Patriots win, despite lack of running game

The Patriots managed to squeak out a victory last night against the Jets, but the lack of being able to move the ball on the ground has to be a little worrisome. Now maybe it was just because the Jets have a very stout defensive four, and they have always been able to stop the run. Or maybe this will be a long lingering trend with the absence of Stevan Ridley from the Patriots backfield.

Shane Vereen led the Patriots with eleven of their fifteen rushing attempts. The Jets managed to control the time of possession having the ball more then twice as much as the Patriots, so they were forced to throw the ball and they abandoned the running game early.

McDaniels has always been a pass happy play caller, and the Patriots found themselves in a lot more passing formations the previous weeks. Weeks before the Patriots were in a lot more "21" series personnel groupings, where there were two running backs and one tight end on the field, or "12" series personnel groupings, where there were one running back and two tight ends on the field. They were using a lot of singleback, I formation, and overload formations in previous weeks to attack the run. This week found them in a lot of "00", "01", or "02" personnel groupings all of which are five wide receiver sets.

The Patriots managed to pull a victory out of their hat last night, but moving forward they are going to need to find Stevan Ridley's replacement and get back to playing a more balance brand of football if they want to keep winning.

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