Patriots Advised to Run Plays That Were Impossible With Tom Brady

Tom Brady is the greatest quarterback football fans have ever seen. However, many analysts argue that his mobility wasn’t his best side. Second-year quarterback Jarrett Stidham is probably the next in line to replace him. Stiddy can make great plays with his legs, and this comes really handy for the Patriots. Truth is, the Patriots may actually try different plays this time.

The Patriots have a skilled quarterback now, so they may try to do something different with him. Stidham can do some things that Brady couldn’t does this open new opportunity for the Patriots? Probably.

Stidham’s athleticism is definitely a virtue. Run-pass-option plays are probably a good option for the Patriots’ attack in the upcoming season. Evan Lazar from CLNS has a big advice in this aspect. It makes an excellent point for the Pats.

The Patriots may try different plays

In 2019, the Patriots had a strong defense and weak offense. Maybe Lazar is right about the RPOs.

“Unlike other NFL teams already on the trend, the Patriots only ran an RPO on 1.7 percent of their offensive plays last season, 29th in the NFL, and they weren’t particularly good at them either. New England averaged 4.2 yards per rush (tied for 27th) and a 75.0 passer rating (28th) on run-pass options in 2019, according to Pro Football Focus.”

The Patriots will also have to solve the problem with the receivers who tried really hard to create separation. There weren’t too many healthy tight ends. Brady was 42. This puts the RPOs on the list.

“For comparison, the Kansas City Chiefs ran RPOs a league-high 18.7 percent of the time. In 2019, quarterbacks averaged 7.98 yards per pass attempt off of RPOs and play-action compared to 6.25 on standard drop-back attempts, per Pro Football Reference.”

Stidham is not an experienced player. But he has great skills. He is speedy and moves well. He is definitely comfortable with running RPOs.

“Stidham’s Auburn offenses ran RPOs on 26.4 percent of his snaps in his two seasons as the starter, with the Pats QB averaging 7.0 yards per attempt, tied for 16th among 33 qualified quarterbacks.”