Patriots adjusted to Dolphins’ blitz – The Boston Globe

Great stuff from Bedard:

O’Brien and Brady have to be credited for changing course at halftime. O’Brien saw what the Dolphins were doing and decided to make things easier on his quarterback. In the first half, the Patriots ran just two plays with zero running backs on the field, and six with an empty set (no backs or receivers lined up next to Brady). The Patriots ran the first five plays of the second half with no backs on the field and an empty set. By the end of the second half, the Patriots had run 18 plays with no running backs, and 20 empty sets. That adjustment spread the Dolphins out more so Brady could tell where the blitzes were coming from. It also allowed the beat-up line to get a better idea of where the threats loomed. That helped Brady carry out the second big adjustment: getting rid of the ball quicker. Against 13 blitzes in the first half, Brady held the ball an average of 2.24 seconds. He was sacked twice, hurried three times, and knocked down twice for seven total quarterback pressures. In the second half, against 17 blitzes (only one of six rushers), Brady was hurried once and knocked down twice. Against those blitzes, Brady’s release time was 2.04 seconds. That’s an eternity for an offensive line.