Not sure how many Patriots games you watch, but the regular season tells it all, in terms of the Patriot offense...obviously the Patriot O hasn't accounted for ALL of these points, as some of these points were scored on special teams and turnovers, but they give you an idea of how prolific Brady and the offense has been since 2007, no matter who the coordinator is (in 2008, they managed to put up 410 points with Matt Cassel):
2007: 589 (1st overall, highest single-season total ever)
2009: 427 (6th)
2010: 518 (1st)
2011: 513 (2nd)
2012: 506 (1st) (through 14 games...only one other team has so many as 400 points through 14 GP)
The fact that the Patriots have an outside shot at the breaking their own record for PF (they need 84 points in two games...if they have a monster game against the Jags, they have a shot), and the fact that they've had three consecutive 500+ PF seasons, shows how incredibly prolific the offense has been. And last night's effort notwithstanding, they don't turn the ball over much either: Brady has thrown 105 TDs against 22 INT the last three seasons...in short, the offense has been able to cover up a LOT of defensive ills for quite some time now. The only thing the Patriot D has been solid at is minimizing the points-against damage, in relation to the vast amount of yards they allow (usually near the bottom in yards allowed, but middle-of-the-pack in PA). They have a knack of coming up with timely fumble recoveries and INTs, but some of the INTs they've gotten have been absolute gifts (all teams get these, but I have seen teams flat-out shoot themselves in the foot when it comes to facing the Patriots...Ryan Fitzpatrick comes to mind instantly).
But the main problem with the Patriot D goes all they way back to the 2006 AFC Championship Game...when asked to make a big stop in a big game, they not only not do it, but the opposing QB marches his team right down the field with relative ease. Joe Flacco did it. Ryan Fitzpatrick nearly did it before self-destructing. Eli Manning did it twice in the Super Bowl. And the list goes on...QBs who struggle against other teams have been able to put up big yards on the Pats, but Brady and Co is often able to bail them out. To be fair, the O has also come up small in some games (especially in the playoffs recently...outside of that monster game against the Broncos last season, they haven't been nearly as dominant in playoff games), but the D has had a lot of follies in key moments. And when your head coach is supposed to be a defensive mastermind, that shouldn't happen as often as it does. Think about it...the Patriots will have a three-year period where they'll have put up roughly 1600 points, and may only have one Super Bowl appearance in that time to show for it. Clearly Super Bowls aren't won on offense alone, but that's kind of hard to fathom.
I watch a ton of every team, and with the Pats, it is hard not to with the amount of game of the week matchups and prime time games they get. Plus, I have family who are massive massive fans. I know this team inside and out.
Let's get real here. Bill's calling is no longer defense. The Patriots defense has not been good for a long time. The drafting has not been good, etc. But I think defensively they still overachieve year in and year out. It's usually bend and not break with this team. They have held their own against a lot of good offenses even with a crummy defense. But at times, they have also let some crappy QBs look great for one week. That can be frustrating.
However, Bill has done wonders offensively. It isn't just Tom Brady. Tom Brady might be the greatest QB ever when it is all said and done, but this is a system with enough weapons that a lot of lesser QBs can succeed in. There are matchup issues all over the field each week. Back in 2008, Matt Cassell came in and led NE to an 11-5 record with an offense that still averaged 27 points a game. Matt Cassel is one of the worst QBs in the NFL.
The standards and expectations are set so high. Super Bowl or bust for fans. Maybe that is fair, probably not. Aren't you the one that calls Devils fans spoiled for having those same expectations? The fact that you can have those expectations in the NFL of all league is incredible, and I think has as much to do with Bill as it does with Brady. I don't think you realize how lucky you are until you are a fan of another team. I'm a Panthers fan. I've seen a 1-15 season and a 2-14 season in the past decade. I've seen talented teams underachieve. I've seen talented teams like this one (a team with enough talent to be in the playoffs, 100%), blow games due do to awful coaching and game management. I think the Panthers are 1-12 under Rivera in 7 points or less games. A lot of those losses are due to his idiotic coaching decisions.
Anyway, getting back to the defense or offense debate. The Patriots have lost two Super Bowls where there defense played very well, and Tom Brady did not. In 2007, the Patriots averaged 37 points a game and 17 against. Well their defense did their job with 17 points given up. Their offense did not scoring only 14. Last year they averaged 32 points while giving up 21. Defense did their part in the SB, but the offense did not.
I think Brady has more to do with those two losses than Bill does.
