Anyway, let's get to some other matters in this week's mailbag.
Is Rob Gronkowski the best tight end in the NFL?
–Jamie (Tewksbury)
At this point, I strongly believe that to be the case. Gronkowski has had a phenomenal season with both aspects of the position. Obviously, he's an elite blocker, and to see his value there, I look back to the Patriots' first game against the Jets when they ran behind Gronkowski on eight consecutive running plays on the final, game-clinching drive in the fourth quarter.
Really, his blocking ability is a statistical curse, and I think that's why it took until this point in the season to realize how special of a player he can be. Between the 20s, Gronkowski might be a more valuable blocker than receiver, at least in New England's offense, but he's also an elite red-zone target.
Check out these numbers. First, Gronkowski has 20 touchdowns in his first 26 games, which makes him the fastest to reach that mark in history for a tight end, and he's got more touchdowns than any tight end in that span. He's also tied for fifth in total touchdowns since 2010. But it might be even more impressive to see how he's doing it.
Gronkowski has 17 touchdown catches in the red zone, which is the most in the NFL since he entered the league in 2010. He's also got 11 touchdown catches of 10 yards or less, which shows his value as a receiver when the field shrinks and the defense condenses its coverage. Those 11 receiving scores are also the most in the NFL since 2010.
Eight of Gronkowski's touchdowns have given the Patriots the lead. He is tied for seventh in the NFL since 2010 in that department, and he only trails Calvin Johnson and Greg Jennings among pass-catchers.
Simply put, Gronkowski has become the most dangerous red-zone weapon in the NFL since he entered the league, and his size, strength and hands make him nearly impossible to cover, especially since Tom Brady and the Patriots know how to use him. That's why he is the best tight end in the league.
How good of a cornerback can Kyle Arrington become? What's his ceiling?
–@illmatic940, via Twitter
That's a good question because he has already surpassed so many expectations in the last year and a half. Even Bill Belichick said this week he didn't look at Arrington as a potential starting cornerback when the Patriots signed him in 2009. Arrington has made the most of his opportunities, first as a special teamer and then as a replacement for Darius Butler. Now, he leads the NFL in interceptions — which can be a fluky stat, no doubt — but it's a testament to his ball skills, hard work and dedication to improving as a player.
Arrington is a tremendous athlete with good, powerful speed, and he's strong with sound tackling ability. He's still very much learning how to play cornerback at this level, so I'd expect him to continue improving for a little while. I don't want to compare him to any one player, but for now, I think the Patriots are very happy to have him as a second cornerback. Could he be a No. 1 corner in, say, two years? I don't know, but I think he's proven he can be a starter in this league.
Will Shane Vereen's performance in garbage time against Kansas City get him a foothold in the running back pecking order?
–@SigmundBloom, via Twitter
Yeah, to an extent, but I still don't envision him getting any more than a handful of carries in any game from here on out unless there's an injury or a change in offensive philosophy when the weather turns. The important thing is it's given Vereen the confidence to know he's capable of doing it on an NFL field, and I don't want to undersell that point. Monday's performance gave Vereen something to fall back on, and I wouldn't be surprised if he just completed the best week of practice of his rookie season because of it.
How might Tiquan Underwood contribute? Could he become a possible Laurent Robinson option like Dallas has?
–@BestPatsfan12, via Twitter
I always try to preach caution with these types of expectations at this point in the season. It's always important to ask yourself, "Why hasn't [insert player name here] been on an NFL roster until now?" Obviously, Underwood has had a few stints with the Patriots since training camp, so he's a little further along in the getting-to-know-you process, but he's still at the bottom of the depth chart among the wide receivers. If anything, Underwood could contribute as a kick returner, but I don't know how much he can really grow in the offense this season. But if he plays well on special teams — like Arrington in an earlier question — he could get a shot to join the team in training camp again next season.
I don't know what it is about the Dallas offense that allows it to churn out receivers seemingly out of nowhere, but Robinson is like their new Miles Austin. They also had Danny Amendola back in the day. For whatever reason, that happens much less frequently with the Patriots, who get much of their receiving contributions from marquee acquisitions (Randy Moss, Wes Welker) and bigger-name draft picks (Deion Branch, Gronkowski, Aaron Hernandez).
If I buy a new TV on Black Friday, do the Pats look better on TV?
–@Megatran_, via Twitter
Everything looks better on a TV, especially when you save a few hundred bucks on it. Then, I'd recommend using that extra cash on a surround-sound system. It'll change your life. This I promise you.
Hi Jeff, my question is why are the Patriots' halftime adjustments so effective? And why can't they start the game the way they play the second half? Is it because opponents totally change their game plan when they play the Patriots, and therefore the coaches can't plan for it?
–@Sammir_24, via Twitter
Well, for starters, halftime adjustments are overrated to a certain extent. I wrote about this at the end of the 2009 season, so check out the link for a much longer breakdown of that point.
But for whatever reason, the Patriots have gotten off to a slow start in recent weeks, at least offensively. They've started to pick up the pace later in the second quarter and really hit their stride in the second half. Naturally, you'd look toward something at halftime as a spark, and I think Belichick could give his guys a kick in the rear about a lethargic first half, but they don't reinvent the wheel during the 12-minute break (when only six to eight minutes are spent in the locker room).
I will point to the Chiefs game as one example, though. I heard some guys say they had a tough time preparing for the Chiefs because they give a lot of different looks and had a big change in personnel due to injuries. Once the Patriots made their adjustments and figured them out, they improved in a big way. Other than that, I'm not sure if the slow starts have been fluky or just a lack of execution for whatever reason.
