The Patriots passing attack is cheap, unique, and better than the rest of the NFL
COMMENTARY
Who needs a diva? Who needs the flashy, 6-foot-2-inch wide receiver that outruns and outleaps cornerbacks? Who needs the fluid athlete that runs a crisp, complete route tree? Who needs a Dez Bryant or an A.J. Green?
In truth, a lot of teams NFL teams do. But not the 2015 Patriots.
The Patriots’ leading pass-catcher is a tight end. Sure, that tight end is Rob Gronkowski, but few functional offenses in the last decade have operated with a tight end as the primary passing target. He is one of the most unique talents in the NFL (maybe ever) — and it’s making the Patriots’ passing offense into a wildly successful novelty.
Through two games, Gronk is projected to have 1,656 yards on the season. While it’s an unrealistic projection, Gronk is greatly outproducing the next-best tight end, Kansas City’s Travis Kelce, who is projected to total 300 fewer yards.
Meanwhile, Dion Lewis has the most receiving yards among running backs. That’s the same Dion Lewis that didn’t make an NFL team in 2014.
In 2015’s pass-happy edition of the NFL, teams are paying their wide receivers enormous sums of money. The Patriots, however, have found production from players at different positions. Unable to find wideouts for the right price in the offseason, the Patriots removed the label from players at tight end and running back and treated them like wide receivers. That said, Gronk is still a fantastic run blocker and he has continued to block. Lewis is a talented rusher, and he’s continued to do that.
And through two weeks, the Patriots have the most passing yards in the NFL.
The Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos, Atlanta Falcons and Cincinatti Bengals signed their elite wide receivers to major deals this offseason. Bryant, Green, Julio Jones, and Demaryius Thomas will each be making an average salary between $14 and $15 million.
Gronkowski has more touchdowns than all of them combined in 2015. And Lewis has more receiving yards than two of them. The Patriots also have a solid wideout of their own — Julian Edelman has sixth-most receiving yards per game in the NFL, and was considered by an anonymous general manager to be the “hardest cover in the NFL.’’ And yet, Gronk, Lewis, and Edelman combine to make an average salary that’s smaller than each of those elite receivers, via Spotrac.com.
Admittedly, Gronk is getting paid a lot of money, an average salary of $9 million. But he’s more productive than most top receivers in the league, contributes as a run blocker in ways those wideouts cannot, and gets paid about a third less.
Bill Belichick, you’ve outdone yourself.
The Patriots aren’t the only ones thinking outside the box — but they’re having the most success with it. The Eagles are experimenting with a running-back-focused offense where they combine DeMarco Murray, Ryan Matthews, and Darren Sproles. So far, they have the ninth-best passing offense in yards per game but the league’s worst rushing attack. The Chiefs have emphasized Kelce as Alex Smith’s primary target, but they have the 26th-best passing offense in the NFL. In their last 18 games including last season, a Chiefs wide receiver has not caught a touchdown pass.
The Patriots offense takes the experimental ideals of both offenses, improves them, and combines them. The result, through two weeks, has been a very happy Tom Brady.
Gronk and Lewis aren’t the only non-wideout skill players in the Patriots’ arsenal. Scott Chandler, Travaris Cadet, and James White could make an impact. Chandler is the most proven of the three, and has already caught a touchdown pass. Cadet was hindered by injury and could work his way into the mix.
The Patriots also have depth at wide receiver with Danny Amendola, Aaron Dobson, and Brandon LaFell, who could return from the IR-designated to return as soon as Week 8. With so many options in the passing game, it makes sense the Patriots have run the ball 39 times and passed it 91.
Even the return of bruising running back LeGarrette Blount from suspension didn’t seem to encourage the Patriots to run the ball. This trend of the favoring the passing game could be a situational matchup — something Belichick thought was advantageous against the Bills’ and Steelers’ defenses. Perhaps the Patriots will see better opportunities to run the ball against upcoming defenses, especially as the temperatures get colder. Or perhaps they’ll see opportunity to throw the ball to receivers, as LaFell returns to health or Dobson emerges in a breakout season.
But Gronk, Lewis, and even Chandler are too good to avoid. Belichick will create touches for the three players.
This isn’t a two-game anomaly. Belichick has mixed and matched at the receiver position for years, and he’s always made do. He has struggled drafting wide receivers (see: Chad Jackson, Brandon Tate, Taylor Price, Josh Boyce), and has been reluctant to offer big-name free agents large contracts. Instead, the Patriots have made a habit of turning previously discarded slot receivers (Wes Welker) and third-down backs (Kevin Faulk) into critical components in the offense. With the NFL overcompensating toward wide receivers, Belichick chose to adapt an offense and bucked the trend.
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