The Official Post game thread

[letekro]

Originally Posted by patsinthesnow

Hernandez and Welker are pretty much the same player......

When Healthy, Hernandez is a far more versatile, explosive, and better player. If you recall, in training camp, most reported that he was the number 1 option and uncoverable. That's why they showed him the money and why Welker will take small money or be gone.

[letekro]

Originally Posted by JMarr

This. He had Ngata 3 yards behind chasing him and decided to go down instead of trying to outrun him. Absolutely pathetic.

What is wrong with you people? Yes, for a second he looked like he had it, but then he, and everyone else with eyes, saw that Ngata was going to catch him short of the marker. Watch the play again. Ngata is faster than Brady. No way he makes that first down with his legs.

[Gumby]

Originally Posted by letekro

What is wrong with you people? Yes, for a second he looked like he had it, but then he, and everyone else with eyes, saw that Ngata was going to catch him short of the marker. Watch the play again. Ngata is faster than Brady. No way he makes that first down with his legs.

true. BUT he might have been able to outrun ngata to the SL short of 1D. at least save some time.

[letekro]

Originally Posted by Gumby

true. BUT he might have been able to outrun ngata to the SL short of 1D. at least save some time.

Huh? That was 4th down.

[Snake Eyes]

Originally Posted by PATRlOT

What is SO sad and pathetic is that the only way to beat the Patriots, is if their top players are injured. If I knew this team could be relatively healthy for just ONE season, I would put ALL my money on them winning the SuperBowl. ALL my money.

It is absolutely disgusting to see that our top players have been dealt huge injuries over the past several years, all involving the SAME player causing them! First Brady, then Welker, then Gronk, now Ridley. Arguably all of those were caused by the same player, Bernard Pollard. That is just appalling.

Injuries are part of the game and they will ALWAYS be an issue, every team is ALWAYS dealing with them, some just find ways to deal with them better than others.

[Big-T]

Originally Posted by Snake Eyes

Injuries are part of the game and they will ALWAYS be an issue, every team is ALWAYS dealing with them, some just find ways to deal with them better than others.

Don't the Patriots lead the league with players on IR over the last 3 years?

Using that, no team has to deal with injuries on the scale the Patriots do and there's at least 1 key player goes down every season for a number of weeks, if not the whole season.

[ivanvamp]

NE's drives last night:

FIRST QUARTER
#1 - Faced 3rd and 2 from their own 42, Brady misses Welker deep. Punt.

#2 - Nice drive, gets down to the Ravens' 12, facing 3rd and 2. Quick count, Ridley gets stuffed. Forced to kick a FG.

#3 - Move smartly down to Baltimore's 35, facing the wind, I'm thinking this is 4-down territory. Incomplete pass, then a punt.

#4 - Pats start at their own 47...excellent field position. Facing 3rd and 2 from the Raven 45. Brady can't connect with Lloyd. Punt. BTW, this is the 3rd 3rd-and-2 that they have failed to convert in just 4 drives. Not good.

SECOND QUARTER
#5 - Excellent drive, in response to a Raven's TD. Pats march 79 yards for a TD. Well done.

#6 - Another nice drive, closing in on the end of the half. Pats march down to the Raven 10 after a Brady scramble, but then instead of calling time out with about 20 seconds left, they try to get another play off, but can't, and are finally forced to call another time out just to get a field goal. They could have had two shots into the end zone (presuming no sacks) before trying a FG. That very easily could have cost them 4 points, and I think we all at that point were thinking this is a very bad sign.

By the way, this is now 4 drives to the Ravens' 35, and just 13 points to show for it.

THIRD QUARTER
#7 - Another good drive, moving them to the Raven 34, facing 3rd and 8. Same situation as in drive #3, essentially. And again, they fail to convert the 3rd down, and instead of it being 4-down territory, they punt.

#8 - After the Ravens score to take the lead (who didn't see THAT coming?), the Pats face a 3rd and 2 from their own 33. Brady converts to Woodhead, but it's called back on a holding call on Solder. Pats end up punting.

FOURTH QUARTER
#9 - After another Ravens' TD puts them up 8, the Pats really need a score. NE moves to their 39 when @#$%!!*#$ Bernard Pollard drills Ridley, knocking him out cold. The ball falls to the turf and the Ravens get it back. Turnover #1.

#10 - Naturally, Baltimore scores, so now the Pats are down 15. Still tons of time, if they can just score here. They get to the Raven 19 in good shape, facing 2nd and 4. They go incomplete to Vereen, incomplete to Welker, and then on the Brady should-I-scramble-or-not play, a horrible incompletion to....pretty much nobody. Zero points. So this is now SIX trips inside the Raven 35, and FOUR inside the red zone, but just 13 points to show for it.

#11 - D stiffens, and the Pats make a huge play to Welker, getting down to the Raven 24 with time left for sure. Next play, Brady's pass is tipped and the ball ricochets about ten yards right into the hands of the waiting Ellerbe. Turnover #2. SEVEN trips inside the Raven 35, still just 13 points.

#12 - Last drive, desperation time. Pats still with a miracle chance, if they score quickly and do the onside kick thing. Anyway, they quickly move to the Ravens' 22, where Brady throws a pick in the end zone. Turnover #3. Game over.

So the Pats had EIGHT trips inside the Raven 35, and FOUR trips inside the red zone, and could only muster THREE scores: TWO field goals, ONE touchdown, and a measly THIRTEEN points.

That, my friends, is how you lose a playoff football game. Under normal circumstances, the Pats - the best red zone team in the league this year - produce way, way more points than that. If you take those eight trips inside the opponents' 35, the Pats are almost certainly scoring 30+ points in the game. Yet they get just 13. Credit the Ravens' D for tightening up - the ultimate bend-but-don't-break model last night. But boy, the Pats hit the crapper big time when they had chances to score.

EDIT: According to (http://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat...ne-scoring-pct), the Pats scored TDs on 67.5% of their red zone trips this year. That would mean, in the 4 trips, they should have come away with between 20 and 24 points. Then you take the other four trips inside the Ravens' 35 that didn't get to the red zone, and under normal (not 20+ mph winds) conditions, those are very makeable field goal attempts by Gostkowski. Figure he makes 3 of the 4. That's another 9 points.

In other words, on just a normal day for NE, they are almost certain to score 29-34 points, based on how well they moved the ball during the game. And that would have been enough to win. Gads......

[dales804]

The 3rd & 2's killed me along with not taking a TO with ~20 seconds left at the end of the 1st half to take a couple shots at the end zone. The Ravens came ready to play and play hard. Credit goes to their D for stepping up.

[olschool]

Originally Posted by Snake Eyes

Injuries are part of the game and they will ALWAYS be an issue, every team is ALWAYS dealing with them, some just find ways to deal with them better than others.

If the Ravens had lost Pitta last week and Pollard last night it would have been a different game.

That being said they proved once again that defense wins in the playoffs.

The cotton candy number one offense means nothing if the defense is mediocre or just plain poor, injuries or not.

The number one offense was held scoreless in the second half, while the twenty eighth ranked defense gave up 21 unanswered points.

If they can't fix that defense soon, Brady can kiss that fourth ring goodbye.

[ensoul]

Originally Posted by Jangles

Watched the games today with my buddy who's a 49ers fan and was ribbing me all day.

I told him the last 5 years have hardened me against big losses.

Which sucks but it's true.

It is. I am still pissed but I expected this. Seems to me they lose the same way every year. The have a great offense in the regular season then in the playoffs they simply cannot score or move the ball because they play a strong defense.

Had they beat the ravens they would have lost to the niners. This team cannot win big games anymore.