Josh's new toy: the death alignment

mosslost said:

That's how the Pats crushed the Chargers and their 6, 7 DB defense, just pound them into submission

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Could be one of the worst game plans by the Chargers. The Pats passing game was questionable at that time and was running heavy because of it. So you come out with 6-7 DB’s?

Palm Beach Pats Fan said:

Let's say I am a stubborn defensive coordinator and go man, with dime (6 DBs)

I bracket Brown with my #2 CB and my fastest safety. I bracket Gordon with my #1 CB and a bigger/more physical but slower safety. My #3 CB and #4 CBs are then on islands with Dorsett & Edelman. My LB is on an island with Burkhead/White, if he comes out of the backfield.

I cannot imagine at least one guy among Dorsett, Edelman, or Burkhead/White not getting leverage, either inside or outside, on their defender, EVERY TIME.

It will have to be zone, it will be a stretched zone, and Brady will dissect it.

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Michel/Burkhead/White would combine for 200+ yards on the ground.........

BTW, this WILL still happen when AB does his act and we are left Gordon-Edelman-Meyers-Harry-Dorsett.

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Bradyking12 said:

Add Harry a few weeks later might have rename it the suicide alignment.

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Who??

THE CASE FOR THREE WR's INSTEAD OF FOUR

When the OL has an LT off the street, there are some teams in the league that can put Brady on the ground. IMHO, we need a blocking TE (or Develin) on every play until Wynn comes back.

mosslost said:

with Gronk running down the seam this thing going be YUGE

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don't need Gronk. Gronk needs Gronk. He had his day. Give him a statue. How much do we want out of a human being?

Palm Beach Pats Fan said:

4 WRs, Brown, Gordon, Edelman, and Dorsett, with 1 RB, White or Burkhead.

We saw this a bit in Miami.

Other than with an overwhelming pass rush that gets there in under 2 seconds, how can this be defended?

Let's say you go man coverage, as people prefer to do vs. Brady.

With 6 DBs in the defense, two WRs are doubled, two have single coverage, and a linebacker is on White or Burkhead. Targeting the RB vs. a LB is like taking candy, but so is going to the most open of two WRs who are single-covered.

With a whopping 7 DBs, two WRs are doubled, two have single coverage, and a safety is on White or Burkhead. Running the ball vs. this light box is like taking candy, but so is going to the most open of two WRs who are single-covered.

I think that this lineup, when Brown is up to speed (assuming he stays on the roster) cannot be man-covered. It would have to be a zone scheme, but still requiring AT LEAST 6 DBs.

Brady loves targeting soft spots in zones. It could be epic.

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That same Formation with TE's Matt LaCosse or Ben Watson could be just as dangerous and more prominent against the run...I am sure LaCosse can over power a DB if we cross em up and run it.

TheRainMaker said:

Could be one of the worst game plans by the Chargers. The Pats passing game was questionable at that time and was running heavy because of it. So you come out with 6-7 DB’s?

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Coming out with 6-7 DBs was fine. Staying with it time and time again was insanity.

KontradictioN said:

You try to defense that the same way you’d defense any high-powered passing game - press their receivers and knock the QB on his ass while trying to rush only 4-5 guys. The bad news for the rest of the league is there are not many defenses that can do that successfully. The Patriots have also shown a willingness to smash the ball down your throat if you go too light with your personnel.

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True. However, running against that is harder when you have 4 WR on the field, instead of 3 WR and Gronk.

So I'd go with 6 DB plus your best coverage LB. I'd match up this way:

CB1 on Edelman
CB2 on Brown with S help
CB3 on Gordon with S help
CB4 on Dorsett
LB on White

I mean it's not ideal, but hey you gotta do something. I'd also try to put as much pressure on Brady up the middle as possible, or attack NE's weakest OL with your best pass rusher. Hope to get to Brady and force some mistakes.

The real problem is that you also have to score against the Pats' defense, which so far has proved to be nearly impossible.

But we KNOW that the Patriots aren't unbeatable. There will be a game this year when the Pats make some mistakes. Say, a Brady strip sack, a Brady tipped pass INT, two Ghost missed FG, a big play on special teams, and suddenly you're up 23-21 late in the game, hoping to hold the Pats off. That's probably what it's gonna take.

Palm Beach Pats Fan said:

If Sony becomes a pass-catching threat, the outlook for the D gets even worse.

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He already is. Saw plenty of that in TC, and my conclusion is that they're keeping that part of his game under wraps until late in the season.

The pass catching talent is impressive but I will feel a lot better when they show they can handle a good pass rush and press coverage. So far they look like they can handle the press but we really don't know if this O line can handle a good pass rushing Defense and keep Brady upright.

Hell Moss would be wide open in this offense right now

Cool new toy but may be taken away by Mommy and Daddy

KontradictioN said:

You try to defense that the same way you’d defense any high-powered passing game - press their receivers and knock the QB on his ass while trying to rush only 4-5 guys. The bad news for the rest of the league is there are not many defenses that can do that successfully. The Patriots have also shown a willingness to smash the ball down your throat if you go too light with your personnel.

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Simple counter:

Edelman or Brown in motion

That leaves a 1-on-1 with either of 2 players who are quick opens and also capable of winning over the top if their defender stays up on them and can't get the early bump.

mosslost said:

Hell Moss would be wide open in this offense right now

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So would Ted Washington.

mosslost said:

with Gronk running down the seam this thing going be YUGE

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4 WRs
1 RB
1 TE
1 QB

4 OL

Let’s just substitute all the OL
They’re gonna get hurt anyways

We'll see how it goes ...
There will be emphasis on a huge up the middle pass rush.
If AB and Jules are both in the slot Brady has short pass options with YAC potential.

Palm Beach Pats Fan said:

Let's say I am a stubborn defensive coordinator and go man, with dime (6 DBs)

I bracket Brown with my #2 CB and my fastest safety. I bracket Gordon with my #1 CB and a bigger/more physical but slower safety. My #3 CB and #4 CBs are then on islands with Dorsett & Edelman. My LB is on an island with Burkhead/White, if he comes out of the backfield.

I cannot imagine at least one guy among Dorsett, Edelman, or Burkhead/White not getting leverage, either inside or outside, on their defender, EVERY TIME.

It will have to be zone, it will be a stretched zone, and Brady will dissect it.

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The first thing i would do is look at how Belichick defends 5 wides or 4 and a RB because we use that personal group both ways.

The way we are defending that may be more impressive than the way we are running it.

TomPatriot said:

People, including me, often forget Dorsett has great speed and that has to be respected. He ran a 4.25 40 at Miami's pro day in 2015. That's the Pats fourth receiver right now.

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Simpelton said:

Not only that, Dorsett has excellent hands.

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He's also a hard worker, great teammate, etc. and was given every opportunity to succeed as a first-round pick. So the mystery is, why did Dorsett only average 24 catches for 309 yards over his first 4 seasons?

patchick said:

He's also a hard worker, great teammate, etc. and was given every opportunity to succeed as a first-round pick. So the mystery is, why did Dorsett only average 24 catches for 309 yards over his first 4 seasons?

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• Year one was his rookie year. Most rookie WRs struggle.
• Year two was a progression year. He had 33 catches on 59 targets, averaging 16 y/c.
• BUT.... he was being looked at as TY Hilton, part two, and he didn't improve fast enough.
• Year 3 was year one in NE, when he came in late and never really got into the system. Unlike Gordon/Brown, he wasn't getting force fed.
  
• Year 4 was last year, where he was a big part of the offense, until Gordon's arrival.
• Year 5 is off to a good start (7 targets, 7 receptions, 134 yards, 2 TDs).

Significant, I think, is the consistent improvement of his catch %:

46.2
55.9
66.7
76.2
100 (obviously a small sample size, and almost certainly destined to fall, but still)

Simpelton said:

Not only that, Dorsett has excellent hands.

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Excellent? The dudes hands are from another world. He's caught the last 24 or 25 balls thrown his way.