Believe it or not, there have been indicators in that unhappy, rain-soaked, shutout loss to the Chargers.
Signs of a stirring deep passing sport. Of improved cross safety. Of an offense that may someday meander again to the tip zone after making one such journey in its final three video games.
Then the Patriots made that trek 3 times Thursday evening, all within the first half. Bailey Zappe posted a glowing 115.2 passer ranking and matched Mac Jones for the season when he hit his fourth deep cross on the 12 months. Zappe additionally turned the primary Patriots quarterback to throw three landing passes in a primary half since Tom Brady in 2018.
How a lot of that’s sustainable transferring ahead, particularly in gentle of a scoreless second half? Likely not a lot.
Zappe’s main receiver, JuJu Smith-Schuster, earned greater than 40% of his season-high 90 yards on a low-percentage contested catch. Ezekiel Elliott caught seven passes for the primary time in two years. Zappe additionally peaked together with his offensive line, which allowed a season-best 16.7% strain charge.
But there are parts value monitoring right here. Over two and a half video games, Zappe is defending the ball higher than Jones did. He’s threatening defenses downfield in a manner the Patriots haven’t most of this 12 months. And up entrance, offensive linemen Trent Brown, Cole Strange and David Andrews are giving him time, having allowed only a single mixed strain the previous two weeks.
To be clear, Zappe is not any extra the passer he was within the first half at Pittsburgh than he was within the second (44 passing yards, zero touchdowns, one interception). But Zappe is proving himself worthy of an extended leash, which was arduous to think about after his flops in mop-up obligation versus the Cowboys, Saints, Colts and Giants; nearly as arduous as picturing the Patriots ultimately zone.
Yet there they have been, 3 times Thursday, thanks partly to their new beginning quarterback.
Here’s what else the movie revealed about Thursday’s win:
Bailey Zappe
19-of-28 for 240 yards, 3 TDs, INT
Accurate throw proportion: 80.8%
Under strain: 1-of-3 for 17 yards, 2 sacks
Against the blitz: 4-of-7 for 73 yards
Behind the road: 5-of-5 for 49 yards
0-9 yards downfield: 10-of-15 for 105 yards, TD, INT
10-19 yards downfield: 2-of-2 for 25 yards, TD
20+ yards downfield: 2-of-4 for 61 yards, TD
Notes: Considering the stone-wall safety his offensive line supplied, Zappe ought to have at the least managed a median passing efficiency. And that he did.
But greater than his touchdowns to Hunter Henry and 37-yard completion to Smith-Schuster, pocket presence outlined his sport. Zappe maneuvered each sort of pocket effectively; stepping up when he wanted to step up, sliding when he needed to slide and taking off when scrambling supplied the most suitable choice. All of that dodging, ducking, dipping and diving allowed him to seek out protected platforms from which to throw or lengthen the play.
Quarterback play beneath strain isn’t typically constant week to week, however within the face of a closing cross rush, Zappe has saved the Patriots afloat sufficient after Jones too typically sank them in the identical state of affairs. Zappe additionally chucked two throwaways, a small quantity that matches Jones’ output from his final three begins mixed. For a defensive crew, the quarterback choosing a throwaway as an alternative of a sack or turnover can change a sport.
Now Zappe did throw a tip-drill interception and risked one other decide within the second half, after which offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien appeared to take the sport out of his palms with run-heavy play-calling. But general, Zappe managed effectively with out leaning closely on play-action or display screen ideas and posted the second-highest correct cross proportion of his profession. That’ll work.
Critical areas
- Turnovers: Patriots 1, Steelers 1
- Explosive play charge: Patriots 7.3%, Steelers 7.2%
- Success charge: Patriots 32%, Steelers 42%
- Red-zone effectivity: Patriots 2-2, Steelers 1-2
- Defensive strain charge: Patriots 26.8%, Steelers 16.7%
Offense
Game plan
- Personnel breakdown: 59% of snaps in 12 personnel, 34% snaps in 11 personnel, 5% snaps in 13 personnel, 2% in 21 personnel.***
- Personnel manufacturing: 4.7 yards/play in 12 personnel, 6.6 yards/play in 11 personnel, 4.7 yards/play in 13 personnel, 8.0 yards/play in 21 personnel.
- First-down down play-calls: 54% cross (9.1 yards per play), 46% run (2.5 yards per play)
- Play-action charge: 12.5%
Player stats
- Broken tackles: Ezekiel Elliott 6, Pharaoh Brown
- Pressure allowed: RG Sidy Sow (2 sacks, hurry)
- Run-stuffs allowed: Team 4, Sow
- Penalties: TE Hunter Henry (cross interference, false begin), LT Conor McDermott (holding)
- Drops: RB Ty Montgomery, Elliott
Notes
- For a second straight sport, the Patriots game-planned to play by their backfield. Ezekiel Elliott touched the ball on greater than half of their offensive snaps, although most of his yards proved to be empty energy.
- The Pats posted only a 16% success charge when speeding on first and second down, which set them again on a number of possessions, most in a scoreless second half.
- Bailey Zappe bailed them out on their opening landing drive with a third-down scramble, then Hunter Henry vaulted the Pats forward by scoring on a brief discipline and later an explosive cross play. The Pats had zero second-half drives with an explosive play.
- Henry caught his second landing on a faux display screen idea that despatched him up the left seam, whereas Zappe pump-faked to JuJu Smith-Schuster standing within the flat. That faux broke tendency for the screen-happy Pats and brought about the closest Steelers defensive again to fly at Smith-Schuster, leaving area for Henry to run into.
- That idea additionally mirrored one in all Mac Jones’ hardest interceptions this season: Jalen Ramsey’s close to pick-six at Miami. While the 2 play design’s weren’t equivalent, Zappe was a contact extra decisive and forceful on his throw; small variations that may make or break a deep passing sport.
- Elliott scored the sport’s first landing on one other staple red-zone idea: a two-man, pick-route mixture that had Henry screening Elliott’s defender on a “stop route” whereas Elliott bumped into the flat. The Patriots love throwing to their operating backs on that play in that space.
- Underrated play of the sport: Elliott tackling Pittsburgh linebacker Mykal Walker to stop a pick-six with much less a minute left within the third quarter.
- Had Walker reached the tip zone, the Steelers path by three to 5 getting into the fourth quarter, with loads of time left and Bill O’Brien attempting to empty that clock with conservative play-calling.
- Whether or not O’Brien’s confidence in Zappe waned round then, after his interception and close to decide, the employees clearly had no confidence in non-Elliott operating backs.
- Ty Montgomery performed 5 snaps, caught one cross, dropped one other and didn’t take a carry. He was waived Friday. None of the opposite operating backs performed, beside Elliott.
- After his contested catch, Smith-Schuster picked up 17 yards in opposition to tight protection on a deep crosser off play-action after which ripped by the Steelers’ secondary on a slant in opposition to zone protection for 28 yards.
- Zappe later returned to him to try to convert third-and-8 on a slant-flat route mixture the Patriots have utilized in earlier crucial conditions. Keep an eye fixed out for that the following time the offense wants to maneuver the chains late and/or in a decent sport.
- Opponents proceed to efficiently goal rookie proper guard Sidy Sow on inside stunts that drive him to cross off rushers and free defenders for sacks. He allowed each sacks in Pittsburgh, plus a run-stuff and a rush.
- Outstanding sport by proper sort out Mike Onwenu. He allowed a single strain to All-Pro exterior linebacker T.J. Watt, a serious bounce-back efficiency after getting beat repeatedly in opposition to the Chargers.
- The Patriots additionally tried to neutralize Watt by operating “counter” runs at him with a pulling sort out. Those yielded blended outcomes, although Watt completed with simply 5 tackles, together with one for loss.
- Conor McDermott began once more at left sort out, although Trent Brown performed nearly all of snaps at that spot. Brown may return to full-time duties subsequent week, well being pending.
- Center David Andrews is the one Patriot to play 100% of offensive snaps this season.
- No catches for tight finish Mike Gesicki and 0 snaps for quarterback/receiver Malik Cunningham for a second straight week.
Defense
Game plan
- Personnel breakdown: 42% three-corner nickel package deal, 23% three-safety nickel, 26% dime, 6% base, 3% greenback.****
Coverage snaps breakdown: 78% zone, 22% man - Blitz charge: 24%
- Blitz efficacy: 6.4 yards allowed per dropback, 40% success charge
Player stats
- Interceptions: S Jabrill Peppers
- Pass deflections: S Kyle Dugger, DB Myles Bryant, LB Mack Wilson
- Pressure: Dugger 4 (sack, QB hit, 2 hurries), Wilson (sack), LB Ja’Whaun Bentley (QB hit), DL Keion White (hurry), DL Davon Godchaux (hurry), DL Christian Barmore (hurry) Team 2 (2 hurries)
- Run stuffs: LB Anfernee Jennings 2, S Jalen Mills, Godchaux, Bryant
- Missed tackles: Jonathan Jones, Peppers, Dugger, Barmore, Bryant, Jennings
- Penalties: CB J.C. Jackson (cross interference x2), S Brenden Schooler (pointless roughness), Dugger (cross interference)
Notes
- Steelers quarterback Mitch Trubisky did the Patriots small favors all through the sport, prematurely bailing from pockets, going 3-of-12 on throws longer than 10 yards and flailing beneath strain.
- Between his inaccuracy and tendency to panic, and their short-circuited run sport, the Steelers managed only one drive longer than 32 yards, excluding their two-play, 45-yard nothing-burger within the ultimate seconds.
- Trubisky’s lengthy, fourth-down incompletion at 2:01 remaining was each mystifying within the second and a serious triumph for veteran nook Jonathan Jones, who had tight, disciplined protection on the play.
- The Patriots performed man-to-man protection sparingly, however held the Steelers to 2-of-6, plus a sack, one scramble and a defensive cross interference penalty on these snaps.
- It’s probably the Pats labored from a zone-heavy plan to maintain eyes on Trubisky, an keen and gifted scrambler who lined 15 yards on his first play and ran for 81 yards in his first assembly with Bill Belichick.
- The Patriots sacked Trubisky and secured their lone interception on the identical zone “creeper” design. Defensive backs Kyle Dugger and Myles Bryant blitzed off the left facet, whereas the proper exterior linebacker dropped off a three-man entrance to create confusion.
- The Pats ran this similar four-man “creeper” strain in Week 5 in opposition to the Saints, and it led to a protection sack for Bryant.
- Belichick revealed post-game the protection prioritized eliminating harmful second-year receiver George Pickens. Part of that technique included enjoying Cover 2 on early downs, although Pittsburgh did the Pats one other favor by having Pickens, a wildly gifted deep menace, run quick crossing routes nearly solely.
- Pickens’ 19-yard disappearing act rightfully gave the Patriots confidence of their different 1-on-1 protection matchups. The solely time they discovered bother was when Diontae Johnson beat J.C. Jackson for a 25-yard landing. Jackson additionally obtained flagged for 2 cross interference penalties.
- Jackson’s play continues to be unpredictable week-to-week, no matter scheme or opponent. It’s value questioning if rookie nook Alex Austin, who made his crew debut and had a cross breakup, could quickly enter the rotation for good.
- Meanwhile, the Patriots’ run protection dominated, unequivocally and unapologetically. Outside linebacker Anfernee Jennings and nostril sort out Davon Godchaux led the wire-to-wire effort with three mixed run-stuffs.
- Jennings could have performed the most effective sport of his NFL profession, notching three tackles for loss, the aforementioned run-stuffs and manhandling Steelers tight ends 1-on-1 on the sting.
- Once the Patriots seized a 21-3 lead, the Steelers confirmed some play-calling desperation calling a number of reverses. The Pats obtained beat for a dozen yards on the primary, however dropped the second for a lack of 7.
- Safety Kyle Dugger has performed higher general video games than Thursday’s, however none higher as a blitzer. His team-high 4 pressures got here out of nowhere, a credit score to his physicality and talent to elude blockers. Dugger additionally knocked one cross down.
- Backup linebacker Mack Wilson is all of a sudden essentially the most impactful down-to-down participant at his place. In his third straight sport with. a cross breakup, Wilson additionally tallied a sack.
- Jahlani Tavai had the quietest 14-tackle sport in current Patriots historical past.
Studs
WR JuJu Smith-Schuster
The ex-Steeler caught 4 passes for a season-high 90 yards, together with two explosive performs that powered the Patriots’ highest-scoring first half in nearly two years. His 90 yards have been additionally a private finest in nearly 14 months.
RB Ezekiel Elliott
A throwback, workhorse efficiency from Elliott, who performed 52 of 57 offensive snaps. His 140 whole yards not solely led all gamers Thursday, however marked a brand new season excessive.
S Kyle Dugger
Dugger made his imprint on the sport foremost as a blitzer (4 pressures), but additionally broke up a cross and discouraged Trubisky from making different throws beneath.
OLB Anfernee Jennings
Jennings led all Patriots with three tackles for loss, two run-stuffs and tossing Steelers tight ends round like a sport of catch. Great sport, maybe the most effective of his profession.
Duds
CB J.C. Jackson
Jackson allowed the Steelers’ first landing and obtained flagged twice for cross interference penalties. There is not any participant the Patriots experience a week-to-week curler coaster together with his efficiency fairly like Jackson, who hit one other extreme low Thursday.
RB/WR Ty Montgomery
Montgomery was changed on punt safety after the second-half punt block and dropped a cross on offense.
OL Sidy Sow
The rookie proper guard allowed a team-worst three pressures and was closest on each of Zappe’s sacks.
Statistics for passing depth, damaged tackles and missed tackles courtesy of Pro Football Focus.
*Explosive performs are outlined as runs of 12-plus yards and passes of 20-plus yards. Explosive play charge is likely one of the most strongly correlated metrics with wins and losses.
**Success charge is an effectivity metric measuring how typically an offense stays on schedule. A play is profitable when it good points at the least 40% of yards-to-go on first down, 60% of yards-to-go on second down and 100% of yards-to-go on third or fourth down.
***11 personnel = one operating again, one tight finish; 12 personnel = one operating again, two tight ends; 13 personnel = one operating again, three tight ends; 21 = two halfbacks, one tight finish.
****Base protection = 4 defensive backs; nickel protection = 5 defensive backs; dime protection = six defensive backs; greenback protection = seven defensive backs.
Source: www.bostonherald.com