How will Cam change offense?
Expect Pats to play more out of shotgun
Welcome to 10 Patriots training camp questions!
Each day leading up to the start of camp, the Herald will explore one of the biggest questions facing the Pats this summer. Several pertain to the offense, which held the team back in 2019 and will feature a new quarterback this season. Others cover the defense and special teams, units whose success should hinge on the play of a few players and/or positions.
Once the Patriots hit the field, here’s what they must learn before the 2020 season kicks off.
How will the Patriots change with Cam Newton?
Superman has arrived. So how can his new offense soar, up, up and away?
On the surface, it’s safe to assume Newton and the Pats will step back into the shotgun more often than recent years. Per Sharp Football Stats, the Patriots played exactly half their snaps in the gun in 2019, one of the lower percentages in the league. Over Newton’s last full season in Carolina, the Panthers ranked among the league leaders in shotgun use. Why?
To optimally position their run game.
From the formation, Newton can execute any number of read runs the Pats are now likely to incorporate into their offense. These concepts won’t require his teammates to relearn much. The coaches can simply tweak their base runs to fit Newton’s talents, put those changes on his plate and the installation is complete.
These revamped runs could include inside and outside zone, plus power and counter variations. From the shotgun, the running backs will still follow the same paths, and the offensive linemen will block the same defenders they have for years now — except one; a designated player Newton will freeze by reading as he executes a delayed hand-off.
In the passing game, the Patriots are bound to extend plays more often and more capably than they did with Tom Brady. Newton is not a scrambler by nature, but his rare mobility and strength at 6-5, 245 pounds, will undoubtedly be welcome assets to a receiving corps that lacks elite separators. Against man coverage, the more time receivers have, the better.
And the Pats saw more man coverage than almost any other team last season.
Back in a shotgun, don’t be surprised if the Patriots take their offense to a greater spread extreme by allowing Newton to frequently operate from an empty backfield. Splitting all five skill-position players out wide can clarify his pre-snap reads and unmask most blitzes. Unlike Brady, Newton has struggled against the blitz in recent years, despite his ability to evade pressure and threaten defenses as a runner.
In 2018, his last full season, Newton’s Pro Football Focus player grade, completion percentage and yards per attempt average all fell significantly when he was faced with five-plus rushers. While empty looks may invite more pressure designs, the Pats should feel confident calling five-man protections with one of the NFL’s best pass-blocking offensive lines. Plus, Newton can always take off.
Otherwise, most of the Patriots’ passing game should remain intact. It’s a well-oiled, middle-of-the-fielddicing machine. The staff may introduce a small RPO package because Newton has historically thrived in these designs. Again, it won’t require much teaching; only pairing their base run concepts with a few of their favorite route combinations.
All told, the Pats offense won’t fundamentally change, though a few Newton-specific alterations could give it an entirely new look. This is one of the great tricks of offensive football: dressing up the same play designs with new formations, motions or twists to make the defense think twice. Because hesitation is death for defenders in the NFL, and a split second lost to Newton is like giving Superman a flying head start.