Don Banks - Inside the NFL

[DeSi_PatzGal]

Nice article Plz delete this thread if already posted!
Bill Belichick fallout was comical, but*Patriots*aren't laughing - Don Banks - SI.com

Can't resist a few more lingering thoughts in the continuing aftermath of "Bill-gate,'' perhaps the perfect NFL storm for the cacophony of debate that the 24/7 news cycle generates and thrives on.....

• Like a magnifying glass and sunlight being used to burn a hole in a piece of paper, Monday was one of those natural phenomena to marvel at and behold. At least in a media sense. As I traveled home from Indianapolis after covering the Patriots-Colts Sunday night, at some point it became obvious that a huge part of the story itself had become everyone's reaction to the story. Love or hate the audacity of the call, it was all Bill Belichick, all the time, from every direction. What a remarkable monster of a topic it was, and I don't know that I've ever seen anything like it.

[snip - do not copy and paste entire articles]

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

Re: Don Banks INSIDE THE NFL

Suck it Banks.

My thoughts posted elsewhere yesterday: In the end, Indy forced two turnovers and one drive killing recovered fumble - protect the goat-kissing ball. That's what killed the game, and it hurts the most because all three of those errors were made by players who rarely make them compared to the league as a whole. Congrats to Indy, suck it up NE, get ready to make the NYJ pay through the nose.

 

[emoney_33]

Re: Don Banks INSIDE THE NFL

The Patriots played too good of a game to have their coach put them in the position of having the outcome dictated by one play.

The OFFENSE may have played "too good of a game", but 28 points is far from "way too good of a game" by the defense. Yet you want to take away the potential game clinching play from the offense and put it in the hands of the tired, hurting defense?

What is so logical about resting your chances on stopping one of the greatest QB's to ever play the game from gaining an EXTRA 30-40 yards, rather than resting your chances on THE greatest QB to ever play the game to get 2 yards??

Those last 30 yards that Peyton got were the HARD yards. Getting from their ~30 to that point would have been pretty damn easy for Peyton against our defense AT THAT point, especially sans Warren, Jarvis and TBC.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

Re: Don Banks INSIDE THE NFL

The OFFENSE may have played "too good of a game", but 28 points is far from "way too good of a game" by the defense. Yet you want to take away the potential game clinching play from the offense and put it in the hands of the tired, hurting defense?

What is so logical about resting your chances on stopping one of the greatest QB's to ever play the game from gaining an EXTRA 30-40 yards, rather than resting your chances on THE greatest QB to ever play the game to get 2 yards??

Those last 30 yards that Peyton got were the HARD yards. Getting from their ~30 to that point would have been pretty damn easy for Peyton against our defense AT THAT point, especially sans Warren, Jarvis and TBC.

The offense had three drive killers - two fumbles and an interception, their game wasn't that great.

 

[SVN]

Re: Don Banks INSIDE THE NFL

The offense had three drive killers - two fumbles and an interception, their game wasn't that great.

they scored 10 second half points. no one seems to remmeber their mistakes for some reason

 

[emoney_33]

Re: Don Banks INSIDE THE NFL

The offense had three drive killers - two fumbles and an interception, their game wasn't that great.

they scored 10 second half points. no one seems to remmeber their mistakes for some reason

Right, the offense didn't in fact play too good of a game. I was merely pointing out that the defense had a worse game. And especially late in the game when they were tired.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

Re: Don Banks INSIDE THE NFL

Right, the offense didn't in fact play too good of a game. I was merely pointing out that the defense had a worse game. And especially late in the game when they were tired.

The D was without Warren & Green and lost TBC and Ninkovich - BB spends big money on the D-line for a reason and that second half fade highlighted why. BB had the O eating clock to try and protect the D, it would have worked well except for the two turnovers and the strip sack Koppen saved - to me that was the difference. Brady rarely throws interceptions, Maroney rarely fumbles, and the O-line + Brady usually means low sacks; which is why Indy did such a good job forcing the mistakes - better now than in the playoffs.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

Re: Don Banks INSIDE THE NFL

My thoughts posted elsewhere yesterday: In the end, Indy forced two turnovers and one drive killing recovered fumble - protect the goat-kissing ball. That's what killed the game, and it hurts the most because all three of those errors were made by players who rarely make them compared to the league as a whole. Congrats to Indy, suck it up NE, get ready to make the NYJ pay through the nose.

The offense had three drive killers - two fumbles and an interception, their game wasn't that great.

Indy got nothing off the turnovers and the fumble led to a 3 and out punt return to the 6 and a TD. No unit is perfect. The offense did it's job for the most part although settling for 3 twice isn't ideal. Manning's offense was wildly inconsistent and sucked for the most part of 3 and a half quarters. The real problem was the prevent defense allowing them to close the gap, but even that required a strategicly thrown flag per usual.

No need to kill anyone. It was a team loss albeit with the predictable twists given the matchup and location.

 

[NYCPatsFan]

This line bothers me (not the shock but not being on board):

"...For what it's worth, I was in the New England locker room after the game, and I saw the look in the eyes of the shell-shocked players. I don't buy for a second that they were on board with Belichick's decision. The ones who deemed to talk had to say they were, but I think they were blown away by the riskiness of the call, just like the rest of us."

Hopefully they have got over it and our D is ready to bounce back against this so-called diss by BB.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

Re: Don Banks INSIDE THE NFL

Indy got nothing off the turnovers and the fumble led to a 3 and out punt return to the 6 and a TD. No unit is perfect. The offense did it's job for the most part although settling for 3 twice isn't ideal. Manning's offense was wildly inconsistent and sucked for the most part of 3 and a half quarters. The real problem was the prevent defense allowing them to close the gap, but even that required a strategicly thrown flag per usual.

No need to kill anyone. It was a team loss albeit with the predictable twists given the matchup and location.

Indy getting nothing off the turnovers was good, NE getting nothing off the turnovers was the difference - three "forced" mistakes that killed drives. It's an offensive league, NE has morphed into the O-power template of Indy and is in transition on the defense to be better able to "limit" a high scoring offense. Sunday night the defense started with one foot in cement (Warren & Green out), losing TBC and Ninkovich left the Secondary and Linebackers further handicapped against the Indy passing game - I thought the D played very well for the circumstances. The O eating clock in the second half was good, until Indy's D found a way to force two turnovers and a recovered fumble - that was the difference, it gave the ball back to Indy's O which we know isn't going to be held in check for long (anymore than the NE O can be held in check).

Indy's D "forced" the mistakes, they gave their O the chance to win, they won. A less depleted defense might have been enough to hold them, but it's hard to argue for a depleted defense's chances against Indy's O. I hated the loss, I have no problem with the decisions or the overall performance of the NE players, but head to head with Indy's D the NE O lost the ball control battle - something to correct and improve before the playoffs, it's not finger pointing Mo, it's what needs to be fixed going forward. Now...

He's going to pout,
he's going to cry,
there ain't no doubt I'm telling you why,
Sexy Rexy's coming to town.

He's wiping his eyes,
he's changing his drawers,
the disappointed Pats are pissed and looking to toast Jester smores,
Sexy Rexy's coming to town.

He knows that Tommy's grumpy,
he knows Wes is quite well,
he knows PatChung is blitzing and the Sanchize won't feel well,
so....

He's going to pout,
he's going to cry,
there ain't no doubt I'm telling you why,
Sexy Rexy's coming to town.

 

[sg14]

I think the biggest concern for me is the energy level in the 4th quarter, that game was too reminescient of prior games at Indy. They showed a short clip were players were coming off the field and collapsing on the bench, with BB walking by surveying his troops.

Yes there were turnovers but the colts had turnovers too.
The DL had injuries but even if there were no injuries how many sacks did you expect anyway??

The Colts have built a team with speed, speed kills and seems to out last the standard NFL team, endurance wise.

I think next time, whenever that is, they bring the cooling fans, misters, the whole nine yards. And need more ball control to keep the defense off the field. Morris will score a few touchdowns next time.

 

[mosslost]

Re: Don Banks INSIDE THE NFL

He's going to pout,
he's going to cry,
there ain't no doubt I'm telling you why,
Sexy Rexy's coming to town.

He's wiping his eyes,
he's changing his drawers,
the disappointed Pats are pissed and looking to toast Jester smores,
Sexy Rexy's coming to town.

He knows that Tommy's grumpy,
he knows Wes is quite well,
he knows PatChung is blitzing and the Sanchize won't feel well,
so....

He's going to pout,
he's going to cry,
there ain't no doubt I'm telling you why,
Sexy Rexy's coming to town.

Brilliant.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

I think the biggest concern for me is the energy level in the 4th quarter, that game was too reminescient of prior games at Indy. They showed a short clip were players were coming off the field and collapsing on the bench, with BB walking by surveying his troops.

Yes there were turnovers but the colts had turnovers too.
The DL had injuries but even if there were no injuries how many sacks did you expect anyway??

The Colts have built a team with speed, speed kills and seems to out last the standard NFL team, endurance wise.

I think next time, whenever that is, they bring the cooling fans, misters, the whole nine yards. And need more ball control to keep the defense off the field. Morris will score a few touchdowns next time.

Yes, Peyty was picked off twice, so the turnovers balanced out - NE lost by one point, one score - two turnovers and a recovered fumble on killed drives meant three scoring opportunities missed due to ball control issues - as you said, the D was pulled back out early (ball control).

I expected zero sacks, but losing your number one pass rusher and a serviceable reserve when you are already short handed on the DL...Indy loses one of Freeney or Mathis and that game changes, NE losing TBC changed the defense, which puts greater pressure on the O to execute, keep Peyton off the field, and score. It goes back to ball control being the key - let's hope the lesson took.

 

[DocE]

The offense put up 34 points, that has to be enough, especially on the road. Indianpolis had scored more than 34 points once all year...against St Louis. While I agree the turnover hurt, the offense put up 34 points AND won the time of possession battle. If the defense just allows one lightning fast drive down the field instead of two, this is a comfortable Patriots win.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

The offense put up 34 points, that has to be enough, especially on the road. Indianpolis had scored more than 34 points once all year...against St Louis. While I agree the turnover hurt, the offense put up 34 points AND won the time of possession battle. If the defense just allows one lightning fast drive down the field instead of two, this is a comfortable Patriots win.

Which unit was handicapped the most? Yes, one less Colts' score preserves the win, but the defense faced three additional Colts drives due to Indy's defense winning the ball control battle with NE's O - the D stopped Peyty twice with interceptions in the second half, how much more of them can you ask? The turnovers balanced, 2-2; Indy's D forced one more ball control error than NE's D, two if you count the 4th and 2 call. The D played their hearts out.

 

[SidelineSid]

Yes, Peyty was picked off twice, so the turnovers balanced out - NE lost by one point, one score - two turnovers and a recovered fumble on killed drives meant three scoring opportunities missed due to ball control issues - as you said, the D was pulled back out early (ball control).

I expected zero sacks, but losing your number one pass rusher and a serviceable reserve when you are already short handed on the DL...Indy loses one of Freeney or Mathis and that game changes, NE losing TBC changed the defense, which puts greater pressure on the O to execute, keep Peyton off the field, and score. It goes back to ball control being the key - let's hope the lesson took.

To be Frank, we lost this game because we couldn't close them out. The two areas of concern are the defensive line and the offensive line.

1.) The defensive line has alot of role players, but no play makers. Banta-cain is our best pass rusher: he only has 3 sacks. We have to do better than that. We need quality. Adalius Thomas to step up big. with the amount of money he's being paid, that man has to contribute more. He barely put any pressure on Manning and he wasn't even double teamed. Ninkovich out played him!

2.) It's fourth and 2. We need to win the game. I can understand the call to go for it on your own 28 yard line. I don't like it, but I can understand it. It takes some serious stones to take a chance like that. The only thing that annoys me about that call was that in that situation, we used to be able to give teams the impression that we could run the ball in that kind of situation.

That night, everyone and their mother knew we were going to pass. We were predictable. We were soft. We were the old Colts. And that F***ing pisses me off. That's not what won us championships. Brady only had a second to get the ball off because every single player on that D was ready for the pass. They didn't have to respect the run because there was no one back there. We didn't even pretend that we were going to.

Bill's decision to go with that kind of play tells us how little faith he has in Maroney, (a former first round pick), and the offensive line. I noticed throughout the game that the Colts were over loading the right side of our offensive line because that is usually where we run the ball. in fact, on several running plays that night, Maroney had to cut back from his right to his left because defenders were getting significant penetration into the back field. I'm not sure if this problem was because I need some time to really look at the game tape.

Bottom line: We sucked on both lines near the end.
(Volmer and Mankins are the lone exceptions).

 

[DocE]

Which unit was handicapped the most? Yes, one less Colts' score preserves the win, but the defense faced three additional Colts drives due to Indy's defense winning the ball control battle with NE's O - the D stopped Peyty twice with interceptions in the second half, how much more of them can you ask? The turnovers balanced, 2-2; Indy's D forced one more ball control error than NE's D, two if you count the 4th and 2 call. The D played their hearts out.

The Patriots won time of possession 35:02 to 24:58, yet the defense still allowed the Colts to score more than they had against any team this year not named the St Louis Rams. The defense allowed 4 drives of 79 yards or more for TD's. How on earth can you say the defense "played their hearts out"? The offense gave the defense a 31-14 lead with 14:18 left to to go. That should be a wrap. game over. done.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

That night, everyone and their mother knew we were going to pass. We were predictable.

Tom "Effing" Brady, he's gone gunslinger since getting Welker and Moss and that's the affected the play calling in crunch time.

 

[Box_O_Rocks]

The Patriots won time of possession 35:02 to 24:58, yet the defense still allowed the Colts to score more than they had against any team this year not named the St Louis Rams. The defense allowed 4 drives of 79 yards or more for TD's. How on earth can you say the defense "played their hearts out"? The offense gave the defense a 31-14 lead with 14:18 left to to go. That should be a wrap. game over. done.

In the first half Indy had three 3 and outs. In the second half the D had two interceptions to end drives and forced Indy to punt after the Maroney fumble. Peyton Manning, Reggie Wayne, and Co. = no lead is safe. This is farging Indy.

The D lost Peyton killer Jarvis Green before the game. Ditto Ty Warren. The best way to pressure Manning is up the middle and not having those two hurt the D more than not having Light hurt the O. Losing two edge rushers in the game hurt the D more than losing Neal and Aiken hurt the O.

When analyzing what the team can do better to make them more competitive in these kind of games I have to ask where they broke down.
- Secondary? Not really, they did a good job against Peyton and Co., Peyton had to be accurate as all heck to get the ball to his receivers.
- Linebackers? No.
- D-line? Lack of pressure late, but we know about the injury situation there.
- O-line? Yeh, Kaczur had trouble with Mathis, most RTs do, but it led to one strip sack which recovered or not led to a killed drive. An adjustment is needed.
- RB? You seem to think so, we do know Maroney fumbled - rare as it is, it cost a score. It was a critical error.
- WR? No.
- QB? One interception, it's rare but it killed a drive.

I just don't see the defense as the primary problem, all season they've held offenses close for the NE offense. The offense has been the one that struggled most of the season and despite the big plays and scoring against Indy I see the offensive errors as the game killer.

 

[Patspsycho]

In the first half Indy had three 3 and outs. In the second half the D had two interceptions to end drives and forced Indy to punt after the Maroney fumble. Peyton Manning, Reggie Wayne, and Co. = no lead is safe. This is farging Indy.

The D lost Peyton killer Jarvis Green before the game. Ditto Ty Warren. The best way to pressure Manning is up the middle and not having those two hurt the D more than not having Light hurt the O. Losing two edge rushers in the game hurt the D more than losing Neal and Aiken hurt the O.

When analyzing what the team can do better to make them more competitive in these kind of games I have to ask where they broke down.
- Secondary? Not really, they did a good job against Peyton and Co., Peyton had to be accurate as all heck to get the ball to his receivers.
- Linebackers? No.
- D-line? Lack of pressure late, but we know about the injury situation there.
- O-line? Yeh, Kaczur had trouble with Mathis, most RTs do, but it led to one strip sack which recovered or not led to a killed drive. An adjustment is needed.
- RB? You seem to think so, we do know Maroney fumbled - rare as it is, it cost a score. It was a critical error.
- WR? No.
- QB? One interception, it's rare but it killed a drive.

I just don't see the defense as the primary problem, all season they've held offenses close for the NE offense. The offense has been the one that struggled most of the season and despite the big plays and scoring against Indy I see the offensive errors as the game killer.

Last two drives lasted under two minutes each, for Indy. What is your take on that?