With no playoff seeding implications involved, the New England Patriots treated Week 17 against the Buffalo Bills like a glorified pre-season game, resting many key contributors and limiting the snaps for most of their remaining starters on both sides of the ball. An extremely vanilla defensive approach by the Patriots didn’t leave much to dissect…
The New England Patriots eeked out a victory against the New York Jets, who harassed Tom Brady and the offense into short drives. Defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson feasted on the Patriots offensive line, taking advantage of injuries to the “five guys” who protect Brady. New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan and defensive coordinator Dennis…
The stakes are high in special teams play. A routine sequence can go very well ‒ or very poorly. As Chuck Zodda shows us, even the little things can make all the difference between a fake being executed perfectly or ending in disaster. To say the Jacksonville Jaguars have had a forgettable season would be…
The New England Patriots edged the New York Jets 17-16 in Week 16, relying on their defense and some innovative play design from defensive coordinator Matt Patricia to seal the victory. New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan gets lots of praise for his imaginative blitzes, but Patricia showed Sunday that he too can design…
After a closely-fought first half, the New England Patriots pulled away from the Miami Dolphins after halftime, outscoring their opponent 27-0 to seal a 41-13 victory in Week 15. The Patriots, who evened the slate against a Dolphins team that defeated them in the season opener, locked up the AFC East with the win and…
For every great return, there are many great blocks. Eleven players working together in orchestrated chaos, punt return blockers are only recognized when they get penalized for blocking in the back. Not on Chuck Zodda‘s watch. Here is how one extraordinary individual effort earned Kansas City Chiefs Josh Martin the coveted title of Special Teams…
NFL defenses are often gauged by their success or failure once an opposing offense reaches the goal line’s doorstep. Dave Archibald explores how the New England Patriots have reinvented their red zone defense. At the bye in Week 10, the New England Patriots rated as mediocre when defending inside their own 20-yard-line, ranking 19th in…
The stakes are high in special teams play. A routine sequence can go very well ‒ or very poorly. As Chuck Zodda shows us, even the little things can make all the difference between a kick getting away safely and having it blocked. There are some in the NFL who believe success requires extreme trickery…
Calling a run play is easy enough. The end result is just as easy to grade. Running backs receive most of the glory on successful attempts while blowups in the backfield seem to focus on the defender recording the tackle for a loss. But it’s often the many and myriad intricate actions in between that…
Each week Inside The Pylon takes a look at some of the standout offensive plays from around the NFL in Reel Film Recap. In this edition Mark Schofield looks at the Pittsburgh Steelers dipping back into the well against the Atlanta Falcons, and the key to a huge Dallas Cowboys road win over the Philadelphia…
Each week Inside The Pylon takes a look at ins and outs of the latest offensive action from around the NFL in Reel Film Recap. In this edition Mark Schofield looks at how the first-ever Johnny Manziel start went for the Cleveland Browns against the Cincinnati Bengals. In his own words, his performance graded as…
The New England Patriots secured their sixth straight AFC East title with a convincing 41-13 win over the Miami Dolphins in NFL Week 15. After a disappointing first half offensively, Tom Brady and Company went on a 27-0 run in the second half, highlighted by this perfect touchdown pass on a Rob Gronkowski seam route.…
New England Patriots cornerback Darrelle Revis locked down San Diego Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen Sunday, holding him to just two catches for three yards. The Chargers tried different tactics to generate offense, but, as Dave Archibald demonstrates (again), they ultimately proved fruitless. In just his second season, wide receiver Keenan Allen has already established…
The New England Patriots return Sunday to frigid Foxborough, where they hope to serve the Miami Dolphins a cold dish of revenge. Much has changed for both teams since the Fins upset the Pats in Week 1. The Patriots offense will rely on diverse personnel, alignments and routes to battle Miami’s strategies, coverages and pocket…
Sometimes, rushing the football is easy. Defenders, though, try to make it hard. With LaGarrette Blount returning to the New England Patriots, Brian Filipiak breaks down what we saw from him rushing against the San Diego Chargers. The New England Patriots stormed back to beat the San Diego Chargers on the road in a Week…
The St. Louis Rams pulled off one of the most audacious plays of any NFL season earlier this year with a fake punt return against the Seattle Seahawks. This time, the play call proved more conventional, but the punt return unit again delivered in impressive and exciting fashion. John Fassel could have called it a…