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Three plays that defined Kevin Faulk’s Patriots career

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When a player like Kevin Faulk retires it’s hard to go through the stats and numbers to sum up what that player meant to the franchise. You can look through Faulk’s career numbers and maybe say his best seasons were:

  • 2003 – 1,351 all purpose yards
  • 2008 – 1,161 all purpose yards

But there’s so much that those numbers don’t cover. Faulk was the patriarch of the swiss army knife in the Belichick Pats offense. He could run, he could catch, he could return kicks and punts, and he could even throw a bit (2-for-4, 21 yards career, including one to Tom Brady). On that side of the ball he summed up everything the Patriots ask of their players like no one else.

If you want an accurate depiction of what Faulk meant to the Patriots I think the best way to do so is to look at three specific plays that really sum it up.

Game One: 2006 AFC Divisional Playoff: Patriots @ Chargers

The Patriots had been sloppy all day but managed to make just enough plays  to stay in it against a Chargers team everyone thought was headed to the Super Bowl. Late in the fourth quarter the Patriots trailed by 8 until, just five plays after Troy Brown had saved the season by stripping an interception from Marlon McCree’s hands, Tom Brady found Reche Caldwell in the end zone to pull the Pats within two points.

With under five minutes to go the Patriots needed the two-point conversion to tie the game and save their season. The play? A direct snap to Faulk that worked more than a few times in his career.

In a gotta-have-it playoff moment it was Faulk the Patriots turned to, and he came through.

Game Two: 2007 Patriots @ Colts

After losing the 2006 AFC Championship in Indy, then returning to the site of the crime with an 8-0 record the next season, the Patriots wanted to make a statement vs. Peyton Manning and the Colts.

The Colts were the first team to shut down the Pats explosive offense, holding a 20-10 lead with under 10 minutes to go in the game. After a Welker score the Pats trailed by three, until a short dumpoff was turned into a 13-yard game winning touchdown by Faulk after he sliced through the Colts defense.

Nothing about Faulk’s numbers stand out from the day, 29 yards rushing on 7 carries and 20 yards receiving on 3 catches, but in the most important moment it was Faulk who made the play to seal the win for the undefeated Patriots.

Game Three: 2009 Patriots @ Colts

Sadly I’m going to end this one on a play that didn’t turn out the way us Patriots fans wanted it to. We haven’t rehashed 4th and 2 much in these parts recently but in hindsight it really says a lot about Faulk.

We all know what the situation was. The Pats led 34-28 late in the fourth quarter when they faced a 4th and 2 at their own 28. They decided to go for it in one of the most controversial coaching decisions of Bill Belichick’s career.

With the game on the line, and Wes Welker seemingly open, it was still Faulk that Brady threw to. And it was a tough catch, but one that he held on to. Unfortunately he was spotted just short, though I’m sure plenty of Pats fans still think he got the yardage for the first down.

It’s hard to truly describe what made Kevin Faulk one of the key cogs in the Patriots dynasty, but those of us who watched the games know that when we needed a play number 33 was a go-to guy. His leadership and versatility are woven into the foundation of the Patriot way, and helped set a standard that is still being lived up to today.

Even in failure these plays show the kind of player Kevin Faulk was for the Patriots; the kind of weapon you could trust to make the biggest plays in the biggest moments on the biggest stages.

The Best of PatsPropaganda This Week

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Every Saturday we bring you the best of the past week’s Pats coverage in case there was something you missed.

Our Analysis

5 Keys for Patriots vs. Broncos

Patriots pass defense continues scary trend against the deep ball

Few more thoughts upon the Patriots-Bills re-watch

Notes on PFF’s Patriots grades: Week 4 Bills

Quick hit reaction to the Patriots 52-28 win over the Bills

Great Links

FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Word of Muth: Crashing the Nickel

Patriots Today- Belichick brings plays of the week

Patriots soaring, except for secondary – Patriots – Boston.com

How about a little faith in the Patriots? – Touching All the Bases – Boston.com

Video: Rex Ryan – Patriots fan?

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Aaron Hernandez back at practice, to return against Seattle?

Albert Breer reports that looks like the target.

And more good news is that Hernando was back at practice today. Report from Jeff Howe:

Big news on the Patriots injury front today. Tight ends Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski returned to practice.

Hernandez had been out with an ankle injury, and Gronkowski missed yesterday’s session to rest his hip ailment.

Hernandez was limping a bit after running his first route during positional drills and was testing his ankle when he was off to the side. He looked fine after a drill a few minutes later when he had to really stutter-step and plant his feet before turning for the ball.

https://www.patspropaganda.com/patriots-aaron-hernandez/

Patriots pass defense continues scary trend against the deep ball

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One of the major problems for last year’s Patriots defense that seems to be rearing its ugly head again this year is the number of plays over 20-yards given up.

With the help of the Pro-Football-Reference.com play finder I took a look back over the last decade, since the first Super Bowl win, to see what the numbers have looked like since the rise and fall of the dynasty defense.

Granted the game is a bit different now, and passing offenses are far more dangerous now than they were when the Pats were winning Super Bowls, but I still found the numbers to be somewhat shocking.

Here are the numbers on plays over 20-yards given up since 2001, broken down per game to give a bit more context. Playoffs are included.

  • 2001: 70 = 3.7/game
  • 2002: 47 = 2.9/game
  • 2003: 53 = 2.8/game
  • 2004: 62 = 3.7/game
  • 2005: 64 = 3.6/game
  • 2006: 69 = 3.6/game
  • 2007: 51 = 2.7/game
  • 2008: 50 = 3.1/game
  • 2009: 55 = 3.2/game
  • 2010: 65 = 3.8/game
  • 2011: 93 = 4.9/game
  • 2012: 22 = 5.5/game

As you can see the numbers were the worst they’ve been in a decade in 2010 and have only gotten worse in the last two seasons.

One thing that is clear is that it’s the pass defense that is the problem. Even in 2011 they gave up just 6 runs of over 20-yards, leaving a staggering 87 passes over 20-yards. Since 2001 they’ve never given up more than 14 runs of over 20-yards and that happened in 2002. So the run defense has been basically unchanged. The issue is defending the deep ball.

Given that the Pats put up their highest sack totals (a somewhat flawed stat to be sure) in 2011 since 2007 you have to think at least a bit more of the focus for this problem has to go on the coverage. Of course the easiest place to start when you’re giving up a lot of long passes is the play of the safeties.

Now you can never read too much into one stat, but these numbers show a clear trend that illustrates a major part of the problems for the Patriots pass defense over the last few seasons. It’s an area to keep track of as 2012 progresses, and hopefully a trend they can reverse.

The Best of PatsPropaganda This Week

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Every Saturday we pull all the best links from the past week for those who might’ve missed them and want to catch up. Enjoy!

PatsPropaganda Analysis

Week four is always a proving point for Patriots

5 Keys for Patriots vs. Bills

Could Patriots make some defensive changes vs. Bills?

Notes on PFF’s Patriots grades vs. Ravens

Young Patriots defense must learn to close out the close ones

Thoughts and concerns about the 1-2 Patriots

2012 Patriots defensive analysis page is up!

Outside Analysis

Greg Bedard’s weekly breakdown

First Look at ‘Cleveland ’95: A Football Life’ : NFL Films Blog

Frenz – Patriots vs. Bills: Drawing Up a Game Plan for New England | Bleacher Report

Dick LeBeau and the evolution of coverage tactics in the zone blitz – Grantland

Week four always a proving point for Patriots

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Week four of the Patriots season has always seemed like a proving point where we get a sense of just what kind of team we’ve got this year.

Let’s take a look back at all the week four games since 2005, the last time the Pats closed the first quarter of their season out with a loss.

2005 – Pats are mauled at home by the Chargers 41-17, coming off a costly win in Pittsburgh that saw them lose both Matt Light and Rodney Harrison for the season. This set the tone of inconsistency as the Pats would go on to lose three of their next seven. This was arguably one of the worst Patriots teams in the Belichick era.

2006 – Coming off a disappointing loss at home to the Broncos 17-7 in what was supposed to be a “revenge game” the Pats had to go to Cincinnati to face a 3-0 Bengals team that had just beat the Steelers. Many were predicting this was the end for the Pats, but New England responded with a 38-13 beatdown of the Bengals, who had looked like an offensive juggernaut up to that point.

2007 – In hindsight it may be easy to overlook the 2007 Pats 34-13 win over the Bengals in this week four, but in the lead up to the game there were quite a few pundits who thought the Bengals would hold their own at home. Still, the 2007 Pats tend to be outliers regardless, but this was a big win on Monday Night Football that kept the undefeated train rolling.

2008 – The Pats had a bye in week four but they needed that extra week to regroup after the Wildcat coming out party that handed them a shocking 38-13 pounding at home from the Dolphins. The Pats played well enough to win, but it was clear that the Pats were just not the same without Tom Brady. The following week they looked listless in a 30-10 loss to the Chargers.

2009 – The Pats were coming off a home win against the Falcons, but the Ravens were undefeated and looked like the class of the AFC. The resulting 27-21 Pats win showed a toughness not demonstrated very often in 2009, but it was proof that the talent was there if they could just put it all together. Which they never did. If there was one year where week four wasn’t a sign of things to come, this was it.

2010 – The Pats looked really vulnerable in the three prior games. They squeaked out wins against the Bengals and Bills, and had looked lethargic in a 28-14 loss to the Jets. Going into Miami on Monday Night looked to be a tough match up, especially with the 2-1 Dolphins playing the Jets tougher than the Pats had. But the the Pats rolled on the back of their special teams and defensive play, coming out with a dominating 41-14 win that reminded the NFL they weren’t going anywhere.

2011 – The Pats were coming off game in Buffalo where they blew a 21-3 lead and the 2-1 Raiders had put up 69 points in their last two games. Raiders fans were confident as they always are, knowing Oakland is never an easy place to play. The Pats showed great focus and the kind of perseverance that would become a trademark of their 2011 season, pulling out a 31-19 win.

As you can see the Patriots almost always lose a game and/or have some shakiness in the first three weeks of the season, which has set up some pivotal battles in week four that more often than not reveal some of the characteristics of this year’s team.

In most cases the Patriots have responded, but either way we should have a better sense of just who the 2012 Patriots will be come Monday.