<
>

Charting the targets in passing game

Seven different players caught at least one pass in the Patriots' victory over the Bills on Sunday. Quarterback Tom Brady's ball distribution was ideal after a Week 2 loss to the Jets in which the attack seemed too Randy Moss-centric.

"[Brady] was pretty efficient [and] got a lot of people involved. That helps the overall functionality of the offense," Patriots director of player personnel Nick Caserio said on a conference call Tuesday. "The more people that touch the ball, it puts a little more stress on the defense."

The distribution looked like this:

TE Aaron Hernandez -- 7 targets/6 catches

WR Wes Welker -- 6 targets/4 catches

TE Rob Gronkowski -- 3 targets/3 catches

WR Julian Edelman -- 3 targets/3 catches

WR Brandon Tate -- 3 targets/ 2 catches

WR Randy Moss -- 3 targets/2 catches

RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis -- 1 target/1 catch

WR Matthew Slater -- 1 target/0 catches

Through three weeks, here are the target percentages for Patriots pass-catchers:

Fred Taylor -- 2 targets/2 catches (100 percent)

BenJarvus Green-Ellis -- 1 target/1 catch (100 percent)

Aaron Hernandez -- 15 targets/13 catches (86.6 percent)

Rob Gronkowski -- 6 targets/5 catches (83.3 percent)

Julian Edelman -- 5 targets/4 catches (80.0 percent)

Brandon Tate -- 9 targets/7 catches (77.7 percent)

Wes Welker -- 24 targets/18 catches (75.0 percent)

Kevin Faulk -- 10 targets/6 catches (60 percent)

Sammy Morris -- 2 targets/1 catch (50.0 percent)

Randy Moss -- 21 targets/9 catches (42.8 percent)

Alge Crumpler -- 1 target/0 catches (0 percent)

Matthew Slater -- 1 target/ 0 catches (0 percent)