Bedard: Defense is Ready

[SHOWTIME15]

http://www.boston.com/sports/footba...ayoff-ready/eoKBjrLZDUXQb4nnIn0EdJ/story.html

I love Bedard- he has to be my favorite patriots beat writer!

 

[mayoclinic]

Could he be implying that it takes time for a young defense with 3 rookie starters, 5 new starters and a host of injuries and moving parts takes time to gel? What a radical idea.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

Could he be implying that it takes time for a young defense with 3 rookie starters, 5 new starters and a host of injuries and moving parts takes time to gel? What a radical idea.

Well, i think his point was that the D seems to have gelled right in the nick of time...for the playoffs. We've been saying all year the D needs time to gel, well they have appeared to do just that.

 

[mcsully]

Bedard is hands down the best.. WE were lucky to get him..

With that being said, the defense is ready because of BB taking more control over it. I look fwd to seeing how the Romeo C works out..

 

[mayoclinic]

Well, i think his point was that the D seems to have gelled right in the nick of time...for the playoffs. We've been saying all year the D needs time to gel, well they have appeared to do just that.

It's not uncommon to see improvement by the end of the year with a BB defense. Last year's squad got better, and it was nowhere near as talented as this year's group. We still haven't seen the defense at full strength this year.

 

[borg]

Funny how the D is deemed ready after playing offensively challenged teams with nothing to play for but sh** the bit vs SF giving up 35 points on 5 TD drives totaling 13 plays. Selective memory is a valuable tool of persuasion for an audiences eager to drink the home brew

 

[Deus Irae]

Funny how the D is deemed ready after playing offensively challenged teams with nothing to play for but sh** the bit vs SF giving up 35 points on 5 TD drives totaling 13 plays. Selective memory is a valuable tool of persuasion for an audiences eager to drink the home brew

You take a game where players were missing or injured, ignore the unusual way the game started, and then fail to remember that the Patriots had been coming off of a very emotional and physical game while the 49ers were coming off of games against the Rams and Dolphins. The Patriots have held 5 of their last 6 opponents to under 20 points, and that includes a shutout. They're not a great defense, but that's certainly a pretty nice way to be heading into the playoffs.

Selective memory seems to be something you're familiar with on this topic... How'd that SF team do the following week against the Seahawks? How flat was that Seahawks team the weak after they played the 49ers?

Welcome to the NFL.

 

[mayoclinic]

Funny how the D is deemed ready after playing offensively challenged teams with nothing to play for but sh** the bit vs SF giving up 35 points on 5 TD drives totaling 13 plays. Selective memory is a valuable tool of persuasion for an audiences eager to drink the home brew

Despite injuries requiring shuffling in the secondary and limiting Spikes, the deense has allowed 19, 16, 14, 16 and 0 points in the other 5 of it's last 6 games played. 1 bad game - especially with poor field position, coming off of an emotional big game against Houston and on a short week - should be concerning, but not necessarily an indictment of the defense's overall impovement.

 

[patsfan13]

If Talib and Dennard are healthy enough to be effective and we avoid more injuries (like Ninko) the D will be SB worthy.

 

[BananaRepublican]

the bit vs SF giving up 35 points on 5 TD drives totaling 13 plays.

Victor Borg, anybody who watched the game knows that the defense was handed horrible field position all night long and were down Talib/Dennard most of the night. The only truly long TD was Crabapple's and that was against a substitute corner.

Obviously the Pats O stalled in the first half but their punter was kicking the crap out of the ball all night long. That a Ray Guy-esque performance. Resign that guy.

 

[borg]

You take a game where players were missing or injured, ignore the unusual way the game started, and then fail to remember that the Patriots had been coming off of a very emotional and physical game while the 49ers were coming off of games against the Rams and Dolphins. The Patriots have held 5 of their last 6 opponents to under 20 points, and that includes a shutout. They're not a great defense, but that's certainly a pretty nice way to be heading into the playoffs.

Selective memory seems to be something you're familiar with on this topic... How'd that SF team do the following week against the Seahawks? How flat was that Seahawks team the weak after they played the 49ers?

Welcome to the NFL.

Unusual way the game started? Ya think the other team had something to do with that 31-3 first half+ pounding they delivered on NE...at home.
As far as your Seahawks/SF next game analogy...you fail to recognize that Seattle was on a 3 game 'take no mercy" tour averaging 50 pts/game and just abusing any team they faced. When you can quantify that playing against NE is a more arduous task physically than playing any other team in the NFL, come back with this argument that SF was flat for a reason ...or NE was flat for a reason after playing Houston. Here in the world of Pats good/World bad, I guess the only way NE can lose is if they step on their own toes. Guess winning 3 consecutive playoff games against tough opponents is out of the question due to the inevitable flatness.
And I'm still trying to understand why so much energy was exerted vs Houston in a game they controlled throughout with Houston shutting down with a quarter to go. Is it more tiring to oppose a team that just goes through the motions?
As far as the great points against the Pats D has delivered in 5 of the last 6, are you guys really puffing your chests over the twin Miami killings, the NYJ, the Jags. And lets be honest, Schaub has been AWFUL in his last 4 games...combining for a total of ONE TD. None of the teams are capable of attacking the Patriots one achilles heal....the over the top deep pass that Seattle and Baltimore and SF all exploited with ease. Think back to this weeks Miami game. The WRs were routinely open deep but Tannehill missed badly on every shot.
Hey, I'm thrilled the Pats pitched a shutout....never thought I'd see that this year. But if memory serves me correctly, BB has routinely crushed week 17 opponents that have nothing to play for. Great coaches get the job done. But as we have seen in the past half dozen years, playoffs teams become playoff teams because they can exploit teams weaknesses....and I expect deep bombs from Flacco and Manning....if they are smart

 

[captain stone]

It's not uncommon to see improvement by the end of the year with a BB defense. Last year's squad got better, and it was nowhere near as talented as this year's group. We still haven't seen the defense at full strength this year.

Unfortunately, we might not ever see it at full strength if the injury to Ninko is long-term.

 

[Deus Irae]

Unusual way the game started? Ya think the other team had something to do with that 31-3 first half+ pounding they delivered on NE...at home.

I think the offense coughing up the ball put the defense in unusual positions. Since this is about the defense, it's something that you should have noted.

As far as your Seahawks/SF next game analogy...you fail to recognize that Seattle was on a 3 game 'take no mercy" tour averaging 50 pts/game and just abusing any team they faced.

I didn't fail to notice anything. As I pointed out, it was you failing to notice things.

When you can quantify that playing against NE is a more arduous task physically than playing any other team in the NFL, come back with this argument that SF was flat for a reason ...

That's a lousy argument, and you know it. The NE/HOU, NE/SF and SF/SEA games were among the biggest and most physical the league's seen all year.

Here in the world of Pats good/World bad, I guess the only way NE can lose is if they step on their own toes. Guess winning 3 consecutive playoff games against tough opponents is out of the question due to the inevitable flatness.

Try pulling this crap on someone who doesn't sit here and bag on the team when it's needed. Since that's not me, you're just talking out your backside. Your argument stunk, because you didn't bother to think it through. Your followup was even worse.

 

[mayoclinic]

Unfortunately, we might not ever see it at full strength if the injury to Ninko is long-term.

Report: Rob Ninkovich Is Expected to Be Available for Patriots’ First Playoff Game | New England Patriots | NESN.com

 

[TheBostonStraggler]

Funny how the D is deemed ready after playing offensively challenged teams with nothing to play for but sh** the bit vs SF giving up 35 points on 5 TD drives totaling 13 plays. Selective memory is a valuable tool of persuasion for an audiences eager to drink the home brew

SF gave up 34 points in that game. Does that mean they are a poor defense?
Taking one instance -- from a multi instance sample -- to draw a conclusion is the very definition of "selective".

If anyone is out there thinking the Patriots have close to a #1 defense, I think those people are fooling themselves. But the Patriots have made a solid improvement on D and that is quantifiable.

 

[Ring 6]

Funny how the D is deemed ready after playing offensively challenged teams with nothing to play for but sh** the bit vs SF giving up 35 points on 5 TD drives totaling 13 plays. Selective memory is a valuable tool of persuasion for an audiences eager to drink the home brew

Its too bad Houston thought they had nothing to play for, they could have gotten a 1 seed if they knew that game mattered.

The 49ers started drives at the
+5
+34
+3
+27
+38
+12

What do you expect out of defense given that field position?

Over the last 6 weeks despite that 41 game the Patriots are 4th in the NFL in points allowed.

 

[ausbacker]

SF gave up 34 points in that game. Does that mean they are a poor defense?
Taking one instance -- from a multi instance sample -- to draw a conclusion is the very definition of "selective".

If anyone is out there thinking the Patriots have close to a #1 defense, I think those people are fooling themselves. But the Patriots have made a solid improvement on D and that is quantifiable.

We are in agreement TheBostonStraggler. Most people seem to be confusing the debate about the Patriots D approaching elite status opposed to the Patriots D enjoying their much improved status.

 

[patfanken]

Could he be implying that it takes time for a young defense with 3 rookie starters, 5 new starters and a host of injuries and moving parts takes time to gel? What a radical idea.

I understand your cynicism, Mayo, but he's trying to inform a fan base who seems to rate players on a play by play basis. Bedard is a valuable teaching tool, so that fans can understand that football is NOT a game of individuals, but a game where 11 people's success are integrally interrelated.

Its important in the creation of a well informed fan base that they understand this basic, but often forgotten concept. Its also important that fans understand that a team is not a static unit, but something that evolves a great deal AFTER it leave TC. This is something Pats SHOULD understand more than most.

That's the key point in Beddard's article is that the defense that had some fans wringing their hands at the beginning of season, was a work in progress due to the extreme youth of the group. Some of us understood this but we were in a distinct minority. The defense that we had then is NOT the same one we have now, and Bedard tries to explain to some degree what the process was.

As fans its important the we understand that there IS a plan, and that the plan is on track. What is so exciting to me in seeing this defense evolve is how much better it will get over the next few years as these extremely young players add experience to their raw talents.

 

[cstjohn17]

By the numbers, 2012 Regular Season

2012 NFL Team Total Stats - National Football League - ESPN

PPG - Tied for #9 - 20.7
Yard per Game - 25th - 373.3
Passing Yards Against - 29th - 271.4
Rushing Yards Against - 9th - 101.9

At the start of year I said if the defense can play average they have a real shot, in aggregate, they are average or slightly better than average. 3 games to glory, Go Pats!

 

[RobertWeathers]

Since Talib joined the team, the Pats have allowed...

-6.8 yards per pass and would place them 10th
-Opposing passer rating of 75.3 which would place them 4th
-17.5ppg which would place them 4th

He certainly hasn't been the singular reason but there is no question that over the last 7 games the D is playing at a pretty high level.