No surprise: Tomase reaches for the negative

[SoonerPatriot]

Not saying he's completely wrong, but a little over the top.....


IRVING, Texas - The Cowboys are supposed to be good and the Patriots [team stats] crushed them. Virtually every rival that watched yesterday’s 48-27 demolition can be found hiding under the nearest desk this morning. Except one. For Tom Moore and the Colts, the game provided hope.



http://bostonherald.com/sports/football/patriots/view.bg?articleid=1038137

 

[DefenseRules]

Re: No surprise:Tomase reaches for the negative

Why do you guys continue to subject yourselves to the crap that comes from the Herald? I have not clicked on any articles from that pathetic newspaper all year, and I won't start now.
The defense had an off day. It happens. The last time I checked they are human beings. But this is the second game in a row that they have looked shakey. I think that teams have adjusted to how we are playing without Seymour. It certainly looked like his boys missed him yesterday.

It's week 6 not week 16, there is room for improvement, most definately. I expect them to improve. We still have a long way to go. If this trend with the D becomes the norm, then we have a problem. We also had a lot of banged up guys playing in that D yesterday. They looked a lot better when they were healthy 3 weeks ago.

 

[reflexblue]

Re: No surprise:Tomase reaches for the negative

It seems the D doesn't start kicking in until around November and gets better from then on out. imo

 

[SVN]

Re: No surprise:Tomase reaches for the negative

tomase is already building up all this up for indy.ignore his -vity and see some of the points mentioned.i think a couple are valid. Our run defense needs improving. Our pass defense has been like that for a couple of yrs so i dont think its changed much .some interesting points

Maybe the Colts can take something from what we did, but those two teams have played each other so many times, (the Colts) have ways of attacking with their system,” said Cowboys tight end Jason Whitten. “I’m sure they feel good about where they stand.”

“We had some opportunities underneath,” Whitten said. “I think that’s the way you have to attack them.”

Start with Harrison. The Cowboys threw on him late in the first half, when Whitten beat him for consecutive catches that set up a touchdown. Patrick Crayton then beat him twice for intermediate gains in the third quarter, the second an eight-yard touchdown.

Whitten admitted the Cowboys targeted Harrison.

“Yeah, we did,” he said. “But he did a good job. He’s a smart player. He’s never really out of position and knows what his weaknesses are. I thought he did a good job. There were some opportunities there in the second quarter, but overall he did the job.”

i think if we get seymour back then we should improve greatly on run D.
against the colts, i think they might play 1 more DB and 1 less LB and play more coverage and defend the run with the front 4 or 6. this is how they have played them in the past.

 

[Pats726]

Re: No surprise:Tomase reaches for the negative

Why do you guys continue to subject yourselves to the crap that comes from the Herald? I have not clicked on any articles from that pathetic newspaper all year, and I won't start now.

Tomase is a negative minded jerk..no wonder BB does not like the press..What manurr comes from these writers.. and where are all those that say Tomase is on a pace with Reiss?? seems like all that have said that have run back into the woodwork..I agree there is MUCH crap out there..of much negativity.

The defense had an off day. It happens. The last time I checked they are human beings. But this is the second game in a row that they have looked shakey. I think that teams have adjusted to how we are playing without Seymour. It certainly looked like his boys missed him yesterday.

I agree as well..that the D had trouble..and there are a bunch banged up...AD was playing, but at quite a reduced level..There were others as well.

 

[Mike the Brit]

Re: No surprise:Tomase reaches for the negative

Good, contrarian article.

I think it's good to challenge fans who only see the sunshine and never look at the clouds. It doesn't mean that we can't enjoy a great win.

And, with respect Stan, I can't imagine BB having the slightest problem with this article. It talks about football tactics and performance, rather than a lot of emotional fluff, and building up your opponents' strengths and focusing on your own weaknesses is BB's own trade-mark. (Of course, he wouldn't dream of saying a word about the Colts; we'll be hearing all week how great Miami is, not the Colts!)

 

[Pats726]

Re: No surprise:Tomase reaches for the negative

Good, contrarian article.

I think it's good to challenge fans who only see the sunshine and never look at the clouds. It doesn't mean that we can't enjoy a great win.

And, with respect Stan, I can't imagine BB having the slightest problem with this article. It talks about football tactics and performance, rather than a lot of emotional fluff, and building up your opponents' strengths and focusing on your own weaknesses is BB's own trade-mark. (Of course, he wouldn't dream of saying a word about the Colts; we'll be hearing all week how great Miami is, not the Colts!)

That is very true..but can we talk about teh timing of such an article?? I think THAT is more what I have a problem with than the content...in fact, I think he has a number of valid points...and would have been in my eyes, quite a solid article..but for the day after, I found it more negative and not all that fair...FOR an article written after a big win.
The team wins a big game and all that writer takkes out of it is the negativity of what happened?? THAT the D was poor??? I really have to ask how fair that is FOR a writer to be?? I agree it's good to be real about things and to spot where there are weaknesses...but to me that is more of an piece done a few days after..not the day after a big win. And that is what Tomase is good at.. TOTALLY forgetting the positive and concentrating on the negative. How fair is that?? Take a look at his body of work and see how negarive he is ALL the time..
Take it another way..you go on an interview and you think you've aced it, done a great job with it, but soemone ignores all that you think is good and just rips one part of what you think might be a weakness. Forgets the good parts..just does that. Fair??
what
Yes...BB does do that..and should....and if this artivle was in a day or two I am sure it would have been taken MUCH differently..

 

[kolbitr]

I don't mind the critical stance at all, but I do think it's an odd spin. To bring the Colts up so early in the article...it's almost like something you'd hear at a bar, rather than from a sportswriter. And isn't the name spelled Witten, not Whitten? He played a smaller role in the game than feared...and he's better than Clark, I think.

I am almost certain that AD was at less than full strength. The run defense was not as good as in past weeks; and there is unlikely to be much blitzing against the Colts, obviously...

 

[PATSNUTme]

This time I would have to agree. Even wearing my homer rose colored glasses.*

The thing that bugged me yesterday was poor tackling and players seeming to be out of position on D. Even Rodney did seemed to be out of position on several occasions.

All this is correctable so I wouldn't be drooling if I was Moore.

* are glasses really made out of glass?

 

[Mike the Brit]

Re: No surprise:Tomase reaches for the negative

I take your point about the timing. I don't regularly read the Herald, but I do know that Tomase has published some good articles that aren't just negative. He's also broken some bad news stories about injuries that the Pats would have preferred not to come out, but that's his job.

It may be that the Herald wants at least one of its reporters to go out of his way not to be a homer to give its coverage a different slant. If so, I don't have a problem with that so long as it's done fairly, as I think this was (unlike a certain now thankfully former Globe writer).

As I say, I'm not going to let it spoil a sunny Monday morning!

 

[Mike the Brit]

.

* are glasses really made out of glass?

:rocker: Good morning to you, Homer!

 

[PATSNUTme]

:rocker: Good morning to you, Homer!

Top of the morning to you to. It's a beautiful day in Homerville. But they all are.

 

[PatsFan37]

Re: No surprise:Tomase reaches for the negative

Good, contrarian article.

I think it's good to challenge fans who only see the sunshine and never look at the clouds. It doesn't mean that we can't enjoy a great win.

And, with respect Stan, I can't imagine BB having the slightest problem with this article. It talks about football tactics and performance, rather than a lot of emotional fluff, and building up your opponents' strengths and focusing on your own weaknesses is BB's own trade-mark. (Of course, he wouldn't dream of saying a word about the Colts; we'll be hearing all week how great Miami is, not the Colts!)

I agree, I didn't mind the article. There'll be plenty of sunny articles on this fine sunny morning. And we've all got Nov. 4th circled, so it's not like no one is thinking about the run D vs. Addai.

OTOH, he might have mentioned that Witten was held to 3 catches and otherwise pretty well beaten up getting off the LOS (and that Harrison did a good job there). And that one TD was off an int, and another time STs left the D in horrible field position. Has any other team held Dallas to 3 3-and-outs to start a game? Before this, Dallas was #1 in scoring offense.

But that wasn't the point of the article, and it was fairly stated.

 

[psychoPat]

Re: No surprise:Tomase reaches for the negative

....
The defense had an off day. It happens. The last time I checked they are human beings. But this is the second game in a row that they have looked shakey. I think that teams have adjusted to how we are playing without Seymour. It certainly looked like his boys missed him yesterday.

It's week 6 not week 16, there is room for improvement, most definately. I expect them to improve. We still have a long way to go. If this trend with the D becomes the norm, then we have a problem. We also had a lot of banged up guys playing in that D yesterday. They looked a lot better when they were healthy 3 weeks ago.

Hadn't the Cowpokes been the highest-scoring team in the NFL?
(If not quite, then close.)

Patriots' D held them to 2 TDs and 2 FGs.
Less than 100 yds rushing ... less than 200 passing.
What's so bad about that?

 

[Mooch]

Here's the Dallas offensive stats from yesterday vs. their season-to-date averages:

FIRST DOWNS:

13 vs. 21 (-8)

RUSHING YARDS:

97 vs. 130.5 (-33.5)

PASSING YARDS:

186 vs. 274.7 (-88.7)

TIME OF POSSESSION:

21:45 vs. 30:04 (-8:19)

OFFENSIVE TDS:

2 vs. 3.7 (-1.7)



** Uh, call me crazy but I don't see much hope for Pats opponents in those numbers. Was it a "dominating" defensive performance? Obviously not. However, the Cowboys offense struggled mightily yesterday, particularly in the passing game. They were effective running that ball at times but that's largely a function of the Patriots game plan yesterday. A game plan that seems to be a blueprint for how they'd attack the Colts, by the way.

 

[Pats726]

Re: No surprise:Tomase reaches for the negative

I take your point about the timing. I don't regularly read the Herald, but I do know that Tomase has published some good articles that aren't just negative. He's also broken some bad news stories about injuries that the Pats would have preferred not to come out, but that's his job.

It may be that the Herald wants at least one of its reporters to go out of his way not to be a homer to give its coverage a different slant. If so, I don't have a problem with that so long as it's done fairly, as I think this was (unlike a certain now thankfully former Globe writer).

As I say, I'm not going to let it spoil a sunny Monday morning!

I understand...but even the way it was framed..brining up Tom Moore and the Colts..what is that all about? So it's not just what he said and when..but how he framed it. THAT was not that pleasing either..why even bring up the Colts?? Like who really cares about them at this juncture? But fairness?? I don't think it was fair...not a word about AD and his ankle injury..or that a few of the other players may have been banged up.
As I said..if it was framed differently or a few days later, I think it would have been better suited..and while I think he has written some very insightful pieces, he also has fallen back at times to be like Felger or Borges in his worst moments. VERY inconsistent and leaning way to the negative. And to me, that sometimes covers and skews things a lot more.

 

[fair catch fryar]

Not saying he's completely wrong, but a little over the top.....


IRVING, Texas - The Cowboys are supposed to be good and the Patriots [team stats] crushed them. Virtually every rival that watched yesterday’s 48-27 demolition can be found hiding under the nearest desk this morning. Except one. For Tom Moore and the Colts, the game provided hope.



http://bostonherald.com/sports/football/patriots/view.bg?articleid=1038137

While I still read it, I never really buy into the sensationalism and crappy reporting by any of the Herald's writers. Although, Tomase does point out the obvious to anyone that watched that game last night. I believe this defense will be better by the time we face Indy, because it had better be or we'll be in one hell of a shootout!

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Wimps complaining about the 'negative' article must hate BB then. He always searches for deficiencies and areas requiring improvement. Brady and the whole team does too. I saw the article as raising possible weaknesses that might be exploited by a world class O like Indy has.

Maybe folks are just pissed that once again Tomase nailed it first with the report that Maroney once again would miss the game.

 

[scout]

You have to feed the machine. The machine needs fuel. Maybe he was writing from a bar.

 

[cstjohn17]

This time I would have to agree. Even wearing my homer rose colored glasses.*

The thing that bugged me yesterday was poor tackling and players seeming to be out of position on D. Even Rodney did seemed to be out of position on several occasions.

All this is correctable so I wouldn't be drooling if I was Moore.

* are glasses really made out of glass?

I don't understand the pouting whenever anyone writes something that is not overtly positive about the Patriots. There are plenty of articles today about how great they are (well deserved I might add) but it comes down to the Colts. I have been thinking about beating the Colts ever since the AFC championship. Thomase is just racing ahead and adding his comments on the real "game of the year".

The defense may have let its guard down a little bit once the team got an early cushion but against Indy there won't be false starts, holding penalties or dropped balls. Their offense is excellent and ruthless, look what they did to their ex-buddy Jason David. The Pats defense has speed issues at LB and Safety, no big surprise. The Colts know this and so do other teams, it will be up to the Patriots to prevent unfavorable matchups.

It figures to be a NBA All-Star game when they meet on November 4th. If the Pats defense (or the Colts defense) can come up with 3-4 stops in may be all they need.

It is not bad news that the Pats win and have areas of improvement in all 3 areas.