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injuries

Injury-Riddled Pats Still Crushing Tomato Cans

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By now you know the Patriots injured reserve list in 2017 is long and distinguished. Here’s a reminder of what it looks like via Patriots.com and it’s not a pretty picture. 

According to ManGamesLost.com (subscription required) the Patriots ranked second overall in the league in lost 2016 performance. Add in that the Pats were particularly hit hard by free agency departures on defense, compounded by the retirement of Rob Ninkovich and it’s understated how different the 2017 team is from the one that won the last Super Bowl.

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What Losing Derek Rivers Means

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If there’s one thing you hate to see in August it’s season-ending injuries.

Unfortunately Derek Rivers’ situation took a turn for the worse on Friday.

 


So yeah, I was already a little concerned about the defensive front seven as you might’ve read here or here and if Rivers is gone for all of 2017 it certainly doesn’t help matters.

In recent days I was excited to hear about Rivers’ emergence at camp. He was far better the second time I took a glance at his Jacksonville game. I felt like he could be a key contributor on third down and really help fill the vacated roles of Chris Long and Jabaal Sheard.

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Time to Worry About the Patriots Injuries?

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Rob Gronkowski Julian Edelman

By now you’re probably sick of reading it here on the blog because I’ve been beating it like a drum all season — all that really matters for the Patriots are injuries. We can do countless hours of film study or discuss why Belichick decided to trade most of his defense away or search for a weakness on offense, but at the end of the season if the Pats are healthy, they’re probably going to the Super Bowl.

Of course, some Pats matter more than others, no offense to anyone, and the top of that list is Tom Brady, Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski which is why Wednesday’s injury report made me barf a little bit. Add in Martellus Bennett and their two best special teamers, and I’m wondering if we should just roll out the JV offense against the Rams and give those key guys a week of rest before the upcoming AFC showdowns with Baltimore and Denver.

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Now Brady, obviously the most important, isn’t that concerning. His radio appearance on Monday was re-assuring. And I’m pretty sure you’d have to remove a limb to keep him out of a game.

But Edelman’s been dealing with that foot injury for well over a year now, not to mention multiple surgeries. Then you add in this…

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Belichick on Patriots Injury Improvements (so far…)

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Brady after Gronk looked lost for the season in Denver, 2015.

If there’s one dead horse I’ve been beating this season it’s that all that really matters for the 2016 Patriots are injuries. We can argue about Jamie Collins, the ups-and-downs of the run game or the defense’s lack of sacks or poor start on third downs early in the season, but all that’s going to matter come January is what the Injured Reserve list looks like.

In the last three seasons, the Patriots won a Super Bowl and lost to the Broncos in Denver. One team was almost fully healthy. The other two were shells of their initial September rosters.

It’s sad that this is what football has come to in some ways… that who got hurt is nearly as important as who won. But when you have a well-oiled machine like the Patriots at this phase of Bill Belichick’s tenure, that’s what the season gets reduced to. And with the rest of the NFL withering into mediocrity or worse, I can’t help but wonder if this is the year the Patriots just go berserker right through the Super Bowl and finish the job the 2007 team fell just short on.

If the Patriots core remains intact, it’s hard finding a team that will be able to stop them, at least on paper, though history tells us any potential Super Bowl will go down to the final drive no matter who the opponent is.

The good news is at the halfway point the Patriots are pretty as close to full health as could be realistically hoped. Belichick touched on it a bit on Sunday, including how the team has made changes to try to prevent injuries.

We’ve tried every year to work a little bit harder, try to do things a little bit better, and hopefully some of those little things are paying off. I know the players work extremely hard on their training as well as their nutrition, hydration, rest, recovery, all the things that go into performance. We’re always looking to fine tune those for each individual because they’re all different. We all have different makeups and different little things that can help different players in unique ways, so always trying to stay on top of that. I think our staff has done a good job and the players have done a good job, so hopefully we’ll be able to continue that over the next eight regular season games.

I always viewed injuries as the will of the Football Gods, but it’s good to know the team is making every effort they can to prevent them.

 

Report: Brissett Tears Thumb Ligament, Faces Surgery

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Here we thought we escaped Thursday night’s win over the Texans without any injuries but alas, this tweet is now setting Patriots twitter aflame…

So yes, for the second time in two games, the Patriots quarterback has sustained a significant injury and the team is going to have to scramble before they face the Bills in nine days. You thought a rookie quarterback with just three days to prepare (but also all of training camp) was a challenge, how about a street free agent who could now get the start?

Of course perhaps Jimmy Garoppolo‘s shoulder will be in good enough shape by next Sunday. But as someone who had a separated shoulder, I don’t think we can count on it. So could it be TJ Yates as the third starting quarterback in four games for the Patriots? They’ll certainly have to make a move soon.

But again, the Pats are 3-0 and likely facing a Bills team that will be 0-3 and on the verge of cleaning house. And it’s a home game. So there’s no pressure and really, the Bills offense is so bad, the Patriots defense should pretty much beat them by themselves.

Tom Brady‘s return looms even larger now, and these back-to-back weeks of quarterback injuries are certainly giving me a pit in my stomach about whether or not Brady will escape the same fate as he usually does. But if there was any doubt about how much the Patriots need Brady, it should be long gone now.

Just when you think the Pats have conquered all challenges another new and unique one pops up. Never a dull moment.

Friday PM update – Don’t panic just yet, Shefter just dropped this:

FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS:  | 2015 Adjusted Games Lost – Patriots 29th in NFL

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New England and Washington were the only teams ranked 20th or worse in AGL to make the playoffs.

Source: FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Innovative Statistics, Intelligent Analysis | 2015 Adjusted Games Lost

Football Outsiders always does a good job at quantifying just how impactful injuries are to teams by specifically looking each player who was lost and what their true impact was.

Not surprisingly the Pats come in at 29th overall with only Ravens, Redskins and Giants being hit harder by injuries in 2015. The Pats were 12th overall in 2014.

Nate Solder has to be the most impactful injury of the year because of the trickle-down effect it had on the rest of the line. They just didn’t have another tackle athletic enough to fill in for him and were left with the up-and-down performances of Sebastian Vollmer, Marcus Cannon, Cameron Fleming and even a tackle cameo by Bryan Stork.

Dion Lewis was the biggest buzzkill injury of the year after coming out of nowhere to look like Barry Sanders in the first seven games of the season. It’s hard to fathom just what the Patriots would’ve looked like at the end of the season if Lewis was still in the mix even with the problems at tackle. Of course then losing LeGarrette Blount on top of Lewis only decimated the running back position even more and essentially made the Pats a pass-only team in the playoffs–never a good combination for a Super Bowl run.

Losing Julian Edelman for the last seven games of the regular season was certainly a big blow as well. He returned and was effective in the playoffs but would’ve still been a lot more dangerous without the plate in his foot.

Still, despite all these injuries the Pats still came within a missed field goal/failed two point conversion of taking the Super Bowl champs to overtime on their homefield. That’s a testament to just how tough Bill Belichick’s teams always seem to be.

The Most Injured NFL Teams Since the 2009 Season – Man Games Lost

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The Most Injured NFL Teams Since the 2009 Season – Man Games Lost

This one goes out to all the people who have been complaining for the better part of the last decade about how Belichick manages the Patriots roster. You know the ones. Those who cry because the Pats don’t break the bank on the top of their roster on veteran players who may or may not fit into what they do. No, their focus has long been having a strong 1-53 and that’s why regardless of the injuries that are bound to happen every season the Patriots remain in contention. 

It’s a joke when you look at other teams who have had far less injuries yet still can’t figure out how to consistently win games.

The philosophy is pretty simple – spend money on the front seven and offensive line. Of course you have to pay your quarterback too, but wide receivers, cornerbacks, and running backs (really the second level of high profile football positions) are really just plug and play as long as you have the guys to block and the guys to get after the opposing quarterbacks.

It’s really not that revolutionary, yet every time the Pats avoid a big name in free agency at one of these positions many are up in arms. This is the difference between winning the offseason and winning in the regular and post season.