PostGame Thread OFFICIAL 2024 Week 1 Postgame Thread - Patriots Open 1-0 with a win over Cincy

[Force Zero Boomer]

They only tried 24 passes, it's really hard to tell.

He caught two (is that right?), which was a real shock to me. I don't remember him catching a single pass in a regular season game.

 

[Real fan 02]

He caught two (is that right?), which was a real shock to me. I don't remember him catching a single pass in a regular season game.

JB also missed him deep a few times that would have been big plays. This AVP offense is a great offense becuase it allows big plays to happen off the run game. Now team's will bring guys up in the box to stop the run. Great! That is where Henry and the WRs can get open on crossing routes.

 

[jdlboot14]

OL hung in there. Not sure if they stick with Onwenu at RT, or have Wallace take over when ready.
I think Mayo said enough about Okra - totally overmatched at LT. Lowe had some rust, but his norm is rusty, sooo...
Jordan did well. Should stick at LG. But curious what to do with Sow - back to RG over Robinson?

Surprised Pop was so useless. That's more of a coaching focus issue.
I think Polk & Pop should get more targets. Osborn is okay, but not worthy of being the centerpoint in the passing game.
Very happy to see Henry & Hooper being used and productive in big moments.
Brissett can't hit the long balls though. Better save those for Maye.

 

[KCSVEN]

All-22 not out yet but decided to look at the offensive line since don't need that to analyze the line.
Lowe saved their bacon. Okorafor is a serviceable right tackle and has always been a poor left tackle. If Lowe is out they should pout Wallace over there but hopefully Lowe is not out again,
I read where the Pats RB were one of the worst in the league in terms of contact after getting the ball which leads you to think the line was bailed out by the RB's but not the case at all.

Chuks: Last 4 plays he got beat on all 4 on pass rush, until then he was fine but 4 in a row BAD and then they replaced him. NOT a LT, can we end that experiment, the guy should only fill in at RT where he has shown some competency. 2 of the plays Jacoby could have just stepped up and the rusher would have been by him but he tried to throw without stepping up, made the throws more difficult. The other 2, Jacoby was left to take hits and actually did a great job standing in there and taking the hit to make plays.
Lowe: Got beat twice, once on the Jacoby almost EZ pick and once on a play that did not have negative consequence. Otherwise, not the same guy as last year, seems he's taking to the coaching, this Line coach is excellent BTW. Lowe probably looked better because the guy that just ran around Chuks 4 straight times kept getting stonewalled but running and passing the blocking was overall good. Not sure how he holds up against better ends but promising game 1.
Andrews and Onwenu: Not spending a ton of time on them, they are NFL starters, they had a few plays not great but overall played well, Onwenu was the best lineman they had for sure.
Robinson: He gets on a guy that guy isn't going anywhere. Better in pass blocking than pre-season though they gave him some help here and there and he had 3 plays where it was not good on blitzes. 3 Blitzes up the middle and it looked like he did not pick up the blitzer and went to double team instead all 3 times. On 1 Jacoby hit the hot read, on another Jacoby did not dump it to the hot read, the 3rd resulted in a pressure. Being a rookie not sure if Andrews/Jacoby or someone should help him out their pre-snap or he needs to learn to adjust on the fly.
I only saw the similar blitz 3 times, and all 3 times free rusher. Shows Robinson needs to learn some things and Sidy Sow would be less likely to make that mistake. However, run or pass block when he locks on its just phenomenal strength. Hopefully he learns the nuances of line play, got some talent, just needs to be better mentally. When he locked up, he did not get beat.
Wallace: I like Wallace, reminds me of Onwenu but obviously still raw. He had a nice pancake block on one play. He's a baller, I wish he played more.
Jordan: I thought Jordan was solid, got lost on a stunt on a run play 1 time, is not like Robinson in terms of strength, got pushed back at times on pass rush but played like a solid NFL interior lineman. Not sure how he will hold up against better competition though. Does not have stand out traits but getting the most of what he has.

Offensive Line coach deserves high praise for the play of the line.

So why were RB yards before contact so bad? Mainly because Bengals had 8-9 men in the box every running down. Basically the Bengals had no fear of the passing game.

Rhamondre Stevensen was GREAT in this zone option running, very patient, but not too patient, finds the holes and hits it and tough to bring down. Made first tackler miss multiple times. He needs to stay healthy and could have a monster year in this scheme.

Overall promising, I think the weak links were Chuks for sure, Robinson against middle blitzes, Jordan occasionally not holding his ground. If Lowe can play this well against better pass rushers and Sidy Sow can nail down one of the 2 guard spots as Robinson learns the ropes they should be fine in this scheme.

 

[Zuma]

Osborne only caught 3 of 6. His career average is 64%. FWIW Edelman’s average his 1st 4 years was less than that. I’m going to give Osborne the benefit of the doubt the next few games.

 

[dliverey44]

Lowe: Got beat twice, once on the Jacoby almost EX pick and once on a play that did not have negative consequence. Otherwise, not the same guy as last year, seems he's taking to the coaching, this Line coach is excellent BTW. Lowe probably looked better because the guy that just ran around Chuks 4 straight times kept getting stonewalled but running and passing the blocking was overall good. Not sure how he holds up against better ends but promising game 1.

I am only through midway 2nd QTR and I feel like Lowe has been very impressive. Not a probowler, but not a big liability. Hendrickson was ranked by PFF as the 9th best edge rusher in the league, so the fact Lowe played as well as he did vs Trey makes me think they have their guy for the rest of the season. Small sample I know but I was left very encouraged.

Was it Mayo that made the call to pull Chuks? I ask because he said AVP is like the HC of the offense, but I am curious if Mayo will intervene when needed. Ultimately it only matters that he got pulled as quick as he did.

I also am very impressed with Robinson and Wallace and agree that I would like to see him play more. I do not see Leverett and Chuks on the team next month.

 

[PatsFan2]

@PatsFan2, you sure about this?

Nitpick much?? Stop living in the past.

 

[PatsFan2]

Absolutely. There's a lot of talk that a stick-to-the-basics, "conservative" approach is outmoded and can no longer work. While I understand that a more open and aggressive passing game makes sense these days - largely because of rule changes, but also because of changes in the college game, where the NFL gets its players - it's still important to cover the basics: running, tackling, discipline, ball security, conditioning, and so on. It looks as if under Mayo, we'll get that sort of emphasis, and that's really promising. When you add just a few standout athletes to a basically sound, balanced team, you have a winner. It looks as if that's the approach. Pretty cool.

I heard Kaft spoke very highly of Mayo before he become HC. IF Mayo learned anything from the GOAT HC we saw it yesterday in the attention to detail we didn't look overmatched at all good sign.

 

[Vindicate]

I heard Kaft spoke very highly of Mayo before he become HC. IF Mayo learned anything from the GOAT HC we saw it yesterday in the attention to detail we didn't look overmatched at all good sign.

More important than Kraft, Bill himself urged Mayo to get into coaching, even pitching the idea to his Mayo's wife. Article from 2023

Bill Belichick apparently spent years trying to get Jerod Mayo to join coaching staff

The Patriots -- and Bill Belichick -- really like Jerod Mayo.

www.cbsnews.com

"According to Graff, Belichick spent years trying to convince Mayo to become a coach, starting his pitch with Mayo's wife, Chantel.

"After Mayo retired in 2016, Belichick started planting the seeds of a coaching career with Chantel. He told her Mayo was meant to coach," Graff wrote.

After an eight-year NFL career, though, Mayo took some time away from the game, working at Optum as an "executive in residence."

"In 2019, Mayo relented to Belichick's frequent overtures, joining the staff as the inside linebackers coach," Graff wrote. "Within four years he was interviewing for head-coaching openings. Now, he's tied to New England long-term." "

 

[TommyD4207]

Osborne only caught 3 of 6. His career average is 64%. FWIW Edelman’s average his 1st 4 years was less than that. I’m going to give Osborne the benefit of the doubt the next few games.

I'm not. It wasn't just the catch %, he was running wrong routes multiple times, blowing up entire pass concepts. When you have to get the ball out quickly due to a garbage offensive line, you can't have that on top of it.

 

[dliverey44]

Holy ****

 

[Ross12]

All-22 not out yet but decided to look at the offensive line since don't need that to analyze the line.
Lowe saved their bacon. Okorafor is a serviceable right tackle and has always been a poor left tackle. If Lowe is out they should pout Wallace over there but hopefully Lowe is not out again,
I read where the Pats RB were one of the worst in the league in terms of contact after getting the ball which leads you to think the line was bailed out by the RB's but not the case at all.

Chuks: Last 4 plays he got beat on all 4 on pass rush, until then he was fine but 4 in a row BAD and then they replaced him. NOT a LT, can we end that experiment, the guy should only fill in at RT where he has shown some competency. 2 of the plays Jacoby could have just stepped up and the rusher would have been by him but he tried to throw without stepping up, made the throws more difficult. The other 2, Jacoby was left to take hits and actually did a great job standing in there and taking the hit to make plays.
Lowe: Got beat twice, once on the Jacoby almost EX pick and once on a play that did not have negative consequence. Otherwise, not the same guy as last year, seems he's taking to the coaching, this Line coach is excellent BTW. Lowe probably looked better because the guy that just ran around Chuks 4 straight times kept getting stonewalled but running and passing the blocking was overall good. Not sure how he holds up against better ends but promising game 1.
Andrews and Onwenu: Not spending a ton of time on them, they are NFL starters, they had a few plays not great but overall played well, Onwenu was the best lineman they had for sure.
Robinson: He gets on a guy that guy isn't going anywhere. Better in pass blocking than pre-season though they gave him some help here and there and he had 3 plays where it was not good on blitzes. 3 Blitzes up the middle and it looked like he did not pick up the blitzer and went to double team instead all 3 times. On 1 Jacoby hit the hot read, on another Jacoby did not dump it to the hot read, the 3rd resulted in a pressure. Being a rookie not sure if Andrews/Jacoby or someone should help him out their pre-snap or he needs to learn to adjust on the fly.
I only saw the similar blitz 3 times, and all 3 times free rusher. Shows Robinson needs to learn some things and Sidy Sow would be less likely to make that mistake. However, run or pass block when he locks on its just phenomenal strength. Hopefully he learns the nuances of line play, got some talent, just needs to be better mentally. When he locked up, he did not get beat.
Wallace: I like Wallace, reminds me of Onwenu but obviously still raw. He had a nice pancake block on one play. He's a baller, I wish he played more.
Jordan: I thought Jordan was solid, got lost on a stunt on a run play 1 time, is not like Robinson in terms of strength, got pushed back at times on pass rush but played like a solid but NFL interior lineman. Not sure how he will hold up against better competition though. Does not have stand out traits but getting the most of what he has.

Offensive Line coach deserves high praise for the play of the line.

So why were RB yards before contact so bad? Mainly because Bengals had 8-9 men in the box every running down. Basically the Bengals had no fear of the passing game.

Rhamondre Stevensen was GREAT in this zone option running, very patient, but not too patient, finds the holes and goes and tough to bring down. He needs to stay healthy and could have a monster year in this scheme.

Overall promising, I think the weak links were Chuks for sure, Robinson against middle blitzed, Jordan occasionally not holding his ground. If Lowe can play this well against better pass rushers and Sidy Sow can nal down one fo the 2 guard spots as Robinson learns the ropes they should be fine in this scheme.

On your points about Lowe - wasn't he up against Trey Hendrickson? He won't face many tougher matchups than that. That's a good player.

 

[dliverey44]

On your points about Lowe - wasn't he up against Trey Hendrickson? He won't face many tougher matchups than that. That's a good player.

Hendrickson was ranked as the 9th Edge rusher by PFF in 2023

 

[ViperGTS]

I'm not. It wasn't just the catch %, he was running wrong routes multiple times, blowing up entire pass concepts. When you have to get the ball out quickly due to a garbage offensive line, you can't have that on top of it.

I thought I noticed that too. Think he ran into Polk on a crosser that caused a problem.

 

[Triumph]

Osborne only caught 3 of 6. His career average is 64%. FWIW Edelman’s average his 1st 4 years was less than that. I’m going to give Osborne the benefit of the doubt the next few games.

Bill Maas was talking on sportsradio this morning about the all the rusty NFL offenses. He said that with reduced practice time and fewer preseason games that teams just aren't up to peak operating temps just yet. He went on to say that there is no type of practice that can replicate NFL gameday football. The speed, hitting, intensity and mental chess match is on another plane.

 

[Sfpat]

It was a nice win in the sense that I thought the D looked very good.

BUT you cannot win in the nfl that way. They ran the ball 62% of the time, passed for less than 150 yards, and only scored 16 points. Everything went right and we all know that's not going to happen every week.

Polk- 1 catch for 6 yards. It's still early but that's a very poor performance for their 2nd round draft pick.

edit to add: Sly was a bright spot; I think we are set at punter and kicker for years to come.

Polk had 2 more yards than MHJ, the consensus top receiver in the draft and one of the "best" prospects ever.

 

[Hugepatsfan]

Keion White was a beast obviously.

Marcus Jones looked like a real player in the defensive backfield.

Gonzalez did a good job on Chase it looked like.

Stevenson was a monster out there.

Layden Robinson looked like a starting caliber player.

Caedan Wallace didn't start but seemed to contribute positively as the extra blocker which is hopefully something he can build on.

Tyquan Thornton didn't do a ton but he continued his march towards competency which is progress for him I guess.

Demario Douglas didn't do much but he's already kind of established himself to some degree.


Would have liked to see more from Polk even in a pretty limited passing game still. Overall though, it felt like a positive day for our group of guys still on their rookie deals (Stevenson being the one that's already signed an extension obviously). Barmore and Sow were out injured too of course which adds some to the young "core" as well.

 

[Uptown]

 

[Captain Cliche]

People have been calling for Mayo to be fired before he had even coached one game because of some ****ty press conferences. Dude goes out there and knocks off a Super Bowl contender in week 1, in their house. He and his staff looked a hell of a lot more prepared than many of these other tenured staffs I’m watching elsewhere today.

I never got the Mayo hate.
He was an obvious rising star and would have gotten a head coaching job somewhere else if Kraft didn't lock him up.
Better a year too soon than too late applies to coaches also.

 

[The Gr8est]

Keion White was a beast obviously.

Marcus Jones looked like a real player in the defensive backfield.

Gonzalez did a good job on Chase it looked like.

Stevenson was a monster out there.

Layden Robinson looked like a starting caliber player.

Caedan Wallace didn't start but seemed to contribute positively as the extra blocker which is hopefully something he can build on.

Tyquan Thornton didn't do a ton but he continued his march towards competency which is progress for him I guess.

Demario Douglas didn't do much but he's already kind of established himself to some degree.


Would have liked to see more from Polk even in a pretty limited passing game still. Overall though, it felt like a positive day for our group of guys still on their rookie deals (Stevenson being the one that's already signed an extension obviously). Barmore and Sow were out injured too of course which adds some to the young "core" as well.

Three of your negatives all seem to have the common denominator of not being passed to.



Hmmmmm…….