Phillip Dorsett has yet to establish himself as a go-to target in an offense, whether that be with the New England Patriots or the Indianapolis Colts. But quarterback Tom Brady seems to expect Dorsett to take a major leap forward during the 2019 season.
“He’s done a great job for us and he’s making a lot of plays for us, we put him all over the field, and [he] just continues to improve,” Brady said during a press conference on Wednesday. “I think this has been a big year for Phil. He’s worked really hard, put himself in a great position to take advantage of his opportunities, and he’s certainly done it. So, everyone’s happy for Phil. Nobody deserves it more than him, and he’s going to need to keep doing it.”
While Dorsett briefly seemed like he would be on the losing end of the trade for Demaryius Thomas this offseason and the signing of Antonio Brown this season, those receivers haven’t lasted in New England. That turnover has left Dorsett, who joined the team in a trade in 2017, among the top three wideouts on the depth chart behind Julian Edelman and Josh Gordon. Because the Patriots’ options at tight end have been injured, Ryan Izzo and Matt LaCosse, and mostly unproductive, New England has leaned more heavily on their receivers than in past years, favoring three-receiver sets. That has meant more work for Dorsett, who has 13 catches for 187 yards and three touchdowns this season.
“He’s one of the guys that’s now become one of the people on the team that you just have to count on week-to-week and you have to know exactly what you’re going to get,” Brady said. “Because there’s sometimes where you don’t – he was one of those guys before that was like, ‘Man, we don’t know.’ He was new here. There were other guys that carried a burden. And I think the veteran players who have been around, been in the tough games, know how to do it, you’ve got to carry the burden while the other guys can get up to speed and learn.
“So, that’s part of the responsibility as a veteran player, for a guy like Phil, for a guy like Julian, James White, Joe Thuney. You know, they were all young players at one point. Now they’ve become the veteran players that they’ve got to carry most of the burden.’
