Patriots at Raiders post-game thread

[Fencer]

The Pats' defense gave up 4 scores, none of them because of being handed poor field position.

Had the offense not built a huge lead, it still would have been at least 4 scores, because the 4th down stop would have been a FG.

The defense did little that resulted in good field position for the offense (e.g., TOs that hand the offense good field position) -- just the Wilfork return to midfield.

The only reason this looked like a decent defensive performance is the red zone. The defense was ineffective on the rest of the field.

It's a good thing that the red zone is such an important part of the field.

 

[Ring 6]

McCourty played very well today.

The OL was excellent.

Ridley looks like the real deal. Don't know the extent of Woodheads injury but the guy BB picked then got lambasted for wasting a 3rd rounder on a guy who can only run on 3rd and 1, is a big play back who looks like he will be a stud here for a long time.

Spikes played well as the run defense, but for 2 breakdowns was superb today.

Sean Ellis got highlighted for a couple of missed tackles but a 300 lber getting 5 yards into the backfield to disrupt a run has had a positive impact on the play even if he misses the tackle, and overall Ellis looked good today.

Is it just me, or is Welker really faster than he was before the injury?

Its looking like we can hand the Jets their 3rd loss in a row (on there way to 8 and 8) and go 2 up on them next week. We need the walking wounded to heal up.

 

[Ring 6]

The Pats' defense gave up 4 scores, none of them because of being handed poor field position.

Had the offense not built a huge lead, it still would have been at least 4 scores, because the 4th down stop would have been a FG.

The defense did little that resulted in good field position for the offense (e.g., TOs that hand the offense good field position).

The only reason this looked like a decent defensive performance is the red zone. The defense was ineffective on the rest of the field.

It's a good thing that the red zone is such an important part of the field.

The 4th score was meaningless.

The red zone counts.

The game is about allowing points. There is no way of allowing the same number of points that is any better than any other way.

 

[Ring 6]

We will see how the kool-aid drinkers on this board feel after its all set and doned.I see alot of similarities to last season.Offense that depends too much on the slot and the TEs and a opportunistic defense that gives up tons of yards and waits to get a TO.

Sounds like your goal is for the team to fail so you can proudly say I told you so. Can't be much fun to watch the team win for you,. can it.

 

[Patriot Missile]

Just the pass D was bad? Umm....I think the run D was equally bad today....

You must be describing the Raiders run D?

 

[Metaphors]

Gotta say, as interesting as the back and forth has been on this game, I side CLEARLY with those who are disappointed/worried about this defense. I thought they were awful. Yes, they "stopped" Campbell to some degree, and yes they came up with some big turnovers. BUT...

To me almost every big defensive play was an UNFORCED ERROR, at least to some degree. We miss tackles like CRAZY. We give up completions, left and right, to scrubs. It's very worrisome. The silver lining of the Mayo injury is...how much worse can the D get?

I'm not one to use the injury excuse, but how many do you need to have before it just gets silly. 3 interior linemen (probably the best 3 passrushers), half your corners, your captain LB (who never comes off the field) and Chung playing one-handed. In the previous 3 games, the defense played well enough in the context of the game to win comfortably. Not ideal, but also not a disaster. In this game, the defense was just hanging on.

My thoughts:

1) Don't let Welker near a microphone this week. Just don't.

2) Wilfork will get lots of press for the picks. That is great, but people need to realize that he (and the insane number of snaps he is playing) is about the only thing keeping this defense from actually becoming a disaster.

3) Earth to Buffalo...welcome back. Probably not the best idea to lose to Cincy with this stretch staring you in the face...PHI, @NYG, WAS (Canada), NYJ, @DAL , @MIA, @NYJ, TEN, @SD. Several good teams that are desperate for wins and a 9 week stretch with 2 games in Buffalo. Good luck.

4) I think the Ravens are intentionally committing turnovers to give the San-grenade more opportunities to explode. Can punting on 1st down be far behind?

 

[patsfan-1982]

How many TDs did Campbell throw?? ONE! 344 yards doesn't mean a damn thing. Why can't fans realize that?? Seriously.. 344 yards is BETTER than 416 and 2 TDS, 378 yards and 2, and 387 and 4.

People who can't recognize the improvement are the ones with the issue.

im not trying to be Debbie Downer here i understand a win is a win the pats defense played better today but they was not good, you can insult me all you want and call me a ungrateful fan but the fact is they give up 500 yards today and are ranked 32th in the NFL in Total defense it's really not a stretch me saying there a Bad defense

 

[Guts]

im not trying to be Debbie Downer here i understand a win is a win the pats defense played better today but they was not good, you can insult me all you want and call me a ungrateful fan but the fact is they give up 500 yards today and are ranked 32th in the NFL in Total defense it's really not a stretch me saying there a Bad defense

3-1 bro they're last in yards allowed but not points we ha a banged up secondary, lost our defense captain, a depleted d line and managed a win on the road in a hostile environment. we contained DMC under 100 yards and he didn't score today. we forced campbell to try to beat us thus the yards allowed

 

[Joker]

im not trying to be Debbie Downer here i understand a win is a win the pats defense played better today but they was not good, you can insult me all you want and call me a ungrateful fan but the fact is they give up 500 yards today and are ranked 32th in the NFL in Total defense it's really not a stretch me saying there a Bad defense

ok..GREAT....I'll write Omissioner Goodell an urgent e-mail begging him to change the rules of the game...from now on...when the losing team gains 500 total yards and only scores 19 points, they immediately get a "Pats"fan 1982 exemption and are awarded an automatic 14 points. Maybe he'll go a step further and just make it a Patriots specific rule, so the other 20 to0 25 teams that have given up 500 yards this season are NOT penalized...will that make you feel better???? To hell with wins...the PATS MUST NOT ALLOW ANY POINTS AND LESS THAN 50 YARDS EVERY GAME!!!!!!!

this defense STINKS!!!!!

 

[Joker]

Carolina put up 543 yards on the Bears defense today

they lost by 5 points to the Bears, who only put up 317...

what's wrong with THAT picture "Pats"fan 1982....?

Philly put up well over 500 yards in offense today...they lost ...to SF of all teams...

hi moron theory!!!

 

[Daigle]

Defense is going in the right direction, especially considering all the injuries. Heres my notes of players I noticed.

McCourty: Better than previous games this year. Sometimes he felt as fluid and fast with the hands as last year. Might the sophmore slump be over ?

Willfork: Amazing catch again. Hes really good run stuffer but is he getting enough penetration ? Still bringing alot to the team.

Ellis: Think he showed some heart and actually made some plays. Stuffing the run and getting some penetration atleast on a few occasions.

Carter: Besides the fact that they were holding him the whole game he stepped up and showed some heart too. He and Ellis took more responsibilites it looked. If we could just get to the qb a littler moore we have some potential here.

Arrington: I know it didnt matter the last catch but still.. In zone these guys seems decent I would say.

Ridley: Just looks fast and this one is a keeper who will get even better.

BJGE: Rock solid as allways, keeping those feet going for 2 extra yards.

 

[patsfan-1982]

ok..GREAT....I'll write Omissioner Goodell an urgent e-mail begging him to change the rules of the game...from now on...when the losing team gains 500 total yards and only scores 19 points, they immediately get a "Pats"fan 1982 exemption and are awarded an automatic 14 points. Maybe he'll go a step further and just make it a Patriots specific rule, so the other 20 to0 25 teams that have given up 500 yards this season are NOT penalized...will that make you feel better???? To hell with wins...the PATS MUST NOT ALLOW ANY POINTS AND LESS THAN 50 YARDS EVERY GAME!!!!!!!

this defense STINKS!!!!!

after reading your sarcastic post i now realize how stupid i am for calling the 32th ranked defense in the NFL bad

 

[RayClay]

Hey Rayclay, its gonna bite them in the fanny once again!Campbell moved the ball down the field the whole game.

They are transitioning their defense, Wilfork is the only defensive player from a few years ago. They are changing to a differen approach. Some of the key elements of that defense are out, Haynesworth, Bodden and Mayo, yet they pulled out a convincing win (scoreboard is what counts).

I know you've been a poster for a while and contrary opinions are fine, but i'll tell you the truth, there's so much whining and negativity when we're 3-1 despite not being healthy or coordinated, it makes me not want to come here at all.

I watch the games to enjoy myself. I've noted i don't think they've covered the safety position, but otherwise I see a team in transition with tons of injuries winning three games while other teams that are fully loaded fall apart.

I'm not nearly the most knowledgeable football fan, but I enjoy the games and try to have a laugh. I've followed this team through more horror shows than you can imagine and some great teams that couldn't get it done. We are so fortunate to have a team with a real chance every single year and i am going to enjoy it every time we get a W, I wish everyone could.

You (plural) can point out deficiencies without bashing the organization, especially when we win. Tough loss last week, we shake it off and come back. If people can't appreciate that for the moment, I just don't see why they watch, I really don't.

 

[Joker]

and after reading YOUR sarcastic reply I can see YOU are going to dodge why other teams that gave up 500 plus yards today and won are any different than the Patriots, who,incidentally have dropped their points against every game since the start of the season, to 19 today...which obviously counts for NOTHING in your rigidly stilted little football universe, where only yards given up are the ONLY indicator of a team's ability to win...not record...not yards or points scored...not defensive stops...not turnovers...they all mean NOTHING in the "Yards Given Up Universe"...BTW...do they give you space aliens free college tuition too, like the rest of the illegals flooding this country??? I gotta get me a space ship and blast off into the wild blue yonder and find MY own private Idahoverse...

 

[Guts]

The Patriots are last in yards allowed through the air...knowing that BB has been playing Man the first few games I saw a more comfortable McCourty in zone and he had a decent game. Yards ain't what this game is about is about points allowed which the Patriots are ranked 22nd. Sure it can use some improvement but we have been plagued by injuries in the secondary and DLine. This is a TEAM sport right now the offense is carrying this team while the D gets their **** together which I strongly believe they will. Patience man this is a marathon not a sprint and we're in good shape 3-1 with Buffalo and Jets losing today.

 

[Joker]

I agree 100%...this defense is NOT anywhere near a complete, well oiled finished product...the encouraging signs are the points allowed are dropping game to game.DMC ran for what, 170 yards last week??? I thought he'd tear them apart today...he had one gashing run, otherwise he was contained...that was way better defense on their running game than I expected. In fact I thought the Pats would LOSE this game and posted THAT before the contest started. What I do not get is this unbelievable need to complain and place blame on one single facet of the game and totally ignore the rest of the sum total. A win is a win, and in this NFL I'm HAPPY as a bear in a honey factory.

 

[patsfan-1982]

and after reading YOUR sarcastic reply I can see YOU are going to dodge why other teams that gave up 500 plus yards today and won are any different than the Patriots, who,incidentally have dropped their points against every game since the start of the season, to 19 today...which obviously counts for NOTHING in your rigidly stilted little football universe, where only yards given up are the ONLY indicator of a team's ability to win...not record...not yards or points scored...not defensive stops...not turnovers...they all mean NOTHING in the "Yards Given Up Universe"...BTW...do they give you space aliens free college tuition too, like the rest of the illegals flooding this country??? I gotta get me a space ship and blast off into the wild blue yonder and find MY own private Idahoverse...

we are not always going to agree thats what makes this board fun you can keep calling me a illegal or a space alien for saying the defense is bad right now i dont really know what that means but it made me LMAO but the one thing we can agree on is we both want our pats to get ring #4 at the end of the year, i know the defense is a work in progress i just hope they get much better come playoff time

 

[jsull87]

I'd like to once again mention the appreciation our fan base should have for how well Waters and Solder have stepped in.

Solder has now started 3 games and played in 4 and has fit done a great job and today was no exception.

Waters as well has just come in and has solidified the line at the RG spot. A spot we were all worried about at the start of the season.

I am very happy with how these two have played so far

 

[Joker]

My propensity for over the top reactions and arcane metaphors is well known here, Patsfan 1982....you struck a nerve that lay exposed all day, especially immediately following the game...nothing personal...:eat3:

 

[sbpatfan]

Is it sad that I saw more exotic blitzes from MSU's defense than the Patriots? They looked slightly better today.