Questions on offense, and the final (most important) rematch of the season...this time without Gronk

[Soul_Survivor88]

It took a while, but Rob Gronkowski finally started eating against the Steelers. After spending most of Sunday's game with just one reception (on one target) to his name, the Patriots tight end burst up the seam for a 36-yard touchdown in the third quarter, proving -- once again -- that he's impossible to cover down the field. .... For Pittsburgh, that's a familiar sight, because Gronk almost always has his way with the Steelers. Sunday marked Gronk's fifth career game against the Steelers, and that touchdown was the eighth of his career against them.
- Rob Gronkowski keeps carving up Steelers with yet another touchdown (Oct 23, 2016)
​

It's a narrative that hasn't gotten much attention, but through the final stretch of the season, New England has had a trio of rematches against regular season opponents - with ascending importance.

January 1: The Miami game locked up the #1 seed (and with it, homefield advantage)
January 14: The HOU divisional game allowed the Patriots to advance to their 11th conference championship game of the Brady-Belichick Era
January 22: And this upcoming matchup with the Steelers will cap of the third, and final rematch against a regular season opponent.

What makes this one more significant - is the absence of Gronk - who had himself a monster game back on October 24. Not only did he haul in two TDs from Brady that day, but Gronk was a pivotal game-changer. After a quick score and field goal, the offense fell silent and could not establish a rhythm. What made the difference, in the end, was Gronk dominance in the second half.

This Patriots offense has taken several turns -- evolving between backup quarterbacks and early questions of Gronk's injury status. He was not active when the Patriots first played Miami. Nor did he have any major role in the thrashing of Houston the following Thursday (where he served mostly as a blocker and decoy). But the game where he made the biggest difference was in Pittsburgh, against a solid Steelers defense that has since improved.

Putting aside the messy peformance on Saturday (coming off a bye, against a top-ranked Houston defense deserving of praise) the jury is still out on how well New England's offense will perform in the postseason.

There's plenty to feel great about. Edelman had his most productive season and remains the leading playmaker at WR. Blount has had a career year as the NFL's leader in rushing touchdowns. White has become one of the most prolific receiving running backs -- not just in the NFL, but in franchise history. Hogan has become a formidable deep threat. Amendola, meanwhile, remains a reliable, serviceable third option at WR.

At the same, there are still questions going forward:

Will Malcolm Mitchell return from his injury to play out the role he's carved as the rare, rookie talent in Brady's circle of trust?

Will Martellus Bennett overcome his persistent injury concerns and help Brady as the team's only major weapon left at Tight End?

Will Michael Floyd continue to adjust to become a dependable #4 option at WR, after showing flashes of promise (as well as big mistakes) on the field?

And perhaps the biggest question: Who will prove to be the biggest offensive difference-maker - with Gronk no longer there, to terrorize Pittsburgh's defense?

I'm excited to see how our offense improves and who will step up in the absence of Gronk. Dion Lewis could have himself another monster game. He is, after all, the late-season addition to Brady's arsenal, and the one skill player who Pittsburgh has not had to match up against this season. I expect him to be our offense's biggest X-factor, going forward.

 

[70Dart]

This may sound nuts, but Bennett I think can be that role. He is bigger than Gronk and for a guy his size he has got serious speed. He is too big for a safety to cover and too fast for a LB cover. He may not be at the same level as Gronk, but I don't think there is a dramatic drop in talent either. Gronk knows the system better, but I think Bennett is going to be a pivotal player in this match up.

 

[pheenix11]

We also didn't have Dion Lewis against the Steelers.

Or Floyd for that matter.

I think those two can make up for the loss of Gronk in other ways.

 

[70Dart]

We also didn't have Dion Lewis against the Steelers.

Or Floyd for that matter.

I think those two can make up for the loss of Gronk in other ways.

Dion Lewis alone is a dynamic player. Floyd definitely adds another layer to the cake though. Great points.

 

[Minitron]

Will Malcolm Mitchell return from his injury to play out the role he's carved as the rare, rookie talent in Brady's circle of trust?
I think he will be back. He had two weeks of rest know. And we all know that he has the trust of Brady. They have play calls where he is the #1 read for Brady.
Will Martellus Bennett overcome his persistent injury concerns and help Brady as the team's only major weapon left at Tight End? As I said in another thread, they have to start using him similarly to how they used Gronk. Benett is able to split a defense with a seam route. And that guy is a tough SOB. That injury didn't look good vs. the Texans but hes was out there the next series.

Will Michael Floyd continue to adjust to become a dependable #4 option at WR, after showing flashes of promise (as well as big mistakes) on the field? Another week of practice should help. They certainly will get to what went wrong with the Interception-play. If he gives us two to three catches for 40 and no mistakes i'm happy.

And perhaps the biggest question: Who will prove to be the biggest offensive difference-maker - with Gronk no longer there, to terrorize Pittsburgh's defense?
We still have the GOAT at quarterback. In the week 7 game Mitchell and Bennett had a combinded 1 catch for 5 yards. This will change dramatically. We have Dion Lewis now. I have confidence that this team will find the weak spot of this defense and exploit it over and over again ( for me: or RBs against their LBs in space, attack ****rell)

Now you can call me homer for that i always seem to find anserws on why i think the Ptas will win, but i just have a lot of confidence in this team, that after the subpar showing vs. the Texans they will come out roaring with the fans behind them and they will crush those a**hole Steelers.

 

[BobDigital]

First drive - first pass to Hogan he fumbles (good defensive play but easily fixable mistake)
Second drive - Patriots go 80 yards for a TD (no passes to Gronk btw)
Third drive - 84 yards (1 short pass to Gronk)
Forth drive - Drop by Bolden ends the drive (he will not be asked to catch anything this game.. 3 and out)
Fifth drive - Pass incomplete to Edelman (the first earned stop Pitt made)
Sixth drive - half ends no time to do anything.
Seventh drive - Penalty on 2nd and 10 makes it 2nd and 20. 3 and out.
Eighth drive - 75 yard drive Touchdown. Good 25 yard run by Blount and 36 yard TD by Gronk on 3rd and 7 at the 36.
Ninth drive - 75 yard touchdown drive. Gronk made a 37 yard catch and 7 yard catch on this drive.
Tenth drive - (there was a kick off fumble by Edelman which kept the ball away from us a bit so Pitt had back to back drives) Penalty on first down made it 1st and 20... run run pass to chew up time.
Eleventh drive - run run run chew up time.
Twelth drive - kneel to end game.

Lets take a sec to examine this. Whenever you have Gronk he is going to be a big part of your game. Just will. He made a nice impact on this one but they have scored near as much without him. Not saying he is not missed but they have worked around it.

This game was not the Patriots needing Gronk to take it over to give them offense. It was just bad execution slowing them down.

After their ninth drive they just wanted to end the game particular after a bad penalty on the tenth drive to start it. The 6th drive was with 10 secs left so only the other 8 really matter. In those 8 we have 4 TDs 2 of which were assisted by big plays by Gronk but not like it was 3rd and a prayer (they were plays made on 3rd and 7 and 1st and 10) and they needed him to pull them through. He made a play but a pass to Edelman would have worked in either case.

So only the first 8 drives matter. IMO Pitt only stopped the Pats 1 time. The Pats got 4 TDs 1 fumble, 1 drop and 1 badly timed penalty. If they don't shoot themselves in the foot they would have likely gotten more and Gronk didn't need to make huge plays on a 3rd and forever to convert drives. He made huge plays but smaller and safe plays we know the Pats can execute would have kept those drives going.

 

[Brick27]

This may sound nuts, but Bennett I think can be that role. He is bigger than Gronk and for a guy his size he has got serious speed. He is too big for a safety to cover and too fast for a LB cover. He may not be at the same level as Gronk, but I don't think there is a dramatic drop in talent either. Gronk knows the system better, but I think Bennett is going to be a pivotal player in this match up.

I really hope this is the case. Mentioned this earlier today, but Bennett is averaging 2.25 receptions for 25 yards over the course of the last 8 games.

Thought they had an opportunity to get him a score on 1st down during the failed goal line series right before the half. Bennett was matched up on the left with a 200lb safety in Moore, and that entire side of the field was open. He was blocking, then made a slight attempt to get open once Brady was struggling to find anyone, but by that point it was too late.

 

[70Dart]

I really hope this is the case. Mentioned this earlier today, but Bennett is averaging 2.25 receptions for 25 yards over the course of the last 8 games.

Thought they had an opportunity to get him a score on 1st down during the failed goal line series right before the half. Bennett was matched up on the left with a 200lb safety in Moore, and that entire side of the field was open. He was blocking, then made a slight attempt to get open once Brady was struggling to find anyone, but by that point it was too late.

He does a lot of blocking as well. Hopefully, he can make a difference in this game. If not we always have Dion Lewis.

 

[Soul_Survivor88]

We also didn't have Dion Lewis against the Steelers

Can't think of anyone else who poses the same kind of dilemma as he does for defenses.

Don't get me wrong, there's no other player who can dictate coverage the way Gronk can, but Lewis' ability to both run and catch out of the backfield gives him the ability to match up against defenders.

The Patriots May Have Found Their New Gronk

Without the injured Rob Gronkowski, New England’s ability to dictate exploitable matchups and attack the weak link in a defense has been severely diminished; with Gronk, the Patriots would just move their big, unguardable tight end around the formation until some hapless defender lined up against him in coverage. When that happened, they’d attack the mismatch with deadly efficiency. But minus that sure thing in their repertoire, offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Brady have had to get a little more creative in each game. Sometimes they look to Julian Edelman, sometimes it’s Martellus Bennett, and on Saturday night, despite entering the game as part of the three-headed running back platoon with LeGarrette Blount and James White, Lewis emerged as that movable chess piece.

It should be no surprise. The Texans finished the year 28th in coverage against running backs out of the backfield, per Football Outsiders. Putting Lewis out on pass routes against 260-pound Benardrick McKinney was just unfair: Lewis is too quick and too explosive, and the Patriots used that advantage perfectly. The kick return touchdown later was just a bonus.
​

Also have to credit the versatility that having four running backs (Develin included) gives us

Patriots replaced Gronk with four-headed running back monstah

As individuals, Lewis, Blount and White are above-average talents. As a whole, with their various skill sets playing off each other from situation to situation, game to game, they're downright dangerous — and have made the Patriots extremely hard to defend.

With Gronkowski, everyone knew what was coming, and he still wasn't stopped often. There went the behemoth rumbling downfield, using his bruising-but-athletic body to outrun and out-muscle you at the same time.

Most teams would be lost and clueless to adjust without that kind of game-changer. The Patriots aren't most teams. They simply spread out what they had with Gronk.

Blount is the big, cruising bruiser when needed. A healthy Lewis gives them little and fast to drive linebackers and safeties crazy in coverage. White has that knack to slip free in the red zone, ala Gronk working to get open. Then there's Develin, who doesn't need to run or catch the ball when he's doing so much fo fill Gronk's blocking void.

They say it takes a village. The Patriots prefer to pillage a defense, using every personnel hole to their advantage. The Texans were good straight up against the run between the tackles, but had trouble staying with backs laterally and in the open field. Enter Lewis to run and run routes around them.

The Steelers have a hard time covering backs outside, so one might expect the Patriots to use much more of Lewis in that case. ​

 

[70Dart]

Can't think of anyone else who poses the same kind of dilemma as he does for defenses.

Don't get me wrong, there's no other player who can dictate coverage the way Gronk can, but Lewis' ability to both run and catch out of the backfield gives him the ability to match up against defenders.

The Patriots May Have Found Their New Gronk

Without the injured Rob Gronkowski, New England’s ability to dictate exploitable matchups and attack the weak link in a defense has been severely diminished; with Gronk, the Patriots would just move their big, unguardable tight end around the formation until some hapless defender lined up against him in coverage. When that happened, they’d attack the mismatch with deadly efficiency. But minus that sure thing in their repertoire, offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Brady have had to get a little more creative in each game. Sometimes they look to Julian Edelman, sometimes it’s Martellus Bennett, and on Saturday night, despite entering the game as part of the three-headed running back platoon with LeGarrette Blount and James White, Lewis emerged as that movable chess piece.

It should be no surprise. The Texans finished the year 28th in coverage against running backs out of the backfield, per Football Outsiders. Putting Lewis out on pass routes against 260-pound Benardrick McKinney was just unfair: Lewis is too quick and too explosive, and the Patriots used that advantage perfectly. The kick return touchdown later was just a bonus.
​

Also have to credit the versatility that having four running backs (Develin included) gives us

Patriots replaced Gronk with four-headed running back monstah

As individuals, Lewis, Blount and White are above-average talents. As a whole, with their various skill sets playing off each other from situation to situation, game to game, they're downright dangerous — and have made the Patriots extremely hard to defend.

With Gronkowski, everyone knew what was coming, and he still wasn't stopped often. There went the behemoth rumbling downfield, using his bruising-but-athletic body to outrun and out-muscle you at the same time.

Most teams would be lost and clueless to adjust without that kind of game-changer. The Patriots aren't most teams. They simply spread out what they had with Gronk.

Blount is the big, cruising bruiser when needed. A healthy Lewis gives them little and fast to drive linebackers and safeties crazy in coverage. White has that knack to slip free in the red zone, ala Gronk working to get open. Then there's Develin, who doesn't need to run or catch the ball when he's doing so much fo fill Gronk's blocking void.

They say it takes a village. The Patriots prefer to pillage a defense, using every personnel hole to their advantage. The Texans were good straight up against the run between the tackles, but had trouble staying with backs laterally and in the open field. Enter Lewis to run and run routes around them.

The Steelers have a hard time covering backs outside, so one might expect the Patriots to use much more of Lewis in that case. ​

Agreed. Lewis is a nightmare for defenses. He is a little guy that runs with great leverage and power. It's like trying to tackle a bowling ball.

 

[Brick27]

He does a lot of blocking as well. Hopefully, he can make a difference in this game. If not we always have Dion Lewis.

Certainly does, just would have liked to have seen something drawn up where they'd try to get him involved in the passing game at the goal line of all places.

 

[patriot1136]

Might be a stupid question but what about Matt Lengel? Can he get open and catch? He is a big target in terms of size.

 

[BobDigital]

Might be a stupid question but what about Matt Lengel? Can he get open and catch? He is a big target in terms of size.

He made a nice play for that TD. But lets be real. Matt Lengel is not the answer. Maybe he will catch 1 or 2 passes the rest of the way but he will and should not be the focus or first read. He is JAG. That is just the truth of.

 

[archstanton543]

They've been without Gronk for quite some time now and even have a contingency plan in Bennett this year. They'll be fine.

 

[mosi]

This may sound nuts, but Bennett I think can be that role. He is bigger than Gronk and for a guy his size he has got serious speed. He is too big for a safety to cover and too fast for a LB cover. He may not be at the same level as Gronk, but I don't think there is a dramatic drop in talent either. Gronk knows the system better, but I think Bennett is going to be a pivotal player in this match up.

I am not saying he can't play an important role in this game but he is no where near Gronk. I have been watching almost all the games again this year (this Texans game was unbearable to watch again!) and the difference between Gronk and Bennett is night and day. Gronk would catch everything remotely close to him. Not only that but go back to the 1st point, Gronk makes the big play when you need the big play. Bennett so far has not done that. I would be pleasantly surprised if he had a big day.

Not saying that he won't this game but I think they are all going to have to step up. I was hoping that Floyd would almost become that guy but I don't think he will.

The most important thing in my mind is the health of Hogan and Mitchel. The Pats need them both. If they are both out, this game could be tough.

 

[70Dart]

I am not saying he can't play an important role in this game but he is no where near Gronk. I have been watching almost all the games again this year (this Texans game was unbearable to watch again!) and the difference between Gronk and Bennett is night and day. Gronk would catch everything remotely close to him. Not only that but go back to the 1st point, Gronk makes the big play when you need the big play. Bennett so far has not done that. I would be pleasantly surprised if he had a big day.

Not saying that he won't this game but I think they are all going to have to step up. I was hoping that Floyd would almost become that guy but I don't think he will.

The most important thing in my mind is the health of Hogan and Mitchel. The Pats need them both. If they are both out, this game could be tough.

You won't hear me argue those points. Gronk knows the system inside and out, this is Bennett's first year. My comparison was more in the physical sense. Both are massive, both have great sped for guys their size which makes them match up nightmares and both are very very good blockers. Bennett this year, his role been to stay home and help block and why not, he is a sensational blocker.

IMO, Floyd has bigger advantage than Bennett does. Floyd knows Weis' offense, so he knows quite a bit more of the plays and verbiage than Bennett does. I am not expecting either of them to be lights out for us this year. However, they do contribute. The thing I like best about both of these players is, they bring a physicality to the offense where we can beat up on defenses, not just from a running aspect now. That to me is their bigger contributions at this point.

Without Gronk, Brady has been forced to throw the ball to other players. His security blanket is gone for the season, so it forces him to spread the ball out more which imo gives us more of an advantage because it is harder to cover everyone on the field. Edelman, Amendola, Floyd, Mitchell, Bennett, White, Lewis. That is an embarrassment of riches.

 

[SVN]

Gronk's real value comes on 3rd and long when he is almost always a threat with edelman lurking underneath. without him, teams can double edelman .I am surprised more teams dont put a punt protection unit on edelman on every 3rd down.

 

[Palm Beach Pats Fan]

Lewis, White, and Bennett beating linebacker coverages is our ace-in-the-hole in this game, IMO

 

[patriot1136]

Would love to see Bennett step up in this game. On the other hand, they may expect more of him, double team him, and leave others open.

 

[70Dart]

Might be a stupid question but what about Matt Lengel? Can he get open and catch? He is a big target in terms of size.

Lengel is a big body 6-6 or 6-7 260 or 265. I think he is used more right now as a blocker than anything else. They may bring him in for some plays, but I think at this point with him coming to the team so late his role is more of the blocker. And he is a decent blocker, but he is no Gronk in the blocking game.