FOXBORO — It’s a rare event to see miscommunication between Tom Brady and Wes Welker.
That’s why, when the two misfired during a key moment late in a loss to Denver on Oct. 11, those who have followed the Patriots the last two-plus seasons knew they had witnessed something akin to a Halley’s Comet moment.
Since Welker first joined the Patriots prior to the 2007 season, few receivers have been as indispensible to the success of a passing game as the Texas Tech product has been to New England. According to Football Outsiders, over a two-plus-year stretch, Welker caught 75 percent of the passes thrown in his direction in 2008 and 77 percent of the passes thrown toward him in 2007.
This season, the 5-foot-8 Welker is at 74 percent — he’s been targeted by Brady 62 times, and has caught a league-high 46 passes, despite missing two games with a knee injury.
Welker has been able to flourish because he is a No. 2 receiver — which means he doesn’t usually draw the opposition’s No. 1 corner — but at the same time, his ability to hold on to the ball is a rare asset for any pass-catcher. Considering the league average is roughly 60 percent (according to Football Outsiders, which refers to the stat as catch rate), it’s an astounding set of percentages for any receiver, let alone an undrafted free agent.
By way of comparison, big-time receivers such as Reggie Wayne (68 percent), Larry Fitzgerald (65 percent) and Andre Johnson (54 percent) all have a lower catch rate than Welker.
“Those are incredibly high totals for a wide receiver,” Mike Tanier, a contributing editor for Football Outsiders, said of Welker.
But it’s hardly surprising given the symbiotic relationship between Brady and Welker. Both have benefited from their partnership — Brady has become Welker’s security blanket, the most dependable New England pass-catcher of the last two-plus years who has bailed him out on several occasions in the same fashion that Troy Brown did earlier in the quarterback’s career.
And Welker has become a bona fide Pro Bowler, someone who nearly doubled his receptions in his first year in the system (he went from 67 in 2006 to 112 in 2007).
“We have a pretty good rapport with each other,” Welker said of Brady. “We understand what each other is thinking against different coverages and how he wants me to run the routes and where he's going to be putting the ball. It all goes hand in hand.”
“He’s a great player,” Brady said of Welker. “He does everything right out there. He’s always in the right spot. He gets open vs. any coverage on any route.”
After he gets open, more often than not, he makes the catch. And after the catch is made, Welker does something with it. In addition to his high catch rate, he’s consistently at or near the top of the league in yards after catch — this season, he leads all NFL wide receivers with 286 yards after the catch. (Only Baltimore’s Ray Rice, Houston’s Steve Slaton and San Diego’s Darren Sproles are better at getting YAC.)
Since 2007, the sight of Welker weaving through the open field has become a familiar sight in Foxboro. But it was a long process getting there — the receiver, in his sixth year in the league, admitted Thursday that he wasn’t aware how to get those yards earlier in his career.
“I didn't learn about coverages and understanding them — I knew what they were on film, but I never understood what they were doing on he field,” Welker said of his experiences as a receiver earlier in his career. “Being able to understand on the field is definitely a key.”
According to Welker, the biggest key to getting extra yardage after the catch is knowing what sort of defense he's going up against. Doing a little extra homework and discovering a hidden seam can go a long way.
“I think understanding coverages is the key thing and knowing where defenders are, and which way to turn and when I need to get upfield and when I have a little more room to do something else with it,” Welker said. “The main thing is securing the ball and getting upfield and trying to make something happen.”
“Pretty much before you even catch the ball, you have to know where the guys are going to be. That’s one factor,” said teammate Kevin Faulk, who has had good success as a receiver since 2007 himself. “Then, it's knowing what kind of defense they're in. Is it zone? Is it man? There are a couple of factors that weigh in on it. You have to know and figure it out. Once you catch the ball, just turn up the field and go north.”
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