Tag: New England Patriots (Page 36 of 72)

      Are we witnessing the end of the Pats’ dynasty?

      January 7, 2010 /

      It wasn’t supposed to be like this for the New England Patriots. In the preseason, the general consensus was that the Pats were going to put on an offensive show reminiscent of 2007 this season now that Tom Brady was back under center. But while the offense has been outstanding this season (they are third in the NFL in total offense and second in the AFC in points scored behind the Chargers), the Pats have been far from dominant.

      At the root of the issue has been a defense that has been average at best this year. The Pats have the No. 11 overall defense, but the stats don’t paint the full picture. Opponents have been able to move the ball successfully against them this season, mostly notably on the ground where NE is giving up over 110 rushing yards per game.

      Compounding New England’s problems is that they haven’t been as clutch as they have been in previous seasons. Brady has had his issues with turnovers, the defense has struggled coming up with a big stop and regardless of whether or not you agree with Belichick’s decision-making this season, the bottom line is that they haven’t worked. The fourth down gaffe against Indianapolis wasn’t the only time Belichick has rolled the dice this season and came up short.

      The good thing is that the Patriots have been here before. They have loads of postseason experience and have been a different team at home this season than on the road. The problem (outside of everything else that has already been mentioned) is that they face a confident Ravens team that has already proven it can go toe-to-toe with them in Foxboro, and that they’ll be without their most consistent offensive weapon in Wes Welker, who suffered a season-ending knee injury last Sunday in Houston.

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      This is why teams considering resting starters: Wes Welker tears ACL

      January 3, 2010 /

      ESPN.com is reporting that Patriots’ receiver Wes Welker has been diagnosed with a torn ACL and MCL and will miss the entire postseason. Welker suffered the injury while trying to make a cut during New England’s 34-27 loss to Houston in Week 17.

      For those fans that complain about teams resting starters late in the season, this is why they do it. I understand this isn’t the same as the Colts conceding a perfect season by pulling Peyton Manning and the rest of their starters last week, and I’m not trying to compare the situations. But did Welker have to play today? Did he absolutely need the extra work? If he took the week off, would he and Tom Brady not be able to complete a bubble screen next week in the postseason after successfully completing 4,350 bubble screens this season?

      I get it – momentum is vital in sports. Teams don’t want to have a losing mindset entering the postseason and it’s key for coaches to keep their players confident. But what was this all for in the end? What if this had been Brady? I’m sorry, but I disagree with those that think teams with nothing to play for should keep their starters in through Week 17. I get that injuries can happen in practice and even in the player’s own homes, but the risk factor is amplified in a live game.

      I feel bad for Wes Welker. He worked his ass off all season to help his team get to the playoffs and now he’ll have to watch from the sidelines because Bill Belichick and his coaching staff decided that he needed to play in a semi-meaningless game against Houston.

      NFL

      NFL Week 16 COY Power Rankings

      January 3, 2010 /

      Upsets galore and crazy outcomes have forced us to look a bit harder at the Coach of the Year rankings, but most of our contenders are hanging tough.

      1. Jim Caldwell, Indianapolis Colts—The poor guy is still dodging proverbial rocks being thrown by Colts’ fans, who wanted their team to continue its pursuit of perfection instead of rolling over against the Jets. Being that the Colts were still in position to go to 15-0 when Caldwell did that, we have to cut him some slack and remember that his team is still the top seed in the AFC and would be in the NFC as well.

      2. Sean Payton, New Orleans Saints—Payton surely did not want to back into the #1 seed in the NFC, but after losing two games in a row, his team did just that when the Vikings’ loss Monday night let the Saints snag the top position. And once again, we have to consider the entire season’s body of work.

      3. Norv Turner, San Diego Chargers—When you consider that Turner’s Chargers always play lousy in September, only to win when it really matters, that’s far better than it being the other way around. It’s time we started to give Turner his due.

      4. Marvin Lewis, Cincinnati Bengals—The Bengals are another team not playing well, but they have dealt with two tragedies this season—the death of player Chris Henry, and the passing of the wife of D-coordinator Mike Zimmer. And still, the Bengals are 10-5 with an AFC North title. Raise your hand if you expected that.

      5. Brad Childress, Minnesota Vikings—Yes, the Vikings are floundering and in danger of losing the #2 seed to Philly or Dallas, but I’ll keep mentioning two players who Childress sought in the off-season that made this a championship caliber team—Brett Favre and Percy Harvin.

      Honorable mention: Ken Whisenhunt, Cardinals; Mike McCarthy, Packers; Andy Reid, Eagles; Bill Belichick, Patriots; Rex Ryan, Jets; Wade Phillips, Cowboys; Josh McDaniels, Denver Broncos

      NFL

      Steelers’ Woodley calls out Patriots, Steelers

      December 30, 2009 /

      Steelers’ linebacker LaMarr Woodley predicted on Wednesday that the Patriots and Bengals will “lay down” this Sunday for their games against the Texans and Jets because they don’t want to play against the Steelers in the playoffs.

      From Forbes.com:

      “All of them lay down,” Woodley said Wednesday. “No one wants to see Pittsburgh in it. That’s just how it is. Everybody knows we’re a dangerous team once we get into the playoffs, no matter how we played the whole year. Once we get into the playoffs, the Pittsburgh Steelers is a playoff team.”

      Well, no one can blame Woodley for trying to get Cincinnati and New England to play their starters.

      Pittsburgh has to beat Miami this Sunday and also have the Patriots defeat the Texans and the Bengals to beat the Jets. So in other words, the Steelers will likely be enjoying the playoffs next week like the rest of us: From their couches.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

      Should the Patriots still be feared?

      December 27, 2009 /

      For a month and a half, the Patriots have looked average to below average every week. They were smacked by the Saints in late November, lost a tightly contested battle in Miami the following week, and then won back-to-back games against the Panthers and Bills in lackluster fashion.

      But their 35-7 rout of the Jaguars (a playoff contender, mind you) on Sunday begs the question of whether or not the Patriots are still feared. With all due respect to the Steelers, New England has been the team of the decade and is always dangerous in the postseason. They’re also somewhat flying under the radar because they haven’t looked particularly great, but have won three in a row and might be building some confidence again.

      That said, it’s no surprise that the Patriots beat the snot out of the Jaguars today. They’ve beaten Jacksonville the last four times the two teams have played and have outscored the Jags 110-57 in those four games. They just match up well with Jacksonville and they proved it again today.

      My eyes tell me that this isn’t the same Patriots team that has trampled the competition in the past, even with their impressive win today. But with Tom Brady under center and Bill Belichick patrolling the sideline, my gut wonders if this isn’t a team (which has had a ton of success in the postseason) peaking at the right time and that could sneak up on the opposition in the playoffs two weeks from now.

      NFL

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