Playbook - Red Zone INT

In this segment we're going to look at Earl Thomas' INT in the endzone. Unlike Brady's INT to Richard Sherman, Brady puts the ball on his receiver's hands. Unfortunately, Wes Welker picked a bad time to be affected by the slippery conditions. Nevertheless, Brady's decision to go to Welker is questionable. Brady was not pressured on the play, so he might have waited another second for Gronkowski to come open. Also, Brady had Hernandez in single coverage on the outside. See for yourself:

The Patriots face a 2nd and Goal from the 7 yard line. The Patriots Offensive Line does a good job of protecting Brady, but this play still ends in a turnover. It seems to me that Brady forced the ball to Welker. I question his decision because Welker immediately takes a big hit from the LB. KJ Wright lays out Welker and knocks the ball out of his grasp. The throw was a bit behind Welker, but I think that Brady expected Welker to sit in the soft spot rather than run through on a crossing route. Welker just goes a bit too far and he's pays the price.

The ball tips off Welker's hands and its grabbed by
Thomas who looks really fast after the tip

Regardless of this being a bad throw or a dropped ball (familiar?), Brady had other options on the play. Had Tom waited another second for Welker to pass through the zone, he'd have found a lane to hit Gronkowski in the endzone. Gronkowski's main job on this play is to clear out the LB for Welker to find space underneath, but Gronk went above and beyond. As you can see in the photo to the right, Gronkowski beats his man to the inside, and Brady probably had a lane to hit him.

Brandon Lloyd's half-hearted effort on his route signals to me that he's mainly a decoy on the outside. Danny Woodhead might have been an option, but he slipped on his in-cut. This play seems to have been designed for Welker and Gronkowski. Nevertheless, Aaron Hernandez ran a nice fade route on the other side, and had his man completely turned around. Brady hardly looks his direction, but based on the central location of S Earl Thomas, I think Brady should have tested the CB on the fade route. After seeing the game film, I am sure Brady wishes he could do it all over. I think Welker feels the same way about his read to keep going, definitely a missed opportunity here.