The Patriot of the Week Thread: Divisional Round vs Titans
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I don't know if that's the argument you want to make, considering that's pretty much how Amendola's career in New England has gone thus far. The difference is they now monitor his usage in the regular season and unleash him in the playoffs. When healthy and active in the gameplan, he comes up big time and time again, but there's a reason you didn't see double digit targets go his way consistently in the regular season, as generally happens to the slot receiver in the Pats' system. He's been a good signing because the Patriots can afford to not have to count on him until it matters most, and he delivers in those moments, but he's never really played a whole season either.
From the third deck, Amendola was the ballgame. Crucial third down after crucial third down.
That looping cross field throw from Tom was one of my favorite in-person plays ever.
That looping cross field throw from Tom was one of my favorite in-person plays ever.
Ironically, the Pats renegotiate him down every pre-season. He's been yooge in the loss of Edelman.
That play was ridiculous, including and especially becuse he characteristically managed to intentionally fall as if he was hitting a firm mattress to avoid a hit.
The throw he made to White near midfield - who dropped it - against his body/momentum with pressure was similarly ridiculous.
The first bomb to Cooks was seven if Cooks finished the route better.
Tom looked fucking great.
Over the past 5 seasons Amendola has played in more games (80) than either Julian Edelman or Rob Gronkowski (both with 65). He isn’t “fragile”. And he was a good signing. That’s all I’m sayin’.
Cooks also got his arm pulled on that bomb which slowed him down just enough. It was a perfect throw.
My balls:
My balls:
- Gilmore. Don't think he allowed a catch and he made a couple of great contests / deflections
- Defense in general -- TEN's not a great offense but this could have easily been a shutout (the long TEN TD drive early was extended by that third down Mariota scramble where they tried a stunt and lost contain). I'm especially glad they turned it on in the second half so that we didn't have to hear about how the refs changed the game.
- If anyone's counting, Harrison drew a hold and made a great tackle early and looked to be playing around 40% of snaps? (I couldn't find snap counts yet) (EDIT: Reiss just tweeted he played 30 of 67 snaps so I was pretty close) There was definitely something else going on in Pittsburgh because he can still play.
- As usual the Titans were allowed to beat themselves. They could have scored at the end of the first half and received the ball first, but both drives amounted to nothing -- the first because the Titans blew it.
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That’s the throw that left me gasping in wonder.
Just incredible how he dropped a rainbow perfectly into White’s hands. A shame that White couldn’t locate the ball while spinning around and make the play.
Only other QB to throw 50+ and win in postseason was Eli, who was 32-58 against SF in NFC title game in 11/12 season, which NYG won in OT 20-17.
In 8 full (or nearly full) seasons, Amendola is pretty consistent--5 of those finished between 630 and 690 yards.
Huh...site I'm looking doesn't list them, but I see them now. Kosar was 64 attempts.
Game ball to the front 7. Stuffed the run all game, and figured out how to contain Mariotta’s legs. Once the latter occurred it was game over.
Yeah, since the merger 50 or more passing attempts has happened in the playoffs 44 times. Non Brady/Belichick teams are 3-33 in those games. All three wins were OT games. Point differential in those 36 games was about -430, or the passing team usually loses by about 12 points.
Brady and Belichick are 6-2 in those games and have the only wins in regulation (4). They are +11 in points in the 8 games, and last night was the only time anyone has won a >= 50 attempt game by more than 4 in regulation or more than 6 in OT.
From what I saw, the ball was beautifully placed, but out of necessity it took a long time to get there and the DB was closing fast. Amendola reached up high for it, snatched it cleanly, and then tucked it away on the other side of his body. I think the fall was all part of that effort to protect it.
Just a really nice, really well-executed throw and catch by Brady and Amendola
You don't think they monitor his snaps and usage during the regular season? Because I think that's pretty obvious considering how his production surges in the playoffs. That probably stems from the fact that the coaching staff doesn't belive he'd hold up if leaned on. Sure, he plays in a good number of games, but he's getting 2-3 targets in half of those, even with Edelman out. I love the guy, but if he were durable, you'd see him have 120 targets in a season where the Pats were without Edelman, Mitchell and Hogan for about half their games.
I have a feeling that Patriots types in the stadium, or NFL folk made a point of clearing that up right quick, and asked him to make the correction on air.
If White had kept track of that ball, so that both of those passes had been completed in this game, that would have been amazing.
I was driving back from the bar before I rewatched the game at home, and I learned from the voice of Gillette stadium (they kept calling him that so I can’t remember his name) on a national Espn or cbs sports overnight show that the clock operator and stadium crew for that stuff all came from Philadelphia. Apparently they sit in the same space as the PA guy. They were commiserating about the eagles all through the Atlanta game and how it sucked Wentz was out.
So if people want to blame the clock operator they need to go to Philadelphia.
His production doesn't really surge that much in the playoffs. For his Patriots career he's averaging ~35 yards per game in the regular season and 40-something in the playoffs. He's great against zone looks and not that effective against man-to-man, so he'll have a great game one week and disappear the next. Last year, he had a great game in the Super Bowl, and 12 receiving yards total in the first two playoff games.
Ultimately, I disagree with your premise - I don't think they put the brakes on him in the regular season and then let him loose in the playoffs. To me, Amendola is a useful role player with certain strengths and weaknesses that much up better against certain teams than others.
Nantz said something first--"that stayed on 1 second for a while". Romo is new, maybe he doesn't have that info, but Nantz sure as shit should.
Of course, it stayed on one second because the Patriots called the timeout. Funny how that works, Jim and Tony.
It was clear as day that Amendola hit with one second and Gronk was calling timeout the moment it happened. Then the missed the kick anyway. Whatevs.
I have another name: Ivan Fears. Why do we never talk about him when we talk about Scarnecchia? All he did was prepare the Pats' 5th-string running back to make some carries down the stretch to totally put the game to bed.
He definitely went down with at least a second but I wasn’t sure if he had been touched down. That was more unclear to me.
It was clear by going down he was giving himself up so the TO could be called. I don't believe he needs to be touched if he is giving himself up in that manner.
It was Hogan. I thought the rule change is being considered but hadn’t gone into effect yet (namely that the blocker can’t be running toward his own goal line when downfield of the LOS.
Yeah it was Hogan. It was a peel back block which is illegal only if the hit was below the waist (which it was not). I have seen various complaints that it was illegal because all peel back blocks are illegal (they aren't), because it was helmet to helmet (I really don't think so), and because Hogan taunted afterwards (my brain hurts).
The internet is stupid. It clearly wasn't a peel-back block. The question is whether it was an unlawful hit on a defenseless player. The relevant rule is Rule 12, Article 7. There are two questions under the rule: (1) Was the player a defenseless player? (2) Was the hit illegal? I think (1) is yes, and I think (2) is very close.
Woodyard was probably a defenseless player. Most defenseless players are offensive players, but a would be tackler is a defenseless player with respect to blindside hits in which the offensive player is running parallel to or toward his end line. (Reference: Rule 12, Article 7, Section 10.) You can't debate that Hogan was running toward his own endline, so the question is whether it was a blindside block. Taking my Patriots glasses off, while I think it's debatable, I think the answer is that this is exactly the type of player the NFL is seeking to make defenseless. This was the Juju Smith-Schuster play. Woodyard was defenseless.
So, then the question whether or not it was a foul turns on whether it was an illegal hit on a defenseless player. It was close. I've watched it a few times. A hit on a defenseless player is a foul if the defender contacts the head or neck of the defenseless player even if the initial point of contact was below the neck. The key to understanding this rule is to understand that there is no concept of "incidental" contact when you make contact with your shoulder, as Hogan did. The only question is whether the shoulder contacted the head or neck of the defenseless receiver, even just a little bit. There is an incidental contact exception, but it only applies to a touch by the helmet or facemask by the blocker that occurs as during a "conventional" tackle or block. It is also the blocker's burden to avoid the head or neck even if the defender ducks into him. So, did Hogan make contact with the head or neck -- even incidental? I think Hogan got a little of the head, though the principal point of contact was the body. You sort of have to slow down the replay to see it though. The defender, though, popped right up. It looked to me as though the refs may have discussed it and must have decided that there was no contact to Woodyard's head or neck. This is the difference between this play and the Smith-Schuster play (other than the taunt). In that play, Smith-Schuster lowered his helmet, which is also not permitted with respect to a defenseless receiver -- Hogan didn't lower his head and make contact with the helmet, so the only question is whether he contacted Woodyard's head or neck with his block. Pretty close. Probably best that the officials didn't call if they didn't see it, though it's probably the kind of play that if Woodyard had been lying on the ground looking like he got his bell run, it might have convinced the officials there was head contact. (The officials may have decided Woodyard wasn't defenseless, but that would be wrong.)
The assertion that it was an illegal play is not crazy. The assertion that it was a peel back block is not right the question, though it seems to be what the internet is obsessed with.
Edit: Here's the NFL player safety video on the relevant rule. It shows a legal and illegal blindside block from about 2:20 to 2:30. On the first, the blocker clearly gets helmet and on the second the blocker clearly gets the permissible contact area. Hogan was somewhere in between and debating it probably depends on who you ask and is much like debating how many angels can fit on the head of a pin. They didn't call it. It was close. Not sure there's much left to say.
https://operations.nfl.com/the-rules/nfl-video-rulebook/defenseless-player/
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That’s a well-designed game. Fake an interior twist as the defensive tackle draws the double team before Flowers drops back in coverage to pick up Henry in coverage. To be fair to Henry, he may not even be responsible for Van Noy - it could be the right guard who keys off the the head turn and opens up the rush lane. Either way, really well executed.
Did Flowers drop back in coverage, or was he just spying the QB and we were lucky that Mariota's scramble mirrored Henry's route?
Very well could be the case. Flowers first few steps seem designed to draw the left guard into blocking air but afterwards his eyes do seem locked on Mariota. The safety/McCourty appears to have Henry in man coverage and has a lot of ground to make up if not for Flowers presence. It’s also a Cover 2 look pre-snap with Harmon rolling to disguise the Cover 1 man. A lot of moving parts.
DDB, in the absence of a "Like" or similar button, just wanted to say thanks for the post about Hogan's block. In all of the introspective discussion over the past couple of days about BBtL and fandom, to me it is posts like these that make this board pretty special.
Thanks streeter -- sorry, just saw this now. No problem. I think BBTL can get a bad rap. It's really not that hard to separate the good from the bad and there's a fair amount of good here. Deflategate made us all a bit crazy, but it's still Sosh quality around here I think.