PFF: The Pats OL is damn good

[Harrisoned!]

https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2013/10/09/ranking-the-2013-offensive-lines-first-quarter/4/

Pats offensive line rank 5th in the NFL through Week 5, according to Pro Football Focus.

They certainly had a tough game against Cincy, but were successful running in that game when we tried and there were long stretches where Brady had plenty of time to throw as well.

Overall, I think the respect this board gives our OL is pitiful, when in reality we have two Pro Bowl OTs (Solder playing like an All Pro) and three solid interior OL. The X factor is always Mankins, as when he is on his game he can dominate a run defense.

This week is a solid test, with Cam Jordan and Junior Galette, but I fully expect the Patriots to be able to move the ball. Rob Ryan will come up with some cute coverages to confuse Brady at times, but overall I don't expect to come out of this game (or really any going forward) and be blaming the loss on the offensive line.

 

[Kontradiction]

https://www.profootballfocus

Stopped reading there.

 

[Get it shawtaay]

Blah blah blah PFF blah blah blah

 

[BradyManny]

The Pats OL is good, but PFF's constant praise of them has more to do with their desire to continually undermine Brady's play. They need to justify their existence and "Brady's good b/c of his OL" sets them apart, and its been their agenda for a while.

Keep in mind that PFF is just a bunch of random people who gave up their day jobs to pretend they were NFL scouts, there is no actual background in football whatsoever, and as a result, there is a huge insecurity on their part, and a desire to stand-out.

The truth is, our OL can struggle against top DLs, as it did this past Sunday.

 

[Ice_Ice_Brady]

PFF is a joke, but at the same time, I've been chirping in on this sentiment from time to time.

An offensive line, like every component of the team, is part of a larger system. We thought the Patriots would have three "versatile" players this year in Gronkowski, Hernandez, and Vereen, three guys who could disguise run/pass, help with audibles, and be a threat at various parts of the field. The Patriots without Gronk have zero ability to disguise their plays, as shotgun is ineffective and the use of an extra tight end tells you it's either a running play or an ineffective passing play.

Simply put, teams with more effective skill players and passing games are more difficult to pressure and blitz, as teams that send in extra defenders after the QB are taking a much bigger risk. In addition, there are the obvious coverage sacks and plays where Brady is supposed to get rid of the ball immediately but hesitates, causing the O-Line to reshuffle on the fly.

The Broncos "appear" to have a good offensive line, but the reality the Pats are much better and more athletic. Manning is hardly ever pressured, but that is due to a ridiculous passing game (which also opens up the run.)

 

[jah]

I can't believe almost every major sports site has started citing PFF recently. Worst stats site of all time.

 

[Kontradiction]

The Pats OL is good, but PFF's constant praise of them has more to do with their desire to continually undermine Brady's play. They need to justify their existence and "Brady's good b/c of his OL" sets them apart, and its been their agenda for a while.

Keep in mind that PFF is just a bunch of random people who gave up their day jobs to pretend they were NFL scouts, there is no actual background in football whatsoever, and as a result, there is a huge insecurity on their part, and a desire to stand-out.

The truth is, our OL can struggle against top DLs, as it did this past Sunday.

The interior OL has struggled mightily through the last three games.

 

[51Hits]

I don't care what any statistic says. Put this Ol against an elite dl and watch the implosion begin . Improvements need to be made

 

[JackBauer]

The interior OL has struggled mightily through the last three games.

To be fair, I think 99 percent of said struggles can be attributed to Wendell and Connolly.

 

[Sciz]

I can't believe almost every major sports site has started citing PFF recently. Worst stats site of all time.

Even worse, the announcers cited them during a Packers preseason game. Luckily, that was confined to the preseason.

 

[SeymourTrophies]

The interior OL has struggled mightily through the last three games.

It seems like it comes down to this against every formidable front we face.

You can pretty much call how our offense is going to play based on looking at the other team's defense on paper these days. If they have two guys who can play up front, we're going to have issues. The only elite defense we've consistently done well against was Pitt, but we just knew how to take it to them.

The other issue that recently occurred to me (though it's probably been an issue since 2009) is that we can't run the ball when the other team knows we're running. That's an o-line issue, for my money, with some fault sprinkled on the RB's as well.

 

[cavtroop]

To be fair, I think 99 percent of said struggles can be attributed to Wendell and Connolly.

thats 2/3rds of the interior line. But I agree, these guys are the weak link.

 

[borg]

Brady doesn't scramble....and BB/McDaniels don't design movement outside the pocket for Brady...so D's know exactly where the point of attack is on every passing play. Goal #1 for D lines is to disrupt his mechanics, aka his stride. Brady isn't a gunslinger nor the most creative QB that can create something out of nothing. He is a pure pocket QB which has its limitations. Teams that can force Brady to alter his mechanics turn him into just another QB. We may see this perfect storm only a few times a year, but when you see the disruption, you remember its ugliness. Giants '07 and '11, Ravens '12. And after such games, the word "finesse" gets tossed about because you really see how much of a timing passing attack NE runs. And these days, with all the newbies and no old reliables, the system has broken down on many fronts.

 

[patsfan-1982]

C and RG have not played very good this season

 

[Get it shawtaay]

PFF are like us. A bunch of fans who try to analyze what happens in games. I don't mind fans analyzing what happens in games. That's why I read this website.

But to treat their assertions with anymore validity than that is flawed. To all the people who cite it, it is not just a curiosity, but something meaningful rather than merely interesting. It is amateur analysis masquerading as empirical fact.

I don't hate PFF. I hate the way it gets used.

 

[SeymourTrophies]

I'd put Seattle and San Francisco last year in that category too.

The one thing I'm hopeful about is that Gronk can open things up and make a bad day worth 20 points instead of six, but the two games we really struggled in during the regular season were against the better front sevens (Pitt and NYG) even though Pitt was more attributed to them coming with a gameplan that our boys didn't expect.

 

[captain stone]

C and RG have not played very good this season...

...or last season either.
Cannon should replace Connolly at RG, and Connolly should replace Wendell at Center.

 

[Harrisoned!]

PFF are like us. A bunch of fans who try to analyze what happens in games. I don't mind fans analyzing what happens in games. That's why I read this website.

But to treat their assertions with anymore validity than that is flawed. To all the people who cite it, it is not just a curiosity, but something meaningful rather than merely interesting. It is amateur analysis masquerading as empirical fact.

I don't hate PFF. I hate the way it gets used.

Okay, another clear-cut stat to use is that the Patriots have allowed the 5th fewest sacks per pass attempt.

Here's another - until the Bengals game, Solder and Vollmer hadn't even allowed a HIT on Brady, let alone a sack.

They rank 7th per Football Outsiders on their Adjusted Line Yards calc, which tries to weed out rushing yards benefiting from long open field runs or getting hurt by short-yardage conversions.

They rank 15th in YPC and 11th in total yards rushing, despite a revolving door circus at RB.

And for what it's worth, PFF has pretty negatively graded both Wendell and Connolly this year. They've harped on them repeatedly for poor play in their reviews of the games. But just because two of your linemen are subpar doesn't mean the line as a whole isn't playing well - when your tackles and LG are playing as dominantly as they have to date, it creates plenty of positive plays by the line as a whole.

I think people need to go watch some other teams' OLs before they complain. Watch the Dolphins' OL with Clabo and Martin turning into bullfighters every weekend, and John Jerry getting blown up in the middle. Or check out the Giants line, who can't runblock to save their life and are only marginally better in pass protection.

I'd honestly hesitate to pick much more than 5 lines I'd rather have than the Patriots' unit. Detroit's has been great so far; Denver's has also been but we'll see if they hold up long-term without Clady. Houston is always good but part of that is their fantastic ZBS principles.

The reality is, almost every line struggles mightily when they face elite interior rushers like Geno Atkins, JJ Watt, Ndamukong Suh, Justin Tuck of old, etc. etc. The Pats are not some anomaly in this respect, it's just doubly-tough for the Patriots because their QB can't slide out of the pocket and make plays on the run. If you are the Cowboys and let pressure up the middle, you can still make plays because you can roll protection and get Romo on the move. You simply can't do that with Brady.

 

[Deus Irae]

Okay, another clear-cut stat to use is that the Patriots have allowed the 5th fewest sacks per pass attempt.

Here's another - until the Bengals game, Solder and Vollmer hadn't even allowed a HIT on Brady, let alone a sack.

They rank 7th per Football Outsiders on their Adjusted Line Yards calc, which tries to weed out rushing yards benefiting from long open field runs or getting hurt by short-yardage conversions.

They rank 15th in YPC and 11th in total yards rushing, despite a revolving door circus at RB.

And for what it's worth, PFF has pretty negatively graded both Wendell and Connolly this year. They've harped on them repeatedly for poor play in their reviews of the games. But just because two of your linemen are subpar doesn't mean the line as a whole isn't playing well - when your tackles and LG are playing as dominantly as they have to date, it creates plenty of positive plays by the line as a whole.

I think people need to go watch some other teams' OLs before they complain. Watch the Dolphins' OL with Clabo and Martin turning into bullfighters every weekend, and John Jerry getting blown up in the middle. Or check out the Giants line, who can't runblock to save their life and are only marginally better in pass protection.

I'd honestly hesitate to pick much more than 5 lines I'd rather have than the Patriots' unit. Detroit's has been great so far; Denver's has also been but we'll see if they hold up long-term without Clady. Houston is always good but part of that is their fantastic ZBS principles.

The reality is, almost every line struggles mightily when they face elite interior rushers like Geno Atkins, JJ Watt, Ndamukong Suh, Justin Tuck of old, etc. etc. The Pats are not some anomaly in this respect, it's just doubly-tough for the Patriots because their QB can't slide out of the pocket and make plays on the run. If you are the Cowboys and let pressure up the middle, you can still make plays because you can roll protection and get Romo on the move. You simply can't do that with Brady.

PFF blows, and everyone understands that the Patriots have 3 OL who are quality players and 2OL who are not. PFF's garbage work doesn't help, or hinder, in that regard.

 

[QB12]

I don't care what any statistic says. Put this Ol against an elite dl and watch the implosion begin . Improvements need to be made

I agree. Painfully obvious.