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The key from that article for me was:
As emotional as the Pittsburgh game was--Bledsoe received a game ball--the quarterback was still being evaluated. According to the coaches' game breakdowns, Bledsoe's statistics were: one mental error, four bad throws, and four bad choices. The logical counterargument to those unflattering numbers was rust. How could Bledsoe expect to play well when the majority of his reps hadn't come with the starters? How could he be sharp when he hadn't played in a game in four months?
Belichick didn't view it that way. As much as he respected Bledsoe, he had an idea of what his quarterback should do. The model for that idea was Brady. Brady had shown an ability to stay calm, recognize defensive nuances, and shout out the necessary adjustments for his receivers, backs, and linemen. When he coached against Bledsoe in New York, Belichick would often present the quarterback with a "Cover 5" defense. It features man-to-man coverage with two deep safeties to help on the receivers. Belichick would tell his defensive backs to be physical at the line of scrimmage. Then he would play the educated odds, going with scientific and anecdotal research that revealed Bledsoe would not be accurate enough or patient enough to make the throws that could defeat an effective "Cover 5."
Now we know why BB let him go. Too bad TD didn't do his homework beforehand.
As emotional as the Pittsburgh game was--Bledsoe received a game ball--the quarterback was still being evaluated. According to the coaches' game breakdowns, Bledsoe's statistics were: one mental error, four bad throws, and four bad choices. The logical counterargument to those unflattering numbers was rust. How could Bledsoe expect to play well when the majority of his reps hadn't come with the starters? How could he be sharp when he hadn't played in a game in four months?
Belichick didn't view it that way. As much as he respected Bledsoe, he had an idea of what his quarterback should do. The model for that idea was Brady. Brady had shown an ability to stay calm, recognize defensive nuances, and shout out the necessary adjustments for his receivers, backs, and linemen. When he coached against Bledsoe in New York, Belichick would often present the quarterback with a "Cover 5" defense. It features man-to-man coverage with two deep safeties to help on the receivers. Belichick would tell his defensive backs to be physical at the line of scrimmage. Then he would play the educated odds, going with scientific and anecdotal research that revealed Bledsoe would not be accurate enough or patient enough to make the throws that could defeat an effective "Cover 5."
Now we know why BB let him go. Too bad TD didn't do his homework beforehand.
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