Patriots Snap Count Analysis: What We Learned In Win Over Raiders

Snap count takeaways from New England's Week 3 victory

by Zack Cox

Sep 28, 2020

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      Here are the New England Patriots' official snap count tallies from Sunday's 36-20 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders at Gillette Stadium:

      OFFENSE
      RG Shaq Mason, 69 snaps, 100 percent
      C Joe Thuney, 69 snaps, 100 percent
      RT Jermaine Eluemunor, 69 snaps, 100 percent
      LG Mike Onwenu, 69 snaps, 100 percent
      QB Cam Newton, 69 snaps, 100 percent
      WR Damiere Byrd, 66 snaps, 96 percent
      LT Isaiah Wynn, 59 snaps, 86 percent
      WR Julian Edelman, 56 snaps, 81 percent
      WR N'Keal Harry, 46 snaps, 67 percent
      TE Ryan Izzo, 43 snaps, 62 percent
      RB Rex Burkhead, 32 snaps, 46 percent
      TE Devin Asiasi, 29 snaps, 42 percent
      RB Sony Michel, 26 snaps, 38 percent
      FB Jakob Johnson, 18 snaps, 26 percent
      RB J.J. Taylor, 15 snaps, 22 percent
      OT Justin Herron, 10 snaps, 14 percent
      WR Jakobi Meyers, 7 snaps, 10 percent
      WR Isaiah Zuber, 6 snaps, 9 percent
      WR Matthew Slater, 1 snap, 1 percent

      -- Thuney went wire to wire in his first NFL start at center. Onwenu, a rookie sixth-round draft pick, did the same in his first pro appearance at left guard.

      -- Byrd saw his largest workload yet. He's led all Patriots receivers in snaps in each of the team's first three games.

      -- Edelman outsnapped Harry for the first time this season. Patriots wideouts combined for just seven receptions as the team relied heavily on its running backs.

      -- Speaking of backs, Burkhead, who scored all three of the Patriots' offensive touchdowns, saw more playing time than Michel for the second straight week. Taylor, an undrafted rookie, set new career highs in carries (11) and offensive snaps (15).

      -- Herron's 10 snaps came at left tackle while Wynn sat out New England's first offensive series of the second half. With Onwenu needed at left guard, the Patriots did not run any plays out of their "double jumbo" formation, which deploys the two rookie linemen as extra tight ends.

      -- Izzo, who played 98 percent of offensive snaps through the first two games, saw his workload decrease substantially. Asiasi, meanwhile, played more snaps than he had in Weeks 1 and 2 combined (20), with the Patriots occasionally using the rookie third-rounder in one-tight end sets for the first time. Asiasi still has yet to receive a target in the passing game.

      -- Zuber, elevated from the practice squad before the game, played six snaps in his NFL debut.

      -- Only Newton, Thuney and Mason have played every offensive snap this season.

      DEFENSE
      S Devin McCourty, 59 snaps, 100 percent
      CB Stephon Gilmore, 58 snaps, 98 percent
      CB J.C. Jackson, 51 snaps, 86 percent
      CB Jonathan Jones, 49 snaps, 83 percent
      LB Ja'Whaun Bentley, 47 snaps, 80 percent
      CB Jason McCourty, 40 snaps, 68 percent
      DE Deatrich Wise, 39 snaps, 66 percent
      OLB John Simon, 37 snaps, 63 percent
      DT Lawrence Guy, 36 snaps, 61 percent
      S/LB Adrian Phillips, 35 snaps, 59 percent
      OLB Chase Winovich, 32 snaps, 54 percent
      DT Adam Butler, 29 snaps, 49 percent
      OLB Shilique Calhoun, 27 snaps, 46 percent
      S Kyle Dugger, 25 snaps, 42 percent
      DT Byron Cowart, 24 snaps, 41 percent
      S Terrence Brooks, 21 snaps, 36 percent
      DE Derek Rivers, 16 snaps, 27 percent
      LB Brandon Copeland, 11 snaps, 19 percent
      DB Joejuan Williams, 9 snaps, 15 percent
      DT Nick Thurman, 4 snaps, 7 percent

      -- Wise's snap rate was the sixth-highest of his Patriots career and higher than all but one of his appearances last season (70 percent at Cincinnati in Week 15). He played less than 40 percent of snaps in Weeks 1 and 2.

      Wise, who looks noticeably bigger and stronger this season, recovered a fumble in the end zone for New England's final touchdown -- the first of his NFL career.

      -- Jackson saw his highest snap rate of the season, playing all but eight snaps after beginning the game on the sideline. Jason McCourty has started all three games opposite Gilmore.

      -- Williams had a small but important role, mirroring Raiders star tight end Darren Waller on select plays. After Williams was flagged twice for defensive holding against Waller, the Patriots transferred those duties to Dugger early in the second half.

      Dugger, New England's top 2020 draft pick, has seen significant playing time in each of the last two games. He and Williams were part of a collective defensive effort that held Waller to two catches for 9 yards.

      -- Winovich started for the third straight game but posted his lowest snap rate of the season as New England rotated its edge rushers. The 2019 third-rounder registered a strip-sack in the win and has been one of the Patriots' best defensive players through three games.

      -- Brooks and Copeland reverted to their Week 1 workloads:

      BROOKS
      Week 1: 29 snaps (47 percent)
      Week 2: 6 snaps (10 percent)
      Week 3: 21 snaps (36 percent)

      COPELAND
      Week 1: 8 snaps (13 percent)
      Week 2: 30 snaps (48 percent)
      Week 3: 11 snaps (19 percent)

      -- Devin McCourty has missed just one snap this season.

      Thumbnail photo via Paul Rutherford/USA TODAY Sports Images
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