The primary focus of most fans this off season is on Darrelle Revis, and understandably so. It's hard to argue that the return of any player who is unsigned or has a contract that is not viable without adjustment is any more important than Revis. It's not even close.
I think Devin McCourty is the next biggest concern for most Pats fans and again, I think that's pretty understandable given McCourty's skill set and the emergence of the Pats' secondary.
Shane Vereen is probably next on the list for many (though some would argue for Ghost or Connolly) but, at the same time, it seems like the prevailing view is that (a) BB doesn't spend a lot on RBs so there's a real risk that Shane will move on and (b) if Shane does move on, it's no big deal in that his skill set can likely be replaced fairly easily.
The first assumption is what it is and seems accurate. I want to challenge the second assumption or at least make some of the arguments related to it and see what others think.
First, let's look at the current roster and who would step into the third down/pass catching role (recognizing that Vereen saw plenty of first downs and carried the ball more times than any other Patriots RB this season (96 times)). In any event, the only current Pat who seems like a candidate is James White. White, as we know, only dressed a few times this year and didn't do much in limited carries during the regular season, much less the pre-season. More than one non-hysterical commentator wondered whether he has the speed or size to succeed in the NFL. He is, at best, a large question mark. There might RBs who look like Vereen in college who the Pats might draft or who are available on the free agent market. Danny Woodhead was rather effective and the Pats picked him up from seemingly out of nowhere (though deliciously, from the Jets). Maybe they can just do that again.
Second, let's look at Vereen's regular season numbers. His primary role was as a receiver and he caught 52 balls and had an 8.6 yards per catch average, with three TDs. He was 4th on the team in receptions behind only Edelman, Gronk and LaFell. The next two were Amendola and Wright, who had 27 an 26 catches, respectively. As a receiver, Vereen was clearly part of Brady's core, and unlike Amendola and Wright, his production was relatively constant throughout the season. As a runner, given the Ridley injury and the late emergence of Blount, Vereen actually lead the team in carries and averaged 4.1 yards per attempt, nothing to sneeze at. Now many of those runs were change of pace and out of what appeared to be passing sets, but you are what the numbers say you are, for the most part. But I think it's instructive on some level that Vereen and Ridley had virtually the same amount of carries (Ridley had 94) and Vereen averaged half a yard more per attempt than Ridley. Vereen benefitted from improved play as the season wore on from the offensive line, to be sure.
Third, let's look at Vereen's Super Bowl numbers and performance. As most here know, Vereen lead the Pats with 11 catches and had several key first downs. He also caught one pass one handed that was thrown high on the Pats second to last TD drive. It's a happy footnote now but that ball could have easily been tipped up in the air and intercepted. Kudos to Vereen for coming down with it. He also came up with one pass earlier in the game that was fairly low.
But, to me, the numbers and those two more difficult catches don't tell the whole story. My view is that it says a lot about Vereen, Brady's trust in him and his value to the team that in the last game of the season, against a very good and aggressive defense, Vereen became a centerpiece of the short passing offense and was able to execute it flawlessly. I don't believe he had any drops. When it counted the most, Vereen was one of the core of four offensive skill players that the Pats featured.
Last, an overlooked and arguably difficult to quantify aspect of Vereen's game is as a blocker. I'm sure he got beat at times but I don't remember all that many plays when Brady got blown up and it appeared to be at the expense of Shane Vereen. It almost certainly happened over the course of a 19 game season (it's nice to be able to drop that reference), but it wasn't a frequent occurrence. Brady, BB, Josh and Fears clearly don't view him as a liability in that category.
Presumably, someone else could step into Vereen's role and I may be suffering from some recency bias when I focus on the Super Bowl and Vereen's role in the glorious outcome of that game. On the other hand, I think replacing him might well prove harder than some seem to be assuming.
But fire away, I'd love to read others' views on this.
(And mods, if this should be its own thread -- I debated and decided that it fit well in this thread -- please make it so.)
I think Devin McCourty is the next biggest concern for most Pats fans and again, I think that's pretty understandable given McCourty's skill set and the emergence of the Pats' secondary.
Shane Vereen is probably next on the list for many (though some would argue for Ghost or Connolly) but, at the same time, it seems like the prevailing view is that (a) BB doesn't spend a lot on RBs so there's a real risk that Shane will move on and (b) if Shane does move on, it's no big deal in that his skill set can likely be replaced fairly easily.
The first assumption is what it is and seems accurate. I want to challenge the second assumption or at least make some of the arguments related to it and see what others think.
First, let's look at the current roster and who would step into the third down/pass catching role (recognizing that Vereen saw plenty of first downs and carried the ball more times than any other Patriots RB this season (96 times)). In any event, the only current Pat who seems like a candidate is James White. White, as we know, only dressed a few times this year and didn't do much in limited carries during the regular season, much less the pre-season. More than one non-hysterical commentator wondered whether he has the speed or size to succeed in the NFL. He is, at best, a large question mark. There might RBs who look like Vereen in college who the Pats might draft or who are available on the free agent market. Danny Woodhead was rather effective and the Pats picked him up from seemingly out of nowhere (though deliciously, from the Jets). Maybe they can just do that again.
Second, let's look at Vereen's regular season numbers. His primary role was as a receiver and he caught 52 balls and had an 8.6 yards per catch average, with three TDs. He was 4th on the team in receptions behind only Edelman, Gronk and LaFell. The next two were Amendola and Wright, who had 27 an 26 catches, respectively. As a receiver, Vereen was clearly part of Brady's core, and unlike Amendola and Wright, his production was relatively constant throughout the season. As a runner, given the Ridley injury and the late emergence of Blount, Vereen actually lead the team in carries and averaged 4.1 yards per attempt, nothing to sneeze at. Now many of those runs were change of pace and out of what appeared to be passing sets, but you are what the numbers say you are, for the most part. But I think it's instructive on some level that Vereen and Ridley had virtually the same amount of carries (Ridley had 94) and Vereen averaged half a yard more per attempt than Ridley. Vereen benefitted from improved play as the season wore on from the offensive line, to be sure.
Third, let's look at Vereen's Super Bowl numbers and performance. As most here know, Vereen lead the Pats with 11 catches and had several key first downs. He also caught one pass one handed that was thrown high on the Pats second to last TD drive. It's a happy footnote now but that ball could have easily been tipped up in the air and intercepted. Kudos to Vereen for coming down with it. He also came up with one pass earlier in the game that was fairly low.
But, to me, the numbers and those two more difficult catches don't tell the whole story. My view is that it says a lot about Vereen, Brady's trust in him and his value to the team that in the last game of the season, against a very good and aggressive defense, Vereen became a centerpiece of the short passing offense and was able to execute it flawlessly. I don't believe he had any drops. When it counted the most, Vereen was one of the core of four offensive skill players that the Pats featured.
Last, an overlooked and arguably difficult to quantify aspect of Vereen's game is as a blocker. I'm sure he got beat at times but I don't remember all that many plays when Brady got blown up and it appeared to be at the expense of Shane Vereen. It almost certainly happened over the course of a 19 game season (it's nice to be able to drop that reference), but it wasn't a frequent occurrence. Brady, BB, Josh and Fears clearly don't view him as a liability in that category.
Presumably, someone else could step into Vereen's role and I may be suffering from some recency bias when I focus on the Super Bowl and Vereen's role in the glorious outcome of that game. On the other hand, I think replacing him might well prove harder than some seem to be assuming.
But fire away, I'd love to read others' views on this.
(And mods, if this should be its own thread -- I debated and decided that it fit well in this thread -- please make it so.)
