Five Reasons the 2009 New England Patriots are Struggling

The New England Patriots lost on Sunday to the Dolphins in Miami, falling to 7-5, and have now lost three of their last four games. 

This team, while 6-0 at home, has not won a game in an opponents’ stadium all season and has blown second-half leads in four of their five losses.

In the span of a few weeks, the conversation has swung from do the Patriots belong mentioned among the league’s elite to will the Patriots even hold on to win the AFC East.

Thinking about the reasons why the Patriots lost to the Dolphins, I realized something that’s plagued the team all season—it’s what makes the loss so troubling. 

It wasn’t a bad day, but there have been a series of problems that haven’t been addressed and, in some circumstances, have actually become worse. 

This is still a good football team, who at times, even in the losses, has shown flashes of being a very good team. But at the end of the day, as Tom Brady said after the loss, “You get what you deserve. You don’t deserve to win when you” continually make the mistakes the Patriots are making. 

With that in mind, here are five problems, not in any particular order, that are causing the Patriots’ struggles—not just on Sunday against the Dolphins, but all season.

1. Lack of a Pass Rush

On defense, it is clear that this is the primary concern. The Patriots lost to Peyton Manning and Drew Brees, which is understandable. But what stood out was the amount of time each had to complete their throws. 

Today against the Dolphins, Chad Henne dropped back to pass 52 times and was sacked just once and was not pressured too many other times.

For the season, New England has only 20 sacks, while opposing quarterbacks have dropped back to pass 388 times. I found it very telling that today, with the Dolphins backed up in their own end, they did not hesitate on first down to have Henne throw the ball from their own end zone. It was apparent that Miami had no fear of the Patriots’ pass rush.

Regardless of how this season turns out, I have to believe player-personnel priority number one in the offseason will be finding someone, or someones, who can put pressure on the quarterback.

2. Pats’ Inability to Make Stops on Third Down  

This problem is an offshoot of problem number one. When teams find themselves in passing situations against the Patriots, it is almost ideal for them. 

As a fan, I almost would rather see teams have third and short, because against a run, I think the Patriots have a shot. For the Dolphins on third down, Henne completed 11-of-15 passes for 161 yards and two touchdowns. 

It isn’t just the pass rush. All around, it seems that if a play is there to be made the Patriots do not make it. An example from today’s game was a third-and-four when Henne completed a pass short of the first down. Two Patriots, including middle linebacker Jerod Mayo, were there to make the tackle. Both missed, and the Dolphins picked up the first down.

Another example came on the Dolphins game-winning drive—with the home team facing a critical fourth-and-six. New England won three Super Bowls not by blowing teams out, but by making the handful of plays that had to be made. Here, however, with a chance to seal the win they couldn’t stop Miami, who picks up the first down and goes on to kick the game-winning field goal.

3. No Playmakers on Defense

This is sort of the final reason in this initial category. Who are the playmakers on defense? Who can New England rely on to make a play when it has to be made? 

Where once there was Mike Vrabel, Tedy Bruschi, Rodney Harrison, Willie McGinest, Ty Law and many others, now there is no one. For 12 weeks, I’ve been waiting for someone to step up, and no one has. Intercepting Mark Sanchez does not count. 

4. Second Half and Road Woes 

These are problems that have been talked about for a few weeks now, but prior to this week I didn’t pay any attention to it. Yes, the Patriots had a few games where they didn’t score as many points in the second half as they did in the first, and yes, they had lost some road games. But I chalked these up to just a coincidence and was not convinced that there was any real connection.

After today’s loss, though, these problems can no longer be ignored. For whatever reason, the Patriots are 6-0 at home, 1-0 on a neutral field, and 0-5 on the road. Five road losses is too many to think there isn’t some connection. And it is something that has to be addresses because if the Patriots are to be a factor in the playoffs, they will need to do so on the road.

The second-half struggles are equally as perplexing.  In every single game this season, New England has scored at least nine points in the first half. In the second half, they have scored seven or fewer five times and are 1-4 in those games. Twice, they didn’t score at all in the second half. For the season, the Patriots are averaging 18.3 points per game in the first half—and just nine in the second. 

The numbers are even worse in the five losses, where the Patriots have done well in the first half, scoring 14.8 points per game, but they have struggled in the second half, scoring just 4.8 points.

Another area New England used to excel in, holding on to second-half leads, has been a problem this year as the Patriots have blown second-half leads in four of their five losses. 

5. Offensive Play Calling 

The offense has a number of problems, but I am going to address them all under the play-calling umbrella. 

There are times when this New England offense looks to be not that far off from the record-setting offense of 2007. 

They looked great in building a 31-14 lead over Indianapolis, they looked great in their opening drive against the Saints, and they looked great earlier today when they went ahead 14-0 against the Dolphins. But things can change quickly, and suddenly, the Patriots offense will look out of sync. 

This year, unlike ever before with Brady as quarterback, the Patriots are being forced to burn timeouts on offense and are getting bogged down with false start and delay of game penalties.

Brady threw an interception in the end zone today—an interception that was caused because the play clock was nearing zero and Brady had to rush the snap. He then rushed his decision making and his throw, tossing the pick as a result.

The play-calling has been off as well. It isn’t terrible, but it is not sharp, and there are little details that are not being properly addressed. 

There are two examples of this from today’s game against the Dolphins. In the second-quarter, on a third-and-two, Brady threw a screen pass to Kevin Faulk who was spread out like a receiver. The key to the play called for Randy Moss to make a block on a cornerback. Moss missed the block.

Now, it wasn’t a difficult block, and maybe Moss should make it. My question is, why would you design a play that you run on third down that relies on Moss to make the crucial block?  Why not have Sam Aiken or Wes Welker be in that situation?  Put players in a situation to succeed.  

The second example was when New England went for it on fourth down from the Miami six-yard line near the end of the first half. 

Miami stuffed the rush attempt by Sammy Morris. Welker and Moss were both on the sideline. I have no problem going for it on fourth down, I have no problem rushing with Morris, but why would this Patriots team run an important play with both Moss and Welker on the sideline? 

Miami was geared up for the run, but with Moss and Welker not out there, they then knew that they did not have to worry at all about a quick pass play. 

In addition, the Patriots have been very predictable offensively. When Brady is under center, especially if Maroney is in the backfield, the Patriots are going to run the ball.  When he is in the shotgun, they are going to pass. It just makes things easy for the defense.

This, then, leads me to my final concern with the offensive play-calling—we aren’t in 2007 anymore. In 2007, the Patriots could spread the field with Moss, Welker, Donte’ Stallworth, and Jabar Gaffney. If teams took away Moss and Welker, Brady still had the other two receivers, plus Kevin Faulk, to make plays, too.

This year, on the other hand, while Sam Aiken had a big play today and led the team in yards against the Saints, he isn’t someone other teams are too concerned with. 

The Patriots used to pride themselves with an ability to win a game in any number of ways. Now, however, it appears they want to spread the field and run the same offense they did in 2007. But they don’t have the same weapons, which causes them to become out of sink very quickly. 

It also makes running the ball difficult. Only twice all season has a Patriot rushed for over 100 yards.  New England never establishes the run, and no running back can ever get into any rhythm. 

This is also why they can’t hold onto leads, because they can’t just hand the ball over to the running game to work the clock.

In the 2007 AFC Championship, the Patriots took possession leading by eight with nine-minutes to play. New England, behind eight carries from Laurence Maroney, were able to run out the clock and never give the Chargers possession again.

Now think back to the Colts game from this year—long before the failed fourth-and-two play: Manning had thrown an interception. A touchdown likely seals the win, but even short of a touchdown, New England could go to work on the clock.  But they were unable to do so, and after an incompletion on third down, had to settle for a third down, giving the ball back to Indianapolis with just enough time to get two possessions.  

All of these problems have reared their ugly head in every loss, and many of them have surfaced in the wins as well—maybe minus the 59-0 blowout of Tennessee.

At times, New England has learned from their mistakes, such as when they began both the Saints game and the Dolphins game (their second drive of the game) by running a more balanced offense, with Brady mixing up being in the shotgun and under center. 

But just as quickly, everything changes, and this inconsistency, has led to struggles when games have been on the line. 

I still believe in Bill Belichick. I still believe than an offense with Tom Brady, Randy Moss, and Wes Welker, will find a way to win games in the fourth quarter. I want to still believe in the 2009 Patriots.

But as the team continues to be unable to rush the passer, unable to stop teams on third down, and unable of establishing a balanced offense that gets better as the game does on and not worse, I can no longer be certain that this year’s team will figure everything out. I can only hope.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

Roger Goodell’s Cowardice Shows in Handling of Tom Cable Situation

News today out of the NFL is that if Oakland Raiders head coach Tom Cable is implicated by police in the assault of an assistant coach, then commissioner Roger Goodell will act, and Goodell expects to receive a report from the police “in the next couple weeks.”

For someone who has attempted to paint a picture of himself as this get-tough commissioner who will not tolerate anyone tarnishing the NFL brand through his off-the-field actions, Goodell’s handling of this matter strikes me as rather cowardly.

In case anyone does not remember, this situation stems from an incident that happened in August, over two months ago. A story of a head coach of one of the NFL’s teams possibly breaking the jaw of an assistant coach occurs, and the commissioner doesn’t deem it necessary to get involved.

What is he waiting for to get involved?

The answer is that Goodell is afraid to make a decision one way or the other on his own and is clearly going to use the cover of this expected police report to insulate himself from any criticism. If the police implicate Cable, then Goodell will take action, and if anyone is upset, he will just point to the police report.

If the police don’t act, same excuse for his inaction.

This is his league; he runs it. Why does he have to wait for anyone or rely on what anyone else concludes?

I respect not having a knee-jerk reaction to situations. But that is not what is going on in this case. If Goodell wanted, he could have stepped in and determined on his own what happened that day and if any punishment was warranted. He obviously has no inclination to do so.

Whether or not the police act should have no bearing on this situation. The police, and prosecutors, have other factors to consider before moving ahead with criminal charges against a person.

Goodell has one thing to consider—the good of his league. He doesn’t have to prove anything in court beyond a reasonable doubt. He just needs to know what happened.

Why can’t he himself speak to those involved and to those who were there to determine if there is any validity to the story? The only reason is fear of getting his hands dirty. If a person tries to hide behind a lawyer or says he can’t speak because of an ongoing investigation, Goodell is free to let that person know that they can remain silent all they want, but he will factor that into any decision.

Instead, Goodell waits and waits and waits, and is content to sit back and allow the burden to be placed squarely on the shoulders of the police. 

Allowing this story to drag on does the league no good. If true, Goodell could have stepped in a long time ago and taken decisive action against Cable.  If false, Goodell’s unwillingness to get involved forced a head coach and its fans to operate under this negative cloud all season.

Let’s contrast Goodell’s inability to act with similar actions from another commissioner, David Stern.

What Goodell is doing would be the equivalent of Stern having waited for the police report until he decided how to discipline Ron Artest and the other players involved in the fight in Detroit.

Or maybe a better comparison is when Latrell Sprewell choked P.J. Carlesimo at practice. Stern acted immediately, suspending Sprewell for the entire season. He didn’t have to wait for a police report.

Here, if Goodell wants his decisions and his punishments to be taken seriously, he needs to stop using police reports as shields for his actions.

Unquestionably, there are times where facts are unclear and where the NFL may need to let the police process run its course. This is not one of them, especially when it appears all those involved, participants and witnesses, fall under Goodell’s NFL authority—Goodell should have spoken to those involved, made a determination, and not allowed this to linger for months on end.

If he had wanted to act, he would have done so. Instead, he continues to hide behind whatever it is the police ultimately do or don’t do in this case. That isn’t leadership; it is an act of cowardice not befitting the image of a so-called get-tough commissioner. 

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

New England Patriots: Where Has the Offense Gone?

After only scoring nine points, and zero touchdowns yesterday against the New York Jets, there is some cause for concern this morning among New England Patriots fans. 

Entering the year, even the most level-headed Pats fan could not help but dream back to the offense of 2007 and think with Tom Brady healthy and Randy Moss, offense should not be a concern for this year’s team.

As we have witnessed in the first two games, putting points on the board for this year’s team may not come as easy as most of us had hoped.  What might not be so obvious is this is a trend that didn’t begin yesterday in the Meadowlands, but perhaps finds its roots in the midst of New England’s 16-0 2007 regular season.

That season, both Brady and Moss etched their names in the record books, as did the New England offense; Brady with his 50 touchdown passes, Moss with his 23 touchdown receptions, and the Patriots with 589 points. The Brady-Moss duo was nothing short of dominant.

But, it appears teams began to figure out how to at least control the Brady-Moss tandem, and stop the big play, beginning in 2007.  Through the first 13 games of the Brady-Moss combination, New England averaged 38.7 points per game, with Moss averaging 97.2 receiving yards per game and catching 19 total touchdowns. 

In the eight games since, including the 2007 postseason and the first two weeks this year but not week one last year, the Patriots have averaged only 23.4 points, and Moss’s number dip to 61.0 yards per game and five touchdowns. 

In his first 13 games catching passes from Brady, Moss failed to get in the end zone just twice; in those eight games since, he hasn’t had a TD five times.

This decline with Moss’s big-play ability has coincided with the games in which New England has struggled the most to put points on the board.  In the 21 games with Brady and Moss playing together for New England, again discounting week one last year when Brady was injured, the four lowest scoring games for the Patriots have all occurred within these last eight games. 

Expanding that list a little, six of New England’s eight lowest point totals are within these last eight games, as are seven of ten. 

To put it more simply, the explosiveness we saw out of the New England offense through the first 13 games of the 2007 season is no longer there, and began to disappear long before failing to reach the end zone against the Jets, and even before Brady went down with a knee injury against the Chiefs in ’08.

So, what does all this mean?  Well for starters I think Patriots fans need to lower expectations a bit for what this team is capable of offensively.  Fans need to realize that the records set by New England in 2007 did not come easy and asking for the team to duplicate its feats is likely asking far too much. 

But, it also means the team itself may have to realize things have changed since those early days of ’07 and a more balanced offense may be what is called for to win.

The strength of this team on offense remains the passing game with Brady, Moss, and Wes Welker leading the way.  But, over these first two weeks, the passing game has dominated the play-calling at the severe expense of the running attack, to the tune of 100 pass attempts to just 43 rushes.

Because New England hasn’t even been a threat to run the ball these first two games, teams do not even have to concern themselves with stopping the rush.  This has to make New England easy to defend.  Sure, some of the low-rushing totals thus far are the fault of the running backs.  But, to a larger degree, the problem lies in the lack of repetitions they receive and also an offensive line that in a few key short-yardage situations thus far, has been out-muscled. 

I’d like to see New England adapt in these next few weeks to what has transpired on the field in weeks one and two—maybe lineup in a few more running formations, give backs Fred Taylor and Laurence Maroney an opportunity to get into any sort of rhythm.  And also, be able to attack through the air out of a running set, forcing teams to at least think for a split second about what is going on in the backfield. 

A more balanced offense would no doubt help the passing game as that split second a defender may take to think about the rush may be all it takes for Moss to get downfield and deliver one of those big plays we became accustomed to in 2007.

Read more NFL news on BleacherReport.com

NFL Sport Channel Latest

• Just How Far Would You Go?
• Sorry Rex, But It Isn’t Happening
• Super Bowl Predictions: Five Stat-Free Reasons Why the Eagles Will Reach The Super Bowl
• Seahawks Attempt to Turn Corner With Heavy Pursuit of Pete Carroll
• Bill Cowher Unlikely to Coach in 2010