Brady & Co. Still Pack a Powerful Punch, Even Without McDaniels

(Photo by Elsa Garrison/Getty Images)

Not many teams  have an offseason in which they add a hall of fame quarterback.

Tom Brady, his three Super Bowl rings, league MVP, and super model wife all return to New England after missing the entire 2008 season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

While Brady isn't exactly new to the team, he will now have to lead a new offensive system after former offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels left New England for the head coaching job at Denver.

The hole left by McDaniels still hasn't been officially filled and expect it to be vacant throughout the season.

In 2005, after Charlie Weis took the head coaching job at Notre Dame, the Patriots played the entire season without an offensive coordinator.  

In 2006, McDaniels was given the job along with his position as quarterback coach.

During that hiatus, Bill Belichick, Brady, and McDaniels worked together on the offense. Expect the same triumvirate offensive coordinator this year, but add current quarterback coach Bill O'Brien to fill McDaniels' shoes.

But as Brady returns for his ninth season as the starting quarterback for the Patriots, he doesn't need much help calling plays anyway. By now he knows the ins and outs of the offense; one that should be different from the one that took the field last year.  

In Brady's absence,  Matt Cassel managed to throw for 3,693 yards, but much of that came on short crossing routes. Fifty-five percent of Cassel's yards were racked up after the catch, meaning his receivers did the grunt of the work.

With Brady at the helm, the offense will extend the field much more. Brady can take advantage of Randy Moss' height and speed, while continuing to reek the benefits of the mismatches Wes Welker creates in the slot. Welker's numbers remained nearly identical from 2007 to 2008 as he finished with one less catch in '07 for 10 less yards.

Moss' production suffered the most without Brady.

In 2007, with Brady as his QB, Moss grabbed 29 more catches than he did in 2008—resulting in almost 500 more yards. He also averaged 30 yards more a game and about a yard more per catch.

The return of Brady means Moss can reestablish the Patriots as a deep threat.

This year's opponents will have to  play a safety over the top to protect their corner like they did in 2007. This will open up the middle for newly acquired wideout Joey Galloway and Welker who will deal with single coverage since Moss will attract the safety.

The deep threat will undoubtedly open up holes in the running game as well; most teams try to establish the run to make it easier to pass by freezing the linebackers with play action.

The Patriots do the opposite.

They open up holes for run game by establishing the pass. Once the defense is on its heels, the Pats love to run draw plays with Kevin Faulk or Laurence Maroney.

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