For the moment, I’m trying not to think about the Green Bay Packers-Atlanta Falcons beatdown. Did you see the game that followed, the New England Patriots vs. Pittsburgh Steelers? What a show Patriots receiver Chris Hogan put on.
Right after Julio Jones humiliated the Packers with nine catches for 180 yards, Hogan had the exact same stats against Pittsburgh. The backstory on this guy is terrific – and it provides a lesson Ted Thompson might learn from.
Hogan was a lacrosse player at Penn State. After that he spent one season as a football player at Monmouth, where he caught all of 12 passes.
He had aspirations of playing in the NFL and, sure enough, he was signed as an undrafted free agent by the 49ers in 2011. He proceeded to hop around to the Giants and Dolphins. His first playing time in the NFL came in 2013 as a member of the Buffalo Bills. In sporadic appearances he caught 10 passes on the year. He stayed on as a non-starter at Buffalo for two more years.
Then he had the good fortune to join the Patriots. This is a team and a coaching staff not as inclined toward the draft as Green Bay, but they sure know how to “develop.”
But to develop a player successfully, you need to start with someone who has a sufficient amount of potential.
Chris Hogan may have been “raw” (a word that Packers’ coaches have all but copyrighted), but he was 6’2’, 220 pounds, extremely strong (28 bench presses) and did the 40-yard dash in 4.47 (at the Fordham Pro Day). It didn’t take long after joining the Patriots, receiving instruction from that coaching staff, and starting to get thrown to by Tom Brady that Hogan broke out: 36 catches, 680 yards, 4 touchdowns and a sparkling 17.9 yards per catch average in his first year there.
At age 28, his potential, which went unrealized by his first four NFL teams, suddenly turned into actual productivity. If he broke out during the regular season, he has absolutely busted loose in his first two playoff games: 13 catches out of 17 targets, for 275 yards and two touchdowns.
Bill Belichick and the Patriots took a guy who labored in obscurity for five years in the league, and instantly transformed him into a player who’s matching Julio Jones catch for catch. I’m starting to get why the Patriots are a perennial Super Bowl contender.
As I described once before, the Patriots have repeatedly turned cast-off, under-appreciated, and non-pedigreed players into success stories. Hogan follows in the footsteps of receivers Wes Welker, Julian Edelman, and Danny Amendola.
Green Bay likes to tout its “draft and develop” philosophy, but I’ve not seen the Packers have anywhere near the Patriots’ success at developing players into not only steady starters but playoff stars. I’d say this is a big factor in why New England just advanced and Green Bay didn’t.
14 Comments
I’ll agree with all of that Rob, and i’ll add…
Hogan was a free agent who didn’t break the bank. He also didn’t take years to “develop”.
The difference between the Pats and the Packers are….
When the Patriots have a weak area on their team, they fix it in fairly quick order.
The Packers weak area’s seem to go unfilled for years at a time. Unfilled, because the person who handles player acquisition has one way to build a team, and that way, takes years and years to complete, if it even does.
One further…Not only is Belichick the Patriots head coach, he also is 100% in charge of player acquisition..
So Fat Mike can tell the Nation how successful he is. If McCarthy is successful, then what is Belichick?
I must reluctantly admit your 3rd and 4th sentences are exactly correct. Keen insight summed up perfectly.
There are a bazillion examples but, to name a few, the DL has basically never been fixed yet, they still have Capers at D coordinator, only this year have they finally fixed the TE (if they retain Cook), and in all the TT years they’ve never had an average, let alone above average, pair of ILBs. Never.
lmao….How perfect is this…..A fan of a viking team, critiquing a Packers team. Even though the clearly inferior viking team couldn’t find success if it dropped from the sky and landed through their roof.
I really need a job guys. Call me.
Hogan’s measurements sadly remind me of our beloved Janis, who is “not there yet”.
I had to shelve certain offensive concepts this season due to lacking play makers with the measurables of a Jeff Janis. I will feature him in my schemes that is a promise.
You are funny!
The key to draft and develop is to do that by finding the “diamond in the rough”, that 3rd, 4th, 5th round guy that was overlooked. It does not mean reaching for guys with unproven potential in the early rounds. Ron Wolf found the diamonds, TT reaches.
Easier said than done. There aren’t many GMs that can pick that talent out. Even fewer teams that have the coaching that can maximize the potential
So many reaches by TT! He is more of a reacher than Jack Reacher!
The reaches on the D-line alone are astounding =
Justin Harrell — an injury prone under-performer taken in (gasp) round 1 (expected to go rd 3)
Khyri Thornton — a prospect to maybe be a quality back up belonging in round 6/7 taken (gasp) round 3.
Dean Lowry — Should be available in round 6 or 7, taken in round 4.
How about that 6th round TE Rodgers taken in round 3? Or Blake Martinez in round 4 (when Kentrell Brothers was still available and who the Vikings then scooped up in round 5 {though the Vikes did sorely reach for Willie Beavers in round 4]), RB Johnathan Franklin in round 4, Datone Jones, a good player, but round 1? C’mon.
Every GM has failed picks. Everyone. But taking players 1, 2, 3, or more rounds earlier than you should? Or taking a player like Kenny Clark when a clearly superior player in every way at the exact same position is available — like Vernon Butler? Shameful.
So many reaches by the Vikings, seriously Killer you wish you had Ted. Vikings can’t reach this year they traded the pick.
The all time reach was Christian Ponder…WTF I know your jaw dropped on that one. Remember Troy Williamson? I do. Tavaris Jackson rd 2 oops. Wisconsin boy Erasmus James…oops again. 1st round Kick returner Cordarrelle Patterson. Before you say Pro Bowl..he’s a kick returner drafted in the first round. Even Anthony Barr..9th overall…Odell Beckham went 12th. Oops
Now Now…..Lets not pile on. The vikings have accomplished things that are very rare in the NFL.
How many teams do you know of that started both 6-0 one season, and 5-0 another season, and missed the playoffs both seasons?
Not fucking many!! Lets give the vikings their due for that rare accomplishment.
Not need to undress the white rat anymore than you folks already have…..and it’s all on point. Been saying it since way back n the Randy Moss and Marshawn Lynch walk away days. If he didn’t inherit Favre and luck out with AR, he’d be n his closet today all alone. Reality is, this team MAY be capable of winning 3 games without Rodgers…maybe. You can’t “develop” if you keep missing on your 1’s, don’t fill in with an occasional free agent signing and keep trolling on he streets for miracles. Problem starts and stops with TT, Favre knew it and Rodgers knows it! He stays and the clock just keeps on ticking. If you’re very lucky, they come along once in a lifetime. We’ve had two and both their legacies have been hnderd by one socially awkward and overrated freak
Refreshing to read a post that entails so much reality from an obviously knowledgeable Packer fan.
Thank you