Tag: Tom Brady (Page 19 of 46)

      Despite largely being devoid of superstar talent, the Patriots continue to dominate thanks to Belichick

      December 14, 2010 /

      The more things change, the more they stay the same.

      Take the Patriots for example. They traded Randy Moss earlier this year and everyone thought their passing game would incinerate. “Who is going to stretch the field?” people asked. “Tom Brady doesn’t have anyone to throw to!” everyone quipped.

      But as usual, Bill Belichick was 34 steps ahead of everyone and already knew how the Pats would survive without Moss. He already knew that Brady had already completed 72.2% of his passes for 367 yards and five touchdowns out of the two-tight end set and that his offense would run smoothly as long as Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski continued to develop. Sure, the approach would change but that didn’t mean it wouldn’t be effective.

      Belichick also knew what kind of connection Brady had with Deion Branch, which is why he traded for his former player (how is it that the Patriots always get the player they’re targeting in trade? It’s unbelievable.) to help cope with losing Moss. And how crazy is it that Branch has emerged as a playmaker again while Moss is now trapped in NFL obscurity?

      Actually, “crazy” isn’t the right word. Crazy would indicate that Belichick was fortunate that everything played out the way it did when he duped the Vikings into taking a useless Moss off his hands. But he wasn’t fortunate at all. He had a game plan and as usual, he executed it to perfection.

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      External Sports, NFL

      2010 NFL Week 15 Power Rankings

      December 14, 2010 /
      EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - DECEMBER 12: Mark Sanchez of the New York Jets picks himself up after an incomplete pass against the Miami Dolphins at New Meadowlands Stadium on December 12, 2010 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images)

      Finally, a team is offering stability at the top of the rankings.

      Check out Week 14’s Power Rankings

      1. New England Patriots
      Previous Week: 1
      This is the fourth week in a row I’ve had the Patriots in the top spot. I only mention that little factoid because before the Pats made their home atop Mount Power Rankings, the No. 1 spot acted as a revolving door for teams. New England is peaking at the right time, which has to be a scary thought for AFC playoff contenders. Tom Brady is unbeatable in blizzard-like conditions.

      2. Atlanta Falcons
      Previous Week: 2
      Never before have I seen a team fly under the radar as well as the Falcons have this season (not that they have any control of that). Even when they’re supposed to blow out a team and do just that, people aren’t impressed. Everyone is waiting for this team to fall and in the meantime, the Falcons keep winning. Here’s the real interesting part: this team hasn’t even played a complete game yet.

      3. Pittsburgh Steelers
      Previous Week: 3
      The Steelers’ defense is getting warmed up at just the right time, which is interesting because the Patriots’ offense is peaking now, too. We may be headed for a Pittsburgh-New England rematch soon enough.

      4. New Orleans Saints
      Previous Week: 4
      The Saints’ defense is starting to have that opportunistic feel about them again. They picked off Sam Bradford twice inside the red zone last week and returned one of the gifts for a touchdown right before half. I’m sure Gregg Williams wishes his unit wouldn’t give up so much yardage with the playoffs fast approaching, but he has to be pleased with the amount of turnovers its now producing.

      5. Baltimore Ravens
      Previous Week: 6
      The Ravens were lucky to escape Houston with a win on Monday night. Yes, they were up 28-7 early in the third quarter but they got too complacent and allowed the Texans to tie the game after 99 and 95-yard drives late in the fourth quarter. Houston had also stolen all the momentum heading into overtime so again, the Ravens were fortunate to make it out of Texas with a W. They have some issues to iron out before the playoffs.

      6. Philadelphia Eagles
      Previous Week: 8
      Nice win for the Birds last Sunday night in Dallas. Andy Reid’s squad fell behind in the second half but never panicked and got a couple of monster plays out of Michael Vick and DeSean Jackson. That said, Vick is still taking too many hits, which has to be a concern for Reid with the Giants’ ferocious front seven on deck.

      7. New York Giants
      Previous Week: 10
      The Giants’ performance Monday night in Minnesota wasn’t awe-inspiring from an Eli Manning standpoint, but Tom Coughlin had to love the way his running game destroyed a usually stout Minnesota front seven. The defense played incredibly well too, although most defenses will look good when the other team don’t use a quarterback. Either way, it was a huge win after a couple of days of chaos and with the Eagles game coming up. Now it’s gut-check time.

      8. San Diego Chargers
      Previous Week: 12
      The Chargers caught the Matt Cassel-less Chiefs at the right time but they’re not out of the woods yet. Any Oakland-type meltdowns the rest of the way and San Diego will be home for the playoffs. Both KC and San Diego have cakewalk schedules the rest of the year, so the Bolts will just have to pray that their division rivals collapse in the final weeks.

      9. Chicago Bears
      Previous Week: 7
      I’m not surprised the Bears lost to the Patriots last weekend. I’m surprised that they got the beating of a lifetime in what I consider “Chicago Bear conditions.” And I’m not referring to the weather, because Brady and the Pats obviously can play in the snow. I’m referring to the fact that the Bears and their fans absolutely love the underdog, we’re-better-than-everyone-says-we-are, nobody-gives-us-any-respect role. And then they go out their and they get destroyed on their home turf. Granted, if you’re going to get destroyed you might as well get destroyed by the best team in the league. I just expected more out of the eventual NFC North champs.

      10. Green Bay Packers
      Previous Week: 9
      I hate when people say that a team is better than their record because hey, their record is their record. But in the case of the Packers, I happen to think it’s true. They’ve been decimated by injuries and yet, the numbers still suggest they’re better than their record would indicate. But no matter how you slice it, the Pack are in deep trouble. They travel to New England this Sunday night and if Aaron Rodgers (concussion) can’t go, Matt Flynn isn’t going to beat the Pats on their home turf. That means Green Bay must hope the Bears lose to the Vikings on Monday night. And with how poorly Minnesota played against the Giants, that’s a long shot. It appears as though all hopes have been dashed for this once promising team.

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      External Sports, NFL

      Patriots prove there’s still a gap between AFC and NFC in dismantling of Bears

      December 12, 2010 /
      CHICAGO - DECEMBER 12: The wind swirls snow as Tom Brady of the New England Patriots calls the signals against the Chicago Bearsat Soldier Field on December 12, 2010 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

      Here are a six-pack of observations from the Patriots massive 36-7 beatdown of the Bears on Sunday.

      1. The gap between the AFC and NFC is still wide.
      This was only one game on one Sunday between two teams in the NFL. And the NFC still holds the most recent edge over the AFC in the only game that matters. But the Patriots’ victory over the Bears on Sunday still proves that there’s a wide gap between the two conferences. It’s doubtful that anyone was surprised the Patriots beat the Bears, who many believe are highly overrated. But let’s look at the facts. The Bears were one of the hottest teams coming into this game. They were at home. They had just witnessed the Packers lose to the Lions and they had an opportunity to take a two-game lead in the NFC North. They were home underdogs, which is a role they absolutely love. This should have been a much closer game and it wasn’t. It was a massacre – a true murder by numbers. The Pats outgained the Bears 27 to 12 in first downs and 475 to 185 in total yardage. They also forced four turnovers as Tom Brady threw for a season-high 369 yards and two touchdowns. Again, the Bears are only one NFC team and maybe if the Falcons played the Patriots next Sunday, the outcome would be different. But it’s hard to refute after watching this game that there isn’t a talent gap between the top teams in the AFC and the top teams in the NFC.

      2. Maybe the Bears aren’t who we thought the were.
      Are the Bears for real? I don’t know. They had a game they’d like to forget but overrated? You know people are going to throw out that term but I’d counter with: What did you expect? If you thought the Bears were overrated coming into this game then you’re not surprised that New England won. If you want overrated, try the New York Jets. That’s overrated. I don’t think a team that beat a red-hot Philadelphia team a couple of weeks ago is overrated. I just think the Patriots are that much better. You had two hot teams face each other and one flexed its dominance while the other one absolutely sh*t themselves. I still happen to think that this Bears team can do some good things. I still think they can win a playoff game at home. Are they legit Super Bowl contenders? Maybe not. But I also don’t think after one embarrassing loss you can vehemently answer “no” to the previous question.

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      External Sports, NFL

      NFL Week 13 MVP power rankings

      December 11, 2010 /

      There was a bit of a Peyton Manning sighting last night, as well as a Chris Johnson sighting. But not enough to jump on board here.

      1. Tom Brady, New England Patriots—With all due respect to Michael Vick, the dude with the long hair made a mockery out of one of the league’s top defenses on Monday night and has a 109.5 QB rating through 12 games.

      2. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles—With two games against an improved Dallas team, one against the Giants and one against Minnesota, it will determine both Philly’s season and Vick’s MVP status.

      3. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons—His numbers don’t rank him near Brady, Rivers or Manning, but he is Matty Ice for a reason, and his team is 10-2 for a reason.

      4. Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons—A mini scoring drought has dropped Mr. White a few spots

      5. Arian Foster, Houston Texans—He’s got MJD, CJ2K, JMC and AP chasing him. What is this, Star Wars? No worries, AF1 will hang on for the rushing title these next few weeks.

      6. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints—Lately, you get the feeling the Saints can just score at will when they need to. They did it late against the Cowboys and the Bengals, led by this guy.

      7. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers—Something’s afoot in San Diego, dude.

      8. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers—3243 yards, 23 TDs, 9 picks. If the Pack was better than 8-4, Rodgers would be up higher on this list.

      9. Matt Cassel, Kansas City Chiefs—The “other” Matty Ice

      10. Trent Cole, Philadelphia Eagles—Leads all DE’s in solo tackles (46) and has 9 sacks, but for some reason he doesn’t get much love.

      External Sports, NFL

      I thought the Jets and Patriots were supposed to be equals?

      December 7, 2010 /
      FOXBORO, MA - DECEMBER 06: Tom Brady of the New England Patriots reacts after BenJarvus Green-Ellis scored a 1-yard rushing touchdown in the first quarter against the New York Jets at Gillette Stadium on December 6, 2010 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

      I guess I didn’t realize how much Jim Leonhard meant to the Jets.

      Apparently he’s worth about 45 points.

      If the Patriots were trying to make a statement on Monday night in their 45-3 lambasting of the Jets, then statement effectively made. There wasn’t much doubt about who the better team was and I won’t insult the Patriots by saying something like, “the Jets just weren’t prepared.”

      They probably were prepared. And they promptly got their asses handed to them by a team that nobody in the AFC wants to face in Foxboro come postseason time.

      What had to be most concerning to Rex Ryan was that his defense didn’t have the faintest idea of how to stop Tom Brady and New England’s offense. The Jets probably expect Mark Sanchez to look completely useless from time to time (even though he’s been good for most of the season), but I’m willing to bet that one of his defenses never looked like that before. It was like watching Brady and Co. work against the scout team on Wednesday – not a Monday night showdown between two of the best teams in the AFC. I know New York had some injuries on that side of the ball and that Leonhard is a key piece to their defense, but he’s not the difference between the Jets holding opponents to 17.0 points per game and 45 PPG.

      The Patriots still have a lot of issues defensively and the MNF broadcast team pointed out several times during the game that New England struggles on third down offensively. But if last night was any indication, Belichick is starting to iron those issues out. And if the Pats are peaking at the right time, then look out.

      External Sports, NFL

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