PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

Analysis

How Will Adam Gase’s Dolphin Offense Attack New England?

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Week 2! It’s the home opener! Jimmy G (il Grappa, JFG, wherever you want to go on this one) didn’t drop the ball! Alright, technically he did fumble once, but it wasn’t his fault. Things went as well as any of us could have hoped for in week 1. So, now…

The Miami Dolphins come to town this week after losing in Seattle last week.

Their offense looked near anemic, and they were a pathetic 3-of-21 on third down (that’s 14%…FOURTEEN PERCENT…not fourteen conversions…fourteen percent). There was one look that seemed be be their bread and butter, though.

Three wide outs, one tight end, one runningback. Clear space for either a swing, circle, or flat route for the running back (usually, Arian Foster). If whoever option 1 was wasn’t open, check down to the running back. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t. Here’s a visual:

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Patriots Special Teams Report: Week 1 at Arizona Cardinals

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The NFL’s continuing its attempt to make kickoffs safer by moving the spot of the ball following a touchback to the 25 yard line is supposed to give teams further incentive to not make any attempt to return kicks and simply take a knee in the end zone. Unfortunately for the league, at least in the case of the New England Patriots, that rule might backfire.

While the sample size is admittedly very small, it seems as though the Patriots would far prefer Stephen Gostkowski to loft a high kick that ends up between the five yard line and the goal line, luring their opponents into returning kicks, instead of driving the ball through the back of the endzone and giving the opposing offense the ball at the 25 yard line. Of Gostkowski’s six kicks in Sunday’s game, four were placed between the five yard line and a yard into the end zone, resulting in returns off four of his six kicks (the opening kickoff and Gostkowski’s first kick of the second half were touchbacks). Arizona never made it past their own 21 on those returns, and had an average starting field position off kickoffs of the 18 yard line, the worst starting field position off kickoffs in the entire NFL this week, according to ESPN Stats and Information.

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Notes (and GIFs) on the Pats-Cardinals Re-Watch

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Took another look at some of the key moments of last night’s game. Overall it was a very good start but there are certainly some areas to focus on. Here are just a few leftover thoughts and a few of the big plays that stood out to me. For my full thoughts make sure to check out the Posits.

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Rob Gronkowski and Nate Solder are OUT vs. Cardinals

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Deep breaths. Deeeeeeep breaths. That’s what I’m taking since this tweet came across my timeline…

Gronk pulled up in a mid-August training camp practice, tweaking his hamstring and wasn’t seen again until this week’s practice. Meanwhile, Solder, possibly forced to play because Tom Brady needed fourth-preseason-game-snaps, pulled up lame himself against the Giants. Now both will miss the season opener. Yikes.

First, perspective. These are two vital players. There is no need to trot them out there in the first game of the season against an NFC opponent. This is a game that is as close as you can get to meaningless in the regular season.

That doesn’t make it any less scary though. Especially for, you know, a young quarterback making his first career start.

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Breaking Down What Eric Rowe Brings to Patriots

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eric rowe patriotsMatt Patricia and the Patriots defense have a shiny new toy to play with in second year corner Eric Rowe. Mike already gave a great breakdown on Rowe’s acquisition, but I’m addicted to making GIFs and wanted to take a closer look at New England’s newest player.

When watching tape on Rowe, one thing that immediately stands out is his size. Listed at six-foot-one, Rowe has at least two inches on every corner currently on the roster. As Mike noted, Rowe should provide the Patriots an option in match-ups with larger receivers and maybe even tight ends. Additionally, I think Rowe’s size makes him a better option in run support than any of the current corners on the roster.

Against the Lions, Rowe was forced into action in the second quarter after an injury, and was given the tough assignment of  matching-up with Calvin Johnson on the outside. A tall task for any NFL corner, let alone a rookie. Yet, if I dare say so, Rowe looked pretty damn good against Megatron. Take a look for yourself.

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PatsPropaganda AFC East Rivals Preview

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The AFC East has been dominated by the Patriots for the past 15 years (aka the Brady/Belichick era), to a degree that hasn’t been otherwise seen in NFL history. The Patriots won the division title in 13 of those years. The two losses, to the Jets in 2002 and the Dolphins in 2008, came down to tiebreakers.

That doesn’t mean that division titles are always all but guaranteed, that division games aren’t still typically a bit tougher than non division games (math on that at the end of the article), or that we shouldn’t pay attention to what is happening with those other teams in the offseason.

Let’s take a look at the coaching staff of each team, the biggest “skill” names on each side of the ball (non offensive linemen, basically), and some of the offseason moves they’ve made.

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Patriots Trade for CB Eric Rowe

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Of course the Patriots weren’t done wheeling and dealing after Labor Day weekend, finalizing a deal today that sent Josh Kline and a 4th-round draft pick to the Eagles for cornerback Eric Rowe.

Rowe was the 47th overall pick in 2015 and is a bigger defensive back at 6’1″, 215 pounds. He played free safety his first three years at Utah before moving the cornerback as a senior. Here’s some of the scouting report from NFL.com on Rowe:

Tall cornerback with long frame. Has the ability to disrupt wide receivers off the line of scrimmage and can mirror them out of their release. Jams and disrupts shallow crossers. Will throw his body around in run support if needed. Solid tackler. Attacks ball at catch point and makes it hard for receiver to finish the catch. Was a three-year starter at free safety before moving to cornerback this year. Can break hard on throws in front of him. Instinctive in zone with ball skills to match.

Rowe’s length and ability to play press-man coverage has some teams excited while his ball skills have other teams interested. He doesn’t always play to his timed speed and a team will have to figure out whether or not he’s a safety or a cornerback, but he should come off the board on the second day.

Rowe’s a really interesting addition to a secondary we already looked at as stacked. But they can certainly use the skillset that Rowe has, which is unique but still fits the mold the Pats desire in their defensive backs these days.

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