FOXBORO, Mass. — One of the key reasons for the New England Patriots’ hot start has been their lack of growing pains on offense.
The Patriots came out of the gate sluggish in 2013 and 2014 as quarterback Tom Brady had to acclimate to new offensive weapons. The Patriots brought in receivers Danny Amendola, Aaron Dobson and Kenbrell Thompkins in 2013, and wideout Brandon LaFell was new last season. Most of Brady’s offensive weapons now have spent years in the system this season, and it certainly helps tight end Rob Gronkowski is fully healthy.
“Well, we have some veteran players on offense, guys that I think have worked together for a long time, so you look at like the receiver position — Danny (Amendola) has been here for a long time now, Jules (Julian Edelman) obviously, AD (Aaron Dobson) has been here three years — and those are guys who have been playing mostly,” Brady said. “Even bringing in Keshawn (Martin), he’s been in the league for a while.
“It’ll be exciting when Jo (Brandon LaFell) gets back. And then (Scott) Chandler, he’s been in the league for a long time. Hooman (Michael Hoomanawanui) has been here for a while, and Gronk (Rob Gronkowski) has been here for a while. I think that continuity certainly helps.
“Hopefully, you can get off to a really good start, and you can build on things over the course of a lot of practices, a lot of throws, a lot of conversations. When you start fresh all the time, I think that can get challenging. So, I think the passing offense is all about anticipation. It’s about trust, being on the same page. The only way to do that is to have experience.
“It doesn’t always necessarily need to be together. I mean, if someone has a lot of years of experience in the league, you have a lot of belief that that person knows how to get open in a pro-style offense against a pro-caliber corner or safety. So you just try to build up on those types of things. We worked pretty hard in the spring, had a good camp and we got off to a decent start. So hopefully, we can keep it going.”
Martin, who contributed with three catches for 33 yards and a touchdown Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars, knows the offensive system from playing under former Patriots offensive coordinator and current Houston Texans head coach Bill O’Brien for an entire season.
The Patriots are 3-0 and outscoring opponents 119 to 70, but Brady downplayed their success.
“Obviously, it’s good to be 3-0 — better than being 0-3 or 1-2 or 2-1,” Brady said. “I think before we really get to know what we’re all about, what the other teams are all about, it’s good to win the games however you can win them. That’s what you’ve got to be able to do this time of year. But we’ve got a long road ahead, and I think everyone’s got to be tuned into what we’re trying to do in order to accomplish what our goals are.”
Thumbnail photo via James Lang/USA TODAY Sports Images
