

At least Newton had plenty of time when dropping back.

As for other games, I saw what you did with Brady. He was certainly not on the same page with his WRs and even with his backs and TEs on screens. Out of sync. On the other hand, anyone who thinks he's finished because of his arm or pocket awareness needs to think again because he had plenty of time back there by moving around the pocket, and at least 5 of his very long throws were pinpoint and on target (though only 2 or 3 of them were caught with the others results in DPIs).

It is hard to know if Arians/Leftwich have the patience to let Tom be Tom. I recall when Peyton moved to Denver his first year, his negotiation w/ the OC was disastrous at first and Peyton did not look right. Once he set his foot down and told the OC to play to his strengths, Peyton had a historic season. I don't know if Tom has the same personality to effect that kind of change, not with Arians as his head coach anyway.

I've heard this comparison a lot today but people forget Fivehead was 36 when he arrived in Denver. Brady is 43. That's a huge difference.

I wouldn't count on Brady doing what Manning did.

 

[sean10mm]

+ Cam Newton looked 100% physically and looked very comfortable running the offense.
+ The OL and defense both looked solid, no real complaints there
+ The overall level of preparation, conditioning & execution in spite of the messed up off-season due to COVID

+/- Probably can't have the QB rush 15 times a game. even 2019 Lamar Jackson didn't do that.

-Kicking was bad
-Harry still looks like a stiff, you can't be the next Anquan Boldin if you're unreliable and play small
-Michel still looks depressingly mediocre compared to every other runner on the roster
-Receiving weapons in general outside of Edelman and White are still a huge open question

 

[patsfanincleveland]

I wondered the opposite. I wondered if they are too invested in the long ball game because I didn't see short routes. On the one hand, the long game worked well for the Bucs, but on the other, a lot of drives stalled. Their run game was rather pathetic as well.

Did Tampa ever run a crossing route?

The play that I found interesting was the 1st/20 throw to Fournette coming out of the back field for a 20+ yard gain. That looked classic.

 

[upstater1]

Did Tampa ever run a crossing route?

The play that I found interesting was the 1st/20 throw to Fournette coming out of the back field for a 20+ yard gain. That looked classic.

I saw just a lot of vertical routes. I was kind of mystified. Brady's best attribute is reading defenses quickly and getting rid of the ball as the receiver is running in stride. They effectively got rid of such routes. It looked like the Patriots playing the 07 Giants.

 

[old 55]

I think we’re unlikely to see Chung again. I think that he’s going to retire before next year. Hightower might too, but he’s got big bucks left on his contract that could influence that decision. I was disappointed not seeing Asiasi. The reports have been positive coming out of camp and I expected there would be plays for him in the game. On the kicker, Folk hit all of the PATs - something Ghost wasn’t doing reliably. It appears that BB whiffed big on the drafted kicker. My understanding is that the Colts and Rams had competitive kickers that they cut. Why are we limiting ourselves to Folk or the lousy draft pick? On the WRs, the word from camp was that the Edelman clone - O whatever - kept getting open, but struggled to consistently catch. It seems to me that Givens had to improve his catching ability when he was drafted and even Edelman had to learn to catch too. Yes, I know O has been IRd for the next 3 games, but I think getting a WR capable of getting open is important moving forward and should help somewhat. The run by Edelman was great and completely caught the Fins napping. Overall, I enjoyed watching the game and there are likely going to be some rough games, but at least it’s competitive and Cam should be fun to watch.

 

[Simpelton]

The game 1 offensive plan focused mostly on the experienced NFL veterans. Cam, Michel, Burkhead, White, Edelman. I think you'll see guys like Izzo Harris and the new TEs brought more into the offense as they gain experience, but this was a game for the offensive core to establish itself and get comfortable, which they did.

 

[ViperGTS]

 

[DarrylS]

I wonder if Leftwich and Christensen ( QB coach) are intimidated by Brady and are afraid to 'coach' him.......

Heard Arians post game comments on Zolak & Bertram this AM and he threw Brady under the bus for both interceptions.. that never happened in NE Tom did it?? Wonder how Gisele felt about that..

 

[Patsfanin Philly]

Heard Arians post game comments on Zolak & Bertram this AM and he threw Brady under the bus for both interceptions.. that never happened in NE Tom did it?? Wonder how Gisele felt about that..

He's not in Kansas ( Foxboro) anymore... He's finding out the grass isn't always greener and maybe the 'fun' coach isn't as supportive or protective and the gruff coach...

 

[DarrylS]

He's not in Kansas ( Foxboro) anymore... He's finding out the grass isn't always greener and maybe the 'fun' coach isn't as supportive or protective and the gruff coach...

I agree but cannot imagine BB doing or saying what Arians said..

Bruce Arians put both interceptions on Brady. Said on that first one, Mike Evans read the coverage right but Brady did not As for the pick-six? Arians plainly described it as a "bad decision" by the 43-year-old. Both comments are much further west than Kansas..

 

[patfanken]

a couple of points on some of the comments:

1. It's an easy take to be down on Harry, easy and soft. Lost in the criticism of the fumble out of bounds through the endzone was the fact that his 5 catches and 40 yds were career bests for him. Again some people always want to lash out at a player. It's not like he made a mental mistake. It's not like he was being lazy, or running the wrong pattern. No. He was trying to make a second effort play and he fumbled the ball out of bounds. If it hadn't gone through the end zone no one would be talking about it now. Players make errors on EVERY play on both sides of the ball. The only ones that drive a coach crazy are the mental errors, lack of effort, or using a bad technique that you worked on all week.

I'm sure Bill pointed out how that archaic rule requires that players should make sure they secure the ball as they get near the GL. It was a mistake of situational football. I highly doubt Bill rolled the kid over the coals like some fans here. BTW- that's a rule that should be amended as the punishment far exceeds the crime. But that's a topic for another day.

2. Count me among those who were disappointed in Brady's performance. With all those weapons, I'd have thought the offense would have been more effective. But his arm looked good and his movement in the pocket looked good as well, so eventually the Bucs will end up being a force to be reckoned with. If it. isn't I doubt very much it will be Brady's fault

But that being said, the QB is only one part of an 11 man team, maybe the most important one, but just one part nonetheless. And if you compare the Pats overall discipline and execution with the Buc's, you can see why coaching plays such an important part in football, more than any other team sport. Maybe after 20 years it was time for Brady to move on, but I would bet anything that Brady went home last Sunday night thinking, he never had to deal with so many mental mistakes when he was in NE.

BTW- Listening to Cam Newton talk about his relationship to Bill was more than glowing. It was positively euphoric. He talked on a couple of shows and sounded like a man who had been walking through the desert for years and finally came upon an oasis.

BTW-2 I'm still wondering if anyone in the media picked up on my observation of the lack of any coach on the sideline talking to Brady when he was on the bench?

3. As for all the calls for adding talent to the WR group, you probably know how I feel about that. Think about this. Gardner freaking Minchew was 19 of 20 throwing to a WR/TE group that had ONE name I recognized (Tyler Eifort - 1 catch) I believe we HAVE the talent to win games and other than a trade, I don't see anyone who is a FA who is going to come in and be an instant go to guy.

4. Never even heard of JJ Taylor, but I was very impressed by him. Just another example of just how much talent is out there that the Pats could add an UDFA at a position of strength and have him excel coming off the PS.

 

[luuked]

BTW-2 I'm still wondering if anyone in the media picked up on my observation of the lack of any coach on the sideline talking to Brady when he was on the bench?

No I don't think it gets any attention and if this becomes the new normal this will turn into a problem.

Yes, at this point Brady is a football supercomputer but he is also human and has his own cognitive biases to overcome like everyone else. Adding another voice that gives a different angle or an entirely different perspective is the best way to avoid letting your own biases run free undetected.

I am sure he is getting more than enough of that other perspective from Arians through the week. But having someone there on the bench to talk through adjustments you are not thinking of (or are too blind to see) is often the difference between a tight loss or a tight win.

 

[Mike the Brit]

Thanks for this, as always, Ken. It's the next best thing to having you watch alongside!

I'm glad you added a compliment to J.J. Taylor. Ivan Fears(ome) called him a mini-Dion, but, from looking at his college highlights, he's a bit different. Dion was all about cuts and spins. Danny W was about picking his way through trash with incredible balance. This fellow actually seems to seek contact. Small though he is, he's low and when he hits people it takes them by surprise. I'm guessing that he would make a good pass protector.

Another player due some praise is Jakob Johnson. I can hardly believe that someone was criticizing Sony Michel (his YPC was low? what do you expect when he's given the ball on the goal-line?) Watching Sony run up the middle, Ivan Fearsome-style, was one of the best things about Sunday. And when Johnson was in front, he always took out a defender.

 

[DarrylS]

3. As for all the calls for adding talent to the WR group, you probably know how I feel about that. Think about this. Gardner freaking Minchew was 19 of 20 throwing to a WR/TE group that had ONE name I recognized (Tyler Eifort - 1 catch) I believe we HAVE the talent to win games and other than a trade, I don't see anyone who is a FA who is going to come in and be an instant go to guy.
.

When the better FA WR's were available the Pats were up against the cap, the recent cap space happened later after the Gordon & Hernandez cases were settled and Hightower, Chung and Cannon opted out..

A lot of this signing "talented" receivers stuff is hindsight.. I do think that this area of the Pats is a weakness, but not much that can be done now..

 

[Clonamery]

I've heard this comparison a lot today but people forget Fivehead was 36 when he arrived in Denver. Brady is 43. That's a huge difference.

I wouldn't count on Brady doing what Manning did.

You mean take HGH?

 

[RelocatedPatFan]

You mean take HGH?

Don't you mean a wife who needs HGH for "fertility" reasons?

 

[Steve102]

I thoroughly enjoyed the RPOs. Cam is a master of that. I found myself trying to figure out of he was reading DE or OLB most of the time. I am sure they move around the read player to keep from getting predictable.

 

[PP2]

Good write up, Ken. After seeing this game, I'm a bit bullish on the Cam era- saw some things that made me hopeful. My favorite drive was the one that Harry fumbled away. Up to that point, they were really clicking and moving down the field. I like that Cam was able to identify cover zero on the fly and throw a hot read (a few of them, in fact). That shows maturity. He also really opens up our power reads, makes our power run blocking easier.

It was nice to see McDaniels take a handful of staple plays from when Cam was in Carolina, and disguise them with pre-snap motions. Flores probably anticipated this move and had his DC watch for this, but McDaniels stayed a step ahead of him with those motions, just enough to make the Fins defense play off its heels.

Difference between Tampa Bay and this is pretty apparent- this team is tailoring the offense towards what Cam does best while in Tampa Bay, Arians is pretty much saying to Brady "hey you gotta do it my way." Tampa Bay has too much firepower not to click at some point- but their biggest obstacle, IMO, is Arians himself.

 

[Simpelton]

I'm not gonna bite Harry's head off for that fumble. He was making a play I want to see receivers make, fighting for extra yardage at the end of the catch, he just hit the ground wrong and the contact with the turf knocked the ball loose. That can happen to literally anyone. The only thing I'd maybe coach Harry on is to wrap the ball up better, but the defender had his arms during the tackle making it that much harder.

It was a freak fumble that resulted in a freak bounce that sent the ball out at just the wrong angle. 75% bad luck, maybe 15% a good play by the defender who brought Harry down, and maybe 10% execution not to have the ball wrapped up just a bit better.