Step on the gas, Brady
Offense must put pedal to metal
On the surface, the AFC Championship Game between the Patriots and Jaguars might not seem like much of a matchup.
But Jacksonville’s potent pass rush might have something to say about that.
If you have a prayer of beating the Patriots, you need to get to Tom Brady. If the Jaguars are able to get in his face and disrupt his rhythm, they’ll have a decent chance Sunday.
No doubt Jaguars executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin, who has won two Super Bowls against the Patriots, already has relayed plenty of stories about how miserable the Giants pass rush made Brady during those games.
In a nutshell, that’s the ballgame right there.
So how will the Pats counter the Jags’ awesome pass-rushing front? Because Yannick Ngakoue, Calais Campbell, Malik Jackson and Dante Fowler Jr. — along with Marcell Dareus and Dawuane Smoot mixed in — are going to be a handful.
Beyond simply holding the fort and winning the individual battles, there are other ways the Patriots can diffuse the pass rush.
The first? Control the tempo — or in Brady’s words, keep “the defense defensive.”
During Saturday’s 35-14 divisional round win, the Patriots had Dick Lebeau’s fifthranked pass rush out of sorts and gasping for air by halftime. They did so by switching to an up-tempo attack in the second quarter. Basically, they grounded all of their deep and intermediate throws, instead going with their quick-strike offense, with Brady masterfully operating the short passing game.
Brady, weaving in and out of the hurry-up, was able to hit running backs Dion Lewis and James White with quick hitters coming out of the backfield but also relied heavily on wide receiver Danny Amendola.
Against Jacksonville, that attack will be augmented by the return of running back Rex Burkhead.
Then, there’s Rob Gronkowski. He’s a factor in every game because he can’t be covered. The tight end had six catches for 81 yards and a touchdown against the Titans. With the Jaguars ranked 20th in the league by Football Outsiders for covering tight ends, he will be another significant factor for Brady when he’s dishing out those quick hitters. Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger went to tight end Vance McDonald 10 times in the divisional round game against the Jags. He also hit running back Le’Veon Bell nine times for 88 yards.
As Brady was carving up Tennessee’s secondary, he stepped on the gas as he saw fit. That’s a great way to slow down a pass rush.
“We had them misaligned a few times,” Brady said. “We had some easy throws with some guys uncovered. But that’s a good way to keep the pressure on the defense.”
And, a good way to keep the pressure off the quarterback. Tennessee had no sacks, and barely touched Brady. The defensive line was gassed by intermission.
A similar plan could have success against the Jags, who don’t substitute much. Keep the tempo up, gas those pass rushers, go to the short-passing attack, offer a steady diet of Lewis, Amendola and Gronkowski.
The Jags have great cover corners on the outside in A.J. Bouye and Jalen Ramsey. There’s no need to test them and jeopardize Brady. The Steelers went long on occasion, but the Pats don’t have Antonio Brown on their roster.
“They’ve had the best defense, and that’s always a challenge when you go up against those guys, and when you watch them play over the course of a whole season, you can see why,” Brady said on WEEI. “There’s not a lot of time for the quarterback to throw, and I think the whole secondary knows it, linebackers know it, and they’re aggressive. They take chances, they get a lot of turnovers, they have a really good scheme.
“The quarterback’s just under pressure all day. Unless you can get open quickly, it’s been a lot of sacks, and the sacks turn into long yardage and long yardage turns into punts.”
The Pats must stay horizontal and get open quickly. That’s what they do best. Old friend Jimmy Garoppolo had success with the same kind of attack when the 49ers played the Jags. He got rid of the ball in a hurry, throwing quick slants to his receivers. He also went nohuddle on occasion.
Coughlin’s Jags know how to beat Brady and have the talent to get it done. Getting to him, however, is another issue altogether.