Bedard: Blaming Tom Brady for Ravens loss is way off-target

[the Patriot]

They scored 13 points. Like it or not, that falls on the QB. In 2007 they were on the verge of immortality and scored 14 points. Last year...17 points. In their 7 losses in the BB era they have averaged 18 points a game. Unfortunately, the 27 ppg they've given up doesn't matter. QB gets the credit (too much) when they win, and gets the blame (too much) when they lose.

The Patriots offense relies on coverage breakdowns and complex schemes to move the ball. Its effective in the regular season because it makes the Pats extremely difficult to prepare for, but in the postseason when every defense is preparing all week to win or go home you see less and less defensive mistakes. Weapons like Welker, Woodhead, and Branch are effectively rendered useless in good man-to-man coverage. Pats don't have a receiver that Brady can trust to fight for the ball in coverage except for Gronk, but he's only one tight end. He's not really an effective deep threat.

I wish we had A J Green.

 

[JackBauer]

Blaming Brady entirely for the loss is silly, of course. But that's not to say he doesn't deserve some of the blame, because he certainly didn't elevate his game in such a way that he's done in past playoff wins.

The biggest deficiency I can see is WR3. Can't win in the playoffs with a player like Branch taking 40+ snaps...essentially ceding the defense an 11 v. 10 advantage. Add in Hooman running around with a brown stain on the back of his drawers and you certainly don't have a winning formula.

 

[Kontradiction]

I wasn't aware that Brady was a major target of blame.

Only with the usual suspects...

 

[Rob0729]

Personally, I blame Climate Change.

 

[DaBruinz]

This piece makes too much sense and fails to be accusatory enough. Has to be homer BS. Anyone who agrees with this has to be wearing rose-colored glasses. Written by a wuss.

It sure as hell makes excuses with claims that the Pats didn't have enough talent on offense or defense to win..

 

[MoLewisrocks]

Right. I started the thread with the word "choke" in the title, but even then all I was suggesting was what Bedard said in



plus a little outright possibly-nerves-based inaccuracy as well (e.g., a throw bouncing far from the receiver's feet).

You weren't remotely suggesting what Bedard said. Talk about disconnect. Bedard was talking about the entire team across the board playing in robotic fashion. You were suggesting that Brady choked. You're actually one of the knuckleheads Bedard was directing his piece towards. You simply can't see yourself in that mix because you utilize a passive aggressive approach you think straddles some imaginary line guys like Rhody and the card carrying fellowship of the miserable simply trample over and piss on because they're perpetual dissatisfaction led to them long ago ceasing to care what rational individuals thought of them or their rants.

 

[tonyto3690]

I think it's extremely foolish to put the blame on Brady, and hvaen't really seen anyone do that.

However there were A LOT of opportunities on 2nd and 3, 3rd and 2 in the first half that we just didn't convert. Part of that was play calling, part of that was our inability to run the ball, but you have to give Brady some of the blame there when he gets so much credit for picking apart defenses in the regular season.

Convert more of those and maybe our points cushion is enough to hold on and win the game, but at the end of the day the lose of Talib, Chandler, and Gronk were just way too much to overcome.

 

[aluminum seats]

If we're to win another SB it will be with a major overhaul on the defense

I'm glad we're not overreacting or anything.....

 

[aluminum seats]

Silly to blame brady. When I see a QB with his experience and knowledge hold the ball for 7 seconds and find no one open, I assume there is no one getting open.

I think that assumption might be wrong, and it might be more on Brady just being too hesistant to pull the trigger. Case in point: the previous week on the TD pass to Vereen, I think if Brady had held onto the ball and ultimately just thrown it away, it would have been said that "no one was getting open." But in that case, a great QB (which Brady is) made the play. There may be an element of Brady getting tight there.

 

[LivinLovin&Breathin_Brady]

Brady seemed to have being playing like his usual self if memory serves me correctly. All of his passes are not gonna be perfect, he throws about 4-5 badpasses a game. The bad screen pass to wide open Welker, there were Ravens in his face, he was lucky to have got it out there. The one behind Hernandez, same issue. What killed the Patriots were the dropped passes on 3rd down and them not going for it on 4th and 2 when they usually would've.

I think the coaching staff got scared and tried to play it too safe after getting the lead and watching Flacco torch that garbage of a defense and it affected the team. It seemed like Brady and the O was moving the ball in the fourth, but freak stuff like the Ridley fumble, or the tipped INT, just killed them. The D allowed Rice to run six minutes off the clock, the INT at the end really didn't matter. Even the young Tom Brady wouldn't have won this game if he watched the opposing QB score TDs by the minute. But young Brady had a defense, he never had to really carry the team solely on his shoulders. It's not like he went out there and pulled a Peyton Manning.

 

[ThatllMoveTheChains!!!]

Personally, I blame Climate Change.

I didn't even notice him playing; I'll have to rewatch the game and keep an eye out.

 

[tonyto3690]

They scored 13 points. Like it or not, that falls on the QB. In 2007 they were on the verge of immortality and scored 14 points. Last year...17 points. In their 7 losses in the BB era they have averaged 18 points a game. Unfortunately, the 27 ppg they've given up doesn't matter. QB gets the credit (too much) when they win, and gets the blame (too much) when they lose.

You know, context is occasionally important.

IIRC, our starting RT and RG both left SB42 mid game and Mankins was playing a torn ACL. When your QB is getting sacked before the ball even gets to him, there isn't a whole lot he can do.

The offense has had some dramatic let downs, we all know this. But that isn't all on Brady. Last years SB he made two bad reads/throws the entire game. Against the Jets he had one fluke screen INT, Chung botched a fake punt, Crumpler dropped an easy TD, and no one on our team could get open. I'm not even going to bring up the 2009 game against the Ravens because we simply had a mediocre team.

 

[Kontradiction]

You know, context is occasionally important.

IIRC, our starting RT and RG both left SB42 mid game and Mankins was playing a torn ACL. When your QB is getting sacked before the ball even gets to him, there isn't a whole lot he can do.

The offense has had some dramatic let downs, we all know this. But that isn't all on Brady. Last years SB he made two bad reads/throws the entire game. Against the Jets he had one fluke screen INT, Chung botched a fake punt, Crumpler dropped an easy TD, and no one on our team could get open. I'm not even going to bring up the 2009 game against the Ravens because we simply had a mediocre team.

It was just Neal that left. Our starting RT only seemed to be invisible but there actually was one out there.

 

[upstater1]

You know, context is occasionally important.

IIRC, our starting RT and RG both left SB42 mid game and Mankins was playing a torn ACL. When your QB is getting sacked before the ball even gets to him, there isn't a whole lot he can do.

The offense has had some dramatic let downs, we all know this. But that isn't all on Brady. Last years SB he made two bad reads/throws the entire game. Against the Jets he had one fluke screen INT, Chung botched a fake punt, Crumpler dropped an easy TD, and no one on our team could get open. I'm not even going to bring up the 2009 game against the Ravens because we simply had a mediocre team.

Didn't he also break a record in last year's SB for consecutive passes completed?

 

[Jackson 2]

Didn't he also break a record in last year's SB for consecutive passes completed?

Yes. 16 completions in a row.