Will the lack of a consistent pass rush come back to haunt us in the Super Bowl?

[Soul_Survivor88]

I am very impressed with how well our defense has played. And if you've paid attention to what I've writen on the forum, you'll khow proud I've been about these guys, despite all the criticism they've had to weather. But as we approach Super Bowl LI for a match with the Falcons, one thing still concerns me: the lack of a consistent pass rush, or an elite pass rusher who can be expected to win one-on-one battles in the trenches.

So far this season, the Patriots have had to rely on generating pressure from a variety of different sources -- often with the help of the scheme and disguised blitzes. At times, this has made our pass rush a versatile feature on defense -- showing an ability to generate pressure from multiple points along the defensive front. In fact, there are six different players who have had at least 20 total QB pressures this season. Yet, as difficult as that might make scheming against the Patriots’ defense, it can make it easier for opposing offensive linemen to just line up and win one-on-one matchups. And this is where the absence of an elite pass rusher becomes apparent.

This season, there is no single player on our front, who has been a consistent source of pressure. Chris Long is the only member of the Patriots to top 40 total pressures (he finished the regular season with 57 total QB pressures) and it took him 496 passing snaps to reach that mark.

Atlanta has a top-10 offensive line in the league with great run-blocking and above-average pass protection. And when given a clean pocket, there's been no quarterback who has been as deadly as Matt Ryan. According to Pro Football Focus, Matt Ryan has the best mark in the NFL of passer rating in a clean pocket. Including his two playoff games in the postseason, Ryan has a passer rating of 131.1, 1, the best mark in the NFL by over 10 points.

If the Patriots can’t apply some heat, it's going to put tons of pressure on our secondary, and given the efficiency with which Ryan has been carving up defenses from clean pockets, I am wondering how Belichick will approach this issue.

 

[MrNathanDrake]

Flowers was doing a lot better as a situational pass rusher, lined up in the middle rather than the edge.

 

[slam]

I have a feeling that this might be a game where the defensive ends are asked to go out of their way to chip running backs out of the backfield before pass rushing, and thus Matt Ryan will seem to have all day back there but no one to throw to.

 

[fightingirish595]

No, well get stops. The times we lost to teams when we weren't very good on defense, we ran into teams who could be just as physical if not more physical than us. The NFL was weird this yeAr. A lot of the best defenses had horrible offenses. When we lost playoff games, it was to teams with balance on offense and defense.

 

[captain stone]

Yes it will.

 

[FourierSeries]

Yes it will.

K

The ride ends here, sadly, because I completely despise PitsDirt:

****tsburg Squealers - 27

@ Patriots - 24

 

[fightingirish595]

Yes it will.

Care to elaborate?

 

[Soul_Survivor88]

I have a feeling that this might be a game where the defensive ends are asked to go out of their way to chip running backs out of the backfield before pass rushing, and thus Matt Ryan will seem to have all day back there but no one to throw to.

In theory, that sounds like it could work. But if you give even an average quarterback enough time, they will find ways to pick you apart. Modern-day NFL offenses are simply too complicated to expect corners and safeties to cover receivers for longer than 5 seconds. If you put three receivers out on routes against three cornerbacks, the quarterback will likely find one of his receivers in a span of five or more seconds. If given enough time, at least one of those receivers will gain separation and create a window of opportunity for the quarterback to complete a pass.

 

[Ochmed Jones]

We must generate pressure to take Ryan out of rythum.

In a perfect world we do that without blitzing.

Hightower remains our best pass rusher, but I am convinced he is playing with a badly damaged shoulder.

This may be the game we have to unleash Shea!

 

[Onedaful]

Yes it will.

Because you obviously have been so right in the past.

 

[Tony2046]

I've come to this conclusion. BB values containment and run control over pressure. Although he does occasionally create it to keep the QB on his toes.

 

[Joker]

torch this troll thread

 

[Tunescribe]

Chris Long is the only member of the Patriots to top 40 total pressures (he finished the regular season with 57 total QB pressures) and it took him 496 passing snaps to reach that mark. Atlanta has a top-10 offensive line in the league ... According to Pro Football Focus, Matt Ryan has the best mark in the NFL of passer rating in a clean pocket. Including his two playoff games in the postseason, Ryan has a passer rating of 131.1, 1, the best mark in the NFL by over 10 points. I am wondering how Belichick will approach this issue.

Simple: he won't consult PFF or fret over statistics.

 

[Joker]

did I or did I not tell you this mutt would post this crap today, when we were in the stands yesterday Tunes? Why they tolerate these sickening,negative rain stormers here is puzzling....after every single game it's the same fear mongering.

 

[drewskie]

I think we see a similar game plan against ATL as we did vs PIT, but with some wrinkles of course.

Make Matt Ryan beat you with his secondary WRs/TEs. You have to double Julio and slow down Freeman/Coleman out of the backfield especially with the short passes.

 

[rochrist]

Yes it will.

Just curious. Has there ever been a Boston sports team who you approved of (other than in hindsight)?

 

[stinkypete]

How did the pass rush fare against Pittsburgh? IIRC, it was practically not even part of the game plan. The defense started in a big nickel with Harmon in coverage and Chung playing the hybrid S/LB role. A 3 man line was successfully able to neutralize Pittsburgh's blocking scheme.

Atlanta is similarly built to Pittsburgh offensively. They have similar personnel. Their scheme is built around Ryan moving in the pocket, running the bootleg, making short passes, and the skill players generating yards.

Atlanta will approach 400 total yards of offense in this game, but the defensive approach should be the same. Control the gaps in the run game, double up Jones, keep the passing game in front of you, and force Muhammad Sanu and Tyler Gabriel to beat you.

 

[RobertWeathers]

I am very impressed with how well our defense has played. And if you've paid attention to what I've writen on the forum, you'll khow proud I've been about these guys, despite all the criticism they've had to weather. But as we approach Super Bowl LI for a match with the Falcons, one thing still concerns me: the lack of a consistent pass rush, or an elite pass rusher who can be expected to win one-on-one battles in the trenches.

So far this season, the Patriots have had to rely on generating pressure from a variety of different sources -- often with the help of the scheme and disguised blitzes. At times, this has made our pass rush a versatile feature on defense -- showing an ability to generate pressure from multiple points along the defensive front. In fact, there are six different players who have had at least 20 total QB pressures this season. Yet, as difficult as that might make scheming against the Patriots’ defense, it can make it easier for opposing offensive linemen to just line up and win one-on-one matchups. And this is where the absence of an elite pass rusher becomes apparent.

This season, there is no single player on our front, who has been a consistent source of pressure. Chris Long is the only member of the Patriots to top 40 total pressures (he finished the regular season with 57 total QB pressures) and it took him 496 passing snaps to reach that mark.

Atlanta has a top-10 offensive line in the league with great run-blocking and above-average pass protection. And when given a clean pocket, there's been no quarterback who has been as deadly as Matt Ryan. According to Pro Football Focus, Matt Ryan has the best mark in the NFL of passer rating in a clean pocket. Including his two playoff games in the postseason, Ryan has a passer rating of 131.1, 1, the best mark in the NFL by over 10 points.

If the Patriots can’t apply some heat, it's going to put tons of pressure on our secondary, and given the efficiency with which Ryan has been carving up defenses from clean pockets, I am wondering how Belichick will approach this issue.

I disagree they are a great run blocking team. They are OK. They are like ours.

They've also allowed 37 sacks on the year. That's very average.

My point. Because Matty Ice is a pocket QB I expect NE to get consistent pressure on him.

 

[RobertWeathers]

We must generate pressure to take Ryan out of rythum.

In a perfect world we do that without blitzing.

Hightower remains our best pass rusher, but I am convinced he is playing with a badly damaged shoulder.

This may be the game we have to unleash Shea!

Flowers is a better rusher.you could argue Nink, Long and Sheard are as well

 

[Tony2046]

Flowers is a better rusher.you could argue Nink, Long and Sheard are as well

I'm going to tweet the falcon's to make sure they bring a couple of extra facemasks for Ryan's helmet.