New England Patriots look a lot like the 2011 team this season
The 2017 New England Patriots through three games look like a team that we have seen before.
After watching a nail-biter against the pesky Houston Texans, I couldn’t help but think, “We’ve seen this team before.” The New England Patriots edged out the Texans 36 – 33 and it was the same story we’ve been hammering on since week 1. The Patriots have a shoddy offensive line, the offensive play calling is head scratching and the defense is a liability. At the beginning of the year, everyone wanted to compare this team to the 2007 undefeated Patriots. Turns out, this team is more like your 2011 New England Patriots.
It’s not a direct apples to apples comparison but it’s pretty close. In 2011, the Patriots finished the season with the 31st ranked defense in terms of yards allowed. They were 15th in terms of points allowed. Their offense was number two in the league though, thanks to the passing attack lead by Tom Brady. This sounds pretty familiar huh?
At this point, the Patriots are going to have to ride this season out and hope a couple of key injured players can come back and provide a much needed boost to both sides of the ball. The defense clearly misses Dont’a Hightower leading them from his linebacker spot. The Patriots historically struggle against mobile quarterbacks and the Texans took advantage with their talented rookie, Deshaun Watson.
Watson ran at will with key third down scrambles to keep his drives alive. If you want a blue print on how to beat New England, the Texans provided it, dominating time of possession and keeping Brady on the sidelines, sulking in his favorite bench spot. The Indian summer heat in the Northeast also played a part as the Patriots defense looked worn down in the fourth quarter. I thought “this is the reason you run all those hills”?
New England Patriots
Usually this team will rely on those veteran playmakers to fill the gap. Against the Texans though, Devin McCourty looked to be the guy out of position. Ryan Griffin, a backup tight end for the Texans, ran free with key drive saving receptions and a big touchdown catch. Was that a case of the safety trying to do too much and cover up more miscommunications in the backfield?
On the offensive side of the ball, there was a key drive in the fourth quarter that almost led to another home loss for the Patriots. With 12:13 remaining in the game, the Patriots called three straight handoffs to Mike Gillislee. The first two handoffs gained 9 yards. The third handoff was a no huddle, shotgun snap hand off to Gillislee up the middle and stuffed. This was a nightmarishly close flashback to Week 1, when Gillislee couldn’t make two, fourth and 1 opportunities. Here’s something that works much better for the Patriots – play action screen passes to James White or Dion Lewis. Heck, even those silly jet sweep handoffs to Chris Hogan work better than up the gut on short yardage with Gillislee.
The Patriots could certainly use another receiver to make some plays. Malcolm Mitchell can’t return soon enough from the IR. Philip Dorsett did not make a catch in this game. What happened to James White or Dion Lewis filling in the slot position with Julian Edleman gone for the season? James White should be on the field more. It is clear he is the team’s biggest playmaker at the running back position. Whether or not he could make those short yardage jumbo runs is irrelevant. This team has always been none as the one that utilizes the best tools of their players. Give James White the rock and let him win some games.
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So while this all sounds extremely familiar in comparison to the 2011 team, there are glaring differences. First, Rob Gronkowski had another receiving threat at the tight end position with Aaron Hernandez. Dwayne Allen is clearly a liability in the passing game. The 2011 defense ranked 17th in terms of rushing yards allowed. Going into the Texans game, the 2017 defense was already ranked 31st and gave up another 125 rushing yards to Houston. The 2011 team finished 13-3. At the beginning of the season, I mentioned on my podcast, Next Fan Up, that the floor for the Patriots in 2017 was 12-4. I may have been a little too optimistic.