Aaron Hernandez rarin’ to attack Jets’ coverage - BostonHerald.com
Aaron Hernandez rarin’ to attack Jets’ coverage
Photo by Ted Fitzgerald
JET PROPELLED: Patriots rookie tight end Aaron Hernandez hopes to have another big game against AFC East rival New York, which visits Gillette Stadium on Monday night.
One-on-one fight
FOXBORO — Aaron Hernandez doesn’t care what route he’s instructed to run or what part of the field he’s asked to roam. One assignment is the same as the next.
But on the topic of the defense’s coverage, it changes for the Patriots [team stats] tight end. Hernandez loves man coverage. He craves the challenge of the one-on-one battle.
No wonder the rookie from Florida can barely contain himself when thinking about how the Jets may match up with him on Monday night.
“I look forward to every game,” Hernandez said, “but knowing they play a lot of man-to-man, that’s just exciting. I’m definitely excited for the game.”
With good reason. Hernandez went out of his way to praise the Jets third-ranked defense. But it was difficult to ignore that he’ll face the same team that allowed him to catch six passes for a season-high 101 yards in Week 2.
“Hey, last time, I was just put in situations where I could be open by (quarterbacks coach Bill O’Brien),” Hernandez said diplomatically. “I was just in the right spot at the right time and Tom (Brady) hit me.”
There is more to it than that. The 6-foot-2, 245-pounder was a featured target for the first eight games with 34 catches for 436 yards and two touchdowns. Since, it’s been the Rob Gronkowski show, as the other rookie tight end has feasted on mostly zone coverage for 11 catches for 162 yards and three scores.
Plenty of factors go into which tight end plays more, but with the Jets’ creative blitzing scheme all but necessitating man coverage, this may be a game for Hernandez.
“I can see why Aaron’s hard to cover because he’s fast, he’s quick and he’s shifty,” the 6-6, 265-pound Gronkowski said. “And if it’s man coverage, that’s something any player can exploit if you get open.”
Both tight ends may attack the middle of the field, especially with safety Jim Leonhard (tibia) out. With the Pats varied passing game that has seen Brady feature eight or nine receivers, the Jets respect the tight ends as much as any of them.
“They’re both big weapons,” coach Rex Ryan said. “They don’t have that big huge guy on the outside that would give you fits. Now, they just found a different way to get it done.”
The Jets’ attacking defense often relies on a sure-tackling secondary to limit big plays. That’s where Hernandez thrived in the first meeting. He had gains of 18, 46 and 14 yards, with the 46-yarder coming on a short pass and a missed tackle by Darrelle Revis.
Hernandez’ ability to turn a short pass into a big gain could loom large.
“He broke a tackle on two on those catches,” coach Bill Belichick recalled. “Anytime you can break a tackle in man coverage, it’s usually a ways until the next guy can get you because everybody’s tied up in man-to-man. So, there are opportunities for big plays in man coverage if you can get by the guy that’s covering you. The flip side of it is, usually, the guy’s usually close enough that he can make the tackle and you can limit those yards.”
It’s not quite clear who Revis will cover, but Hernandez said if it’s the star corner, “It’s gonna be a little battle out there.”
Hernandez has played it cool recently while in an offense that has often left him on the sidelines.“We just have so many weapons on this team,” Hernandez said. “Kids cannot get the touches and they should be, because there’s so many people that should get the touches.”
Perhaps on Monday it will be Hernandez’ turn again.
[quote name='Buckfast 1' date='Dec 14 2010, 06:17 PM' post='12697756']
ReplyDeleteAccording to this theory, it seems like Gronkowski is definitely the better start next week vs. the Packers.
Just to recap this theory over the last two weeks:
Against the Jets (who used primarily man-to-man coverage on the TE), Hernandez went for 3 catches for 51 yards with a TD whereas Gronkowski had only 1 catch for 12 yards.
Against the Bears (who primarily used their base cover-2 zone coverage), Gronkowski went for 5 catches for 43 yards with a TD whereas Hernadez had only 2 catches for 19 yards.
The Packers tend to run a 3-4 zone blitz defensive scheme led by defensive coordinator Dom Capers. When he was the defensive coordinator for the Steelers, Capers was one of the original architects of the 3-4 zone blitz scheme used by the Steelers over the last 18 years. The same type of 3-4 zone blitz scheme that Gronkowski torched for 5 catches for 72 yards and 3 TDs and that held Hernandez to no catches in the Patriots' Week 10 win over the Steelers.
So, consistent with this theory and Gronkowski's and Hernandez's past performances against Pittsburgh's similar 3-4 zone blitz scheme, it seems like Gronkowski is the better start this week against the Packers.
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