Patriots Offense Simply Super With Brady, McDaniels
 Josh McDaniels game planning and play-calling in the playoffs was simply superb. (USA TODAY Images) |
The New England Patriots path to the Super Bowl wasn’t a smooth one, but once the offense got ignited in mid-season, the Pats never looked back. In the playoffs the offense under Josh McDaniels and run by Tom Brady changed its identity from week-to-week like a chameleon and rolled thru the playoffs averaging 36 points per game.
McDaniels has gotten his fair share of criticism for his play-calling (most especially here), as the offensive coordinator for the Patriots. But down the stretch and thru the playoffs, there hasn’t been anything to nit-pick about as the play calling has been brilliant. Did we just say that? Yes, we did and yes it has been.
McDaniels at times tries to outthink the opposition so much, he gets too cute with his play calls. He didn't do any of that down the stretch and his game plans have been outstanding. Adjustments, which again at times have been slow in coming, have been done on the fly as he and Brady have jelled this season. This 2014-2015 post-season run has been their finest hour and McDaniels should be at the top of most NFL team’s list for head coaching vacancies after the 2015 season.
Brady faced his own questions this season, starting with reports that he was on his way down and no longer was an elite quarterback after over-reactions to a poor season saddled with an injury riddled team in 2013 placed squarely at his feet. A slow start in 2014 only furthered the whispers that built to a crescendo. Brady answered the bell.
No one changes their identity more from week-to-week than the Patriots on both sides of the ball. It is a hallmark of Bill Belichick’s teams that they want versatile, smart football players. It isn’t enough to know just your own job, but to understand what everyone else on the field is doing. That’s the only way this system works and the Patriots worked it to perfection during the post-season.
That versatility in game planning means at times the ball will be coming your way in droves and at others not at all. That means you may be required to block downfield for an entire game, even if you’re a 1000 yard receiver. The players have bought into the team-first system completely and the results are easy to see.
Deep, Versatile and Hungry: The Patriots have also gotten tremendous efforts from Tom Brady, Julian Edelman, Brandon LaFell, Danny Amendola, LaGarrette Blount, Shane Vereen and the revamped offensive line during this time. And for the first time in three years, the Patriots offense had a healthy Rob Gronkowski to call upon in the playoffs. Wasn’t it just a few months ago that the complaint was that the Patriots didn’t surround Tom Brady with enough weapons on offense?
The Patriots had three main targets for Brady to go-to in 2014 and each had over 1000 yards combined for the regular season and playoffs. Julian Edelman led the way with 118 catches for 1253 yards and five touchdowns; including a team high 26 catches in the post-season.
Gronkowski tallied 98 catches for a team high 1328 yards and 15 touchdowns. A healthy Gronk was simply un-coverable for the majority of the season and he took his rightful place back on top as the best overall tight end in the business.
Brandon LaFell may be the best-kept secret in the league. His signing registered little on the national radar during the off-season and after a slow start, some questioned whether he’d even make the team. After 87 catches, 1072 yards and 9 touchdowns later, he’s been a tremendous addition to the offense.
Danny Amendola, Shane Vereen and Tim Wright have all been key contributors to the passing game at times this season as well. Options? Plenty. Weapons? Quite enough thank you very much. And the good news is that the core is rescheduled to come back intact in 2015.
Wear You Down: Unlike the team in 2012 that set the bar for blazing up-tempo play that generated a slew of copycats, the 2013 team out of necessity became a power-running team. This 2014 Patriots offense was a grind-it-out, methodical, work down the field team that sapped your will by using a variety of players and plays.
Want to play physical? The Patriots at times could grind out the yards on the ground and play a smash-mouth style. Stack the box? Brady will cut you to pieces by using the short passing game and spreading the ball all over the field.
The Patriots had 44 offensive drives in 2014 of 10 plays or more, 39 in the regular season followed by five more in the playoffs. Talk about operating at peak efficiency, the Patriots kicked one field goal, ONE, in the entire playoffs. That is called finishing drives and not settling for three points but putting up six.
Pick Your Poison: In the Divisional Round of the playoffs, the Patriots were facing a familiar foe, the Baltimore Ravens, a team that has given them more than their share of problems in the playoffs.
The Ravens front seven is physical and tough and the matchups to run the football weren’t there for the Patriots. Rather than pound their heads against the wall, the Pats basically abandoned the run and attacked the Ravens with the short passing game.
Brady was 33-50 for 367 yards with 3 touchdowns and one interception. He was particularly brilliant on the game winning drive completing 8 of 9 passes for 72 yards including the 23 yard touchdown pass to Brandon LaFell down the left sideline.
The team had to overcome two different 14-point deficits to come from behind and beat Baltimore 35-31 to advance to the AFC title game. Even though a slow start dogged them, it was an excellent performance for the Patriots offense. McDaniels cooked up some great calls disguising their intent, with the now infamous, “ineligible receiver” calls as well as the double pass from Tom Brady, to Julian Edelman to Danny Amendola for a 51-yard touchdown. The 14 yards rushing by New England was the least for a winning team in playoff history.
Against the Colts a week later, the Patriots went to a heavy ground attack game with LaGarrette Blount, and the passing game was strictly relegated to a second option. Blount responded with 30 carries for 148 yards and the team piled up 177 yards on the ground on the way to a 45-7 crushing of the Colts.
Still, Brady hit 23 of 35 for 226 yards with 3 touchdowns and one pick. McDaniels still got creative in the passing game, hitting FB James Develin on a scoring play and tackle Nate Solder on a tackle-eligible play for another.
Patience Pays Off: The best was saved for last, facing the top defense in the NFL, the defending Super Bowl champs Seattle Seahawks. Seattle possesses the #1 pass defense in the league as well as the #3 rush defense.
Seattle has the best secondary in the NFL and arguably one of the best ever. They thrive on deny yards after catch (YAC), and have an apt moniker the “Legion of Boom” that plays on their penchant for tough, physical play.
Last year in the Super Bowl, they overwhelmed Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos. They beat-up Denver’s receivers at the line, took away the underneath routes and frustrated Manning enroute to a 43-8 thrashing on the game’s biggest stage.
McDaniels game plan was simple and straightforward. If the Seahawks played in zone they would clear out routes and substitute a running game by having Brady throw short passes to Shane Vereen out of the backfield and to Edelman and Amendola. Vereen caught 11 passes for 64 yards and was instrumental in keeping the chains moving.
If the Patriots saw man coverage, they would attack it. It wasn’t always perfect, but the team stuck with it and they were rewarded for it. At the end of the first half, Brady spread out the defense and saw Gronkowski on single coverage with linebacker K.J. Wright.
It was a mismatch that was easily winnable and Brady lofted a beautifully arching deep ball right on the money for a 23 yard touchdown. Late in the game, facing a 2nd and 11 Brady had Gronkowski in single coverage on Kam Chancellor and hit Gronk with a huge 20 yard gain to keep the drive alive. Chancellor and Earl Thomas were no match for Gronkowski in single coverage, something that was a key to watch.
Perhaps the play of the game from an offensive perspective was with 10 minutes to go. The Patriots were facing a 3rd and 14 from their own 28 yard line. Julian Edelman and Brady combined for a big 21-yard completion on a pass that was zipped into a tight window, but kept the sticks moving. That set up the first of two late touchdowns that gave the Patriots the lead.
 "You Mad Bro?" Not any longer, Richard Sherman congratulates Tom Brady after a big Super Bowl comeback win. (USA TODAY Images) |
Brady was “Tom Terrific": At crunch time with his team down ten at 24-14 in the fourth quarter, Brady was simply electric. Taking what the defense was giving him, he methodically moved the Patriots down the field.
On the Patriots final two scoring drives, Brady was 13-15 for 124 yards and two touchdowns. This was against the best defense and secondary in the league. Brady completed his final nine passes with a pair of TDs with the game in the balance.
In two playoff games with the outcome in the balance, facing two outstanding defenses in the Ravens and Seahawks, Brady completed 17 of 18 with three touchdowns. That is clutch folks. That’s his legacy right there. That’s what the greats do when the chips are on the line and Brady cemented his own bust in Canton with some outstanding play.
The Patriots will hold their Super Bowl parade on Wednesday in Boston. After that, Bill Belichick will go right into preparing for the NFL Combine and the draft. They could use some more pieces on both sides of the ball. But the offense with McDaniels and Brady will give a lot of opponents plenty to think about once 2015 rolls around.
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