Brady’s injury to his knee from a Kam Chancellor hit and has never fully recovered.
Brady has missed several practices due to his knee injury.
Tom Brady missed the Wednesday practice this week due to a lingering injury he received back in a Week 10 hit by Seattle Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor…
…he’s never been the same since.
It’s not to say he won’t play — he will. It’s not that he won’t be effective — he will.
BUT, the reality is his knee has been hurting for well over a month after the hit, and he is still taking time off to make it through the week.
That means his health is a concern…and if the Miami Dolphins can rough him up enough, that concern can turn into a problem.
This why Miami must slow the run and get to Brady. It a ‘no-duh’ statement that you don’t need to be a great pay per head bookie service to figure out, true. But, for this game it’s even more crucial than ever, due Brady’s gimpy peg.
Brady suffers terribly from contact, even more so than most, his passer rating dives to nearly half with enough pressure. But, due to the passing scheme and Brady’s quick release, he usually avoids much contact except from premier pressure defenses.
Brady’s injury has had him dealing with it for almost 2 months.
But, now it’s not simply a psychological thing, now it’s physical as well.
Miami must make him move from his spot, harass, hit and sack him. And in this situation, sacking is the least crucial, because that knee will swell ever more with each and every extra aggravation. This slow roll to a swollen knee could pay dividends in late game scenarios.
This why the Dolphins must find a way to stop the run; in this situation, more passes offers more opportunity to re-aggravate that knee — as well as the usual good vibrations that pass rushers feel when they can keep him off schedule.
After giving up almost 300 yards on the ground against the Bills, this is a tall order for the Dolphins run defense.
Patriots have moved more to the run game over the last season in comparison to last year (30.2 2016 v.s. 23.0 2015), and this run game is surely helping Brady’s on many levels, as it does all QB’s, but now it’s helping him by protecting that knee by limiting his movement and hits.
Patriots don’t have the blocking line that the Bills have. They are good, but rely more on Brady’s focus and good play calling instead of raw power.
Brady won’t leave the game from an aggravated injury, but it will affect his game.
This could effectively be as dangerous, but with one caveat: Brady is an immobile QB and that suits the Dolphins defense more so than a mobile QB. It also changes the blocking schemes and put more pressure on the O-line — especially if the run game is running clunky.
Miami will have a better showing on defense this week — that’s not saying much after the Bills game, I know. Yes, it’s the Patriots, but having home-field, plus a Qb with limited mobility, will give their pass rush better looks to do what they want to do. And given Suh and Jordan are formidable inside (where the most crucial pressure comes from), this will be a difficult task of the Pats interior O-Line — so those writing off Miami, think again.
Here’s the key: if they are simply making Brady move off his spot early and slowing the run game, I see a Miami win. If not, then the tea-leaves won’t read so pretty a picture. Go Fins!!!