FOXBORO -- The signing of Cam Newton changed everything for the Patriots and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Sunday’s 21-11 win over the Miami Dolphins showcased that.
We all knew that Newton’s abilities were different from Tom Brady’s. But we didn’t know how McDaniels would go about using those talents. On Sunday, we found out as the Patriots tailored their offense to fit the strengths of Newton. It employed a blend of power-read options, play-action passes and designed run plays for Newton that kept Miami guessing.
When it was all over, Newton ran the ball 15 times for 75 yards and two touchdowns. Those 15 carries were the second most of his career, which made people wonder if the 31-year-old, coming off foot surgery, could keep up that pace. However, Bill Belichick noted on Monday that the numbers were misleading.
“Well, some of those runs were option-type runs, so we don’t know who’s going to get the ball,” Belichick said. “It depends on how the defense plays. It’s not like handing the ball off to the halfback and running up the middle. When you run plays that have some type of an option to them, you don’t know for sure who’s going to get the ball. That’s just an unpredictable part of that play. So, I think those numbers are, with all due respect, I think they’re a little bit skewed.”
When looking at the film, Newton had the option to run or hand the ball off to a running back on nine occasions. Many of these snaps were “power option plays” in which the quarterback puts the ball in the running backs arms, but doesn’t let go. This forces the defense to either focus its attack on the back or the quarterback. It’s up to Newton to decide whether to let the ball go or keep it and run in a different direction.
For example, the first Newton run play on Sunday was a gain of 10 yards at 12:15 of the first quarter. Newton placed the ball in the arms of Rex Burkhead, who was running to the right side. This forced linebacker Kyle Van Noy to run toward the running back. When that happened, Newton kept the ball and ran straight.
From those nine option plays, the Patriots ran for 53 yards, averaging 5.9 yards per carry. Newton kept the ball six times, rushing for 24 yards (4.0 yards per carry). Twice, he handed the ball off to James White, who gained a total of 14 yards. Once, he gave the ball to Burkhead when he saw that the option froze linebacker Shaq Lawson. Lawson was focused on Newton and that freed Burkhead up for a 15-yard gain at 1:52 of the first quarter.
The Patriots ran seven designed run plays for Newton. He gained 40 yards (5.7 yards per carry) and scored his two touchdowns on these plays. Newton ran the ball three times on third down and two were on designed runs for the quarterback. It was the same on his fourth-and-1 rush that gained four yards with 6:08 left in the game.
Newton had one play in which he ran because the play broke down. At 8:36 of the fourth, none of the Patriots receivers could get open. Newton simply tucked the ball and ran for 12 yards. The quarterback’s last rush was when he took a knee.
Newton didn’t throw the ball very much, but he was efficient when he did in part due to the offense’s threat to run the ball. Of his 19 pass attempts, nine came on play-action passes. Newton was 8-for-9 for 99 yards with a 112.5 quarterback rating.
Newton had only four incomplete passes on Sunday. None was inaccurate. Instead, two were deflected at the line, there was a drop by Julian Edelman and another was a throw-away due to the pass rush.
Sunday clearly marked the start of a new era for the Patriots.
“Everything we’ve done for the last 20 years and rightfully so has been for Tom Brady. It was for Tom Brady. Everything was dedicated to him,” Belichick said. “Other than the games he didn’t play in, like when (Matt) Cassel played or Jimmy (Garoppolo) and Jacoby (Brissett) when Brady was suspended. There were times we had to plan differently, but when your starting quarterback has things he’s good at or things he takes advantage of, I think you try to take advantage of them.”
