As the Patriots’ struggles first started early in the second half of the season, a good chunk of the football world believed it only was a matter of time before Tom Brady and Co. flipped the switch and kicked things into gear.
It never happened.
After scoring 27-plus points in seven of its first eight games against vastly inferior opponents, New England eclipsed that threshold just once over its final nine contests, which saw the team post a 4-5 record to close the campaign. The offense was particularly weak when it mattered most, laying an egg in its wild-card round loss against a Tennessee Titans defense that is far from vaunted.
But who’s most to blame for the Patriots’ offensive struggles? Tom Brady has caught quite a bit of flak for his underwhelming play, but Bart Scott believes the woes should be tabbed more on the quarterback’s supporting cast.
“When you look at the offensive linemen, I think that’s the biggest key, that he didn’t have the ability to survey the field. He wasn’t on page with his receivers the entire year. You could see him trying to coach them up on the sideline,” Scott said Tuesday on ESPN’s “Get Up.” “I think this is more about the roster that was put around him than Tom Brady. You look at the older quarterbacks that are successful, what they’re doing. You think about Drew Brees. They surrounded him with elite talent, young talent, guys that are great situational players. Tom Brady’s pretty much coaching these guys up. You know, trying to drop back and survey and find anybody who can get open.”
We’re going to assume Randy Moss wholeheartedly agrees with Scott here. Brady’s former favorite target implored the Patriots to surround the six-time Super Bowl champion with better weapons following the loss to the Titans.
