Patriots vs. Dolphins: Chad Ochocinco's Struggles in Week 1 Should Concern Pats

Chad Ochocinco is far from being a part of of New England’s prolific offensive attack and he proved last night that he was not comfortable in Bill Belichick’s system.

On a night when two-time MVP quarterback Tom Brady went off for a franchise-record 517 yards, throwing for four TDs and just one interception, Ochocinco looked a little confused. 

Brady went 32-of-48 on his passes but looked Ochocinco’s way just three times. Ochocinco only hauled in one reception for 14 yards the entire night.

Ochocinco talked to the Boston Herald back on Aug. 30 about his expected performance this season. Two weeks ago, when asked about his comfort level in the offense, Ochocinco said,

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That takes time. It takes time. Right now, on a scale of one to 10, how far am I from what you described? Probably a seven. Because right now, what I’m doing, I’m able to go out right now and react, as soon as I hear Tommy call something, I’m good, I’m set.

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Former New England WR and local hero Troy Brown weighed in on the situation the next day. He said Ochocinco would really need to learn the system and have very good working football knowledge to spend time on the field.

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That was the great thing about playing in New England. They held you accountable for knowing football. You had to know the defenses, you had to know what coverage they were playing, you had to know who was playing what, who was on the field and what to expect when that person was on the field. I mean, we knew the game in and out.

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It seems that after last nights performance, Ochocinco is not nearly as close to the seven out of 10 in Belichick’s comfort zone.

Ochocinco actually caused the team to move back a few yards when he lined up wrong to force the referees to call an illegal formation. He ran the wrong routes a number of times and looked lost out on the gridiron.

With so many weapons in the New England offense, Ochocinco is just going to be another guy out there for most of the season, even if he can get his head on straight.

Wes Welker, Deion Branch, Rob Gronkowski, Aaron Hernandez and a whole bunch of other potential weapons are on the team, so don’t expect too much from Ochocinco even when he is out of Belichick’s doghouse.

It is a shame that one of the Patriots' major offseason acquisitions really doesn't fit with the team. His potential is great but it just doesn't seem like he will be a star in this system.  

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