PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

Mike Dussault

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In the 1980s and early 1990s, both the Cincinnati Bengals and the Buffalo Bills used the no-huddle extensively, and college and high school teams have increasingly moved to no-huddle approaches over the last decade. In his 1997 book Finding the Winning Edge, Hall of Fame coach Bill Walsh—whose West Coast offense fueled the growth of complex play calls—predicted that no-huddle offenses using “one word” play calls would come to dominate football. Walsh may have been a bit early, but Brady and Belichick are making his prediction come true.

Then again, while the NFL is a copycat league, not all things are so easily copied. Brady is the perfect no-huddle triggerman, given his experience and ability to process information quickly and efficiently. And few coaches in the NFL are willing to commit to the philosophy as Belichick has. One of the downsides of the no-huddle is that the offense, like the defense, is unable to substitute. NFL coaches love their toys, and they spend a lot of time trying to outsmart each other by creating specific matchups. Belichick, by contrast, values versatility, and he has personnel—particularly his two tight ends, Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez—that allow him to be flexible. Gronkowski, if he’s healthy, is a tremendous threat given his ability to decimate defenders on pass plays and as a run blocker. Hernandez, meanwhile, has recently added running the ball from the backfield to his typical repertoire of pass routes.

Belichick’s use of Hernandez as a running back is the best example of how the Patriots outflank defenses. With no traditional runner in the game, Belichick can force the defense to substitute to a zero-running-back personnel grouping. Once they’re in this pass-centric set-up, he can run the ball with Hernandez anyway. If the defense fails to react, the Patriots can simply drop back and run a pass play. And they can do this all with or without a huddle, and Brady can figure out his next move within seconds, on the fly. This is why opposing defenses hate facing the Patriots offense.

Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and the genius of the Patriots’ no-huddle offense. – Slate Magazine

https://www.patspropaganda.com/in-the-1980s-and-early-1990s-both-the-cincinnati/

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So what has Belichick done with his oddball assortment of defenders, anchored by Vince Wilfork? Did he choose 3-4 or 4-3? One-gap or 2-gap? Traditionally a 3-4 coach, Belichick ran this system even when almost every other NFL team was mimicking the 4-3 defenses popular in Dallas and Tampa. But Belichick now finds himself in a time when, by desire and necessity, he has largely moved to a four-man line approach. And yet, in typical Belichick fashion, he has chosen not to rely solely on the 4-3 or 3-4 or a 1-gap or 2-gap approach. Nor does he just alternate between 3-4 and 4-3 looks from play to play. Instead, Belichick has essentially combined both approaches in the same play. How? The Patriots run a 3-4 to one side of the field and a 4-3 to the other, all on the same play. The key to all this is Wilfork. He lines up over the center and assumes his traditional spot of run-stuffing, blocker consuming, two-gapping war daddy. Belichick fills out the rest of the pieces based on the strengths and weaknesses of his other defenders.

Bill Belichick, Vince Wilfork, and the New England Patriots defense – Grantland

Amazing stuff from Chris Brown of SmartFootball.com via Grantland. This is the first article I’ve seen that really goes into depth about the hybrid defense the Patriots run, without oversimplification of 3-4/4-3 fronts.

https://www.patspropaganda.com/patriots-defense-35/

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Enter Randy Moss, Wes Welker, the first truly modern spread-style offense to succeed wildly in the NFL, and a new way of thinking. In their 18-1 season, the Pats became the first known team in NFL history to run more than 50 percent of their offensive plays from the shotgun. And with Moss destroying deep coverage and Welker flypapering everything Brady threw underneath, there was a new and nearly unstoppable passing game afoot. “I’m not sure that 2007 was the absolute line of delineation, but that was the year they got Moss and Welker in the same season,” Cosell said. “That really changed things, because now, they really had to become a three-receiver offense. Because Welker is a slot player, and Moss obviously was a perimeter player. "When you have Moss, who was in his prime then, Moss dictates coverage. You know that going in, and I’ve had this conversation with Josh McDaniels. He said, ‘The first week of the season against the Jets, they didn’t play Moss as Moss. They just played straight up, and we killed them. After that, everyone clearly started to try and take away Moss, and we know that going into every game.’ Another body was always allocated to Moss, and I’m not sure they have a receiver like that now. We know that Gronkowski and Hernandez are good, and I’m not saying teams aren’t concerned about them, but none of these guys are going to beat you on a 60-yard bomb.”

Tom Brady: Master of the schemes | Shutdown Corner – Yahoo! Sports

This is a great read about the evolution of the Patriots offense over the last decade. I love stuff like this!

https://www.patspropaganda.com/patriots-brady-offense/