Patriots' 2014-15 Scrapbook: Reviewing New England's Championship Season
For the first time since 2004, the New England Patriots are once again Super Bowl champions. A back-and-forth war of attrition between this team and the Seattle Seahawks led to one of the most exciting games we've seen in a long time.
As Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady and his head coach Bill Belichick embraced on the podium, celebrating the team’s 28-24 win, all of the despair, controversy and disappointment faded away. No more Deflategate. All we have now is the Patriots back on top of the football world.
Let’s now look back at everything that led up to this moment with our very own 2014-15 Patriots' scrapbook.
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The Draft
After last year's AFC Championship Game loss to the Denver Broncos, the Patriots entered the 2014 NFL draft looking to find some of the pieces they needed to make that final Super Bowl push.
Belichick and his camp's first order of business was to draft Florida defensive lineman Dominique Easley.
Easley's talent was never in question, as NFL Media draft expert Mike Mayock mentioned, per NFL.com:
"He was a top 30 pick until he tore his ACL in September. He's quick and explosive. A lot of people felt like he was going to drop because of the ACL. This is a typical Bill Belichick pick. The rest of the league discounted his talent, but he'll be in training camp. The Patriots needed defensive linemen and this kid is gifted.
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The knee issues that plagued him throughout his collegiate career weren't enough of a concern for the Patriots to use a late first-round pick on the former Gator.
When you spend an early pick on an individual, you expect him to perform right away. Instead, Easley's knee injury and the clogged-up New England defensive line limited his snaps.
Pro Football Focus' count put Easley down for a total of 270 snaps in 2014 before he was sent to the injured reserve in December for knee-related issues, as reported by NFL Network's Ian Rapoport (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk).
Health will be the key here for Easley moving forward. Assuming he can stay fit, there's no reason why he shouldn't be able to thrive based off his talent alone.
The draft took an interesting turn in the second round. That's when the team decided to draft Eastern Illinois quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
Choosing Garoppolo was telling on many levels. First off, it brought back the "Tom Brady isn't getting any younger" narrative—remember this for later.
Aside from that, it also brought Ryan Mallett's role into question as the Pats quarterback. If you recall, Mallett had been drafted in the third round of the 2011 draft. He had been listed as Brady's backup since 2012.
Scouting the Eastern Illinois product wasn't the easy task either. The level of competition he faced wasn't on par with some of the other QBs. Charlie Campbell of Walter Football studied his skill set prior to the draft and said the following:
"As a passer, Garoppolo has a nice skill set. He has a strong arm with a fantastic delivery. His quick release and field-vision potential illustrates the likelihood for him to be a good pocket passer."
Watching Garoppolo work through the preseason and in limited fashion during the regular season proved that he could be an NFL quarterback. He was poised, showed off a clean set of mechanics and seemed to understand all of the concepts that the Patriots offense were trying to run.
The one player the Patriots drafted who was able to make a difference right away was center Bryan Stork. Out of Florida State's national-championship program, Stork got his first official start during the Patriots' pivotal Week 4 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Leading up to the Super Bowl, Ron Borges of the Boston Herald talked about Stork's contributions:
"After several weeks of experimentation, a decision was made to install the 313-pound rookie at center, shifting starter Dan Connolly to left guard, in an effort to anchor a line that was struggling to find its identity.
It would take several more games, and the return of former center Ryan Wendell at right guard, to iron out all the problems but the beginning came with the elevation of Stork.
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The Patriots closed out their fourth round by selecting Wisconsin running back James White and Stanford offensive tackle Cameron Fleming. Both of those guys saw limited action this season.
A trio of sixth-round picks was used on Florida guard Jon Halapio, Concordia defensive end Zach Moore and Jemea Thomas, who was a defensive back out of Georgia Tech. Of the three guys selected, only Moore remains on the Patriots' roster.
Coach Belichick and his staff finished their draft by taking Michigan wide receiver Jeremy Gallon with pick No. 244. Gallon had played well during the 2014 East-West Shrine Game before being selected by the Patriots.
Despite his best efforts, the 5'8" wide receiver didn't make it out of the dog days of August. The team released him before the 53-man roster was due.
Handing out a grade to the Patriots' '14 draft isn't fair right now. There were too many variables to judge the players selected. We know that Stork should be a staple of this line, which is great for a guy who slipped into the fourth round.
Free Agency
Free agency is where the Patriots made the most noise. Cranking up the stereo and churning out the dollars, New England brought home one of the NFL's best cornerbacks: Darrelle Revis.
"Revis Island," the island that Pats wide receivers had to deal with for six seasons, officially floated over to the shores of the Massachusetts in March 2014.
In order to attain Revis' services, the front office had to fork over a one-year contract worth $12 million—with an option for 2015. That number isn't high when you consider how good of a football player he has been since landing with the New York Jets all those years ago.
By joining the Pats, Revis revamped the team's secondary. Having a guy who can single-handedly take a team's best receiver out of the game is exactly what this defense had desperately missed over the years.
By Football Outsiders' calculations, New England's pass defense went from being the 20th-ranked unit to the 12th.
As good as Revis has been, the Patriots didn't stop there when it came to bolstering the secondary. Last offseason they also sniped the ex-Seahawks cornerback Brandon Browner and even reached a deal to bring safety Patrick Chung back into the mix.
Browner being 6'4" is a rarity for the position. His physicality and ability to bog down pass-catchers at the line of scrimmage brought a physical edge to the defense.
However, the biggest surprise had to be Chung. He was the guy who tried to close on New York Giants wide receiver Mario Manningham moments before we saw one of the top catches in Super Bowl history.
Chung left the Patriots for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2013. Instead of the Eagles getting themselves a quality strong safety, he regressed and was released last offseason.
A need for safety and a sense of familiarity brought Chung back to the comforts of New England. What he did this season for the Pats can't be overlooked.
Pro Football Focus' advanced grading system gave Chung a plus-9.4 grade this season. That's a complete turnaround from the minus-7.2 mark he received in '13, per PFF. Normally not known for his coverage skills, Chung even found himself in the green in that area as well.
Those three particular signings were monumental for this secondary.
On the offensive end, the mission was simple: Find Tom Brady some more weapons. Besides Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski, Brady needed help. One of the most surprising names to step up and answer that bell was former Carolina Panthers wide receiver Brandon LaFell.
Inked to a three-year deal worth $9 million, LaFell turned out to be quite the bargain for this offense.
He was targeted 119 times on the season catching 79 passes for 957 yards and seven TDs—all career highs. Not many people expected him to even put up those kinds of numbers but he turned out to be a perfect fit stretching the field for this offense.
The Super Bowl proved that these additions were essential to the Patriots leaving with their fourth NFL championship.
Training Camp and Preseason Games
Per usual, training camp was a time for all of these new additions to mesh with the rest of the roster. The coaching staff figured out who would make the final roster and who would be left off it.
By now we all realize wins and losses during the preseason mean nothing. It's all about developing talent, finding guys who belong and getting used to live-game action. That being said, New England's 2014 preseason record was a 2-2.
Of all the games played, the "dress rehearsal" showing against the Philadelphia Eagles was by far the most impressive. Not only was it Brady's preseason debut, but that was also the week the Patriots showed that they were able to go blow-for-blow with Chip Kelly's offense.
That 42-35 win was enough for Coach Belichick to hand out some early praise during his usual monotone postgame press conference. The head coach gave credit to Kelly's team and spoke about his offense's ability to score points when it needed to.
One of the top storylines we saw unfold in August was the battle between Mallett and Garoppolo for the backup quarterback. In the thick of August, Doug Kyed of NESN.com put it best: "It’s official: The Patriots have a backup quarterback controversy, or maybe it’s just a competition—let’s settle on a contro-tition."
Both guys had their moments, but on August 30 we found out that the Pats had enough confidence in Garoppolo to move forward with him as Brady's backup.
Mallett's time in New England ended when he was traded to the Houston Texans for a conditional late-round draft choice. The general feel at the time was that the organization could have received more value for the veteran, but as ESPNBoston.com's Mike Reiss put it, "when the Patriots drafted rookie Jimmy Garoppolo in the second round this year and he played well this preseason, it lessened Mallett's value on the roster."
The roster was now set, Mallett was off to Texas, and Coach Belichick and his team were focused on the task at hand: getting to Super Bowl XLIX.
First Half of the Season
Looking back now, the first-half of the Patriots' 2014 season was a disaster by their high standards. Sparked by an opening-day loss to the Miami Dolphins, it became abundantly clear that there were plenty of things the Patriots had to work on in order to get back to the postseason.
The box score from Week 1 paints the whole picture. The same offense that dropped 42 points versus the Eagles during the preseason was held to a total of 315 net yards.
Brady was flustered and seemed to have no true connection with his pass-catchers. On 56 pass attempts he completed only 29 for 249 yards and a single touchdown.
Even in dysfunction the Patriots led the Dolphins 20-10 before giving up 23 unanswered points in the second half. That type of stuff rarely happens to a Belichick-coached team.
The next seven games would be crucial.
Week 2 the Patriots were able to shred a Minnesota Vikings team on the road 30-7. That game served somewhat as a case of fool's gold. The Vikings had suddenly lost Adrian Peterson after Week 1, which was a critical blow to their offense.
Brady also didn't look himself. He completed 14 passes on 21 attempts for a meager 143 yards passing and a touchdown.
The win came by way of outstanding play on specials teams and excellent defense. There was a blocked field goal returned by a touchdown, six team sacks and four interceptions. Not having Peterson allowed the Patriots to play more aggressive on all fronts.
Coach Belichick's team followed that win up by squeaking by the Oakland Raiders in Week 3 by a final tally of 16-9. Then in Week 4, the defining moment of the 2014 season came.
New England's 2-1 record felt fabricated. Even with a shredding of the Vikings, a tough game against the hapless Raiders reinforced the idea that this team was secretly in deep trouble.
On Monday Night Football in front of an unhinged Kansas City crowd, the Patriots' troubles were exposed for the world to see. Andy Reid's Chiefs annihilated the Patriots, and that word is putting it mildly.
A 41-14 drubbing was exactly what the doctor ordered. Brady was sacked three times while the pocket he made a living in all these years was reduced to nothing more than rubble.
With the game out of hand, Brady was relegated to the bench. That act initiated the whole "is Brady done?" narrative. And from that moment on, everything changed.
"We're on to Cincinnati," squawked Coach Belichick standing at the lectern after Week 4. It was sort of like his very own Marshawn Lynch moment.
But those words defined exactly what the Patriots would do for the rest of the way. The team would go on to win all of their games, including a 51-23 destruction of the Chicago Bears in Week 8. All of this happened, despite losing running back Stevan Ridley and inside linebacker Jerod Mayo along the way.
Second Half of the Season
The winning and overall great play continued well into the second half of the season. In total, the Patriots' winning steak extended to seven games before falling to the Green Bay Packers 26-21 in Week 13.
After that hiccup it was back to business. Another brief three-game winning streak unfolded before the team dropped their final game to the Buffalo Bills—a game where Brady and Gronkowski only played a half of football.
From Week 8 until Week 16, Brady played lights out. He threw for 2,404 yards, 20 touchdowns and only seven interceptions.
Perhaps the key to the Patriots' end of season success was the signing of LeGarrette Blount. The 28-year-old back was dismissed from the Pittsburgh Steelers after a reported incident during the team's Monday Night Football win over the Houston Texans in Week 7, according to Fox Sports.
Two days after that he was reunited with the Patriots.
Blount's days with New England were reminiscent of his 2013 campaign in that uniform. In five games he secured a pivotal role, rushing for 280 yards and three scores.
Without Ridley, the Patriots were missing a physical halfback who could wear down a defense. Blount's familiarity with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels' scheme allowed him to jump back in the water without missing a beat.
A 12-4 record not only was good enough to win the AFC East for the sixth time in a row, but it also gave the Patriots home-field advantage throughout the playoffs—something they missed out on the year before.
That faithful night in Kansas City really turned things around for this team. After being knocked down, the Patriots were able to grab the ropes, pull themselves back up and fight all the way back to the top of the conference.
Postseason
The Patriots were able to enjoy a bye week before their postseason journey kicked off—a journey that would start with a familiar foe: the Baltimore Ravens.
Since 2009, the Patriots and Ravens have been on a postseason collision course. Of all the teams in the AFC, the Ravens have always played New England tough.
Heading into the divisional round, the Ravens had beaten the Patriots two out of the last three times. This year's battle was no different in terms of quality play.
New England and Baltimore traded barbs in one of the best games we've seen in a while. Facing a 14-point deficit twice, Brady and the rest of the squad fought back to even things up.
The story of the game though wasn't simply the Patriots' ability to battle back. Another significant piece was the imaginative play-calling of McDaniels.
Three plays in particular changed the course of the contest.
Bleacher Report's Cian Fahey analyzed two of the most "controversial," yet tactically brilliant, calls on offense. Manipulated formations caused enough confusion for New England to pick up swaths of yardage when it needed it the most.
On Showtime's Inside of the NFL you can see the reaction among the Ravens' faithful as they tried to comprehend what was happening in front of their very eyes:
The final play that changed the outcome of the game was a wide receiver pass down the field from Julian Edelman—a former quarterback at Kent State—to Danny Amendola that resulted in a touchdown.
New England's 35-31 win was the result of resilience and tremendous scheming.
Home-field advantage continued during the AFC Championship Game. Andrew Luck and his Indianapolis Colts came to town with Super Bowl aspirations on their minds.
Unlike the battle the week prior, the Patriots once again throttled the Colts 45-7 behind Blount's 148 yards and three rushing touchdowns.
Not to be outdone, McDaniels once again used creativity to shatter the Colts' dreams. With 10:03 left in the third quarter, Brady hit offensive lineman Nate Solder—who was an eligible receiver at the time—on a 16-yard TD pass.
All was good in Patriots land until it wasn't again.
What felt like almost immediately after the game, the news came that the Patriots were being investigated for under-inflated footballs. That conversation continued well into Super Bowl week, overshadowing the big game at times and putting a damper on New England's remarkable postseason run.
Super Bowl
Tom Brady wasn’t perfect. His two interceptions were costly. But when it mattered the most, he was brilliant.
Passing for 328 yards and four touchdowns, Brady trumped the great Joe Montana—his childhood idol—for the most touchdowns in Super Bowl history.
Down 10 points with 12:10 left in the ballgame, the Patriots were able to post 14 unanswered points on the league’s best defense. Brady hooked up with Edelman on a three-yard touchdown with 2:02 left on the clock.
In what could be the greatest Super Bowl ever, that go-ahead score almost didn’t matter. Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson found some magic of his own, connecting with Jermaine Kearse on one of the most astonishing grabs in Super Bowl history.
Fortunately for the Patriots, giving up a miracle catch this time around didn’t cost them a win. On 2nd-and-goal, Wilson dropped back from the 1-yard line and threw a laser to Ricardo Lockette. Cornerback Malcolm Butler—who “gave up” the catch to Kearse—stepped through the traffic and took the ball away.
And that’s how the magnificent, wild, tumultuous 2014-15 season for the New England Patriots came to an end. With every player on the team touching the Lombardi Trophy as Kurt Warner walked it up to the podium.
Man, what a ride it was.
Unless noted otherwise, all game scores, stats and information are courtesy of ESPN.com.
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