Sans decent targets, Brady’s understandably human

By Connor Byrne  |   Tuesday, September 19, 2006  |  Comments( 0 )

New England Patriots
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They may be off to a perfect 2-0 start in 2006, but the New England Patriots appear far inferior to the team that won three Super Bowls earlier this decade. At least, they do on offense.

Quarterback Tom Brady has had his share of struggled in the Pats' first two victories, games against the division-rival Buffalo Bills and New York Jets.

After completing only 11-of-23 passes against the Bills in a 19-17 Week 1 win, Brady was expected to rebound in the Meadowlands. However, the Jets' defense did a relatively solid job of containing the likely future Hall of Famer, holding him to a pedestrian 15-of-29 afternoon, good enough for a weak 51.7 percent completion rate in the Pats' 24-17 victory.

Undoubtedly, Brady's No. 1 problem so far this year has been a lack of targets. Because New England simply got too arrogant in the manner contracts are dealt with, dependable receiver Deion Branch was recently traded to the Seattle Seahawks; supposedly, the Pats couldn't afford him. The notion that team owner Robert Kraft can't afford something or someone is, for lack of a better phrase, utterly ridiculous.

So, without Branch, Brady has been left with a group of vagabond receivers incapable of frightening even the weakest of NFL secondaries. The best wideout of the inauspicious group is, sadly, 35-year-old Troy Brown, who caught four passes for 51 yards against New York. Brown has been a terrific option throughout most of his 13-plus-year career, but he'd be a No. 3 receiver on most teams.

New England's second-most utilized target in the passing game is tight end Ben Watson. Unfortunately for Watson, a former first-round pick, he hasn't been nearly as productive this year as most expected. The ex-Georgia star has only caught six passes in the opening pair of regular-season games.

Beyond that, Brady's left throwing to the likes of Kevin Faulk (a third-down running back) and former San Diego receiver Reche Caldwell.

The Patriots' best hope in their aerial attack is rookie second-round pick Chad Jackson. In his season debut this past weekend, the former Florida star caught two passes for 42 yards and a touchdown. It was an impressive beginning for the 6-foot-1, 215-pounder, but it's not fair to expect major contributions from a first-year WR.

Other than the abovementioned names, New England's next best choice is the recently acquired Doug Gabriel. The ex-Oakland Raider suited up in his Patriot debut this past Sunday, but he made absolutely no impact. Gabriel, who caught 37 passes last year, was an up-and-coming player for the Raiders, so the Pats are hoping the 26-year-old can continue developing with more playing time.

For the first time since he took the starting QB job in New England, Brady seems frustrated and, to a certain extent, demoralized.

"Maybe some of the plays were limited to because we can't throw whole four years of offense at some guys," said Brady, referring to the lack of offensive knowledge possessed by his receivers.

Unless the Patriots begin getting some notable contributions from their wideouts, a perfect record could turn to a mediocre one real quick. Brady and company's next two games are against Denver and Cincinnati, two organizations with terrific defensive backfields.

--Got feedback? Drop the author, Connor J. Byrne, an e-mail: cbyrne@realfootball365.com.

Get more on the New England Patriots at RealFootball365.com.
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