Behind the Numbers 10.26.07: The New England Offense

Posted by Chris Widner on 10.26.2007

Brady and Moss are on pace to break some incredible records and even the NFL thinks that Comcast sucks....

It may have been against the Dolphins, but I still can't get over Randy Moss' two touchdowns last week. As if we weren't impressed with the first score, a 35 yard toss where Moss jumped over two backs for the catch, he decided to follow it up on the very next drive with another touchdown grab. It was a 50 yard bomb from Brady and not only was Moss in double coverage, he caught it one armed. That just goes to show you the incredible talent that Moss has. You could debate that Marvin Harrison, Terrell Owens, Steve Smith, Chad Johnson, or even Plaxico Burress are at the top of the NFL, but Moss is having such an incredible year that it's sick. Seven games into the season and he already has 44 catches for 732 yards and 10 touchdowns, putting him on pace for 101 receptions, 1673 yards, and a ridiculous 23 touchdowns. In case you were wondering, the record is 22 touchdowns by Jerry Rice in 1987, so needless to say this would be one of the greatest seasons ever. Unless, of course, you are Chris Liwienski and the rest of the Dolphins. "'Everyone was disappointed with the lack of respect. It's a kick in the teeth and lacked some class. Enough is enough.'' is what Liwienski had to say about the Patriots passing with a big lead. So it looks like the Dolphins are so pathetic at 0-7 that they want teams to go easy on them. For the record, the Patriots only had one drive in the 3rd quarter and only 2 of their 7 plays were rushes. In the 4th quarter they had three drives and the first one ended when Jason Taylor intercepted Matt Cassell for a touchdown, cutting the lead to just three touchdowns at 42-21. The Patriots scored through the air on their next drive, but out of 5 plays, 2 were rushes. With less than 4 minutes on the clock, the Patriots rushed on 5 of 6 plays. Regardless of how you feel about the Patriots' actions, do you really expect a team to go easy on another team? It's going to be a very long year in Miami. They've lost their starting quarterback and running back, and traded away their "#1 receiver." I put that in quotes because Chris Chambers is a #2 receiver. Sounds like they're extremely frustrated and taking shots at the Patriots seems to be the thing to do this year. Depending on who you listen to, they're cheaters, dirty players, and now bullies. Or, if you're the type to be realistic, you realize they could go down as the greatest team ever. Yes, it's week 8 and I'm calling them the greatest ever. I understand that, like any team, they are a few injuries away from an early January exit, but I'll stand by that comment. And for the record, I'm a Cowboys fan, so let's not talk about that game.

Of course the other side to Randy Moss' success is "Mr. GQ" Tom Brady. As much as I don't like the quarterback rating system, I must note that Brady had a perfect 158.3 rating against the Dolphins. He was 21 of 25 for 354 yards and 6 touchdowns, which is about as perfect as it gets. For the past few seasons the debate has been Brady vs Manning and, now that Manning finally won the big one, he was considered the better of the two. Many people forget that the Patriots were one drive away from going to the Super Bowl instead last year. So Scott Pioli and Bill Belichick went out and got him three new presents in Moss, Stallworth, and Welker. Brady is on pace to destroy Manning's 2004 numbers. Manning went for 4,557 yards on 67.6% accuracy for 49 touchdowns and only 10 interceptions. Brady is on pace for 4,857 yards, on 73.8% accuracy for 62 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. Keep in mind, however, that Manning's numbers are from 15 games essentially. But Brady is on pace for 58 touchdowns in 15 games, so he's still blowing that record away. Moss, Stallworth, and Welker could all end up with 1,000+ yards this year, another mark that Manning has. It will be fun to watch Brady and Moss chase their respective records, but we're not even half-way through the season although the Patriots already have a 4.5 game lead in the AFC East.

Some interesting observations:

* Roddy White has 33 receptions for 530 yards and 2 touchdowns, already surpassing his totals from last year. The Falcons are struggling at 1-6, but White and Harrington are coming along nicely. I said it before and I still think Joey Harrington could be solid.
* The Chiefs might finally have a 1,000 yard receiver not named Gonzalez with rookie Dwayne Bowe. The former LSU Tiger has been a major reason for the Chiefs are atop the AFC West at 4-3. It's nice to see Priest Holmes back in action, but it will be interesting to see if he and LJ can co-exist.
* Another breakout receiver is the Browns' Braylon Edwards, who is on pace for 77 receptions, 1472 yards, and 19 scores. Kellen Winslow is on pace for 77 grabs, 1349 yards, and a solid 5 scores. They've only played 6 games, but along with Derek Anderson and Jamal Lewis, they are looking like a team to take seriously. They won't make the playoffs this year, but they'll be close.
* The talk in Arizona has been the quarterback situation, but Edgerrin James is 3rd in rushing yards and on pace for 1378 yards and 9 touchdowns. His yards per carry aren't great at 3.9, but it's a solid improvement from 3.4 last year.
* Mario Williams and 20 year old rookie, Amobi Okoye, have combined for 39 tackles and 7 sacks. This is a promising start for these two young players along with DeMeco Ryans. Matt Shaub is doing a good job for a first year starter. It's a shame that they play in the competitive AFC South, but they're only a few years from being a serious contender.


The Dolphins and the Giants are playing the first regular season game outside of North America this Sunday at Wembley Stadium in London. NFL Europa was closed down this year, so this is an important event for the game. If you think about it, it's a lot like the Harlem Globetrotters taking basketball globally with the Dolphins playing the role of the Washington Generals. Recently the Buffalo Bills asked for permission to play a pre-season and regular season game in Toronto, so the globalization is on. The hope is that we'll eventually have football's version of Dirk Nowitzki and Yao Ming. We're probably a good 10 to 20 years off, but it'll happen. When that happens the real show will be watching the Raider Nation and British Hooligans feud. While the NFL looks to expand abroad, they're having problems on home soil. Cable companies such as Comcast and Time Warner have placed the NFL Network in extra packages instead of having the channel standard, such as with ESPN, Spike, TNT, etc. Commissioner Roger Gooddell slammed the cable operators for the move, especially Comcast. According to Gooddell, "We have one cable operator close to here, which has taken us from nine million homes to one million homes, and that's a significant difference."

For those of you staying up late for the World Series, I leave you with this. As always, feel free to drop me some feedback at [e-mail]