The Chargers flooded deep zones against Buffalo’s cover-two defenses with different variations of all-go special. With the inside post occupying the backside safety, the safety to the three-receiver side has to mid-point the two vertical routes, opening up the seam for a big completion.
With the Bills injuries on defense, Buffalo’s success covering the deep passes has taken a step back. The Bills are 26th in DVOA against deep passes this season, compared to 15th a year ago. If the Bills are also without Hyde (neck), their pass defense will be even more vulnerable. As a less efficient short-game passer than Jones, the Patriots might try to push the ball downfield more with Zappe at quarterback.
The Patriots have a blueprint for attacking the Bills defense. Now, it’s adapting the game plan to Zappe’s strengths and preparing for any wrinkles by Buffalo.
Defensive Key – Continue to Fight Captain Chaos with Chaos, Prep for Joe Brady’s Tendencies
Since the last time the Patriots played the Bills, Buffalo has changed offensive coordinators from Ken Dorsey to current play-caller Joe Brady.
Brady was the quarterbacks coach on Dorsey’s staff and has NFL coordinator experience with Carolina for two seasons. Before running the Panthers offense, Brady was LSU’s passing game coordinator when Bengals QB Joe Burrow lit up the FBS en route to a national championship in 2019.
The Bills made the switch for several reasons. But the primary causes for Dorsey’s firing were the offense being too basic, not adapting in-game, and being overly reliant on star QB Josh Allen and WR Stefon Diggs. The pressure on Allen to be Superman saw him regress. After ten weeks, Buffalo was 5-5, and Allen led the league in interceptions. The advanced metrics still liked the Bills offense, ranking third in EPA, but Allen was sped up and the team was underperforming.
Since making the switch, the Bills have won three straight games and…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at News…