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Lamenting Dion Lewis’ Reduced Super Bowl Role

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Can you really complain about the Patriots’ offense in the Super Bowl when they put up 613 yards of offense and 33 points? The defense has correctly gotten the bulk of the blame from the 41-33 track meet, while Tom Brady has gotten deserved praise for an epic performance in a losing effort.

But I can’t help but wonder if the game might’ve unfolded differently had the Patriots first three drives stalled without touchdowns. A field goal, missed field goal then turnover on downs was far from an ideal start. The Patriots came out featuring James White in what is their passing package. They tried to open games like this quite a few times this season and almost every time the offense stalled until Dion Lewis was inserted and suddenly they started really moving the ball and scoring.

In my Super Bowl gameplan I had hoped Lewis would be the MVP of the game. He was the sneaky MVP of the season, but had just nine touches in the biggest game, a far cry from the 15-carry/three pass target average he had over the final 11 games of the regular season. In the first two playoff games he had 15 attempts/10 targets (TEN), and nine attempts/eight pass targets (JAX).

Overall the nine touches for Lewis was the lowest since Week 5 against Tampa Bay.

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Patriots Super Bowl 52 Film Review: Defense Edition

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The Patriots’ defense is correctly in everyone’s crosshairs after Super Bowl 52, but don’t lose sight of the fact that the defense faced a 4th-and-1 with 5:39 left in the game from the Eagles 45-yard line with a 33-32 lead. That’s the game right there.

Trey Flowers bursts through the line but was pushed off course just enough the he couldn’t quite get the quarterback. Instead, Foles made an excellent slide to his left and made a clutch off-balance throw to pick up two yards to Zach Ertz. Conversion. Game-winning touchdown scored seven plays later.

A stop right there and the Patriots are most likely Super Bowl champs and we’re sweeping the defensive shortcomings under the rug just like the Eagles defense, who gave up 600 yards, are doing right now. Both defenses were systematically shredded for most of the game, but one clutch play determines which got blamed for the loss and which got credited for the win.

Philadelphia’s gameplan was a greatest hits of everything the Patriots defense struggled with this season. Bunch sets, toss sweeps, some run-pass options… for an inexperienced front they just had no anticipation for what the Eagles were doing. The second level and edge players were where they wanted to target but they didn’t fear the Patriots pass rush when it came time to take some deep shots as well.

Here’s what stood out to me:

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Pats Posits: Relief, Bewilderment and Frustration After Pats’ SB52 Loss

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The Eagles made one of the only big defensive plays of the game and beat the Patriots in Super Bowl 52 for their first championship last night. Before we get too heavily into the “what the hell happened” of it all, I think it’s important to say the Eagles played the perfect game. So few teams can put together the flawless 60-minutes of effort required to take down Tom Brady and steady strangulation of the Belichick Pats but that’s what Philadelphia did on the biggest stage and for all the bickering about what the Patriots did or didn’t do, Philly deserves full credit for what they did.

It’s also important to remember that despite one of their worst defensive performances in recent memory (which is saying a lot) Tom Brady still got the ball back with plenty of time to win the game. That’s where it felt like this one was heading, until it wasn’t because Brandon Graham made the clutch play that the Patriots defense could not.

So yes, there’s plenty to unpack from this one, and most of it will take an entire offseason, but in this single game the Eagles were the better team and for whatever reason I’m not finding it all that hard to swallow. It’s been a while since I’ve been in my Patriots cave of misery. The last time I was here was January of 2016 after a frustrating  loss to Peyton Manning and the Broncos.

There were some cobwebs in the cave, some dusty pictures of SB42 and SB46 and Peyton Manning as a Bronco, but there’s a strange comfort in the cave of misery. This is where most NFL fans exist full time, and we’ve gotten far more reprieve than all of them. If anything, this eighth Super Bowl trip was just a reminder of how hard it is to do what the Patriots have done. A better team got them this time, but I think there’s at least enough ammo in New England Patriots Football Weapon for another strong run next season.

Of course there are tons of questions as to what that weapon will look like exactly, but we’ll dive into those in the coming days and weeks.

First, let’s just vent about the Super Bowl…

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Patriots Gameplan: Super Bowl 52 vs. Philadelphia Eagles

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It’s hard to believe we’re already back in another Super Bowl. So much of the 2017 season was a blur of 28-3 and stupid storylines, few of which had much of anything to do with actual football. There were usually catastrophic injuries that somehow this Pats team overcame to get here and yes, a couple exciting wins, but mostly I remember noise.

Well, all those are out the window now. It’s all about one game and and another chance for Bill Belichick and Tom Brady to raise the bar even further on what has been a run unlike any other in sports history. But as we all know, these games are never easy. They’re stressful and the highest of drama.

The Eagles are a very tough opponent for the Patriots. Maybe they don’t have the flash of the 2001 Rams’ offense or the 2016 Falcons offense or the 2014 Seahawks defense, but they’re a good football team that has overcome a ton that would’ve torpedoed most teams. They’re balanced and have all the right pieces to challenge the Patriots’ weaknesses.Their resiliency is remarkable and the sign of a team that won’t wilt in the face of the Patriots’ dynasty.

The Patriots will certainly have to earn their sixth title just like they earned the five before it, with a 60-minute effort that will take every last second and maybe even a miracle catch or two. I’m not even sure my heart is ready for another one of these games, but here we go.

This is the gameplan to get it done and hang another banner.

 

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Which Hoodie Should Bill Belichick Wear in Super Bowl 52?

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The time has come once again to make the official Bill Belichick Hoodie Database prediction as to what the Patriots head coach should and will wear in Sunday’s Super Bowl 52. This has never been an easy task, especially as of late when Belichick has thrown two huge curveballs in two of his last three playoff games.

The first came in Super Bowl 51 when he wore the Hot Jacket, but for some reason tore the Flying Elvis logo off of it. Then, in this year’s divisional round against the Titans, he busted out an original blue Reebok hoodie, one that he hadn’t worn in six years! At this point I feel like Belichick is just messing with us. Well maybe just specifically me, but even trusted sites to bet on the Super Bowl are left confused as the what he’s going to wear in Minnesota.

First, let’s start with his Super Bowl history and as you can see from the chart, all signs are pointing toward blue being the color. Everyone freaks out about the red one but even Scott Zolak confirmed he’d avoid that on an interview with Pardon My Take this week. Another interesting tidbit Zolak mentioned was the Belichick was paid to wear that red hoodie in Super Bowl 42, a point he never expounded on and one which I find very much out of Belichick’s nature. Perhaps I’ll do some investigating on that after the big game.

Though he’s known for cutting off the sleeves, Belichick has never won a Super Bowl after hacking his sweatshirt and that’s why I’m hoping he avoids the 2017 Gray Cut Hoodie. He wore it five times this year with a 4-1 record. If he was going to wear a sideline hoodie, that one would be it since it was the only hoodie he wore this season.

Once again, all roads are leading us to the Hot Jacket, which surpassed the iconic Cut Gray Hoodie this season for total wins, now owning a 34-10 all-time record (all coming since 2013) compared to 32-10 for the Hoodie he’s most known for. How crazy is it that his two most favored pieces of attire have nearly identical win percentages?

The question now becomes does he wear the new one he wore this season with the Elvis intact? Or does he wear the same one from Super Bowl 51 that he de-Elvis’d? He was wearing the de-Elvis’d one after the Divisional round win over the Titans, so we know it’s still out there in circulation. And really, after the Reebok Hoodie bomb from that game, what piece of swag isn’t still in circulation? That game made me question everything I knew.

Belichick has won three of the five Patriots Super Bowls wearing a blue windbreaker and that makes the Hot Jacket the clear choice. While we may never know why he tore the Patriots logo off last season, I’m going to guess it was a special circumstance and hence he goes with the good old Elvis-intact Hot Jacket for Super Bowl 52. He’s 7-2 in it this season and it’s the jacket he’s won more games in than anything else.

Another Super Bowl win in the Hot Jacket would truly make it the defining outfit of Belichick’s career, even if he’ll still always be known for his hoodies.

THE HOT JACKET!!!!

 

How Can Pats Stop Eagles’ Run-Pass Option?

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By now you’ve probably seen some mention of the Eagles and their vaunted Run-Pass Option, also known as a packaged play. It’s one of the latest trends in football and Philly has used it to excellent effect this season, starting with Carson Wentz and continuing with backup Nick Foles.

Here’s a quick look at what they look like:

As you can see it’s tough to defend for a similar reason to why the Patriots offense is tough to defend in general — both adjust post-snap to what the defense does and exploits where they’re weakest.

Here’s the Patriots getting burned by the Jags and their own RPO.

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How Do Eagles Stack Up to Pats’ Past Super Bowl Challenges?

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With one week to go until Super Bowl 52 the Patriots-Eagles matchup is becoming pretty clear. Any consolation Patriots fans might’ve taken from facing Nick Foles instead of Carson Wentz went(z) out the window after Foles systematically destroyed a vaunted Minnesota Vikings defense in the NFC Championship.

Then came this quote from respected analyst and former Patriots staffer Mike Lombardi:

“[The Eagles] really don’t have an identity offensively. They are very unpredictable and they play left-handed. Belichick is so good at making a team play left-handed, but it is kind of hard to make a left-handed team play left-handed.”

Hmmm, that’s not good for my pregame stress levels.

Let’s take a look at how the Eagles stack up against the Patriots previous seven Super Bowl opponents by my favorite stats — points and DVOA efficiency.

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