New England Patriots: 5 observations from Week 6 win over Jets

The effects of Brady’s poor passes

I almost had a heart attack when Chris Hogan got lit up over the middle and didn’t get up immediately. Hogan is a tough, gritty player who isn’t afraid of contact. Did you know he played lacrosse in college?

What led to Hogan getting leveled was a poor pass from Tom Brady, which was placed behind him while he was coming across the middle. Hogan reached back to grab the pass and left his front and side vulnerable. This resulted in Hogan on his butt and me fearing a crack in his ribs.

This wasn’t the only time that this happened. Brady threw a rainbow pass to James White on a wheel route later in the game. While it was a beautiful pass that resulted in a solid gain, it left White to get crushed. James White was running with his head up watching the ball, while the safety was charging at him. It’s a miracle he didn’t get end up with a concussion.

Now, I would never question the doings of Tom Brady. He’s more accurate with his golden arm than I will ever be with anything. Him doing what he does is the reason for roughly 20% of my life’s joy, so I’m not giving him advice. Just observing.

From my perspective, it looks as if these kinds of passes can lead our receivers down a dark path (i.e. the tunnel to the locker room). Our receivers haven’t been very healthy recently and I’m starting to think Brady’s precision in keeping the ball away from defenders leads them towards more contact. Just a hunch.