Pat Kirwin on the Pats

patchick said:

Denver in particular is no sure thing to win its own division. Maybe Kirwin didn't make the predictions so baldly?

Click to expand...

This. If Kansas City wins out, the Patriots have to win out to hold the #1 seed. Latest stats give KC a 21% chance of having the #1 seed when all is said and done (stats are in another thread).

TruthSeeker said:

This. If Kansas City wins out, the Patriots have to win out to hold the #1 seed. Latest stats give KC a 21% chance of having the #1 seed when all is said and done (stats are in another thread).

Click to expand...

Really? I'd bet that KC has less than a 10% chance of winning their division, let alone earn the top seed. I guess I'm not nearly as impressed with KC as the consensus.

The Chiefs have been squeaking by most weeks (3 points v. Chargers, 4 points v. Bills, 4 points v. Seahawks), and they should have lost the games against Buffalo and Seattle. I'm not sure how that translates into winning 11 in a row.

hwc said:

He thinks homefield advantage is everything in AFC playoffs. Impossible go into Denver or Foxboro and win in January.

Click to expand...

The Ravens '12 do not approve this "conventional wisdom".

Deus Irae said:

The Chiefs have been squeaking by most weeks (3 points v. Chargers, 4 points v. Bills, 4 points v. Seahawks), and they should have lost the games against Buffalo and Seattle. I'm not sure how that translates into winning 11 in a row.

Click to expand...

They were dominated in Buffalo and needed a nearly unforced fumble on the one foot line, a muffed punt and a really bizarre 4 down approach when Buffalo was on the doorstop of a winning TD. All three were unlikely and the removal of any one hands them a pretty convincing loss.

Oswlek said:

They were dominated in Buffalo and needed a nearly unforced fumble on the one foot line, a muffed punt and a really bizarre 4 down approach when Buffalo was on the doorstop of a winning TD. All three were unlikely and the removal of any one hands them a pretty convincing loss.

Click to expand...

KC beat the Patriots back when the Patriots were still not the Patriots. That apparently entitles them to the status of being Kryptonite to NE's Superman.

I wish Denver had understood that rule last year.

Deus Irae said:

KC beat the Patriots back when the Patriots were still not the Patriots. That apparently entitles them to the status of being Kryptonite to NE's Superman.

Click to expand...

Totally agree. I thought NE blowing the doors off Denver and Indy adequately demonstrated that they've moved past their ugly first month. The fact that they happened to face KC during that period doesn't mean they'll revert to that same performance level. Would people also be afraid of a tightly contested game if Oakland were to roll into town?

fnordcircle said:

Last season's loss to Miami still gives me nitemares so I'll worry about seeding when we have fewer games left to decide. We still have a third of a season to go.

Click to expand...

Yeah, but last year's decimated Pats team had no business even being in the playoff hunt. Belichick was holding it together with bailing wire and duct tape. This year's team is a much better team.

I'd love to get another crack at KC, either in Arrowhead or at Gillette. The OL is night and day from that game, the defense is more settled, Gronk is healthier, and LaFell is immersed in the offense. The Chiefs haven't exactly looked like world beaters either.

KC is all Jamal Charles.

If you can figure out a way to stop him you stop KC.