The New England Patriots’ offense is hardly recognizable this season with Cam Newton replacing Tom Brady at quarterback.
The Patriots’ offense has even shifted its identity each week from going read-option heavy in Week 1, concentrating on downfield passing in Week 2 and then churning out a more traditional rushing attack in Week 3.
The Patriots face their toughest challenge to date in Week 4 when they play Kansas City, and Chiefs head coach Andy Reid doesn’t seem surprised that New England adjusted to a completely different style of quarterback so quickly.
“You knew any Bill Belichick team was going to be well-coached and have an answer,” Reid said Wednesday on a conference call with the New England media on Wednesday. “I think he’s probably enjoying that. And it sure looks like it. They’re playing good football.”
Reid drew a parallel to how Newton is being utilized in New England to the way Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels tweaked his offense as head coach of the Denver Broncos when he briefly had another famous mobile quarterback in 2010.
“Josh, we saw what he did with Tim Tebow and now you’re seeing it with Cam,” Reid said. “Just doing it a little different because Cam’s got an unbelievable arm and has probably a little better feel for the pass game than what Tim did. But he’s using every factor of Cam. I think Cam’s enjoying that. They’re playing really good football there.”
Yes, it’s fair to say Newton has a much better arm and feel for the passing game than Tebow, who burned out of the NFL after just three seasons.
The 2-1 Patriots and 3-0 Chiefs play Sunday at 4:25 p.m. in Kansas City.
