Uptown
Standin' Pat
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2016
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Very interesting insight by Bucky Brooks via NFL.com:
NEXT GEN STATS: Tom Brady owns the blind side
“There's little doubt that Tom Brady is the "G.O.A.T." (Greatest of All Time) at the quarterback position, but I'm amazed NFL defensive coordinators haven't caught up with his approach this season. Granted, he is one of the best clutch performers that I've ever seen, as evidenced by his spectacular performance in Super Bowl LI, among the countless comeback wins in his career, but he is torching opponents working away from the typical strong suit of right-handed quarterbacks. Instead of wearing out defensive backs with a barrage of throws to the right side of the field, Brady is repeatedly directing passes to his blind side.”
"He has always preferred to throw to the offensive left (defensive right)," a former AFC defensive coordinator who routinely faced Brady told me. "He's comfortable throwing to that side and he's really good at it. Plus, Brady's sweet spot is between the numbers and the hash, so he doesn't mind wearing you out with a bunch of dink-and-dunk throws to his left."
“According to Next Gen Stats, Brady leads all passers with 62 completions to the left this season, racking up 782 yards and five touchdowns for a passer rating of 115.5 (all league-highs, as well).”
“Patriots QB1 goes against the grain by working the left-hand side of the field more than any other QB in football. Uncommon for righty QB.”
“What's remarkable about Brady's success is his willingness to work the short area of the field to his left. The four-time Super Bowl MVP has completed 33 passes between 0 to 10 yards from the line of scrimmage, which is more than double the league average (16). In addition, Brady has completed 14 passes at an intermediate distance (10 to 20 yards), nearly three times the league average (5).”
“Comparing Brady's passing heat map with the alignments and route trees of the Patriots' top receivers, some obvious trends emerge. For instance, Brandin Cooks spends a lot of time on the left running an assortment of vertical routes. He aligned out wide on the left on 51 percent of his offensive snaps. In addition, Cooks has received 75 percent of his targets, 67 percent of his receptions and 73 percent of his receiving yards on the left-hand side of the field. Most importantly, he has averaged 23.0 yards per catch on receptions on the left.”
“Against the Houston Texans in Week 3, Cooks finished with five receptions for 131 yards and two touchdowns, with the bulk of his work done on the left side of the field. In that same game, Rob Gronkowskisnagged eight balls for 89 yards and a touchdown with most of his routes ending on the left side of the field. With the Patriots using Cooks to clear the zone on verticals, Gronkowski's crossing routes and option outs were frequently left uncovered.”
“With that information in mind, I don't know why defensive coordinators don't use field or location calls to discourage Brady from targeting that side.”
"We used to discuss all of that information with our players, but Brady is so good at making adjustments that he would tweak his game to exploits our coverage," the former AFC defensive coordinator said. "He would work the other side of the field and target No. 3 or No. 2 on throws inside the numbers. (Defensive coaches number receivers from outside to inside. Thus, No. 1 would be the receiver nearest sideline, with No. 2 representing the slot receiver, etc.) Thus, you're at his mercy when he decides to counter your tactics."
“While Brady is pretty efficient working other areas of the field, it is apparent that he wants to work the back side in 2017. It will be interesting to see if opponents adjust their tactics to disrupt the timing and rhythm of the Patriots' passing game.”
NEXT GEN STATS: Tom Brady owns the blind side
“There's little doubt that Tom Brady is the "G.O.A.T." (Greatest of All Time) at the quarterback position, but I'm amazed NFL defensive coordinators haven't caught up with his approach this season. Granted, he is one of the best clutch performers that I've ever seen, as evidenced by his spectacular performance in Super Bowl LI, among the countless comeback wins in his career, but he is torching opponents working away from the typical strong suit of right-handed quarterbacks. Instead of wearing out defensive backs with a barrage of throws to the right side of the field, Brady is repeatedly directing passes to his blind side.”
"He has always preferred to throw to the offensive left (defensive right)," a former AFC defensive coordinator who routinely faced Brady told me. "He's comfortable throwing to that side and he's really good at it. Plus, Brady's sweet spot is between the numbers and the hash, so he doesn't mind wearing you out with a bunch of dink-and-dunk throws to his left."
“According to Next Gen Stats, Brady leads all passers with 62 completions to the left this season, racking up 782 yards and five touchdowns for a passer rating of 115.5 (all league-highs, as well).”
“Patriots QB1 goes against the grain by working the left-hand side of the field more than any other QB in football. Uncommon for righty QB.”
“What's remarkable about Brady's success is his willingness to work the short area of the field to his left. The four-time Super Bowl MVP has completed 33 passes between 0 to 10 yards from the line of scrimmage, which is more than double the league average (16). In addition, Brady has completed 14 passes at an intermediate distance (10 to 20 yards), nearly three times the league average (5).”
“Comparing Brady's passing heat map with the alignments and route trees of the Patriots' top receivers, some obvious trends emerge. For instance, Brandin Cooks spends a lot of time on the left running an assortment of vertical routes. He aligned out wide on the left on 51 percent of his offensive snaps. In addition, Cooks has received 75 percent of his targets, 67 percent of his receptions and 73 percent of his receiving yards on the left-hand side of the field. Most importantly, he has averaged 23.0 yards per catch on receptions on the left.”
“Against the Houston Texans in Week 3, Cooks finished with five receptions for 131 yards and two touchdowns, with the bulk of his work done on the left side of the field. In that same game, Rob Gronkowskisnagged eight balls for 89 yards and a touchdown with most of his routes ending on the left side of the field. With the Patriots using Cooks to clear the zone on verticals, Gronkowski's crossing routes and option outs were frequently left uncovered.”
“With that information in mind, I don't know why defensive coordinators don't use field or location calls to discourage Brady from targeting that side.”
"We used to discuss all of that information with our players, but Brady is so good at making adjustments that he would tweak his game to exploits our coverage," the former AFC defensive coordinator said. "He would work the other side of the field and target No. 3 or No. 2 on throws inside the numbers. (Defensive coaches number receivers from outside to inside. Thus, No. 1 would be the receiver nearest sideline, with No. 2 representing the slot receiver, etc.) Thus, you're at his mercy when he decides to counter your tactics."
“While Brady is pretty efficient working other areas of the field, it is apparent that he wants to work the back side in 2017. It will be interesting to see if opponents adjust their tactics to disrupt the timing and rhythm of the Patriots' passing game.”
