Good stuff here from the Rapsheet, but if you want some real in depth analysis check out this post from Jay Shields over at PatsFans.com. We’ve had Jay on the podcast before and he really knows his stuff. Here’s tidbit:
On the fourth drive, this adjustment was clear. They went to a balanced 34, ignored the pre-snap motion, and shut down the Denver gameplan through basic, fundamental NE 34 principals with a safety in the box. The linebackers engaged squarely, the d-linemen squeezed the gaps, the outside backers kept their outside shoulders free, and the run game was shut down. What did this boil down to? Gap integrity. Denver’s fundamental concept was to win with simple math and create large holes. By ignoring the shifting, the Patriots negated this concept, and by keeping good gap integrity, the Denver misdirection couldn’t hurt them. The Kyle Love play is an excellent example of this. They kept gap integrity throughout the line. When the playside was shut down through excellent 2-gapping, Ball tried to cut it back and was met with an emphatic thud as the backside folded under well executed 2-gap principals.
