If you just went by the offensive numbers after the Patriots turned a 9-7 halftime lead against the winless Redskins into a 33-7 rout on Sunday, it wouldn't take a master's degree in football to declare the Patriots won that game because they ran the ball better in the second half.
First half rushing: 7 carries, 19 yards, 2.7 average.
Second half rushing (before Tom Brady was removed): 15 carries, 102 yards, 6.8 average.
Sure, the way the Patriots ran the ball certainly helped. But how they did it, how new fullback Jakob Johnson factored in and, oh right, some really good football from Brady gave the Patriots the edge they needed to put the pieces back together offensively, after a stretch of really dreadful football.
The second half? That was more like it — and the Patriots didn't need a wide assortment of #weaponz to get it done (ok, the Redskins not being good helped too).
How did they do it? Let's go over a nine of the key plays (with explainer videos included) starting with the first third down, when Brady stopped worrying about the pressure around him and just started making plays.
13:45 3Q: T.Brady pass short right to J.White to WAS 49 for 21 yards (F.Moreau).
It certainly helped that Josh Gordon accidentally picked the player who was supposed to be in man coverage against James White, but Redskins CB Josh Norman recognized what was going on and dropped off into coverage against White on the wheel route.
What stood out about this play was Brady feeling the pressure, but not panicking, which he's had some issues with. He calmly stepped up and threw a dime on the move to White, who made a tremendous catch for 21 yards.
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As you can now see, the Patriots' explosion on offense in the second half had a lot more to do with well-executed team blocking and some tough throws under pressure by Brady (and catches by his receivers) than just the running game, or even Michel, who really should be doling out most of the credit to Thuney, Izzo, LaCosse and Johnson.
Regardless of the credit, this is the way the Patriots play effectively on offense. Sure, this might have been the Redskins, but that was the same defense out there in the first half, which the Patriots couldn't do much right.
It looks like Josh McDaniels finally found his offense. Whether they can execute against better defenses will be the ultimate test.