Dillon

[s0meguy]

Anyone who watched the game on Thursday must have noticed that he wasn't even in the game half of the offensive series. I kept track and they went no RB the 1st, 3rd, and 5th series. After that I wasn't watching the game as closely. He finished with 15 carries and ~80 yards. I knew he wasn't going to be the go to guy in NE but I was expecting more than 15 carries a game from him. Without the 38 yarder he broke, that puts him at 14 for ~45 yards, not very impressive numbers. Is it too early to make judgement? Is this going to keep happening in the future?

[deftdelivery]

I'd expect so, but not to the same degree we saw yesterday. NE was running 5 wide to throw off IND's initial gameplan, and also to exploit the weak secondary and loss of Mike Doss.

HOWEVER, this is Tom Brady's offense, not Corey Dillon's. It's a spread-it-out pass attack that just uses the run to create a balance - to mix it up..NOT TO SCORE. Notice how many carries Dillon got inside the 30? Exactly.

If you're relying on Dillon to be your #1, forget it. He has the talent, but I really don't think he's going to be used as much as people think.

[Canacuna]

Dillon was the only RB New England had on its roster last night - they couldn't really risk putting a heavy workload on him. Besides, why mess with what's working? The passing attack was going on all cylinders against Indy - there wasn't really a need to work Dillon in more than he was.

[Football Newbie]

Dillon looked good when he ran IMO. Faulk was out so they werent risking anything. Expect 20+carries a game from now on.

[Azrael]

What you saw last night is what I expect on average from Dillon.

[Flockers]

What you saw last night is what I expect on average from Dillon.

Me as well. Dillon is a great running back, but he is aging. New England needs to keep him healthy so he can run wild in the playoffs.

[34=Sweetness]

What you saw last night is what I expect on average from Dillon.

I doubt it. The Patriots should have lost that game and I don't think they'll be leaving Dillon on the sidelines. It was more of a precaution because they had no backup to give him a break.

[MMH]

Dillon looked good when he ran IMO. Faulk was out so they werent risking anything. Expect 20+carries a game from now on.

My thoughts exactly. NE were just taking advantage of the Colts weaknesses. It was a big game againt one of the leagues better teams so they went with what worked. If Dillon got hurt at all last night they would have been in big trouble and he looked preet damned good when he was given the ball.

Also you have to figure that they will run the ball more once the crappy weather hits in at Foxboro.

I am shocked people are thinking that 80 something yards with something like an 8+ YPC was a bad game. For me he looked a perfect fit in the NE offence. I wouldnt have him as my #1 RB in FF but he is certainly a top tier #2

[biju]

This concept that they are "saving" Dillon is crap. The point is to win the game. Bellicheck will use whatever he needs in order to win a game, just as any other coach would. If the running game was working and the passing game wasn't, he wouldn't continue to keep passing, period.

But with that last sentence is the real reason. He knew that the running game was going to get broken up to rest Dillon, so certain drives were all passes in order to get Brady and the receiving corp in a rhythm. If he ran Dillon and Brady got a little cold, and then Dillon needed a breather they could have been in trouble.

So I guess my point is, he did exactly what he needed to do to win. He wasn't saving Dillon, he was keeping Brady warm.

[Kensat30]

Dillon screwed over my team last year, I put a curse on him, end of story.

To all those people that ranked Dillon ahead of Rudi this year.... just watch what Cincy does in the red zone.