pats1

That was certainly a tough one to swallow. Deep breathing as Vinatieri lined up, jubilation as it sailed wide. With a quick strike to Watson, the Pats were in prime position to send it to OT. But just as quickly...

It was over.

And how fitting Denny Green's quote seems today:

"The [Colts] are who we thought they were! And we let them off the hook!"

How true.

-The Pats let them off the hook, simply by ABANDONING the running game come the second half. Abysmal! Enough screwing with the reverses and pound some Dillon and Maroney up the Maroney! The Colts proved they couldn't stop it.

-Brady looked just like he did vs. Denver. Sailing passes dangerously into coverage each and every time.

-Antoine Bethea. Hindsight is 20/20, but I'd rather have this guy than Mincey (picked about 20 spots higher), especially considering the secondary's injury problems. Chad Scott and Hawkins at safety couldn't help but bring back memories of last year against Indy, when Gay and Stone were lined up deep. Bethea and Sanders were EVERYWHERE. That Cover-2 ate up the receivers deep, forcing the underneath throws that were tipped again and again.

-Marvin Harrison is one of the best receivers we have seen in our lifetimes. That was one amazing catch.

-With that said, CB (along with LB) has to be a focus in the draft. I have no problem with Samuel and Hobbs, but depth is DESPERATELY needed.

-Did Vanderjagt hijack Vinatieri and Manning hijack Brady? The former Pat and the current Pat choked in those last 2 minutes.

-Just like after Denver, Brady in his press conference did something to piss me off. He was smiling and smirking like it was some ******* preseason game! And was laughing and joking with Peyton immediately after blowing the biggest game of the regular season! A *****slap needed.

-Great job by the Pats' front seven stopping the run, but their blitz was surprising thrawted by a *mobile* Peyton Manning with receivers seemingly at the right place in the right time.

-I should have known. In good weather, the Colts have had pretty damn good recent success at Foxboro, even in the 2004 opener which took a Vandershank for them to lose. Let's see what Peyton does in January before we annoint him the King of Foxboro. It might not even have to come to New England @ Indy in the A.F.C. Championship. I wouldn't be surprised if they were knocked early again.

-The officiating was downright awful. For the both sides. Winters was dysfunctional. From Brown's taunting to Brady's "first down" to multiple other penalties, it had a negative effect for both teams.

-You can't blame Faulk for that last play. How is this an accurate pass? :

http://img221.imageshack.us/my.php?i...ulkmissdb3.jpg

http://img292.imageshack.us/my.php?i...lkmiss2cs5.jpg

-The Pats NEEDED to get the points off turnovers! If they used the momentum from Hawkins' strip, Scott's INT, Vinatieri's misses, etc., they would have WON this!

-The Pats need to be VERY careful about next week. The Jets aren't a pushover. A loss would put the Pats at 6-3, and suddenly right back in the pack.

pats1

Duplicate thread. Please delete.

(Forum running slow.....)

brady2brown

Those pictures are cute, but look at the play as it unfolds, and you will see the ball go between his hands. Any time the ball hits BOTH of a receiver's palms, it is reasonable to expect the receiver to catch it.

We are way too soft on the receivers. If the ball isn't perfect, it is Brady's fault.

Bull. Manning's receivers moved to the ball and caught it, even his patented wobblers.

It would not bother me a bit to see Faulk inactive a few games. This is probably his last year anyway.

pats1

Few more things:

-Remember last January, when everyone thought, for maybe the first time, that betting against Brady in the playoffs was foolish? That was just before Denver. And we all know what happened there. Fast-forward to this past week. The media is fully expecting the Pats to knock Indy off the undefeated throne. What happened still stings.

In his postgame press conference, Brady said something to the extent of "Everyone expected us to win, and we didn't."

I don't think it's anything new that this team really does perform better when the rest of the league and media puts the chips against them.

-My 3 keys for the game, posted Sunday afternoon:

1) Make Manning shrug his shoulders
2) Get Manning's uniform dirty
3) Get Manning's receiver's uniforms dirty

There were a few sacks in the game, but Manning also did a great job of scooting away from pressure and getting throws off accurately with guys in his face. #2 didn't work.

With 1 INT and a victory, we didn't see any of #1, either.

With tons and tons and tons of yards, as well as a big cushion, #3 wasn't even close. The Pats got plenty of penalties in that category too.

pats1

-I don't really know what to make of the Pats' mentality coming into the game.

The general consensus seemed to be that it was just another game, and that win or lose their mission was a lot bigger than the complications of the game.

That's good in the sense that indeed, it's only a single game and doesn't make or break the season, but I think a "every game is a big game" mentality is a better approach.

After the game, it was the same thing. Almost like Colvin, who was interviewed on 4th quarter, didn't want to or expect to win. That Indy was a superior team and there wasn't any point in giving blood, sweat, and tears to put your own team on top.

That's how I read it.

BelichickFan

I didn't see the interview, I was DONE with that game as soon as it ended, but I have a feeling that you read him wrong. It's basically impossible to believe that any of them thought the game was unwinnable to the point of going through the motions.

pats1

There wasn't really that much to it. Just said "The Colts are the best team in the league" over and over again. But I just didn't get the impression they took this game seriously enough. That was NOT Patriot football.