Feelings on Bill O'Brien so far?

[Tunescribe]

Too early to tell. Things I'm waiting for:

1. How many games before Mac yells at BoB;
2. How long before Judge lobbies to be QB coach again.

If things don't improve, wouldn't mind some of these repeats of last season. At least that was hilarious.

Find a new pastime, you're wasting bandwidth here. Without Brady or Zappe to cling to you are left with hating Mac & BB and that's a pathetic way to be a "fan."

 

[TinhWoodhead]

what about bob

 

[Ollie]

I can at least see what we are trying to do this year. Mac looks more accurate in short passing and play calling seems to be a case of OL damage limitation but BOB can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear. Our talent on offense is mediocre with O explosiveness. We are reliant on putting together perfect drives of short passes and the moment we get behind the sticks we are in trouble as not a single player scares the defense.
The issue i have is i can't see the long term plan on offense. They have known the shortcomings for years and yet just ignore it. Tackle was a need so they sign 5 tackles all of which are mostly JAGS. No dynamic playmakers so draft 3 defensive players in the first 3 rds and extend parker and bring in the very undynamic JuJu. If i could at least see a plan rather than just continuing to do the same thing over and over i would feel reassured. So in short i think Bob is doing the best he can with a poor cast.

 

[Tunescribe]

I can at least see what we are trying to do this year. Mac looks more accurate in short passing and play calling seems to be a case of OL damage limitation but BOB can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear. Our talent on offense is mediocre with O explosiveness. We are reliant on putting together perfect drives of short passes and the moment we get behind the sticks we are in trouble as not a single player scares the defense.
The issue i have is i can't see the long term plan on offense. They have known the shortcomings for years and yet just ignore it. Tackle was a need so they sign 5 tackles all of which are mostly JAGS. No dynamic playmakers so draft 3 defensive players in the first 3 rds and extend parker and bring in the very undynamic JuJu. If i could at least see a plan rather than just continuing to do the same thing over and over i would feel reassured. So in short i think Bob is doing the best he can with a poor cast.

They could get by OK with the receiving corps they have if the running game was strong enough. This OL just can't block adequately for either phase -- at least, not yet. And I'm beginning to think that letting Damien Harris go was a significant mistake; Elliott doesn't seem to have much left.

 

[FreeTedWilliams]

he needs a better QB

 

[rkarp1]

BOB did go to the playoffs with QB's Fitz, Hoyer, Osweiler.
Watson put up some big numbers with BOB, which so far he has been unable to replicate.
small sample size, but 2 games in Mac looks better than his rookie season, and of course better than last year.
my opinion, it only gets better. the end result will not be good enough, but I do believe he gets the offense back on track. they only then need to address their limitations at playmakers while carrying the contracts of Parker and JuJu

 

[patsinthesnow]

BOB is running a patriots offense without a slot WR that can beat man coverage.

jakobi meyers’ career: 70-80 rec 800 yards 11.6 ypr 68.9% catch pct.

juju through 2 games: 9 rec 61 yards 6.8 ypr 69.2% catch pct.

When healthy juju accumulated his stats as a secondary weapon on the chiefs vs. zone coverage. Now his yac ability isn’t there. The idea that he could excel as the pats slot WR that’s usually the primary option on 3rd down was dubious. Even edelman out targeted the goat te in this offense.

I’ll judge BOB when the OL is healthy & douglas replaces juju in the slot. Until then their offensive personnel is as bad as it was in 2019 IMO.

 

[doesntmatter1]

It is honestly what I expected. The screens and everything. What I didn't expect was how bad the run game would be, but maybe that is completely on the oline.

It is weird that we rarely use Ty Montgomery. He has been effective but we continue to smash Stevenson up the gut for absolutely no yards. Maddening. I wasn't a Meyers fan but Juju is making me sort of miss him.

 

[reflexblue]

The irony is that when Mac was making plays after being flushed out the pocket, throwing on the run, those were some of the best plays he made last week. Could you scheme more of that to account for a weak O-Line? Definitely not a long term answer but I dunno.

I thought i had read when he was drafted that he was very good at running out of the pocket and throwing when he was at alabama. In fact there were plays designed for him to do just that.

 

[Thunderhead]

He doesn't have the personnel (mainly OL or pass catchers) to do what he wants to do. Tough to evaluate.

 

[Wozzy]

He and Klemm need to get the offensive line healthy and executing at a much higher level. Get a couple more WR’s back healthy and this is a top ten offense.

Get it fixed.

 

[1960Pats]

Find a new pastime, you're wasting bandwidth here. Without Brady or Zappe to cling to you are left with hating Mac & BB and that's a pathetic way to be a "fan."

So "fans" can't be critical of the HC/GM or they're pathetic? That take is just plain ridiculous and is why it's difficult to do anything here other than wave pom poms.

I guess it's lucky for us that Bill is a such a genius. Pretty soon he'll turn Mac into Brady, Henry into Gronk and Sow into Thuney.

 

[Tunescribe]

So "fans" can't be critical of the HC/GM or they're pathetic? That take is just plain ridiculous and is why it's difficult to do anything here other than wave pom poms.

I guess it's lucky for us that Bill is a such a genius. Pretty soon he'll turn Mac into Brady, Henry into Gronk and Sow into Thuney.

Fans can be critical of the HC/GM, most definitely. But fans don't push negative agendas and beat them to death. Apparently you have difficulty discerning the difference.

 

[PatsFan2]

I know our O line is in shambles but too many quick passes and screens our Offense ain't going anywhere fast. We have to hit on some decent routes down the field I mean the 10 to 15 yards variety. I think that would make the Offense flow a little better sick of those penalty laden drives.

 

[BritPat]

If you want to see how BoB is doing, look at the Quarterback. We're not out of the woods yet, so to speak, but Mac looks like an NFL QB again, and a decent one at that.

Just to add to this, for what it's worth (I'm aware their methodology has question marks over it), PFF have him as their 12th ranked QB after two games. Above the likes of Allen, Prescott, Purdy, Herbert etc.

 

[FCB02062]

Through 2 games:
2023 - 40% third down conversions
2022 - 50% third down conversions
2023 - 7.15 ypa
2022 - 5.69 ypa
2023 - 4 turnovers
2022 - 4 turnovers
Absolutely no improvement in 3 very important statistics.
Time to improve? Yes, of course. Signs of any improvement? Absolutely not.
We still see the same conservative approach that we saw from Patricia (obviously at the behest of Bill the Coach).
Also, so far this season in 4 "starting drives" (meaning the Patriots first possession of the first or second half) Bill the Coach's team has scored 0 points, punted three times, and thrown an interception. Also, Bill the Coach's team is averaging only 5.75 plays in such possessions.
Last year, they put together a 92 yard touchdown drive to open the second half at Miami, and against Pittsburgh in game two, they scored three points on their first possession of the game and then missed a field goal to open the second half. Also, Matt Patricia's explosive fun and gun offense managed to complete passes to wide receivers for 44 and 41 yards in those first games last season. Thus far, O'Brien's offense has created longs of 19 and 23 yards.
Yes, we have a pop gun offense, and these #s prove it. Spare me the offensive line excuse - Bill the Gm chose not to address the position with anyone other than late round bums, free agent jags, and guys with injury histories. And last game there was only one "fill in" playing.

 

[Tunescribe]

I know our O line is in shambles but too many quick passes and screens our Offense ain't going anywhere fast. We have to hit on some decent routes down the field I mean the 10 to 15 yards variety. I think that would make the Offense flow a little better sick of those penalty laden drives.

It is because of the OL's current limitations that they're doing so many quick passes and screens.

 

[notex]

eyeball test tells me that offensive playcalling is better....

The same eyeballs tell me that this OL is a bit of a disaster. I dont blame OBrien (or Klemm) for this. Patchwork OL without a ton of talent and injuries all over the line. Sure, I think they will be OK but its hard to be dangerous as an offense when 1. RB can't get out of the backfield or have a hole to run through and 2. We cannot stretch the field due to pressure so everything is short/intermediate...

both of these impact our ability to run play-action as well.

I do realize the OL is part of the offense, however, I chalk this one up more to roster building and injuries than coaching. Not only are we using backups on the OL, but we are also slotting in rookies/first year players.

 

[Ivan]

I noticed that so far in the first two weeks, people have varying opinions on Mac, Belichick, and the team as a whole.

Some blame Mac for not being able to actually be clutch and win the Pats a game (instead of just not being the reason the lost). Others are pointing more blame to Belichick for the roster construction (WR), some the o-line, and others, like me, will blame all three.

But I noticed that Bill O'Brien isn't getting much discussion. My opinion? O'Brien has been a little disappointing.

I don't have the data on me, but he's been calling a lot of screen passes, and at times theyve been blown up quickly. Although the O-line plays a role in the amount of screens being called. But beyond that, there's not much creative playcalling. It feels like that have 1 or 2 good Scripted drives to start the game, but beyond that, there's no other creative playcalls that can elevate the talent or squeeze enough out of them.

what do you guys think?

Too soon to tell. However it is a more organized and less predictable offense, and Jones is more comfortable running it.They need to get their run game going to get the offense fully operational. We will have a much better overall sense of the offense by the start of the 2nd half of the season.

 

[State]

They need to get their run game going to get the offense fully operational.

If they are not able to run against the Jets, things could get ugly.

Reagor should be put in. With him and Pop Douglas there’s some speed and elusiveness for the defense to contend with.

There. I said it. Put in Jalen Reagor. I was calling for that in the Miami game. Apparently, he’s taken very well to the team since he’s been brought in. He’s a 2020 first round pick that hasn’t panned out.

But he’s a 4.4 guy with a 42” vertical.