An Independent Patriots Blog
Patriots rookie Ras-I Dowling picking lunch for Brandon Meriweather and fellow vets. This is even more comical considering I think there’s a pretty good chance Ras-I’s gonna take Meriweather’s job down the line.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/patriots-rookie-ras-i-dowling-picking-lunch-for/
This as close as Brady and the Pats would let the media today at BC. Twitter has made it quite enjoyable to see how the various beat guys react to it. Some don’t even acknowledge that they care, others are clearly annoyed. Given the pictures and videos of TFB that have been circulated this offseason I can’t say I really blame him for keeping them out of the way.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/this-as-close-as-brady-and-the-pats-would-let-the/
I definitely tend to lean toward the defensive side of the football when it comes to Xs and Os so this week’s exploration of all things Erhardt-Perkins Offense was an interesting one. As we did with our defensive system week we’ll sum things up here with the most need-to-know information.
The biggest thing to take away from it is that while the Patriots current offense is a derivative of the Erhardt-Perkins “pass to score, run to win” offense it has evolved into something much different than what it was at it’s inception.
Of course many of the core concepts remain the same, especially when it comes to moving the football and maintaining possession. However today’s Patriots offense has elements of Charlie Weis, Urban Meyer, and Josh McDaniels that are very much a part of it (among others I’m sure… Bill O’Brien anyone?).
This is how all football schemes are: ever-evolving. The Patriots version is often referred to as an “amoeba” offense, in that it can take any form they need for the purpose of moving the football. Perhaps more specifically they are fans of running the same play out of multiple formations, whereas other teams will often run multiple plays out of the same formation. The shape changes, but what comes out of it is often the same.
The origins of the Erhardt-Perkins offense are very much of the “ground and pound” variety, and obviously the Patriots would no longer be considered a “ground and pound” team. They can when they need to, but it’s just one tool in a much larger toolbox.
The other evidence of this is how many different types of running backs and tight ends the Patriots will have on their roster whenever the 2011 gets under way. Each different player brings a different strength to the party, enabling the Patriots to do a variety of different things, often from the same personnel groupings.
Clearly Bill Belichick’s football philosophy on both sides of the ball is one of disguise, and keeping the other team on their toes at all times. This might seem like a common sense approach, but it is not easy to coordinate 11 men on a field with multiple shifts, checks, and audibles. It’s clearer to me now why the Patriots put such a premium on FBI (Football Intelligence) when acquiring personnel.
While the terminology might be the last holdover from the true Erhardt-Perkins offensive system, the core of building a tough, diverse offense that can play in all weather conditions remains.
Over the course of Bill Belichick’s tenure the offense has evolved a great deal, primarily due to Charlie Weis, and later expanded upon by Josh McDaniels. Clearly the Bill O’Brien modifications and additions will be ones based around a diverse group of tight ends and running backs. Clearly this Amoeba Belichick version of the Erhardt-Perkins offense will continue to grow and evolve.
This ensures that the effect of the Patriots’ systems and influence of Bill Belichick will continue to reverberate throughout the NFL for decades.
When watching film on the Pats, the issue of run/pass balance came out in the difference between halves. New England was 26th league-wide in first-half runs called, 14th in the second half. These run/pass ratios are exactly the theories that went into building the West-Coast Offense, but despite a common misperception, the Patriots run a modern variant on the Erhardt-Perkins system. Their approach is less smash-mouth. It uses the pass more. However, since Erhardt is reputed to have said, “Pass to score, run to win”, the McDaniels version of this approach (which was originally installed by Charlie Weis and has morphed and adapted to changes in personnel often since) uses the pass more in the first half and runs more in the second.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/when-watching-film-on-the-pats-the-issue-of/
MileHighReport: Analysis of Patriots passing offense
Great stuff here back from 2009 when the fanalysts over at Mile High Report were still excited to get a taste of what Josh McDaniels would do for their offense.
I’ve been posting these articles as much for myself as you the readers, and I’ve really be intrigued by a lot of what I have come across while really diving into offensive football like I never have before.
One huge thing that this article reinforced for me was the use of multiple formations to run the same plays. One of my favorite nuggets:
The thing that struck me about the Patriots’ style is that they are constantly probing, pushing, and looking for a weakness. You can watch it unfold, attacking one point after another, quickly, but in sequence. It’s not as smash-mouth an approach as the original Erhardt-Perkins or, say, Miami or Pittsburgh would use. It’s perhaps more like fencing than boxing.
Playing the Colts is probably a bit like being in a knife fight – they are constantly cutting at you until you are exhausted. New England seems slightly different – you can watch them constantly looking for the best adjustments. This probing side of the amoeba tendency alone will win its own certain share of close games. Making adjustments is a huge skill, the Broncos has often lacked in over the past years and Josh McDaniels does it very well.
The Patriots obviously like being unpredictable. Most teams do, of course, but in the film I watched, New England took it to the extreme. While there are statistical norms, in any single game there are no specific passing or rushing downs for the Pats. They will pass on short yardage, run (often a draw) on 3rd and long, 2nd and short or any other situation. Overall, it’s hard to stop, and I suspect that it’s nearly impossible to predict.
McDaniels comes from a system specializing in the efficient utilization of receivers that puts every single target option out as a receiver. He spreads the field. Josh McDaniels use a modified version of the Erhardt offense. He use its philosophy as basis for creating his playbook. “Pass to score, run to win,” this offense has been considered a run first, play-action offense. But the modern Erhardt strategy relies on pass to control the football. Erhardt commonly ran the system in his later years spread the field. In this offense, terminology is typically spoken in Numbers as opposed to the West Coast offense which is typically spoken in Colors. From the original Ron Erhardt offense remain the passing attacks which are mostly vertical and are set up through play actions. The Pats offense attempt to spread the field and isolate defenders using several formations and personnel groupings. After the New England Patriots 2004 season, coach Bill Belicheck and Josh McDaniels also went to Gainesville, Florida to meet with Urban Meyer, to discuss the spread option with him. McDaniels said to be ready to run a balanced but aggressive offense: “The best offenses that I’ve had an opportunity to be a part of always maintained really solid balance and always had an opportunity to attack the defense in multiple ways,”
https://www.patspropaganda.com/mcdaniels-comes-from-a-system-specializing-in-the/
And I thought I had a Patriots obsession…
https://www.patspropaganda.com/and-i-thought-i-had-a-patriots-obsession/