PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

new england patriots

by

Ahhh, the old running backs elevate celebration will surely have some new twists in 2011. I doubt Vereen or Ridley will have problems elevating.

https://www.patspropaganda.com/ahhh-the-old-running-backs-elevate-celebration/

by

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1o7_GNNXDs

Patriots Defensive 3rd Down Playoff Analysis (2nd Half edition)

This is where shit gets real, when you’re trailing a playoff game and every 3rd down stop is huge. Let’s see who did and who didn’t show up for the Patriots defense when everything was on the line…

3rd & 5: Draw stopped. Who made the play: Defensive line. The Jets clearly saw the Patriots as susceptible to sub-defense run and they tried quite a few of them. Seems like on every 3rd down it was either a quick inside slant or a draw play. The Pats were ready for a quick pass, with the corners up on the line, and with six defenders in the box they were also ready for this sub-run.

3rd & 1: A gap run succesful. Who Didn’t Make the Play: bunch of guys here, Wilfork submarined and was taken out, Gerard Warren was easily pushed to the other side, and Mayo/Spikes were late on the fill. Credit the Jets O-Line. The Pats had stopped them on 2nd and 1 for no gain on the previous play. No luck this time.

3rd & 6: Incomplete. Who made the play: Rob Ninkovich, for the second time Ninkopoop’s pressure off from the defensive left end pass rush position forces Sanchez into a hurried throw that was incomplete, intended for Jerricho Cotchery who was actually fairly well covered by Darius Butler. Also worth noting this was the play Ninkovich was hurt on. Things went down hill after this, whether it was due to his absence or not is arguable.

3rd & 4: Touchdown to Holmes. Who didn’t make the play: Kyle Arrington. This was basically the game sealer for all intents and purposes, putting the Jets up 21-11 with 13mins left. It came just two plays after the deflating Jerricho Cotchery short reception that turned into a long gain. The Pats rushed three guys but Sanchez let go of the ball before anyone (even Demarcus Ware) could’ve gotten there. Credit to Sanchez and Holmes for just a disgusting throw and catch, that was practically indefensible.

3rd & 4: Run stopped short. Who made the play: Brandon Deaderick, who got good penetration and blew the run up before it could develop. The Jets were just trying to milk the clock at this point but still a good play by Deaderick to keep at least a small glimmer of hope alive. That hope quickly faded.

Summing it all up

The Jets converted just 2 of 5 third downs in the second half, but it was really plays on first and second down that really hurt them all game. The Jets faced just one third down that was longer than 6 yards. That is insane and a clear sign that the Pats were not winning the early down battles.

Really this defense gave the offense a chance to stay in the game through three quarters but in the 4th quarter the wheels fell off.

But really this is about what we saw from this defense all year long, minus their signature turnovers. Credit Mark Sanchez for playing airtight, mistake-free football. One errant pass could’ve been the difference, but he didn’t make that mistake.

When you look at what did the Patriots in on third down in this game, it was never Sanchez sitting pretty with all the time in the world because the pass rush couldn’t get there. It was the quick passing game, and lapses in coverage that killed the Patriots. Although it’s clear that the Patriots were not dominating the line of scrimmage on first and second down either.

The selection of Ras-I Dowling makes a little more sense to me after really looking closely at what wasn’t working for the Pats this day. He’s another big, physical corner who should be able to nullify those quick passes by being physical on the line, and he should also be able to shore up a secondary that was far more responsible for the Jets staying on the field than any poor pass rush.

(Source: http://www.youtube.com/)

https://www.patspropaganda.com/patriots-defensive-3rd-down-playoff-analysis-2nd/

by

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csAEY5EX8QE

I know I’m killing a lot of my readers anytime I post something to do with the playoff game from January but I really find it’s the best game to evaluate the Pats from because it was all on the line.

In other games you weren’t sure if guys were being rested, or if there was some experimentation going on. We can judge a lot from this game, so today we’re looking at the first half third downs. Third down in a playoff game is where the real players show up and make plays. And where the scrubs get exposed.

3rd & 5: Incomplete pass. Player who made the play: Rob Ninkovich getting just enough pressure to force an overthrow by Sanchez. It’s not always sacks that matter, and as we saw with Cunningham on Peyton Manning, just getting an arm in the QBs face and forcing an uncomfortable throw can be huge.

3rd & 18: Run stopped short. Player who made the play: Vince Wilfork who blew up a screen on 2nd and 13 forcing the Jets to stay conservative with a run on 3rd down. Meriweather and Sanders with the 3rd down stop.

3rd & 5: Successful Conversion: Player who didn’t make the play: Darius Butler, allowing too much cushion to Jerricho Cotchery and was unable to make the stop short of the first down. Maybe I’m reading too much into it, but how can you be in soft slot coverage on 3rd and 5? Doesn’t look like Butler was ready for the snap so props to the Jets for going with a quick count and not letting the Pats get set.

3rd & 6: Incomplete Pass: Player who made the play: Mark Sanchez, mostly an overthrow, he had the time, but Brandon Meriweather’s presence surely gave Dustin Keller pause.

3rd & 6: Successful conversion: Player who didn’t make the play: Darius Butler, who was beat by Braylon Edwards for the long completion. Pats only rushed 3 and had all their initial coverages, but Sanchez was able to get outside the pocket and find Braylon down the sidelines. That’s two 3rd down conversions on Butler who clearly must be having nightmares about Braylon all off-season.

3rd & 4: Conversion via Penalty: player who didn’t make the play: James Sanders, who almost got away with a savvy veteran pass interference. The Jets love this quick passes and nothing can be more frustrating. Tough play for Sanders but one that has to be made in a playoff game, especially when he was in the position he was in. Seemed like he knew it was coming, just got caught with PI on Holmes’ right arm.

3rd & 4: Pass Broken Up. Player who made the play: Devin McCourty, who fought off the same move Sanders faced with Holmes on the previous third down. The difference was McCourty’s physicality at the line of scrimmage, which threw Holmes’ rhythm enough that he couldn’t corral the quick pass from Sanchez.

3rd & 5: Keller stopped short. Player who made the play: Dane Fletcher, who’s sure tackling brought Keller down short of the first down. It’s plays like these that get me excited about Fletcher, coming through when it’s all on the line.

3rd & 5: Edwards TD. Player(s) who didn’t make the play: Devin McCourty (and somewhat Brandon Meriweather). For the third time on 3rd down the Jets go with a quick inside pass but this time Edwards is too strong for McCourty to stop. Braylon drags him and Meriweather into the end zone.

Some general notes on all these third down plays:

  • Of the nine 3rd downs the Patriots faced, eight of them were four to six yards.
  • I would not qualify a lack of pass of rush as responsible for any of the conversions unless you want to say they should’ve gotten Sanchez when they rushed three and he completed the long pass to Edwards. But when you’re dropping eight I’d have to put that more on the coverage.
  • The quick three-step passing game was what the Jets went with most often since most of the third downs were short. 
  • The  Jets converted on 4 of 9 third downs in the first half which is about 45%. A killer playoff defense would be holding them to about 30%. The Patriots season average was about 49% so you’re really not seeing those two extra plays you need to win in the playoffs.

We’ll put our second half third down defensive analysis up as soon as the video is posted.

(Source: http://www.youtube.com/)

https://www.patspropaganda.com/i-know-im-killing-a-lot-of-my-readers-anytime-i/

Frenz: Patriots Brandon Spikes to see spike in playing time?

by

Frenz: Patriots Brandon Spikes to see spike in playing time?

Really interesting stuff here from our podmate Frenz and he raises some interesting points. One of my favorite lines:

In [the 45-3 Jets] game, Spikes was credited with seven tackles in only 23 plays. Including the interception, he played a part in over one-third of the defensive plays in which he was on the field.