Excellent observations as usual...
3. The PI on Welker early in the game was just a horrible call. I am shocked Perriera said it was a good call. The defensive player has a right to be there and it looked to me that Welker ran into him. I hate it when the refs reward teams for poorly executed plays......
It really wasn't a good call but not the worst I've seen. The DB jumped into Welker's path before looking for the ball, so technically the call had merit. However, Welker seemed to throttle back at the end so the PI contact was minimal. If Welker accelerated to the ball and crashed into the DB, the PI would have been deserved. Just on the eye test, I would haven't have cried at all if the flag wasn't thrown.
The Arrington OPI call was much different. Arrington had position the entire time and didn't obstruct the receiver's path to the ball. The contact was initiated by the receiver. The ref in the booth was some combination of drunk and blind (drind? blunk?)
However...... I felt a lot better about that call when the Pats were flagged for a call that were easily as bad as that one that killed a promising drive. The OPI on Herandez looked more like holding on the DB than a OPI.
There is no explanation for that call. Worst part is that the Pats offense went from a first down to a quarter-long funk after that call. Holding and PI calls are absolute groin kicks, which is why I don't want the Pats to have any part of a playoff game in Denver (they got enough home cooking from the refs even before Goober arrived).
9. You can't say enough about the run defense in this game, especially after what we saw the first 3 plays of the game. Think about this stat. The Pats only gave up 92 yds on the ground, and close to 40 of those yds came on just 2 plays..... and one of those came in the 4th quarter.
The Tate 23 yard run in the 3rd was the first opposing run of longer than 20 yards. Compare that to the Falcons who have yielded 7 runs of more than 40 yds.
c. As impressive as Dennard's rise to prominence has been, the apparent fall of Tavon Wilson's impact has been equally disappointing. He seems to be getting fewer and fewer snaps since McCourty moved to safety. His fall from grace has been almost as swift as Patrick Chung's
I think Chung's story isn't complete yet. His role will certainly be different going forward. Probably more of a small linebacker role against teams with multiple TE packages.
As for Wilson, it is clear that the intent was not to have him starting this year or being the key nickel guy. That is why the Talib acquisition has a multiplicative effect. Arrington is much better in limited nickel/slot snaps (and his ST play improves as well). McCourty's range gives opposing QBs something to think about before going deep. Gregory doesn't have to always be protecting deep and has freedom to use his instincts to make plays.
d. I imagine Chandler Jones played well in run defense as he has all season. And he did have a pass block. However he didn't show much penetration in his pass rush in his return to duty. Both Ninko and Scott were more effective. I know its his first game back, but I was hoping for more.
In addition to getting his sea legs back, he seemed to be more interested in collapsing the pocket than getting around the outside. I'll have to rewatch the game to be sure, but maybe the plan was to keep Schaub in the pocket and let the rush come against the weak offensive right.
20. Is it just me, or is Shane Vareen looking more and more like the RB we all hoped he'd be when we'd drafted him
Yep and they are just now looking to him in the passing game (not enough for my liking though). If Brady had enough time to step into his throw, Vereen may have had another big gainer last night.
My additions...
1) Yes Mr. Gruden...the defense stipulates that Tennessee, Florida and Alabama are all in the SEC. Please move on.
2) This game was WAAAAAAAY too big for Schaub and the Texans coaches. Schaub had checkdowns, screens and slants available all night but just couldn't bring himself to take small profits and control the field. The game plan was disjointed. Man coverage with simple pressure packages? No play action passing? When they had success for 2-3 plays in a row, they never built off it. Very strange for such an important game.
3) While Brady didn't take quite a few hits, the OL did an outstanding job. I'll have to check the game again to get details, but they almost always did enough to make the play successful.
4) It is clear that LB blitzes are now a key part of the pass defense. All 3 of them have burst and arrive with malice. Even without sacks, that affects the comfort level of any QB and challenges protection to devote focus on pressure that may or may not come.