Ben Watson... solid so far.. can he keep it up (1 Viewer)

[KellysHeroes]

I understand that you can't expect a TD from him every game.... not even every other game. But so far this season, hes been a solid top 5 TE.

His pass catching skill have greatly improved (caught 7 out of 8 balls so far, 2 in the Endzone) where as last year he had a major case of the drops (6 recs for 13 targets by Week 2; Season: 49 for 91). He actually benefits from the NE spread the ball around style; if he was on another team with that much talent... he would be an after thought, and hes not sharing snaps anymore.

Whats the Shark Pool feeling on him... will he keep this up or will he fade away by mid-season?

 

[David Yudkin]

IMO, his value will be as a red zone threat. I doubt the Pats will continue to be as successful throwing the ball as defenses will have to force NE to run more. It's still early in the season, and with one less TD Watson would barely rank in the Top 10. For now, Matt Spaeth is a Top 10 TE, so clearly things can and will change.

 

[rabidfireweasel]

His pass catching skill have greatly improved (caught 7 out of 8 balls so far, 2 in the Endzone) where as last year he had a major case of the drops (6 recs for 13 targets by Week 2; Season: 49 for 91). He actually benefits from the NE spread the ball around style; if he was on another team with that much talent... he would be an after thought, and hes not sharing snaps anymore.

I think your analysis is off in lots of ways.

1) I don't think his pass catching has improved. He is simply much more open because defenses can't pay much attention to him anymore. Their leading wr from last year couldn't even make the team this year.

2) He would not be an afterthought in any offense. However, he isn't good enough, like a Gates or Gonzalez,h to put up huge numbers if the defense is focused towards sopping him.

3) He didn't share many snaps with Graham. They had different roles in the offense. Watson was on the field a ton. Don't forget that David Thomas is recovering from a broken foot and is an excellent receiving TE. He could easily cut into Watson's production come week 9.

 

[twitch]

I think you'll get a strong year out of Watson when its all said and done. The one minor problem is that he runs alot of underneath stuff, as does Welker, and that guy always seems to be open. When both guys are open, Brady will probably go to Welker more often than not. But, Watson is still a mismatch on most guys trying to cover him with either his size or speed. Imo, last year Watson probably came into the season putting a little more pressure on himself than he needed to. Everyone knew that WR corps was awful. Branch was holding out and then got traded to. Gaffney wasnt even on the team yet. Caldwell, a new WR with no history of performing, was the #1. Brown had no speed and was really not much of a threat. Ben Watson knew there would be alot expected of him, and Im sure other teams knew it as well. This year, the guy is about the 5th player on that O that the opposing D will need to worry about. Last year, he was probably 2nd. Big difference. So, if you think he's catching better this year, than expect him to have a good year because he's going to be open alot. And Brady is kindof good.

 

[KellysHeroes]

His pass catching skill have greatly improved (caught 7 out of 8 balls so far, 2 in the Endzone) where as last year he had a major case of the drops (6 recs for 13 targets by Week 2; Season: 49 for 91). He actually benefits from the NE spread the ball around style; if he was on another team with that much talent... he would be an after thought, and hes not sharing snaps anymore.

I think your analysis is off in lots of ways.1) I don't think his pass catching has improved. He is simply much more open because defenses can't pay much attention to him anymore. Their leading wr from last year couldn't even make the team this year.2) He would not be an afterthought in any offense. However, he isn't good enough, like a Gates or Gonzalez,h to put up huge numbers if the defense is focused towards sopping him.3) He didn't share many snaps with Graham. They had different roles in the offense. Watson was on the field a ton. Don't forget that David Thomas is recovering from a broken foot and is an excellent receiving TE. He could easily cut into Watson's production come week 9.

I have too disagree with you1)... yes it has, the #s prove it... I live in the Market and always watch the Pats (unless the Jets are on or their being blown out)... I understand that Defenses focus on him more last year than they can this year... but that doesn't explain 42 missed recs... and I saw plenty of times when he was open and brady placed the ball perfectly and Ben just dropped it; the drops were in his head last year for sure.2)... He will never be asked to be Gates or Gonzo... so whats your point; don't see how that affects him on his current pace? 3)... so after their BYE week (10) I have to worry about Thomas... and just like that, their going to cut Watson #s for Thomas. Why put in a guy that the QB has no chemistry with mid-season unless theres some type of injury, ?

 

[The Kansas Comet]

I don't see any reason why he can't be a productive TE for the rest of the season, unless Moss and Welker go down. Defenses simply have to respect Moss first and foremost, which means they can't emphasize the underneath routes as much as they did last season. Watson is talented enough to be able to defeat the player defending him most of the time in such a situation, so why shouldn't he continue to be solid. He won't put up Gates or even Winslow numbers, but given where he was probably drafted, that's not what anyone was expecting. And while the Pats will run the ball plenty, they aren't stubborn about it. If passing the ball 35 times gives them the best chance to win, they'll do just that. And with the receivers they have now, the coaches know that having Moss, Welker, and Watson on the field at the same time puts defenses at a major disadvantage - there should be plenty of passes to go around.

 

[David Yudkin]

I don't see any reason why he can't be a productive TE for the rest of the season, unless Moss and Welker go down. Defenses simply have to respect Moss first and foremost, which means they can't emphasize the underneath routes as much as they did last season. Watson is talented enough to be able to defeat the player defending him most of the time in such a situation, so why shouldn't he continue to be solid. He won't put up Gates or even Winslow numbers, but given where he was probably drafted, that's not what anyone was expecting. And while the Pats will run the ball plenty, they aren't stubborn about it. If passing the ball 35 times gives them the best chance to win, they'll do just that. And with the receivers they have now, the coaches know that having Moss, Welker, and Watson on the field at the same time puts defenses at a major disadvantage - there should be plenty of passes to go around.

I hate having these types of discussions in Week2 of the season because anything can still happen, but certainly trying to project an entire season after two games is very tough to do.The easy solution is to review what the Pats have done for two weeks and draw season long conclusions. But if we do that . . . Maroney will end up with 0 receptions this yearStallworth will have about 20.Faulk would end up with about 15.No other TE will get a reception.The only WR on the team that will ever see the ball more than once a game are Moss and Welker.I've watched the Pats for forever, and if there's one thing I've learned with regard to Watson is that no matter how great he looks for a week or two, he does not sustain that performance level. And when you are ready to move on and play someone else, he'll go off for a week or two again.This is just the second time in his career that he's scored a TD in back to back regular season games. Maybe Watson will take his game to the next level, but I still think he will put up a moderate receiving yard total but should benefit in the red zone and have a career high by far in TDs. Teams will have no choice but to double Moss and cover Welker while worrying about the Pats banging it in on the ground, leaving Watson as the guy that will see single coverage.

 

[NoFBinLA]

As has been said earlier, I think that like Welker, Watson is benefitting quite a bit from the Moss/Brady love fest. He's getting more room to work as the D is worrying about Moss too much to close him down. Add to that, Welker is probably starting to get some more attention and Watson is just benefitting from alot of other weapons.

I've always liked him - I think he could have a rock solid, top 10 TE season if Moss stays healthy and productive.

But as has also been pointed out -- hard to guess after just 2 weeks.

 

[SeniorVBDStudent]

I don't see any reason why he can't be a productive TE for the rest of the season, unless Moss and Welker go down. Defenses simply have to respect Moss first and foremost, which means they can't emphasize the underneath routes as much as they did last season. Watson is talented enough to be able to defeat the player defending him most of the time in such a situation, so why shouldn't he continue to be solid. He won't put up Gates or even Winslow numbers, but given where he was probably drafted, that's not what anyone was expecting. And while the Pats will run the ball plenty, they aren't stubborn about it. If passing the ball 35 times gives them the best chance to win, they'll do just that. And with the receivers they have now, the coaches know that having Moss, Welker, and Watson on the field at the same time puts defenses at a major disadvantage - there should be plenty of passes to go around.

I hate having these types of discussions in Week2 of the season because anything can still happen, but certainly trying to project an entire season after two games is very tough to do.The easy solution is to review what the Pats have done for two weeks and draw season long conclusions. But if we do that . . . Maroney will end up with 0 receptions this yearStallworth will have about 20.Faulk would end up with about 15.No other TE will get a reception.The only WR on the team that will ever see the ball more than once a game are Moss and Welker.I've watched the Pats for forever, and if there's one thing I've learned with regard to Watson is that no matter how great he looks for a week or two, he does not sustain that performance level. And when you are ready to move on and play someone else, he'll go off for a week or two again.This is just the second time in his career that he's scored a TD in back to back regular season games. Maybe Watson will take his game to the next level, but I still think he will put up a moderate receiving yard total but should benefit in the red zone and have a career high by far in TDs. Teams will have no choice but to double Moss and cover Welker while worrying about the Pats banging it in on the ground, leaving Watson as the guy that will see single coverage.

Solid analysis, but I can't shake the feeling that NEP coaching is trying to build a synthetic Colts offense, and we know how solid the Colts TE position has been from a fantasy perspective over the past 5 years.

 

[twitch]

I don't see any reason why he can't be a productive TE for the rest of the season, unless Moss and Welker go down. Defenses simply have to respect Moss first and foremost, which means they can't emphasize the underneath routes as much as they did last season. Watson is talented enough to be able to defeat the player defending him most of the time in such a situation, so why shouldn't he continue to be solid. He won't put up Gates or even Winslow numbers, but given where he was probably drafted, that's not what anyone was expecting. And while the Pats will run the ball plenty, they aren't stubborn about it. If passing the ball 35 times gives them the best chance to win, they'll do just that. And with the receivers they have now, the coaches know that having Moss, Welker, and Watson on the field at the same time puts defenses at a major disadvantage - there should be plenty of passes to go around.

I hate having these types of discussions in Week2 of the season because anything can still happen, but certainly trying to project an entire season after two games is very tough to do.The easy solution is to review what the Pats have done for two weeks and draw season long conclusions. But if we do that . . .

Maroney will end up with 0 receptions this year

Stallworth will have about 20.

Faulk would end up with about 15.

No other TE will get a reception.

The only WR on the team that will ever see the ball more than once a game are Moss and Welker.

I've watched the Pats for forever, and if there's one thing I've learned with regard to Watson is that no matter how great he looks for a week or two, he does not sustain that performance level. And when you are ready to move on and play someone else, he'll go off for a week or two again.

This is just the second time in his career that he's scored a TD in back to back regular season games. Maybe Watson will take his game to the next level, but I still think he will put up a moderate receiving yard total but should benefit in the red zone and have a career high by far in TDs. Teams will have no choice but to double Moss and cover Welker while worrying about the Pats banging it in on the ground, leaving Watson as the guy that will see single coverage.

Ive also watched the Pats forever. But theyve never had Moss to stretch the field. And as a result, Brady has never looked better. We've reached alot of conclusions based on what the Pats have done in the past. That could apply to Watson among others. But Ive quickly realized these Pats with Moss are nothing like Pats teams of the past. Throw in the fact that the rest of the world thinks these guys are a bunch of cheaters, and it just adds fuel to the fire. The Pats are going to be dropping the hammer on every team they face. Like with the SD game, how many games in the past would NE have gone for that TD on 4th down with a 17 point lead with 3 minutes left on the clock? Never. Im expecting similar statements made in many other games this season.

But as long as Moss is on the field, guys like Watson will thrive. So, Im throwing alot of those old trends out at this point. I think its safe to say that offensively, theyre establishing new precedent.

 

[sandlotshrink]

If I recall, Watson became a td threat about midway through the season last year when I finally dropped him. He was hyped big time at the beginning of the season b/c Brady did not have any real WR threats to throw to and Watson was supposed to be the guy. Well, he was anything but the guy for first 5-6 games then like I said, once I cut him, he became a redzone target. I am not surprised to see him continue his redzone presence especially since NE has all the new WR weapons. No reason he can't keep it up IMHO.

 

[The Man Who Met Andy Griffith]

Solid analysis, but I can't shake the feeling that NEP coaching is trying to build a synthetic Colts offense, and we know how solid the Colts TE position has been from a fantasy perspective over the past 5 years.

Dallas Clark has been a mediocre starter for years.

 

[CalBear]

Solid analysis, but I can't shake the feeling that NEP coaching is trying to build a synthetic Colts offense, and we know how solid the Colts TE position has been from a fantasy perspective over the past 5 years.

The Colts haven't had a TE rank in the top 10 since Marcus Pollard in 2003. Pollard himself ranked in the top 5 only once; that was Reggie Wayne's first year, when Wayne had 345 yards.

 

[KellysHeroes]

I've always liked him - I think he could have a rock solid, top 10 TE season if Moss stays healthy and productive.But as has also been pointed out -- hard to guess after just 2 weeks.

He was TE 11 in my PPR league last yr....