signbabybrady

SBB's week 8 thoughts.

We have reached the Bye week and we are 5-2 and on top the division can't really expect much more than that

I think this D which I expected to be good has outplayed my Expectations.

I think Meriweather is a stud and I expected good things out of him and he has not dissapointed.

The other DBs have all looked good some better than others but its strength is in depth as they all seem to be starting caliber and the rooks Chung and Butler have seemed to get better game by game.

Guyton has been really good and makes the future of the LB position look great with him and Mayo and they are leading the group now.

The D-line strength is vs the run and while they aren't the best pass rushers they have managed to get pressure at times specifically TBC and Wright who have really stepped up their game with the increased roles that have.

On the Offense it hasn't been 07 but it has been effecient especially when with Welker healthy. Brady seems to be rounding back into his normal form and the bye week should give him a good chance to critique himself and correct whatever mechanics he might be off on.

I think people need to just lay off Maroney. Sure he hasn't turned into wha twe hoped a player drafted in the first round would be but he is a pretty good back with good homerun ability and people seem to want him to be a 3 yards and a cloud of dust guy. I think the whole dancing thing is overblown and besides it is what will lead to a big gainer.

Is this team just really good or a SB team? We will find this answer out coming out of the bye as we face some really good teams and run thru the division too. win the majority of the 5 games and we should be sitting pretty good. Win them all and we will be setting up for a bye. lose them and we are in for a dog fight like last year (least likely of the scenarios laid out). Bottom line is we have set our selves up very well for the second half of the season now take care of business.

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SB win # 4 in SB 44 .........4 in
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flihugun

This class seems like it would be amazing. I'm new to this site and I am so sad that I am going to miss out on it...

chris_in_sunnyvale

Post-Week 7:

The Pats went to London and punked an awful Bucs team as expected. Also as expected, Tampa put up a decent fight in the one area they can...D. But between Merriweather's pick-6 and Sam Aiken's catch-and-run TD on a broken play, there were too many quick strikes for Tampa's D to cover up. Brady made a few uncharacteristicly lazy throws that resulted in picks which kept the blowout score even closer. The OL, particularly Mankins and Vollmer (after he got dinged), had some rough stretches. The D played like I thought they would vs. a lousy O...pretty much dominated them. Overall, it's tough to take away much from the last two games (94-7 cumulative score) other than a great team should blow out a bad one and the Pats did. Does this mean the Pats are a great team? We'll see.

Glad the Pats have a week off after the London trip. The Pats will be hosting Miami after the bye and I expect the Pats to win handily. Nothing about the Miami passing game scares me, especially with Henne making the throws. The Pats diffused the Wildcat in their 2nd meeting last year and I don't expect Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams to give this Pats' run D fits. Still, divisional games are usually harder than expected and I respect the heck out of Sporano after he unleashed the Wildcat on the unprepared Pats last year (playing a huge role in the division title at the end) so I'm curious what tricks up his sleeve he has this time.

Polamalu is back for Pittsburgh and their D looked awesome against the previously undefeated Vikings; Not surprised at all. The team that has battled the Colts as the #2 Team of the Decade is right in the title mix again. Indy came off their bye and blew out another bad opponent on the road; Make fun of them all you want with their week schedule, but they are creaming teams. The Pats' visit in 2 weeks will clarify the pecking order for sure. Baltimore comes off their bye; Let's see if they get back in the win column. Denver and NY are still pretenders IMO. When Denver drops 3 or 4 straight later this year, I'll be nodding silently.

Regards,
Chris

PatsFanSince74

Week Eight

Since this is a Bye week and almost the half season mark, I'll look backwards in this post and forward in my Week Nine post.

OK. Along the lines of something I said last week, if, before the Opener, you'd offered to spot me the Pats at 5--2 going into the Bye, I'd have taken it in a nanosecond. My view from before the Buffalo game was that this is a very good team that on paper should go 13--3 or 14--2, but that there are/were too many moving pieces with Brady's return, a revamped D and the usual vagaries of injuries and luck to make that kind of call. I also said that I saw them coming on stronger as the season progressed, making the playoffs and being competitive for the SB.

While they have exceeded my expectations for their early season performance, I do have to come down to earth and remember that they're a Buffalo Special Teams brainfart and a dropped Flacco-to-Clayton pass on the numbers away from 3--4. But, I've never been one to gainsay the role that luck plays in a long season, so I'll take it, thank you, and try to remember it when the breaks go against us sometime. The Denver loss was even harder to take than the Meadowlands mess, for many reasons, not the least of which was the missed 40 yarder by Ghost that would have kept the game out of OT and put another W in the Pats column.

The D is what has really impressed me. It lost Brewski, Rodney, Richard and Mike...and doesn't seem to have missed a beat. That's truly impressive stuff. Big story for me is the emergence of Meriweather. I'll be more comfortable when the pass rush is more consistent; I assume that they'll improve against the run, but, all in all, way, way positive.

Tom Brady seems to shake off a little more rust every week! In the last two weeks it's gotten hard to determine whether his occasional goofs are a product of the lost season or whether they're just the normal mistakes he would have been making anyway (he is human, you know). In other words, I think we're almost at the point where we can say he's back 100%; that's what i expect to see in the Miami game. I will admit that I've almost stopped holding my breath every time the rush closes in on the pocket--almost. Welker is playing very well and if I had to pick a Team MVP at the Bye, I'd pick Number 83. Moss has been a little uneven, but that's probably as much a function of Brady's uneven start as it is of anything else. Watson has truly come into his own, and it's hard to remember that in the past he was put in a Maroney-esque doghouse by many on this Board. The Running Game is what it is. We were probably optimistic to hope that Taylor could last a full season, but I wish we didn't have to lose him just quite so early. But, I feel comfortable that Maroney, Faulk, BJGE and Morris will get the job done. The OL has been uneven for the running game, but great at protecting Tommy, which certainly was "job one" for them in the first part of the season especially.

Special Teams has come together after a very shaky performance on KO coverage in the Jets game. Gostkowski seems like his usual reliable self, but the missed Denver FG was unfortunate; he also missed a 37 yarder in the Titans route which obviously didn't have any impact on the game but which falls in the category of, "darn." We aren't going to have blowouts in the big games ahead and I just want to "know" that he is going to make the big kicks that we will inevitably need in those games. The Dynasty was born on the foot of Number Four with a line drive kick under the wind from 45 yards in a Blizzard in the Snow Bowl (rightly regarded by many as the greatest kick under pressure in the history of the NFL) and with another from 48 yards with no time on the clock in the SuperDome.

Next week: a view on the rest of the season.

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"Winners, I am convinced, imagine their dreams first. They want it with all their heart and expect it to come true. There is, I believe, no other way to live." Joe Montana

Mike the Brit

Week 8

Still in limbo. I enjoyed the win in London, but didn't see enough to put all of my doubts to bed. I'm still worried about Brady's accuracy, timing with his receivers and tendency to fix on one or two targets (fortunately, though, they're Wes and Randy ). I have doubts about number 3 WR, and offensive play-calling/design (though the screen for WW's TD was beautiful). On defense, I'm concerned about the pass rush and run defense against a top back (Ronnie and Rickie will certainly put that to the test). Overall, they look like a good team that isn't dominant. Getting Light, Taylor and Morris back would be a great plus.

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Q: Could Randy Moss play for the Patriots? Bill Belichick: Why not?

My prized possessions: Our family pictures; my dad and me getting doused by Bruschi in Super Bowl XXXIX [Shalize Manza Young Up Close with ... Bill Belichick]


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They say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Well, Pats fans should be invincible by now. [Fitzy, 16 November 2009]

Still here to learn

Leave No Doubt

Going into the bye I think we're in great shape; things to improve upon as always but at the same time so much continues to improve each week. We're in good position going into Thanksgiving- we're not perfect but we're getting stronger not weaker. I'm standardly anxious about the upcoming games but a strong showing coming off the bye would be big

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THANK YOU 37!

convertedpatsfan

Welcome to the bye week. A mid-season bye week is like New Year's Day; a time to reflect and look back, while also assessing the future.

First, Tampa. Not much to say other than crap team. A lot of people are dismissing the last two games as if they don't mean much, but they mean a lot to me. Great teams beat up the weak teams quickly, they don't give them a chance, they don't play down to their level. The Pats did a great job of dominating two inferior opponents.

As for the first half of the season, 5-2 is a really good record considering the issues the team faced in the off-season. With Brady coming back, Welker's injury, the search for a 3rd WR, adjusting without McDaniels, a new defense with lots of new parts that lost Seymour right before the season opener, and starting the season with back-to-back divisional games, then 2 of last year's play-off teams, I'd have been thrilled to know we'd be 5-2 at the bye.

But the loss to the Jets was awful, so unlike the Pats with all of the penalties and poor gameplans on both sides of the ball. And the Broncos really shouldn't be undefeated. The record of 5-2 is nice, but this team has shown that it could be even better, which has me excited about the second half of the season.

There's a really tough stretch of games coming up, but our team is getting better too. Brady is back to being an elite QB, and I think he still has room to improve. That thought has to scare some DCs around the league. Our defense, filled with question marks to start the season, has quickly come together and exceeded all expectations.

And I'm more excited about the future than I have been for quite some time. It seemed like our defense was just getting older and slower over the years, but now we've got young playmakers who are getting better. And the kids on offense look to be solid contributors for years to come.

So the team is good, and getting better. Whether we'll be good enough by the time we face the Colts and Saints, I don't know. But I'm not concerned about playoff seeding or bye weeks. I just want to get in. We've got enough veterans (and most importantly, Brady) to win a road game if we have to. It's going to be a really intriguing second half of the season, and I can't wait for it to start.

Its_The_Patriots

Well good bye to the bye week and hello to another week.

Patriots/Dolphins week 9:
I feel pretty good about this game, but as always this will be a tough game between these two teams. Tom Brady and company will probably see alot of blitzes, and with Belichick having 2 weeks to prepare, they should be well prepared. They will need to get an early lead, and move the ball effectively in this game. Hopefully they will establish the run alot better also. I would love to see Laurence Maroney, BJ, and Faulk pound the ball on Sunday.

I do have a little concern with the Pats run defense, and I'd like to see them be more consistent in stopping the run. They need to stuff the run and force Miami to beat them through the air, but watch out for those screens and trick plays.

It's very important for this Pats team to execute well on all cylinders in this game, because I don't see the Dolphins laying down without a fight. I believe they will win this game but it will be tough.

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"We have 45 men suited up. They're all supposed to be ready to play.” .....Bill Belichick

PatsFanSince74

Week Nine

In my Week Eight post, I looked back over the first (almost) half of the season. Now, I guess, should be the time to fish or cut bait about the rest of the year.

However, I'm going to fudge a little bit, because I did have the guts to put a number out there the week before the Buffalo game, 11--5 for the Season. I'm going to let that number hang there for now, and I'm going to let it hang there without comment since I've said plenty about it over the last eight weeks (if you're inclined to Flame me on that, please read my weekly posts before you do).

Like everybody else out here, I feel we'll know what we need to know about this team after the next five games, maybe sooner. Brewski was right in his remarks on HSPN. In November, the Patriots are going to show us what we can expect in terms of a Playoff/SB run. I know what I hope and I know how good I think it could be; now, we're going to just have to see.

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"Winners, I am convinced, imagine their dreams first. They want it with all their heart and expect it to come true. There is, I believe, no other way to live." Joe Montana

mayoclinic

State of the Pats - Week 9

Tedy Bruschi hit the nail on the head. The data says the Pats are one of the elite teams in the league and should be poised for another superbowl run. The talent says the Pats are one of the elite teams in the league and should be poised for another superbowl run. But there are some disturbing signs from the first 7 games which cannot be dispelled by consecutive blowouts against bottom dwellers. The Pats need to show us that they have truly turned the corner over the next 5 games, winning at least 4/5 to belong among the elite teams.

The Pats as an Elite Team: Pro

There's a lot to suggest that we belong among the very elite teams in the NFL right now:

1. We've outscored our opponents by 100 points over 7 games. Only Indy (+106) and New Orleans (+119) have done this as well.

2. We and Indy are the only 2 teams to be in the top 5 on both offense and defense. Offensively we're 3rd in total YPG (406.0) and 5th in points/game (28.3). If you take away the first 2 games when we were sorting out our offensively balance we're averaging about 32 PPG, second only to the Saints. Defensively we're 3rd in PPG at 14.0 (13.0 if you take away the 2 TDs given up by our offense) and 6th in YPG at 285.7.

3. Over their first 7 games only 4 teams started better than our 5-2 record (Indy/NO 7-0, Minn/Denver 6-1). Several of those had very cushy schedules.

4. We have as much talent and depth on either side of the ball as any team in the NFL, and a trackrecord of success which includes improving over the course of the season.

We've accomplished all of that despite major losses and injuries on offense (Light, Taylor, Morris, Welker out for 2 games, Brady still recovering) and defense (Mayo out for 4 games, loss of Bruchi, Vrabel, Harrison and Seymour) and a very young defensive unit which is still coming together.

All of that suggests that we are an elite team, certainly one of the top 5 if not the top 3 teams in the NFL right now, and headed towards the AFCCG at the very least.

The Pats as an Elite Team: Con

Despite this, there are a number of disturbing signs from the first half of the season:

1. We still haven't won a true road game (not counting Wembley, which was neutral ground).

2. We were shut out in the 2nd half of our 2 true road games so far.

3. In our 3 biggest games (Jets, Ravens, Broncos) we led at the half and then gave the game away in the 2nd half when we could have put all 3 games out of reach, blowing numerous opportunities. We were lucky to salvage one of the 3 games as a win (Ravens).

4. In 2 of our biggest games we reverted to vanilla offensive and defensive schemes, with poor results. Our defense was particularly soft against the Broncos "Wild Pony" offense, giving up multiple long drives and failing to make a stop. Our coaching and game plan in both games, including 2nd half adjustments, was abysmal, as was our execution. We can't afford another meltdown.

5. Our offense has given up numerous big plays, including 2 defensive TDs on turnovers and a key turnover against Denver with the chance to win the game in the last 2 minutes.

6. Our red zone offense is still not clicking.

7. Our pass rush is still average at best.

These data say that we are an above average team that beats up on sup-par competition but doesn't really belong in the top echelon of SB contenders.

What to Expect the Rest of the Season

The next 5 games are key: Miami (home), Indy (away), Jets (home), NO (away), Miami (away). Win 4/5 (or better) and we are clearly among the elite teams. Win 2-3/5 and we are a solid contender but not in the top echelon. Win less than 2/5 and we are an also-ran as a major contender.

The Fish are a good challenge, much like the Broncos: a well coached team capable of playing beyond their talent level who won't make big mistakes and are capable of an upset if we do. We should win, but could easily lose. We blew the test against Denver. Sunday will determine how far we've come in the past 4 weeks.

We need to be aggressive against the Wildcat, avoid mistakes on STs, and protect Brady and keep offensive balance. If we do those things, the game could be one-sided. If we fail, we could lose a close game the way the Jets lost 2 games to the Phins.

The next 5 weeks will be very interesting. I'm making no predictions right now. We could be 14-2 and the SB favorite. We could be 10-6 and a long-shot. It's time for the team to show us which kind of team it really is.

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