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Borges: Malcolm Butler tweeting himself out of the money
http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/...ng_himself_out_of_the_money#join-conversation
Ron BorgesFriday, December 15, 2017
Credit: John Wilcox
Cornerback #21 Malcolm Butler and the Patriots warm up for practice at Gillette. Thursday, December 14, 2017. Staff photo by John Wilcox.
Judging by his recent retweet, Malcolm Butler may now be considering himself a coach as well as a player. Judging by his recent performances, he may soon get the chance to do more of the former than the latter by spending his time standing next to his coaches rather than in the huddle.
Butler has struggled much of this season to recover from the shock and disappointment of having been denied an opportunity to sign a contract for $50 million with the New Orleans Saints by Bill Belichick, and then forced to continue playing for the equivalent of NFL minimum wage. To assume such a circumstance would not affect an employee’s performance is to live in a world disengaged from reality and human personality.
Having said that as a plausible defense for Butler’s apparent lack of focus on all things Patriots, there is no question he has cost himself money this season and seems to be on the precipice of costing himself his position. That might come as early as this Sunday, depending on several factors.
First, what is the true health of Eric Rowe? Rowe only recently returned to active duty and, frankly, looked pretty good in limited exposure. If he’s ready to play a full game might Sunday in Pittsburgh be the right moment, considering the slippage in Butler’s performance for nearly all of the season despite a brief mid-year return to form?
Second factor? Do the coaches have eyes in their heads?
If they do, they will have surely seen by now the inordinate number of times Butler has been burned playing the ball rather than playing through the hands of receivers who have gotten behind him because of what appears to be a heightened interest in amassing personal statistics: i.e. interceptions. Considering the payday the Patriots gave Stephon Gilmore and denied Butler one can understand and sympathize to a degree Butler’s apparent decision to take a new approach to how he plays his position.
This happened at least twice in Monday night’s loss to the Dolphins, Butler being burned for a touchdown catch by Jakeem Grant when he looked back for the ball as soon as he saw Grant’s eyes glance up. Instead of maintaining position, he looked for the ball and Grant created just enough separation behind him at that moment to high point the throw over Butler, who stumbled backward trying to make up the step.
He did the same thing on a second long throw that should have been a scalding, but Grant dropped what would have been a long gain with Butler several strides behind him.
If this was an isolated incident one could simply acknowledge that every defensive back gets beaten at times because it is one of the most difficult — and lonely — positions in sports. But the truth is Butler has had his fingers — and his coverage — burned too many times this year because of peeking in the backfield or trying to pick off passes for it to any longer be called an accident.
His retweet of a Pro Football Focus graphic concerning how Miami quarterback Jay Cutler burned the Patriots’ failed blitzes Sunday (an accurate assessment of what happened, by the way) may prove to be the last straw for Belichick and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, because it had the appearance of a direct shot across the bow of the men in charge of strategy. It appeared to be an effort to deflect blame for the way he played Monday night onto strategical decisions made to combat what admittedly has been a poor pass rush.
Wednesday Butler claimed it was all a mistake, telling the Herald’s Jeff Howe, “Accidental, I didn’t even know it happened. So I mean, a big misunderstanding. Moving on from that.”
Perhaps but even the best-case scenario — which is that Butler is perusing such things — is not a good sign. PFF made a legitimate point because the pass rush has been underwhelming and that surely impacts coverage on the back end. Monday’s added blitzes didn’t help and often led to Cutler lacerating the secondary, especially on a third-down throw when blitzing safety Jordan Richards had Cutler but allowed the QB to spin away as if he was Barry Sanders. Cutler rolled left, buying time, until he delivered a completion and third-down conversion. In close games, those plays matter.
But that was a point to be raised in a meeting room or not at all, a fact that seemed not lost on Butler because his retweet of PFF’s blitz stat came down faster than Butler was moving when Grant ran by him before dropping a sure TD pass. Butler’s problem on that play had nothing to do with a blitz package. It had to do with a failure to stay with his man.
Many times this season Butler’s problem has been an apparent refusal to play the coverage technique Belichick has for so long taught. It is one that concentrates more on playing the receiver than the ball and hinges on an ability to drive your hands up through the receiver’s as a pass is being caught. Arguably no one in the secondary does that better than Butler, but this year that technique has too often been ignored.
His midseason rally convinced some he was back to his old self. The truth is, even in his best games, he was not playing as consistently as he had in the past. Two other PFF analytical stats Butler did not retweet speak to that.
Butler is now ranked 47th among 119 qualifying cornerbacks by their metrics with a middling 78.6 ranking that is his worst since 2014. It is also decidedly average by their statistical standard.
Worse, Butler is 58th in yards allowed per coverage snap, which is nearly smack in the middle and decidedly average. According to Howe’s weekly coverage stats, Butler has been burned for scores more than twice as often as any other defensive back, having allowed seven touchdowns and 532 receiving yards with 40 completions in 82 targets. That’s a nearly 50 percent completion percentage, which is far from elite.
He does have 12 pass breakups and two picks, but he’s also been flagged three times, which would only serve to expand yardage allowed.
By way of comparison, Gilmore, despite a terrible start, has given up only two scores on 49 targets (26 completions, 371 yards) with two interceptions, five passes broken up and five penalties. Rowe, with only minimal playing time due to injury, allowed no scores and 109 yards with nine completions in 12 targets.
Given today’s short passing game a number of completions are of the shallow cross and quick slant variety, which are difficult to defend. Often the best you can hope for is tight coverage and a quick tackle. If there is one thing Butler has remained it’s a sure tackler.
But those seven TDs and the number of times he has failed to play the techniques he’s been taught have reached the point where they argue forcefully it may be time for a change. Few things focus the mind better than a seat on the sideline. Whether Belichick does that Sunday will depend on Rowe’s health and whatever his level of exasperation in Butler’s play may be. But you can bet on this: that retweet, accident or not, didn’t help his cause.
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View: https://twitter.com/McKennAnalysis/status/941076042072182785
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Me: Boston media likes to throw stuff on guys headed out the door. Saw it with Manny Ramimez and the Fried Chicken crew. Didn't they say stuff about Clemens too? Anyhow, article reveals possible character concerns, or not. . . .
http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/...ng_himself_out_of_the_money#join-conversation
Ron BorgesFriday, December 15, 2017
Credit: John Wilcox
Cornerback #21 Malcolm Butler and the Patriots warm up for practice at Gillette. Thursday, December 14, 2017. Staff photo by John Wilcox.
Judging by his recent retweet, Malcolm Butler may now be considering himself a coach as well as a player. Judging by his recent performances, he may soon get the chance to do more of the former than the latter by spending his time standing next to his coaches rather than in the huddle.
Butler has struggled much of this season to recover from the shock and disappointment of having been denied an opportunity to sign a contract for $50 million with the New Orleans Saints by Bill Belichick, and then forced to continue playing for the equivalent of NFL minimum wage. To assume such a circumstance would not affect an employee’s performance is to live in a world disengaged from reality and human personality.
Having said that as a plausible defense for Butler’s apparent lack of focus on all things Patriots, there is no question he has cost himself money this season and seems to be on the precipice of costing himself his position. That might come as early as this Sunday, depending on several factors.
First, what is the true health of Eric Rowe? Rowe only recently returned to active duty and, frankly, looked pretty good in limited exposure. If he’s ready to play a full game might Sunday in Pittsburgh be the right moment, considering the slippage in Butler’s performance for nearly all of the season despite a brief mid-year return to form?
Second factor? Do the coaches have eyes in their heads?
If they do, they will have surely seen by now the inordinate number of times Butler has been burned playing the ball rather than playing through the hands of receivers who have gotten behind him because of what appears to be a heightened interest in amassing personal statistics: i.e. interceptions. Considering the payday the Patriots gave Stephon Gilmore and denied Butler one can understand and sympathize to a degree Butler’s apparent decision to take a new approach to how he plays his position.
This happened at least twice in Monday night’s loss to the Dolphins, Butler being burned for a touchdown catch by Jakeem Grant when he looked back for the ball as soon as he saw Grant’s eyes glance up. Instead of maintaining position, he looked for the ball and Grant created just enough separation behind him at that moment to high point the throw over Butler, who stumbled backward trying to make up the step.
He did the same thing on a second long throw that should have been a scalding, but Grant dropped what would have been a long gain with Butler several strides behind him.
If this was an isolated incident one could simply acknowledge that every defensive back gets beaten at times because it is one of the most difficult — and lonely — positions in sports. But the truth is Butler has had his fingers — and his coverage — burned too many times this year because of peeking in the backfield or trying to pick off passes for it to any longer be called an accident.
His retweet of a Pro Football Focus graphic concerning how Miami quarterback Jay Cutler burned the Patriots’ failed blitzes Sunday (an accurate assessment of what happened, by the way) may prove to be the last straw for Belichick and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, because it had the appearance of a direct shot across the bow of the men in charge of strategy. It appeared to be an effort to deflect blame for the way he played Monday night onto strategical decisions made to combat what admittedly has been a poor pass rush.
Wednesday Butler claimed it was all a mistake, telling the Herald’s Jeff Howe, “Accidental, I didn’t even know it happened. So I mean, a big misunderstanding. Moving on from that.”
Perhaps but even the best-case scenario — which is that Butler is perusing such things — is not a good sign. PFF made a legitimate point because the pass rush has been underwhelming and that surely impacts coverage on the back end. Monday’s added blitzes didn’t help and often led to Cutler lacerating the secondary, especially on a third-down throw when blitzing safety Jordan Richards had Cutler but allowed the QB to spin away as if he was Barry Sanders. Cutler rolled left, buying time, until he delivered a completion and third-down conversion. In close games, those plays matter.
But that was a point to be raised in a meeting room or not at all, a fact that seemed not lost on Butler because his retweet of PFF’s blitz stat came down faster than Butler was moving when Grant ran by him before dropping a sure TD pass. Butler’s problem on that play had nothing to do with a blitz package. It had to do with a failure to stay with his man.
Many times this season Butler’s problem has been an apparent refusal to play the coverage technique Belichick has for so long taught. It is one that concentrates more on playing the receiver than the ball and hinges on an ability to drive your hands up through the receiver’s as a pass is being caught. Arguably no one in the secondary does that better than Butler, but this year that technique has too often been ignored.
His midseason rally convinced some he was back to his old self. The truth is, even in his best games, he was not playing as consistently as he had in the past. Two other PFF analytical stats Butler did not retweet speak to that.
Butler is now ranked 47th among 119 qualifying cornerbacks by their metrics with a middling 78.6 ranking that is his worst since 2014. It is also decidedly average by their statistical standard.
Worse, Butler is 58th in yards allowed per coverage snap, which is nearly smack in the middle and decidedly average. According to Howe’s weekly coverage stats, Butler has been burned for scores more than twice as often as any other defensive back, having allowed seven touchdowns and 532 receiving yards with 40 completions in 82 targets. That’s a nearly 50 percent completion percentage, which is far from elite.
He does have 12 pass breakups and two picks, but he’s also been flagged three times, which would only serve to expand yardage allowed.
By way of comparison, Gilmore, despite a terrible start, has given up only two scores on 49 targets (26 completions, 371 yards) with two interceptions, five passes broken up and five penalties. Rowe, with only minimal playing time due to injury, allowed no scores and 109 yards with nine completions in 12 targets.
Given today’s short passing game a number of completions are of the shallow cross and quick slant variety, which are difficult to defend. Often the best you can hope for is tight coverage and a quick tackle. If there is one thing Butler has remained it’s a sure tackler.
But those seven TDs and the number of times he has failed to play the techniques he’s been taught have reached the point where they argue forcefully it may be time for a change. Few things focus the mind better than a seat on the sideline. Whether Belichick does that Sunday will depend on Rowe’s health and whatever his level of exasperation in Butler’s play may be. But you can bet on this: that retweet, accident or not, didn’t help his cause.
------------------------------
View: https://twitter.com/McKennAnalysis/status/941076042072182785
------------------------------
------------------------------
Me: Boston media likes to throw stuff on guys headed out the door. Saw it with Manny Ramimez and the Fried Chicken crew. Didn't they say stuff about Clemens too? Anyhow, article reveals possible character concerns, or not. . . .
need to delete his name from their data ...DELETE!