Where’s my “it’s okay” hug from Matty P!?
Vince Wilfork needs a hug after the Patriots’ loss to the Cardinals.
Is it plausible the Pats are saving Welker?
One of the theories floating around out there about Wes Welker is that the Pats are simply trying to preserve a valuable asset and make sure he’s still deadly for the playoffs. I’m not sure even a overly-optimistic homer like myself believes that’s the case but let’s take a look at why it might make sense.
The first question that must be analyzed is why is Julian Edelman playing in 2-WR sets over Welker? There have been reports that Edelman outplayed Welker in training camp, so why not find out once and for all, if given the chance, can Edelman be a legitimate Z-WR in the Patriots offense. With Welker likely gone next year finding out if Edelman can take over for him now is in the long-term interest of the team.
There’s no question Tom Brady has been over-reliant on Welker at times over the past few years, and the quick decline of slot receivers like TJ Houshmanzadeh and Wayne Chrebet has been well documented. If Welker is on board with it there’s no question cutting his snaps a bit early in the year could pay dividends down the road.
However this goes directly against what we’ve come to know about Bill Belichick. Risk of injury rarely ever plays into his thinking. Could this signify a change in Belichick’s thinking?
With or without Welker on the field the Pats were planning on being a two tight end team. Could this also be a sign of them wanting to move more towards a power game than a move-quick spread one? An evolution that could possibly relegate Welker back to a simple “slot receiver”?
The book on the Pats offense with Welker, Gronk and Hernando as the center pieces is out, and we saw a game plan from the Cardinals from that book: Man coverage, flood the middle of the field. But by holding back on Welker it takes away arguably the biggest key for that version of the Pats offense. It also forces Tom Brady out of his Welker comfort zone and to adjust to some new weapons like Edelman and Brandon Lloyd.
It’s hard to fully believe the Pats are holding back on Welker to save him for the end of the season. There are some undoubted benefits in the long-term for the Patriots by doing so, but it seems very much out of the ordinary from what we know about Belichick. Usually “the best players play” and he throws caution to the wind when it comes to injuries.
What bears more research is how much Welker has declined over the course of the past few seasons? We know some obvious plays that he didn’t make, but what about his overall explosion? Or better yet, just how dinged up has he been in January and February? We’ll probably never know that for sure.
Regardless this is an interesting development for the Patriots and one that we’ll probably have to close the book on until Aaron Hernandez is healthy again. Whenever that may be…
That puts the two-game total at 55.8 percent in sub packages. The number figures to fluctuate based on the specific matchup. Last season, the Patriots were in sub 63 percent of the time.
I’d expect these numbers to continue this trend, they’re better suited to defend the pass in this base defense.
Updating base vs. sub D stats – New England Patriots Blog – ESPN Boston
What Belichick’s History Tells Us About Wes Welker’s Situation — Boston Sports Media Watch
What Belichick’s History Tells Us About Wes Welker’s Situation — Boston Sports Media Watch
I’m quickly getting burned out on all the Welker stuff today, but here’s a good take from Bruce Allen.
But trust me, the people inside that building generally know more than you or the media do. Whatever the reason that Wes Welker’s workload has changed in the early part of this season, they have a damn good reason for it. They’re just not going to tell you. Nor should they. In mind, it comes down to one of two things: Either the Patriots offense is changing to be less reliant on what Welker brings to it (either for strategic reasons or in anticipation of losing him), or, the Patriots feel that Julian Edelman is more deserving to be on the field at this time.
Usually it’s tough to pick a Patriots player of the week after a loss but this week it’s pretty easy. Brandon Spikes was a force all over the field on Sunday, with 7 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 2 QB hits, and a huge forced fumble that should’ve stolen an impossible victory for the Patriots.
We don’t want to get too high on the defense since it’s not like Arizona had a plethora of weapons to deal with, but Spikes led the way for an aggressive front seven that forced the Cardinals to earn every yard.
Cool pic, and this was not the one pass he caught. This was an attempted fade on Devin McCourty that probably would’ve worked if this was last year.
Picked-up pieces from first-half review – New England Patriots Blog – ESPN Boston
Picked-up pieces from first-half review – New England Patriots Blog – ESPN Boston
I’m finding it hard not to be overly positive about the defense. To be honest I don’t really care that much about the loss. Things that interest me most are severity of Hernando’s injury, Welker’s diminished role and our young badass D continuing to ascend.
The Patriots’ secondary was sensational in holding Larry Fitzgerald to just a single catch for four yards, which occurred early on in the game. It would be oversimplifying what was great work to try to chalk it up to a single factor, but there were a couple of common threads that seemed to exist throughout the first half as it related to defending Fitzgerald: the Patriots did a good job of being physical with Fitzgerald near the line of scrimmage, while also keep a safety over the top of Fitzgerald to prevent him from driving deep.