Tom Brady's return bodes very well for two specific Patriots



From the instant Tom Brady announced he would no longer fight his Deflategate punishment, everyone within Patriot Nation circled October 9th on their calendars, the day our leader, the GOAT, would return. And let me tell you, it didn't disappoint.

Shaking with anticipation and excitement as we all watched him take the field for the first time in 2016 regular season play, Brady went straight to work. From the opening drive Tom Brady was as efficient and effective passing the football as he has ever been, showing zero signs of rust. There was very little he did wrong, throwing for 409 yards, 3 scores, completing 70% of his throws and racking up a passer rating of 127.7. Not bad.

The second biggest story of yesterday afternoon was the dominance of the New England tight ends. The Patriots gave us our first look at what Rob Gronkowski and Martellus Bennett will be able to do when paired alongside Brady, and oh man, it was fun to watch. Having all three on the field at the same time and most importantly, healthy, will certainly haunt the minds of several defensive coordinators around the league, as it should.

Gronk made his first real showing of 2016, hauling in 5 grabs for 109 yards, while Bennett caught 6 balls good for 67 yards and found the endzone a career high 3 times.

Bennett did not hold back his emotions on how the start to the 2016 season has gone for him, taking to twitter to express his satisfaction:
The two have potential to become so unstoppable, it almost becomes a matter of defenses picking their poison, because stoping both almost isn't an option. Gronk noted that when speaking to the media after the game, recalling a certain play where he drew two defenders which allowed Bennett to score, "The two defenders come to me and leave [Bennett] in the red zone one-on-one. So it gives other people opportunities to capitalize on them. That's why it's such a great sport to play because it's such a team sport."

 This effect on defenses that Gronk has was represented perfectly on Bennett's second touchdown:



Putting two defenders on Gronkowski left Bennett with a 1 on 1 mismatch with a linebacker, who he can out size, and out run, and was able to do so, cashing in on this play. But should you take a safety or corner and match him up on Bennett, that leaves Julian Edelman alone on a linebacker, which is another no go. And on top of all that, note that DJ Foster is left completely alone on this play as well, and would have made for an even easier score.

Bottom line, "Gronk and Marty" should wreak havoc on defenses all year long, and should make Tom Brady a very happy man.

#OnToCincinnati

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