Since their bye week, the Patriots have been on the fast track offensively and are exactly where they should be given their opponents. And that is the key, the Patriots have not had a challenge in their past three games. Buffalo was tough but the Patriots got their focus back and have since beaten the Indianapolis Colts and the New York Jets handedly. But what exactly can we take away from this? How hard has it really been for the Patriots this second half and what will happen when tougher opponents take the field against them?

Bill Belichick still has work to do even though the Patriots have been unstoppable in back to back games. (FILE:USPresswire)

Offensively there are some big injuries plaguing the Patriots that could come back to haunt them. Logan Mankins has been battling a hip injury and Dan Connolly and Sebastian Vollmer have also missed some time recently. Obviously the Rob Gronkowski injury was a big blow to the offense but the Patriots do have one element on their side, time. There was a quick turnaround from Sunday to Thursday this past week and Bill Belichick made some smart moves with personnel. Against Indianapolis Aaron Hernandez sat out and that gave his ankle more time to heal. After Gronk went down, that move by Belichick proved even more important. Hernandez didn’t rack up the receptions with only two grabs on three targets, but he was back in the game and that is an improvement. With Miami this week the Patriots should be able to afford another week of rest for players like Mankins with lingering injuries before they face the Texans and 49ers in back to back weeks.

Defensively the linebackers have been struggling. It started in the game against Buffalo when Brandon Spikes was too aggressive for his own good and now they’ve shown their inability to catch a running back on the move. The Patriots linebackers are big and when their timing is right, they can blitz an offense with great success, but when they need to make a tackle, a quick route on an angle has proven to be their demise.

Obviously there is a lot of positive to take out of these last three games. The Patriots have been doing exactly what was expected of them and have beaten lesser opponents by huge margins. They took advantage of every Jet mistake on Thanksgiving and made them look like a high school team going up against a bunch of pros. Andrew Luck was able to have a big passing day but ultimately the defense adjusted and picked him off three times. What’s important here is to keep perspective. The Patriots have done nothing they shouldn’t have done. Their real challenge is in two weeks when they face the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football. Their schedule has been favorable, and given their injury situation, the coaching has been spot on. In order to keep their success going they’ll have to take each win in name only and continue to correct mistakes that have hurt them all season long. With the playoffs inching closer this is just the time for the Patriots to come out and get some character building wins under their belts.

On Sunday the Patriots handled the Indianapolis Colts exactly how they should have. Andrew Luck got a taste of the Patriots aggression on defense and saw how efficient Tom Brady can be. It was a nice change considering how the team has struggled against lesser opponents this season.

It was another big day for the linebackers with Jerod Mayo leading the way with 10 tackles as the defense got aggressive. (FILE:USPresswire)

The win was impressive with the Patriots tying their franchise record and putting up 59 points, and it should be noted that the Patriots finally played some cohesive football. Special teams came up huge with Julian Edelman returning a punt for a touchdown, in addition to his five carries for 58 yards. And the defense made adjustments after the first few series made it seem like this game was headed for a shootout. They got aggressive and collapsed the pocket on Luck. That is where they had their success. Vince Wilfork had two tipped passes and was in the face of Luck all game. When Chandler Jones left with an ankle injury, Jermaine Cunningham filled in flawlessly and worked with the linebackers to really turn up the heat. Brandon Spikes was quick off the line in the blitz and he was as aggressive as ever, without being reckless.

The secondary still struggled allowing Luck to pick up 334 passing yards but they did show improvement with only one pass interference penalty and it came in the first quarter. The rest of the game was clean and that was refreshing. There is nothing worse than watching a defense beat itself with penalties. The introduction of Aqib Talib went better than expected. He returned an interception 59 yards for a score and had seven tackles. It seems like he fits the system pretty well. Devin McCourty is solid at safety with Patrick Chung still dealing with a shoulder injury and it seems the addition of Talib can buy him some more time to recover.

The defense really excelled when it blitzed. That rattled Luck and when the pocked collapsed he had a tougher time putting the ball on target. But that is not to take anything away from the rookie. He showed his strength when Rob Ninkovich tried to pull him down by the collar and still managed to complete a pass downfield. He made some great passes and really took control of his team. Granted he threw three interceptions, two of which resulted in touchdowns, there’s no way he walked away from this game without gaining something. This was a great learning experience and it will make him a better quarterback moving forward this season.

Offensively the scheme worked well for the Patriots. Wes Welker and Rob Gronkowski each had seven receptions and Gronk had two touchdowns. It was a nice change to see him healthy enough to make the plays we grew so accustomed to last season. With the substitutions on the offensive line the run game took a bit of a hit but Brady did not and that is okay by me. Hopefully Logan Mankins and Dan Connolly were kept out of Sunday’s game to give them more rest for Thursday but only time will tell.

It’s a quick turn around for the Pats as they head to the Meadowlands to take on the Jets in primetime on Thursday. Hopefully they didn’t use up all their offense and can find their way back to the hurry up. If the defense is as aggressive with Mark Sanchez as it was with Luck, they should have another big three phase victory.

The time has come for the always anticipated Indianapolis Colts vs. New England Patriots game. Or wait, is it still anticipated? With Peyton Manning now playing for the Denver Broncos and rookie Andrew Luck at the helm, this game has completely changed. Its gone from a battle of future hall of famers to a battle of young versus old. Tom Brady is established while Luck is having a rookie season to remember. He has completely transformed a defeated Colts team that was 2-14 last season to a 6-3 team that we could see in the playoffs.

Tom Brady will take on Andrew Luck and hopefully his experience will win out in the battle of young versus old. (FILE:USPresswire)

On Sunday the Patriots will be up against yet another rookie with nothing to lose. Luck has already proven he is a legitimate player and can lead a team. It is the Patriots’ job to shut him down early and watch out for an always dangerous Reggie Wayne. He leads the team with 931 receiving yards, good enough for second in the league behind Calvin Johnson. The good news is that Luck is more of a traditional NFL quarterback. He isn’t a threat to run but he can work outside of the pocket. We know the Patriots needed a complete overhaul after their poor performance last week and here are three things they’ll need to do in order to succeed on Sunday.

1. Make Adjustments When Necessary What we haven’t seen from the Patriots so far this season is a lot of in game adjustments. Due to the versatility of Wayne, they’re going to need to actually do this on Sunday. They’ll use him for the shorter passes as well as the down the field shots. It will be interesting to see how the Patriots defense chooses to cover him. Indianapolis is no joke when it comes to offense. They are the sixth best in the league averaging just over 20 points per game. Their defense is matched with the Patriots when it comes to points allowed giving up 22 points per game, so this could turn into more of an offensive matchup than we bargained for.

2. Win the Special Teams Battle This team needs to step up on special teams. They about break even with the yards they allow on kickoff returns and the yards they pick up. We haven’t seen a solid special teams unit in years, we’ve only been given the glimmers of great runbacks that are not frequent enough. Should this game become more about the offense, special teams is going to play a big part. Bill Belichick talks every week about the three phases of the game and it’s about time the Patriots make some sort of move here.

3. Convert Third Down Opportunities The Patriots have allowed opponents to convert on just over 44% of their third down attempts this season. Meanwhile the Colts only let teams pick up the third down 37& of the time. Offensively these two teams are ranked first (Patriots) and third (Colts) when it comes to third down conversions. It’s a close matchup with the Colts defense statistically winning out. It will be important for Brady and this offense to convert on every opportunity. The run game needs a rebound and with Wes Welker missing some practice this week with an ankle injury, they have their work cutout for them.

So is this the start of a new era? Sunday is set to be a teacher versus student type of atmosphere and it has become more of a buildup than I think anyone could have anticipated in September. The Patriots still have a lot of improving to do and on Sunday let’s hope they give us a little bit more breathing room and control the game early.

The Patriots barely got passed the Buffalo Bills in an unimpressive first game off the bye week. Thanks to a near record day of penalties (14 for 148 yards), the Bills practically handed this game over. The way the Patriots played raises questions about what they did and what changed during their week off.

Devin McCourty saved the game with an end zone interception but the Patriots showed no improvement and barely got a win against the Bills. (FILE:USPresswire)

The only thing that seemed to change was the Patriots run defense. And in this case, change was not a good thing. Heading into Sunday’s game the Patriots were allowing opponents just around 88 rushing yards per game. Against the Bills, the once strong front seven allowed 162 yards. That far outpaced the Patriot’s 117 rushing yards. While there were glimpses of a pass rush and Ryan Fitzpatrick was taken down three times, it seemed like the defense was getting fooled. They were biting on delayed passes and the screen pass got the better of them. Not to mention the usual problem, there was still an open gap in the middle of the field that Scott Chandler got very comfortable with. He was the Bill’s answer to Rob Gronkowski and the Patriots got to see how difficult a guy of that size is to cover. And what seemed to be a distant problem, missed tackles, popped back up again on Sunday, a sign of a defense in reverse.

Offensively things didn’t get much better for the Patriots. Stevan Ridley struggled and finished with 22 carries for 98 yards. He did have a touchdown but his day against that Buffalo defensive line was not easy. The amount of times he tried to bounce the ball outside and was denied was uncharacteristic. So for a Patriots offense that is trying to find its stride and make a name for itself, today was not its day. Fitzpatrick walked away from this game having thrown 100 yards more than Tom Brady and completing a higher percentage of passes. Receivers dropping balls wasn’t any help but it takes eleven players to make an offense run smoothly.

It’s easy to say that the Patriots just needed to shake some rust off and this won’t happen again. But this was the perfect opportunity to get off to a strong start. What they should have done was force Buffalo to play at their level instead of lowering themselves down. The only change I saw was the incorporation of Deion Branch. After Wes Welker he was the most targeted with eight balls thrown his way but unfortunately he only came up with four receptions. The history between Brady and Branch is no secret and this could be signs of a wrinkle in which Branch will become more of a focus for this offense.

This game clearly was not the best way to start the second half of the season. The Patriots should have dominated just as they did in London. There were a lot of errors on both sides of the ball that overshadowed any positive improvements. Once again this team allowed a less than average quarterback to take control and make them sweat it out. Next week they will not be so lucky against Andrew Luck. They have to correct these mistakes and get serious about their schedule. The road from here on out isn’t easy and next week we’ll see what kind of team they’re truly going to be.

After a relaxing bye week, the Patriots are back at it on Sunday against the Buffalo Bills. This is a nice transition from a week off into the final half of the season. With a win on Sunday, the Patriots will be 2-0 over a divisional opponent. That will come in handy when playoffs come around and teams are fighting for home field advantage. The last time these two teams met up the Patriots scored 31 points in the fourth quarter to beat the Bills 52-28. On Sunday, they’ll look to get off to a strong start early and keep the lead all game long.

The Patriots still rank top among all other NFL teams when it comes to offense. They had a lot of work to do over the bye and here is what I’ll be looking for from this team on Sunday.

What kind of offense are the Patriots going to run and how will Aaron Hernandez factor in? (FILE:USPresswire)

1. Identity of Offense Just because you’re the best, that doesn’t mean you have all of the answers. What I want to see on Sunday is what this team is going to be offensively down the stretch. Are they going to commit to Stevan Ridley and the run game or is Brandon Lloyd going to be a more important part? What effect will the tight ends have on the offense? Hopefully a week of rest did Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez some good and they are able to come back healthy and 100%. Tom Brady is the commander of this ship and it will be interesting to see how he and Josh McDaniels have come together to give some direction to this offense.

2. Tom Brady’s Command It seems to me that Tom Brady has been a little off so far this season. Whether it’s low thrown balls or off-target passes, he hasn’t quite gotten into a groove. On Sunday it will be great to see him run the offense like he used to. Quick and effective, driving the ball down the throat of an opposing defense. He is 35 years old and obviously not the same quarterback we used to know, but deep down he still has it in him. The Bills are the perfect opponent to make moves on and it will be a good opportunity for him to try out any new techniques that popped up during his bye week film studies.

3. Fourth Quarter Finish The Patriots need to start finishing games in the fourth quarter. I’d like to see them be the last ones with the ball in their hands on Sunday. In addition to the offensive work that was done of the past two weeks, you better believe twice as much work was done on defense. The Patriots made a splash signing Buccaneer’s CB Aqib Talib, but he won’t be a factor until after this week due to a suspension for violating league rules regarding performance-enhancing drugs. So for this week Patrick Chung and Devin McCourty are going to have to shoulder the load and keep Buffalo at bay. Buffalo has one of the worst offenses in the league, ranking 25th out of 32, so hopefully that won’t be too much of a challenge.

It’s easy to look past Buffalo as a win but it’s never quite that way coming off a bye week. The Patriots will need to get back into the swing of things and get to playing their game. It’s a home crowd so hopefully that works to their advantage. These changes need to be come and they need to stick as all games are now must-win. Happy second half of the season, it’s time for us to see some true Patriots football.

Just as Hurricane Sandy threatens to shake New England, the Patriots found a way to settle down in London. Zoltan Mesko punted only twice and Stephen Gostkowski had only one field goal attempt as the offense took the red zone by storm. Tom Brady threw for 304 yards and four touchdown passes. The Brandon Lloyd situation was resolved and he had his first multi-touchdown game of the season. Rob Gronkowski led all receivers with a season high eight receptions for 146 yards and two touchdowns. Not to mention he was able to showcase a few new additions to his touchdown dance.

Tom Brady and the offense got it together in London, now in the bye week they’ll have to determine what kind of team they’re going to be. (FILE:USPresswire)

But just because the Patriots sailed past the Rams without a second glance, that doesn’t mean they have completely turned the corner. Brian Schottenheimer, the offensive coordinator for the Rams, called a conservative game. The Rams’ first drive of the game looked promising after they took just over two and a half minutes to go 80 yards for a touchdown. But after that, their offense went numb and failed to put any more points on the board. By the time they found the red zone, there was less than two minutes left in the game. The Rams were unable to take advantage of this Patriots secondary like every other team has done this season. Sam Bradford by the numbers did not have that bad of a day. He was 23 of 31, threw for 205 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He showed early he has the arm, but due to play calling, he wasn’t able to showcase it often.

What really hurt the Rams was penalties. Specifically, Bradley Fletcher. It must be something about the number 32 because he was called for pass interference three times on Sunday. In total the Rams gave up 102 yards to the Patriots. There were several opportunities for the Rams to force the Patriots to fourth and long but they were negated by penalties. This defense got tired and their sloppiness only hurt them further keeping them on the field longer than they should have been.

By the end of this game it looked more like a preseason matchup than a regular season game as Ryan Mallett and Rams’ backup QB Kellen Clemens both saw action. From a health standpoint, this was the right call for both teams. Bradford took some brutal hits and there was a scary moment after he was drilled into the ground by Dont’a Hightower in the second quarter. Wes Welker got his toe caught in the grass and limped off the field but he appears to be fine and it shouldn’t be cause for worry, especially with an extra week to rest.

Walking away from London the Patriots picked up a vital win and walk away almost as healthy as when they arrived. Ron Brace is a valuable backup and his injury is something to monitor, as well as Welker’s and as always, the health of Gronkowski. He still doesn’t look like the player from last year, his running seems laborious but the good news is his spirit seems untouched.

On defense there is still more work to be done. The Patriots got lucky with the Rams play calling and were not tested as often as they should have been. The front seven were strong and this linebacking core is really developing together. Defensively, the Patriots did not receive one pass interference call. A small improvement given the level of competition. Keeping this game in perspective, it is a good stepping stone into the bye week. The offense was able to find consistency and the defense worked as a unit to limit penalties and not beat themselves. Now it’s time for the Patriots to get back to the east coast and work to find out what kind of team they’re going to be in the second half.

It’s that time of year again, when the National Football League imparts itself on the people of London. Rumors are circling about expanding the game overseas and this Sunday the Patriots and the St. Louis Rams are the NFL’s current ambassadors.

On paper this may seem like an easy win for the Pats but fourth quarter letdowns have become all too familiar. The Rams have the 21st ranked total offense in the league and are 26th in points per game. The Patriots, meanwhile, are at the top in both of those categories. So far this season we’ve seen New England’s defense give up big yardage to lesser quarterbacks than Sam Bradford such as Russell Wilson, Mark Sanchez and Ryan Fitzpatrick. But Bradford has been consistent the last two weeks completing over 60% of his passes in both games. With Patrick Chung out, the secondary is going to have to fill in and make the adjustments to stop a potentially dangerous situation. The Patriots defense needs to hold this offense to its current numbers.

With the bye week in sight, here are three things the Patriots need to get done in London before heading home for a much needed break.

The Patriots are dealing with some big injuries including Aaron Hernandez. They’ll have to adjust and try to get into the bye week without any major setbacks. (FILE:USPresswire)

1. Plain and simple, Get a Win: No matter how ugly it has to been, the Patriots need to get a win on Sunday. The Rams are averaging just over 18 points per game and are clearly struggling offensively. The Patriots need to hype themselves up to play at a level much greater than that of the Rams and avoid a letdown. The defense needs to continue to develop and make Bradford work for each and every completion. Ball security is essential and the Pats need to stay in complete control throughout the entire game. They need to play well enough to win so they can…

2. Work on finding an Identity: Even Tom Brady said this team needs an identity. We’ve watched them struggle offensively this season trying to figure out what kind of team they want to be. Do they have enough to be a dominating run team? Are the tight ends healthy enough to make them the focal point? And what is the deal with Brandon Lloyd? There are a lot of questions that still need answers. The Patriots can take this game on Sunday to carefully work through their identity crisis. The Rams defense is tough with good defensive ends and corners so this could be a great opportunity to test out potential options. The main focus should be on being as effective as possible but if the Patriots can get up by a few scores and the defense seems in control, it might be worth it to do some experimenting.

3. Stay Healthy: Injuries are a part of the game but this season the Patriots have dealt with some big ones already. Aaron Hernandez is out this week after suffering a setback with his ankle and stayed behind along with Brandon Bolden and five other players. Rob Gronkowski has been dealing with a hip injury and last week we saw Jerod Mayo suffer an elbow injury and he missed some practice this week. Big pieces of the Patriots puzzle are hurt and the key in London is to bring back as many healthy players as possible. They will definitely benefit from some rest, but hopefully it doesn’t get worse before it gets better.

It’s exciting to play in London but we know the Patriots will have no trouble getting focused on the task at hand. It’s easy to look past this game but there’s no such thing as “getting comfortable”. The Patriots have a glaring weakness that has burned them before. A win is a necessity and this game could be the push the Patriots need to help them re-adjust during their bye week.

The Patriots we are witnessing are an evolving team. They are still trying to determine what type of offense they are and still working on being better in the secondary and on special teams. There have been some noticeable holes and scary moments this season and Sunday’s game against the Jets was no different. The absence of Logan Mankins and the loss of Dan Connolly during the game were felt both in quarterback protection and in the run game. The secondary upgraded from pass interference calls to holding penalties but they still allowed Mark Sanchez to complete over 50% of his passes which he has only been able to do twice this season. There was a rare kickoff return on special teams but overall they have been ineffective for a long time.

Bill Belichick has a lot of work to do with this team. They’ve fallen into some bad habits but managed an overtime win against the Jets. (FILE:USPresswire)

The Patriots did not deserve to win this game. Tom Brady had to throw away too many balls and the connection with Brandon Lloyd was off to say the least. He was targeted eight times but could only come up with one reception for six yards. With the deep threat out, the tight ends were the stars, but they didn’t have an easy time of it. Rob Gronkowski dropped a couple passes and had some balls thrown to him that he couldn’t catch. His mobility seems to be limited by a hip injury and he isn’t the same player we grew accustomed to last season. But that doesn’t mean he won’t be with time and a bye week to heal.

There’s no doubt the offense performs better when Wes Welker is involved. He can move the chains and take some seriously brutal hits. It has clearly become part of the process to try to find other ways to move on offense outside of him. It takes a while for him to actually get involved in a game and that could easily be due to opposing defenses covering him. But suspicion will always lurk considering the Patriots have found ways to work around that before.

Defensively the line had a difficult time with the Jet’s offensive line. Sanchez was sacked four times but there didn’t seem to be much penetration. When they blitzed it created more pressure and as a team they need to incorporate that more. The linebacking core definitely limited the Jet’s run game with Jerod Mayo at the forefront. He had 10 solo tackles and it was good to see him back in the game after what appeared to be a shoulder/arm injury. This group always steps up and it was Rob Ninkovich who ended up being the Patriots savior with the forced fumble in overtime.

They say patience is a virtue and that is what Patriots fans will need to have for at least one more week. Next week in London the Pats need to find a way to win and get into their bye week with a 5-3 record. They are working through a lot of changes both on the coaching and personnel sides of the ball. This was an ugly win and they can’t back themselves into this type of situation again. The Patriots need to break the habit of a fourth quarter letdown and hopefully a trip across the pond can right this ship and set up a strong second half of the season.

As if watching Russell Wilson torch the Patriots last Sunday wasn’t bad enough, in his performance Thursday night, he had a quarterback rating of 0.00 in the second half. Talk about a smack in the face. The Patriots secondary got blown wide open by a guy who couldn’t put together a drive of over 10 yards in the fourth quarter. The Patriots have been dealing with that loss all week and combine that with a game against the AFC East rival Jets, and there should be more than enough fuel to push them to a dominating victory. Here are three things the Patriots have that the Jets don’t and what will put them in the driver’s seat on Sunday.

Last week’s loss will fuel Tom Brady to have a much needed turnaround game on Sunday. (FILE:USPresswire)

Emotional Baggage I mean this in the best way possible. Last week the Patriots got exposed and embarassed. Richard Sherman showed a complete lack of respect for the future hall of famer that is Tom Brady. It’s bad enough to lose to a team that is below your talent level, but to lose to a team that is incapable of acting like they’ve been there before, that’s worse. Brady was asked in his press conference this week about going up against the Jets after coming off a loss like the one in Seattle. The Jets are a very familiar opponent and it takes a lot of work and creativity to come up with something they haven’t seen you do before. He said he has a lot of respect and familiarity with this team and he touched on how they’ve adjusted to losing Darrelle Revis. Now just because there will be no “Revis Island”, that doesn’t mean the Patriots will get away scot-free. They will have to take advantage of their ability to run a high paced offense and make the Jets their outlet for enacting revenge. They have a lot to prove this week and should be running on their emotions from last week.

Front Seven If ever the Patriots front seven had an opportunity to disrupt a quarterback, this week is it. Mark Sanchez is pocket comfortable and can be forced into making bad passes. If Chandler Jones can keep playing at the level he has been, he should be successful in knocking Sanchez around. The Patriots have proven they can stop the run game when put to the test. Granted that shouldn’t be too difficult this week. Shonn Greene is the only active Jet running back with a carry that is expected to play on Sunday. That means we could see Tim Tebow get some carries. Knowing Rex Ryan, I wouldn’t put it past him. He likes to mix things up and keep the Patriots on their toes. As long as the front seven stay strong and are prepared for any and all possibilities, the Jets will not be able to break the wall.

Versatility With the Jets run game problems, the Patriots have the obvious advantage when it comes to versatility. They are more than capable of running the ball and Stevan Ridley is definitely looking to rebound from a poor performance. Wes Welker gives the Pats the shorter, slot pass option and he will probably be the defense’s top target. So even if he gets the double coverage they can turn to the tight end game with Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez or they can go deep with Brandon Lloyd. The Jets have a lot of ground to cover when it comes to this Patriots offense. They’ll be calling plays out at a rapid rate and keeping the defense on their heels. That is how they will find success and burn the Jets early and often.

It is week 7 and now is when losses can really start to hurt a team. The Patriots will rise to the occasion on Sunday and show they are not the defeated type. They will use all 60 minutes to close out the game and not give the Jets a second to breathe on defense. Last week was tough but this week we will see just what this team has and how much of a turnaround they can make.

The Patriots’ game on Sunday was a story of missed opportunities and an unexpected performance by a rookie quarterback. There are two halves to every game and unfortunately for the Patriots, that didn’t work out in their favor this week. After scoring 17 points in the first half, the tough Seattle defense held them to just six points in the second. The Patriots struggled in the red zone while Russell Wilson showed he has the arm strength and the poise to lead his team to a comeback victory.

Tom Brady on the other hand had a difficult time. He threw two interceptions and got called for intentional grounding twice. Those penalties, in addition to four more, cost the Patriots 80 yards and the calls on Brady happened at crucial points in the game. The first one came as they were driving for a score to end the first half. Had the offense been more effective this would have locked in a 14 point lead heading into halftime. Instead the offense was stalled with two incomplete passes and a 10 second runoff due to the intentional grounding penalty. The second penalty came in the fourth quarter with the Patriots holding a six point lead. The offense was once again finding it difficult to get to the first down marker. On second down and 10 Brady got the penalty which forced a third down and 20, which they would not make. Luckily the defense came on the field and forced the Seahawks to punt and gave the offense just over three minutes to close out the game. All they needed to do was get a few first downs and run out the clock.

Another big day for Wes Welker but the offense stalled in Seattle. (FILE:USPresswire)Â

Unfortunately the offense wasn’t able to execute when it counted. Brady seemed to struggle with the wet conditions and was throwing a lot of low passes. But that doesn’t mean the effort wasn’t there. Wes Welker did his part and took some serious hits in the process. He ended the day with 10 receptions for 138 yards and one touchdown. Brandon Lloyd worked the sidelines again with six receptions for 80 yards while Danny Woodhead proved to be Mr. Third Down and was one of the more relied upon running backs after Brandon Bolden left the game. Stevan Ridley got a taste of reality in Seattle as he was held to 16 carries for 34 yards. This week the balance we’ve become accustomed to went by the wayside. Brady threw 58 passes and the team’s 388 passing yards far outpaced their 87 rushing yards. When the clock mattered and the offense entered the red zone, they couldn’t turn opportunities into points. They froze in the red zone with just one touchdown and were unable to capitalize on a Seattle turnover to get seven points. At the end of the game, even just grabbing one more first down could have been the difference maker.

When it came to the defense, tackling was a big issue. They seemed to revert back a little bit this week as Wilson slipped out of the grasps of linebackers one too many times. When he got outside of the pocket he was dangerous both with his arm and his speed. He commanded his offense and had all the confidence with successful long ball shots to Golden Tate and Sidney Rice. The Patriots secondary let the receivers get behind them and that should never happen. Once again pass interference was a big problem and gave the Seahawks every chance to succeed. Something needs to be done with this secondary because every week it is the same thing, either the scheme needs to change or the coaching needs to change because it’s becoming a habit and other teams in the league are definitely taking notice.

Overall this was not the Patriots best showing. As Bill Belichick would say, they were outcoached, outplayed and outdone. The Seahawks were not going to sit by idly while the Patriots played. They took advantage of every opportunity and ended up on top. The lesson learned is make the most of each set of downs and play smarter football.