The 2017 New England Patriots Pass Game Manual is Now Available! CLICK HERE to order your copy today!
The New England Patriots boasted the most consistent offensive success over the past decade. Marked with exceptional decision making from their future hall of fame quarterback Tom Brady and brilliant play caller Josh McDaniels. By allowing their receivers to have large amounts of "controlled freedom", the Patriots are able to handle more coverages and blitzes with their drop back pass game than most any other team in the NFL.
When we think of the Patriots offense, we think of the famous "Hoss Juke" concept. There's a reason this concept was chosen for the cover image. The Patriots run it often and it is efficient for them. The specific details of the Juke route are explained in great detail. All of the "what if's" from the defense are addressed, showing how this route can win virtually any 1 on 1 matchup and even some 2 on 1 matchups.
While Hoss Juke gets all the attention, the Patriots are just as efficient using the Juke route on the weak side of the formation. The image below shows one of their favorite ways to run it in empty.
This concept, like many within New England's system, is an all-purpose play that can beat most any blitz or coverage.
Not only did I look at 2017 film for this book, I also researched 2012 and 2018 as well. In week 5 of 2012, Wes Welker abused the Broncos defense with the weak side juke route. The cutup below shows some of the better clips from this game.
One of my favorite unique concepts in New England's system is their Dagger-Middle Read-Option concept. The image below shows the base 2-back, most commonly used variation.
The option route on the side of the middle read and dagger route stresses a defense in all directions. This Book goes into extreme detail breaking down how the concept works against all coverages. This section alone has 13 diagrams walking the reader through the progression for the quarterback and how it isolates and attacks different defenders' leverage.
The next video shows a nice 3rd down conversion with this concept against Tennessee in the Divisional round of the playoffs. The Titans bring a "Truck" pressure and play Man-Free behind it. The free release of the running back is critical on this play, as the rest of the receivers are pressed at the line of scrimmage. James White runs a terrific option route and Brady gets to him in his progression right before the well-designed pressure hits home.
The Patriots liked to call this concept on third downs, as you can see in the clip. The average distance to go on 3rd downs for this concept is around 11 yards. The Patriots converted 53% of these third downs with this concept, a staggering number given the usage in long yardage situations.
The Patriots are very unique in how they run their weak side option route. They run it differently than any other team I have studied. How they pair it, read it, and game plan it is worth the study alone. The diagram below shows one variation (of which the book diagrams 16) where it is paired with a Spot-Juke concept. The read for the quarterback when pairing these two concepts is explained in This Book as well:
The video below shows the concept in action vs Brady's new team, Tampa Bay. This Book discusses what Amendola is taught with regard to his technique on this play. On their weak side option route, the Patriots do not allow their receivers to break in (running backs are given different rules out of the backfield). Against man coverage, a stacked receiver will sell the shallow cross before breaking out. In this clip, Amendola's task is made more difficult with the "across" motion rather than "short" motion. He does a great job stemming back inside to win back the outside leverage. Text book teaching tape.
Creating easy completions are important at all levels of the game. The Patriots have a variation on the RB slow screen where the RB will fake a "Nudge" block and pop outside. This play hits faster and will typically generate a higher completion percentage than the traditional slow screen.
The "Nudge" action keeps the play side defensive end from disrupting the throw, like he often does on slow screens. This is a major benefit and a nice tool for the toolbox.
I wanted this book to focus on the "why" behind the design of the concepts more than anything, with the unique nature of the Patriots system. Their offense has something for every coach and fan to take and learn from. Every concept is given its own section, with each variation drawn up, complete down/distance analysis , coaching points, quarterback reads, and what made it effective.
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