If you tuned out of the Patriots' 33-8 rout of the Raiders once Tom Brady hit Brandin Cooks in stride for a 64-yard touchdown on the third play of the second half to make it 24-0, we don't really blame you. The game was largely over at that point, and all that was left to see was whether or not Rob Gronkowski would have an actual fiesta on the Estadio Azteca turf.
But if you weren't paying attention, then you missed some fairly interesting developments on the defensive side of the ball.
But that's OK. That's what we're here for.
For the first 33 minutes, 44 seconds of the contest — up until the Raiders' third down to end their first drive of the second half — the Patriots' defense was very predictable and boring. They didn't blitz once on 17 snaps, and the only creative concept the Patriots used to bring pressure at Derek Carr was one measly zone exchange — which is not a "blitz" because the defense is still using four players to bring pressure. (The basic concept is a linebacker rushes the passer, while a lineman drops into zone coverage).
But starting with that third-down incompletion at the 11:16 mark of the third quarter through the final gun, everything changed. The Patriots brought a ton of pressure — more than I can recall them using in such a short time-frame — and in a variety of different ways.
How did they do it and, more importantly, why might they have decided to do that? Let's break it all down.
First, let's start with the chart to illustrate exactly what we're talking about and the scope of it. The numbers in the gray boxes represent regular, no-pressure rushes. The boxes in yellow represent different pressure concepts.
So before the line of demarcation, the Patriots used pressure concepts on 1 of 17 snaps (5.9 percent). After, they did it 69.7 percent (23 of 33 snaps) of the time despite the fact that the score was 24-0, 27-0, 30-0, 30-8 and 33-8.
Let's set aside the fact that it's highly unusual for any defense — but especially the blitz-adverse Patriots – to dramatically increase their pressure concepts in a blowout (you'd rather play safe and burn clock). Let's just talk about the variety.
Five-man blitz (10 of 33 snaps): Your regular, run-of-the-mill pressure where an additional player (normally a linebacker) supplements the four-man rush of the defensive linemen. In this game, the Patriots also sprinkled in some corner blitzes.
Six-man blitz (2 of 33 snaps): The Patriots don't run many six-man pressures in any games, let alone a blowout, because it's an "all-out blitz" leaving only five defenders to cover the five eligible receivers in man coverage.
Zone exchange (1 of 33): Basically, a player who normally rushes the quarterback (say, an end) exchanges his rush responsibility for the coverage responsibility of another player (inside linebacker) and drops into zone coverage.
Zone exchange 3-for-2 (3 of 33): This is a new one for me in my time watching the Patriots. This is still a zone exchange (rushing four) but with a big twist. With five players on the line of scrimmage, three drop into zone coverage (Marquis Flowers, Kyle Van Noy, Trey Flowers) after the snap but two additional players (Patrick Chung, Jonathan Jones) come from depth to rush the quarterback giving the Patriots four rushers. Yes, that sounds confusing, but here's a video of it.
