I think the running TD are misleading because 10 or 11 of the 12 happened inside the 5. A RB could convert those situation. I don’t remember people going crazy when Blount had 18 TD in a season which was the best in the league in 16. Bill didn’t resigned him after that season. If Cam had scored 12 TD like Lamar Jackson I would see things differently but it was not the case.
Cam had COVID last year and Brady in 2019 played half the season with an elbow injury and a foot injury if remember correctly.
with Brady on this team, we would be SB contender. If we make the playoffs with Cam it would be an accomplishment.
Cam just being a threat to run whether it is on Patriots 5 yard line or opponents 5 yard line, opens things up for every running back since teams need to account for Cam running the ball. And it also opens things up for the receivers.
It is a little unfair to compare to the year Blount scored a bunch of TD's since Patriots had much better skill position players that year and they had Blount who was a very powerful short yardage back. Burkhead even when healthy wasn't as powerful as Blount in short yardage situations. Maybe better all around but not short yardage. That year, Patriots had a high scoring offense and weren't being carried by the defense. The year before Cam came, Patriots offense was fairly middle of the pack with truly dominant defense in first half of the seasons setting up a ton of scores or scoring themselves.
And Blount was still decent enough that next year with Philly that he helped them win a Super Bowl after helping a very good Patriots team in 2016.
Touchdowns/first downs near the end zone are hardly ever gimmees especially if the team isn't talented on offense. The Patriots once Edelman went down had zero established receivers and zero established tight ends last year. Look how Brady lost his final game in New England. He actually played very well and much better than most pundits have stated. But running backs couldn't convert in a few critical very short yardage situations. Receivers dropped a few and often his primary reads failed to get separation.
And that and a few other things cost the Patriots a close game.
This past year, Patriots had no Blount and even if they did, Cam is a better option running the ball close to the goal line than even Blount all other things being equal which they rarely are. It is a huge strength of his and literally the reason why he won MVP of the entire National Football League and led his team to 15-1 record without every being a very good pure passer.
Cam Newton is still excellent at running the ball. He just isn't getting yards, run of the mill running backs could easily get. NFL defenses know that and it gives Patriots nice advantage. The disadvantage is for sure he is not a good pure passer so when you combine that with receivers that could get open thanks to the attention placed on Cam but as a unit, the receivers/tight ends sucked at 50/50 balls, it wasn't a surprise the offense struggled as a whole.
I certainly have Tom Brady as the GOAT without a doubt. But check out how Brady struggled 2nd half of regular season. Cam had a better line than Brady did that 2nd half and I'd even give a slight edge to Cam's receivers/tight ends.
But Brady's stats were so mediocre that 2nd half that foolish critics were calling him kind of washed up when he was still a top 5 quarterback.
Cam Newton's demise has been greatly exaggerated.
Carolina got rid of Cam because of his relatively high salary combined with his injury risk. Carolina wasn't foolish enough to think Newton wasn't still a good starting QB but if you think your team needs to be rebuilt, you understandably do not want to pay Cam a lot of money relatively speaking if you think he will still suffer injuries.
Then why did the Pats have one of the worst passing attacks in the league last year? If the receivers would be "more open", wouldn't that translate into having one of the better passing offenses out there?
A few reasons. I believe receivers in the stat I heard was separated from running backs and tight ends. So a big reason may be the Patriots had the worst tight ends in the entire NFL and that is important.
Another big reason is the Patriots receivers/tight ends as a group had to be among the bottom 5 in the NFL on 50/50 balls down the field. Brady with Tampa Bay if no one was open could chuck the ball down the field and Evans/Godwin could sometimes make catches or get a pass interference call. Tough for Brady to do that his last year in New England and tough for Cam to do that as well.
Another reason Patriots skill position players as a whole not strong in YAC.
Cam being a relatively inaccurate passer obviously plays a part but the other reasons collectively more of a factor.
Cam even when he was MVP or Heisman winner leading his team to a championship was never a truly all around accurate thrower of the football compared to other elite quarterbacks. It is his running ability that helps out his receivers/tight ends but you still need more talent than the Patriots put on the field as a whole at the skill positions.
Patriots now have a top 5 tight end group and improved but still below average receivers as a whole. Add in Cam being more familiar with the Patriots scheme, the Patriots should score a lot more points next year as long as Cam stays healthy.
