Off-Season New England Patriots Questions: Tight End

by Richard Hill on May 19, 2010 1:01 PM EDT in Opinion/Analysis

The New England Patriots entered this off-season with gigantic question marks hovering over the tight end position. At the end of the season, the Patriots let one year veteran Chris Baker and long time draftee Ben Watson walk away from the team, leaving the roster with zero tight ends with NFL playing experience.

The past decade has seen the Patriots' usage of tight ends in the receiving game rise and diminish. The first Super Bowl year, 2001, yielded the lowest percentage of passing yards to tight ends. The 2006 season had the greatest percentage.

2001 - 5.1% of yards went to the TEs. (Jermaine Wiggins, Rod Rutledge)

2002 - 13.7% of yards went to the TEs. (Christian Fauria, Cam Cleeland, Daniel Graham)

2003 - 19.2% of yards went to the TEs. (Daniel Graham, Christian Fauria)

2004 - 15.6% of yards went to the TEs. (Daniel Graham, Christian Fauria, Ben Watson)

2005 - 17.8% of yards went to the TEs. (Ben Watson, Daniel Graham, Christian Fauria)

2006 - 29.4% of yards went to the TEs. (Ben Watson, Daniel Graham)

2007 - 9.7% of yards went to the TEs. (Ben Watson, Kyle Brady)

2008 - 8.2% of yards went to the TEs. (Ben Watson, David Thomas)

2009 - 12.4% of yards went to the TEs. (Ben Watson, Chris Baker)

Clearly the percentage of passes to tight ends correlates to the quality of wide receivers on the team. In 2006, the Patriots had Reche Caldwell and threw the greatest percentage to tight ends. In 2007, with Randy Moss and Wes Welker, the Patriots began to drift away from the tight ends. With Matt Cassel at the helm in 2008, the Patriots saw even fewer contributions by the tight ends in the receiving game since the Patriots designed plays for Cassel to throw the ball to Welker.

Review of last season and this off-season after the jump!

This past season saw another increase in passes to our tight ends- which is a good sign. Ben Watson was a force on the offensive side of the ball against Buffalo in week 1, but was clearly phased out of the offense as the year progressed. Chris Baker, on the other hand, never appeared. I think the Patriots wanted to get their tight ends more involved, but the tight ends never stepped up to the plate and showed that they deserved to be big players on the offense.

According to ProFootballFocus' numbers, both tight ends were single trick ponies- Baker would block and Watson would catch. There was no versatility amongst the tight ends, which meant that there was no camouflaging the tight end's role on the field. Baker on the field? Don't worry, he's just blocking. Watson? He'll be receiving (or if he tries to block, he'll be a liability).

The Patriots ended the season knowing they needed to upgrade the tight end position. They needed versatile players who demanded looks on offense. They let their current tight ends walk in order to start from scratch.

Move 1) The front office made a move to sign veteran and leader Alge Crumpler during the free agency period. Crumpler is a 4x Pro Bowler and 2x All Pro who does a fantastic job of setting up the run and teaching young players. He spent last season in Tennessee blocking for a running back named Chris Johnson who, from what I've heard, did pretty well. As in, led the league in running and set an NFL record for total yards from scrimmage. That's pretty good. He has been noted as a great locker room guy by former coaches, and should be a wealth of knowledge for our young players. Hopefully he has the competitive spark that our recent free agent acquisitions have been missing.

Move 2) Draft Rob Gronkowski. Gronkowski was graded as the best overall tight end in the draft. He has the blocking capabilities where fellow draftee Jermaine Gresham is raw. He's able to catch with the best of them. He's the most versatile tight end we could have grabbed in the draft- and we moved up to take him. There are questions about his back, but if he's able to play well, then he should be able to have a large impact on all facets of our offense. Look for a 400 yard receiving season from the Gronk as he becomes a red zone threat and grabs some touchdowns.

Move 3) Draft Aaron Hernandez. Hernandez was regarded as one of the best receiving tight ends in the draft- and with his size (6'2, 250 lbs) and speed (4.64 40, 6.83 cone), Hernandez could become an extremely large, fast and strong receiver on our offense. He's a weaker in-line blocker than Gronkowski, but he's a fierce down field blocker; he should get down field enough times to help our receivers get extra yards. I don't think he'll see as many snaps as Gronkowski, but I expect Hernandez to have plays scripted specifically for his skill set. He definitely creates mismatches across the middle and down the field.

Questions:

1) Will the Patriots try and involve their tight ends more into the receiving game?

2) How will the rookies adjust to the NFL and what will their contributions be?

3) Where will Alge Crumpler fit into our offense?

The Patriots seemed to address their tight end position for years to come, but there still remains questions as to how soon the young players will be able to contribute on offense.

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Comments

I'd like to see tight ends getting...

…around 15% of the offensive yards. That means that we’re spreading the ball around, equally, amongst our offensive weapons. I’d like to see a breakdown like:

Moss: 25% yards
Edelman/Welker: 25% yards
Price/Tate/Holt: 20% yards
Gronk/Crump/Hernandez: 15% yards
Faulk/Maroney/Morris: 15% yards

I think that would best utilize our offensive weapons and create enough diversity to keep defenses guessing.

by Richard Hill on May 19, 2010 1:19 PM EDT reply actions

Especially when good use of the TEs will help another 40% of the offence...

Specifically, 25% of the snaps that go to Welker/Edelman snaps and the 15% that go to the RBs will give Gronk, Hernandez and/or Crumpler an opportunity to get downfield and light up a LB or S or two. In 2009 Baker and Watson were so often stuck on the line shoring up the hurt O-line that they couldn’t get downfield and make blocks on the secondary to free up Faulk/Welker/Edelman; it also didn’t help that there were only two TEs doing all the hard work. Hernandez in the slot or H-back automatically means there’s an added bit of flexibility to get a blocker in front of Welker or the RBs, whereas in 2009 those TEs were stuck on the line doing T work.

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.

by Comedic.Sans on May 19, 2010 8:17 PM EDT up reply actions

In terms of contributions...

…I can definitely see Hernandez getting more looks than Gronkowski earlier in the season. I see Gronkowski making sure his back is 110% and I can see him sitting behind Crumpler for at least the first couple weeks as he learns how to be a better blocker. Hernandez, on the other hand, won’t really have to learn how to block and should an active member of the passing game from the get-go. By week 4, though, I expect Gronk to have caught up with Hernandez in terms of offensive activity.

by Richard Hill on May 19, 2010 1:21 PM EDT reply actions

Agreed

I could see Hernandez as being the guy who fills in the gap in production between Edelman and Welker while Welker’s most likely on the PUP list. So while Welker’s off the field, Hernandez is the stop-gap fix, and when Welker gets reintegrated into the offence, Gronkowski comes in later for a more traditional 2 TE set (which also uncoincidentally coincides with the coming of the awful weather).

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.

by Comedic.Sans on May 19, 2010 8:20 PM EDT up reply actions

Crumpler...

…will be a great team player, in my opinion. He’ll step up early in the season while the rookies adjust. I’m not expecting a Pro Bowl season from him- but an elite blocking season to go alongside 200-300 receiving yards is not out of the question. I can see him pairing up with Gronkowski for some brutal 2-TE sets that will give defenses fits. I think he’ll be phased out of the offense as the season winds down, but I think that his contributions will be well worth his contract.

by Richard Hill on May 19, 2010 1:23 PM EDT reply actions

Tedy Bruschi was surprisingly blunt about how much help Kyle Brady was during the 2007 season

I could well see Crumpler putting out Kyle Brady-like production a few catches, a few yards, a couple of TDs), but contributing waaaaaay more than that in the run-game, pass-protection, and general on- and off-the-field coaching and mentoring of the young guys.

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.

by Comedic.Sans on May 19, 2010 8:23 PM EDT up reply actions

i like our weapons

our tight ends have some serious depth we have blockers in crumpler and gronk. and hernandez really is more of a dallas clark/chris cooley type oversized wr.
i think our tight ends in the red zone might be a lethal combo. plus i wouldnt sleep on crumpler in tenn it was scaife they used as a rec and crumpler as a blocker , crumpler who got in great shape has recieving skills. and our wr corps is on the up and up edelman tate and price are young and have a boatload of potential.

by Marc Curto on May 19, 2010 1:26 PM EDT reply actions

I just think........

We should throw to Vollmer at least once this season….

by FlyNavy on May 19, 2010 1:38 PM EDT reply actions

Or Thomas Welch...

…who was a tight end as a freshman in college and is now an offensive tackle.

I can see that happening. 6 O-Lineman set on the goal line, have Welch block and then break out and catch?

by Richard Hill on May 19, 2010 1:44 PM EDT up reply actions

Mark LeVoir was a high school TE, too, and was first-team All American as one...

and has taken snaps as a blocking TE for the Pats, although he hasn’t had a reception yet.

Seven O-linemen on the line, and both Welch and LeVoir can catch?

Token southern hemisphere guy - 14,688km from Foxboro. That's 9128 miles, for you heathens.

by Comedic.Sans on May 19, 2010 8:29 PM EDT up reply actions

I am a newbie to this site

I just came across it about a month ago and i really really enjoy all the topics,articles and so on, but man it is getting me pumped up for football i can not wait for football season to start.

by Marc Curto on May 19, 2010 2:09 PM EDT reply actions

Welcome aboard.

Not just fans, but football lovers welcome.

Trolls get shown the door.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 3:05 PM EDT up reply actions

thanks

I used to have a place where i talked football but it got troll infested and you couldnt talk football in it anymore..

by Marc Curto on May 19, 2010 3:15 PM EDT up reply actions

Here we have many moderators with eye on the ground.

I’ve got no issue with someone popping in (fan or foe) and discussing whether the Pats can survive the loss of Welker, say.

Intelligent discourse is good.

When it comes too, “Cheatriots sux and you’re going down without Welker who will never be the same!!!!!!!”
That’s not discussion, it’s trolling. Three clicks and I never have to look at you again.

If you see trolls on the site, please flag them. Don’t swear at them or call them names. They’ll be gone in three shakes, but so will you if you stoop to their methods.

Have fun and enjoy the clean air.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 3:22 PM EDT up reply actions

yeah i agree

sometimes i need a different view on things and fans of other teams can help with that. as long as they act like adults i have no problem talking football with a fan of any team. and i have no problem with them showing passion for the team they support as long as they respect the team i support.

by Marc Curto on May 19, 2010 3:26 PM EDT up reply actions

That's the spirit.

Underneath the laundry, we’re all fans.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 3:30 PM EDT up reply actions

Blocking AND receiving

All of the Pats’ TEs are an unknown quantity right now, which will work to the team’s advantage at least for the first half of the season. Unpredictability is key and I’m hoping they will all interchange receiving and blocking duties to keep defenses a little unsure. You’re right in that there wasn’t much left to the imagination with Watson and Baker last year.

Keep the faith!

by Marima on May 19, 2010 2:33 PM EDT reply actions

My Answers:

(Read guesses)
1) Will the Patriots try and involve their tight ends more into the receiving game?
Yes. In fact Crumpler dropped some weight and hinted at his new role that he had discussed with Belichick. Since he was a blocker (and a darned good one) last year, that wouldn’t be his “new role”. I see all those guys getting touches: screens, across the middle, and for Hernandez, some deeper routes.

2) How will the rookies adjust to the NFL and what will their contributions be?
I think Alge will help them quite a bit (see below). Since we don’t NEED the TEs to be receiving threats right away, there’s no reason to hurry them along. Hernandez will be on most special teams and Gronk will too in some formations. Past that, they’ll get reps and some touch attempts. Where we go from there depends on them.

3) Where will Alge Crumpler fit into our offense?
Crumpler will be a good mentor. He’s been a catching machine, an outstanding blocker, and I believe he’ll do all that from day one here. What he wants is a ring, and his chances are better if all the Tight-Ends are legitimate threats. Two or three TE sets? Some poor defensive slob is going to have his hands full. It going to be about mismatches, and our TEs can create those.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 3:16 PM EDT reply actions

Three tight end set?

What?! That would be crazy. An offense with Moss, Edelman, Crumpler, Hernandez and Gronkowski? Mismatches EVERYWHERE.

by Richard Hill on May 19, 2010 3:50 PM EDT up reply actions

2007 playoffs against the Chargers

They played out of several 3 TE sets…and smoked them.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 4:07 PM EDT up reply actions

BTW we had Thomas in 2007 as well.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 4:07 PM EDT up reply actions

Sorry, I was wrong, they used Brady, Watson and Spach....

The Pats’ tight end trio of Kyle Brady, Benjamin Watson and little-used Stephen Spach totaled one reception for eight yards on Sunday, but the group’s importance went way beyond numbers. With the Pats aligned in a compressed formation, usually with only one wide receiver on the field, all three tight ends had key blocks. And in the second half, versatile running back Heath Evans, often lined up at fullback in an I formation, also made big contributions.

With all those guys blocking, Maroney got 122 yards.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 4:26 PM EDT up reply actions

Not much catching there, but they were sure clearing lanes for running backs and receivers.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 4:30 PM EDT up reply actions

It also makes me miss Heath Evans.

FB or fourth Tight-End.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 4:43 PM EDT up reply actions

The Chargers (and that danged Merriman) started getting good pressure on Brady

So they switched to some heavy sets with guys blocking where the pressure was, or running routes if they were clear and they were just lighting things up.

I seriously thought they would switch back to that on Black Sunday as Brady pulled himself from the dirt for the umpteenth time.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 4:11 PM EDT up reply actions

Here it is:

Some analysis:

“We wanted to make them defend a lot of different things,” Belichick said. “Whether it was spreading the field or going with more tight ends, we were going to run it out there and see how they reacted.”

How the Chargers reacted was almost second in importance to the manner in which the Patriots, whose longest pass play of the afternoon was Moss’ lone catch for 14 yards, responded to the challenge. For much of the season, New England didn’t even have three healthy tight ends on the roster, let alone rely on a formation based on having three on the field at the same time.

My life has been a trivial pursuit. Trivia: where three roads meet.
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.

by SlotMachinePlayer on May 19, 2010 4:24 PM EDT up reply actions