Pandemic affecting BB strategy?

[n6249c]

Assuming that the NFL is able to play football this season, there will be effects from the pandemic, starting with the lockdown restructuring of the draft, extending to the on-boarding of new players and very likely impacting OTAs and perhaps training camp.

Considering this, do you think Belichick’s strategy about building his team for the upcoming season has been affected by this? How?

Also hoping this thread will provide a good opportunity to discuss what those effects will likely be.

I expect that the effects will be especially significant to the kind of chemistry development Brady had traditionally worked on with his WRs during the off season. I’d extend to thinking that there will be effects from the emphasis on book learning instead of on-field reps starting now, which will mean that timing may be less refined. In short it seems to me that offenses may need to be simplified and some aspects may be less effective.

That makes me wonder if part of the rationale behind the Pats’ draft strategy was an expectation that offenses will be more vulnerable to defensive disruption, and that assimilating new players into the offense will be harder and less rewarding.

So, what does everyone else think?

H/T to Yukon Cornelius for his post in the UDFA thread for helping to motivate me to post this. I’d been thinking about this since the draft, and his post made some of the same points I’d been thinking.

 

[n6249c]

Good points about impact on draft prep, plus training camp and pre-camp activities...

Thing about this year's draft......no in person pro days, no in-person meetings

They had to draft based on the talent of their scouts before covid hit, or go with the known.....the combine, the big names, the knowns, the safe bets

this could be a big year for late round draftees & UDFAs......

with training camp time sure to be interesting, and pre-camp activities sure to be limited.....it is also going to be a huge year for the kids that can come in and learn quickly and have those work ethic and leadership unmeasurables

this really sets up for a year where BB just pulls players out of his ass......i know normally we see only 1 or 2 late rounders and 1 or 2 UDFAs make the roster.......but this year could break that trend.....i see at least 3 of these UDFAs that i'd be surprised not to be on the roster just based on signing bonus & scouting reports (murray, hastings & harris)......i think Coe could be an interesting PS stash (we love former wrestlers)......but there's a few other UDFAs that look interesting, too


this is going to be an odd year, for obvious reasons.....and i like the way NE has historically excelled in this area to be an advantage

 

[DropKickFlutie]

Belichick is a genius for clearing out our entire cap during a season that may not happen and then we have over 100m in cap room in 2021.

.

 

[n6249c]

Belichick is a genius for clearing out our entire cap during a season that may not happen and then we have over 100m in cap room in 2021.

.

Careful, Goodell might penalize us for that somehow. Likely will penalize Belichick for causing coronavirus to manipulate the cap.

 

[luuked]

I don't think it affected what players they drafted at all. Taking Dugger and Uche with the first two picks really already gives that away.

Dugger especially will need some time to get there, similar to how Collins was eased in in 2013. Until week 13 he only played snaps in certain packages (never more than 32%) and then additional responsibilities were added (jump to about 50%) which culminated in his amazing playoff game against the Colts and Broncos (both essentially 100% snaps).

It is what it is. Every team has to deal with the same restrictions.

 

[PP2]

Of course it was. Why do you think he put Nike in charge of drafting? Animals cannot transmit or be infected with the virus.

 

[PlanB]

if there is no 2020 NFL season, how will next year's draft order be determined? same as this year, lottery, ???

 

[Sicilian]

if there is no 2020 NFL season, how will next year's draft order be determined? same as this year, lottery, ???

I remember after the NHL lockout, they did a weighted lottery so the worst team from the year before had the best odds of the #1 pick, though it was still relatively low (like 15-20% I think?). I remember because it was when Crosby and Ovechkin went 1-2 (I think Ovechkin would have gone #1 the year before had there been a draft), and I thought, "Oh look, the Penguins got lucky and were bailed out of bankruptcy by a franchise altering #1 pick again..."

 

[borg]

Assuming that the NFL is able to play football this season, there will be effects from the pandemic, starting with the lockdown restructuring of the draft, extending to the on-boarding of new players and very likely impacting OTAs and perhaps training camp.

Considering this, do you think Belichick’s strategy about building his team for the upcoming season has been affected by this? How?

Also hoping this thread will provide a good opportunity to discuss what those effects will likely be.

I expect that the effects will be especially significant to the kind of chemistry development Brady had traditionally worked on with his WRs during the off season. I’d extend to thinking that there will be effects from the emphasis on book learning instead of on-field reps starting now, which will mean that timing may be less refined. In short it seems to me that offenses may need to be simplified and some aspects may be less effective.

That makes me wonder if part of the rationale behind the Pats’ draft strategy was an expectation that offenses will be more vulnerable to defensive disruption, and that assimilating new players into the offense will be harder and less rewarding.

So, what does everyone else think?

H/T to Yukon Cornelius for his post in the UDFA thread for helping to motivate me to post this. I’d been thinking about this since the draft, and his post made some of the same points I’d been thinking.

Seems to me, early on each season, offenses have the advantage vs defenses yet to become organized. Like during snowy/ slippery field games, offenses know where they are going and defenses are slow to react.
Therefore....... bullocks on the OP premise.

BB drafted for need!

Major voids at LB, TE, interior OL depth....
and the Dugger pick was a combination “thinking of the future at S” and “possess an athletic, in the box safety capable of tracking/tackling mobile stud QBs”

 

[DarrylS]

Seems to me, early on each season, offenses have the advantage vs defenses yet to become organized. Like during snowy/ slippery field games, offenses know where they are going and defenses are slow to react.
Therefore....... bullocks on the OP premise.

BB drafted for need!

Major voids at LB, TE, interior OL depth....
and the Dugger pick was a combination “thinking of the future at S” and “possess an athletic, in the box safety capable of tracking/tackling mobile stud QBs”

I think the Duggar pick was to have an extra quick body who can tackle for the likes Lamar, Mahomes etc.. BB is planning not only for the future, but for how the game will change as time goes on..

Go back to the days of "Off again, on again Tiquan Underwood" and "Two Way Troy Brown" and the current focus on having a really strong D backfield.. stay tuned folks gonna be an interesting ride.

 

[sean10mm]

This was an extremely ordinary Belichick draft.

Trading back? Duh.

An out of left field pick on defense based on freak raw ability? Check, that's just Collins 2.0.

Double-dipping at a position of need in the same draft? We've seen that a bunch of times.

Drafting kicker high-ish out of a "so what?" school? Gostowski was a 4th rounder out of Memphis.

Ignoring seemingly obvious needs? Yeah we've been to that dance before.

 

[dustcover]

"Considering this, do you think Belichick’s strategy about building his team for the upcoming season has been affected by this?

[/QUOTE] Respectfully, reading too much into the tea leaves!

 

[IllegalContact]

if you wanted a rebuilding off year, the 2020 season would be the year to have it

 

[Spiral]

With fewer pro days and less ability to work out and visit with draft picks, I think this draft was even more of a crapshoot that any other. It appears that the strategy was to roll the dice as many times as possible, and hope that you hit on a few. It may also be a great year to stash later-round guys on PS or IR. I think it was the right strategy for the right time, especially for a team in transition.

 

[yukon cornelius]

I can't say whether it is playing into his strategy, other than perhaps gravitating towards the smarter players (football wise) who can jump in with less prep - but that's always kind of a BB hallmark


what i do think is going to happen to some extent is the guys like BB who look for the diamond in the rough, who don't rank players the same as the general mel kyper crowd, who look for slightly different skill sets and who just looks at things like talent and need through a different lens than most is at an advantage

i think a lot of teams simply went with best available, and use conventional wisdom to make that call, because that was the safe move with all the variables in play this year.......BB's wisdom isn't conventional, and in a year where many were forced into convention, he may have an advantage......i think you see a few more of the late round picks stick, and more than one UDFA make this roster this year.......there was a lot more meat left on the bones in later rounds and post draft this year, imho, simply because so many boards in so many draft zooms (not rooms this year, haha) were very, very traditional.....more so than other years

 

[XLIX]

While the reason for the (potentially) delayed start this year is something we've never experienced before, actually having a delayed start isn't new. I'd look to the 2011 lockout season for guidance on how this might play out. I am not sure there were any significant strategy changes that year, but who knows....

 

[Palm Beach Pats Fan]

Maybe he had a greatest reliance on drafting guys who played for people who can give him unvarnished opinions (Chip Kelly, Jim Harbaugh, Nick Sabin)???

 

[NormZauchin]

I don't really think that this happened, but one could make an argument that there was no last second attempt to sign Brady before he hit free agency because of the very real possibility of the season being cancelled. Brady another year older would be a bigger risk. Similarly, why not trade Gronk for a fourth rounder when Gronk may never even see the field in 2020.

 

[captain stone]

Yeah, that's the ticket...It was the pandemic I tells ya...

 

[102 Pat]

I wonder if the NFL may make a special exception and increase the practice squad limited for this upcoming season?

Pats/Chiefs from the 2018 regular season is currently on NFLN right now and it's so odd seeing the stadium full of people.