Re: Warnings Were Out
posted at 10/1/2012 3:02 AM EDT
No...wrong. There were PLENTY of posters whom wanted NE to pass- To Pass: To either base the greater emphasis of NE's Offence surrounding the spread, shotgun, passing game, and/or to simply continue to shortchange the running game, by passing the ball, and constructing NE's Offense AROUND passing the football, on the very same high degree of percentage of Offensive plays, downs, and overall drives.
The argument that BJGE s#cked so bad, that NE could never even hope to do such a thing, Became a watered down step-back of those in this camp of fans. The bashing on Rusty, and Rusty's bashing of Brady's postseason and/or big-game prowess, became an unfortunate further offshoot of where both hard-lined camps eventually ended up to.
I was, and STILL remain, 100% in the gameclock, ball-control, multi-dimensional approach- 1 which affords greater situational benefits by affecting lengthy, gameplay controling drives, affording NE's Defense the Situational Football benefits of both icing the opposing squad's starting Offensive Units, while alloting for the additional rest, less wear, more time for adjustments, and less heat and weight on their shoulders, To: NE's Defense. While likewise, affording NE's Offense, the FAR greater capabilities to be in the position to call & execute plays through a larger multi-dimensional, greater scope, in terms of keeping the opposing D more honest to the fact of having a lesser foreknowledge RE: plays (run vs pass), and the play-direction that these plays (any given 1, on any given attempt) might be headed; While finally (at the same time for NE's O)- Opening up the greater realm of potential and better capability, to hold on to a lead and/or simply finish off the opposition through this greater commitment to pounding the ball & chipping away at any given opponent in a more PRO-active approach on Offense (O-Line playing proactive smashmouth running game in half 1, vs. RE-active passing game based approach)- AS it relates to NE's Offense being in a better position, come the 2nd half, and ultimately the endgame of the 4th quarter.
Likewise... Those that say this approach didn't work in the Baltimore contest, are only hurting their own arguments even THAT much further. You're right...It didn't work. The reasons why it didn't work out, is that NE resorted back to: A shotgun spread Offense (last drive alone, and even helped out by 2 Baltimore penalties FOR NE, was an 8 play drive with 4 minutes left in the game, 5 passes, 3 in the shotgun <as you're trying to Kill the clock...with a LEAD?!?!?> -took 2 minutes and 1 second off the clock...WITH the 2 Balt penalties to help them; Other than that, The shotgun based, and/or just overly reliant on the pass-heavy O gameplan during the Balt. game, resulted in 2 more things: More use of the RB by Committee approach. I.e. A> Keep your lesser scat-back out on the field (Woodhead), during these spread wide-open O formations; And B> Make sure to sub your lead back (Ridley) ON to the field for running plays...(also, make sure you tell the booth to phone the Ravens sideline, just in case they actually missed you doing this); And, C> Give ALL of your RBs less carries en masse, and the times you DO Run the ball, make sure you split up the alreay, lesser amount of touches <didn't both Woodhead & Ridley get only 12 touches each?> in between more than 1 RB, and do so, in a sporadic way, in order to even further negate the ability of ANY of them, to find any rhythm in NE's run game, and their own;
<Also, 1st negative or just 1-2 yard run play: Abandon the run altogether for the next proceeding 5 plays+ afterwards=GREAT, great plan...but commitment to a "run game", it is not>
IF We stay committed, FULLY committed to this approach- It CAN work. And it WILL offer us the greater situational benefits on Offense AND Defense, Securing AND Solidifying a Win in the 2nd half, and Greater propensities AND a greater opportunity to beat top-tiered teams with good O's and a top ranked D which one meets come the playoffs, and further in to the playoffs. Yes, during the Regular Season, your pass-based O generally, scores a few less points (this past game, an almost "Ideal"...but overall, an exception). The trade-off being that your Office Fantasy Number stats, s#ck...but the team ya follow is more formidable & higher regarded... The trade-off being that your Offense scores a few less points during the season, and maybe you fall flat on O and the added help granted your D when using this approach, isn't enough once or twice during the Regular Season, and thus, ya lose 1 more game a year...but the team ya follow gets stronger come the playoffs, and gets further along, and has a MUCH better chance at securing a Lombardi as the final result (think just how often the very greatest pure passing based, spread O, high-scoring Offenses of any given season do... Then determine, just how often teams that center such a vast majority of their gameplans of their team, under this approach, stand on the podium in order to hoist the SB trophy).
So s#ck it up those that loudly voiced their sides on behalf of the unbalanced shotgun, Brady is lord & savior & the ONLY god, Approach. S#ck it up...you we were wrong. So good grief, At LEAST- ShutTFU and step quietly back. You guys might believe Rusty's "beating a dead-horse." Yea, that could be maddening...But from the rest of our('s) perspectives, we've been watching you (even to now), beat a dead cow or something...only looking up here & there, in order to loudly exclaim that: "Hey guys- I'm beatin' a dead-horse ya know." (becomes just a bit even more maddening for the rest of us).
