The Pats, who finished the regular season 29th against the pass and have been victimized by the long ball, say they’ll be prepared. Flacco’s chief target on the long ball is typically Smith, who made veteran Champ Bailey look like an old man Saturday.
“When you have guys like that, a guy like Torrey Smith who can really stretch a defense and has speed like that, that’s the type of guy who can get behind the defense,” Gregory said. “So they definitely take their shots at it.”
The Pats had Smith in for a visit prior to the 2011 draft and showed some interest in selecting the former Maryland star. Aqib Talib, who wasn’t with the Pats during the Week 3 meeting with the Ravens, will likely draw Smith, much like he took on the Texans’ Andre Johnson.
Smith caught six passes for 127 yards and two touchdowns during the Ravens’ 31-30 win on Sept. 23.
“He’s always been able to run and the guy that makes all the plays down the field,” Pats coach Bill Belichick said of Smith during a conference call yesterday. “He can also run after the catch on the shorter and intermediate routes. If you give him a big cushion, that’s a problem too. He’s made a lot of big plays down the field on deep balls and that’s opened up things for him underneath as well. He’s been very productive.”
from the Boston Herald
freddy from boca
one reason why n.e. may rank so low in pass defense is that they consistently get big leads against teams and their opposition has to pass far more than they would have liked to to try to get back in the game. and possibly n.e. gives up a lot of short stuff when they have big leads to protect from long more damaging pass. sometimes numbers ar deceiving. just a possibility
· 11/12/2019