It's early...but should we be concerned with how close these games have become in the 4th quarter?

There's so much to appreciate when it comes to the strength and potential of our team. It's only been two weeks, so I'll reserve making any firm criticisms about the Pats until we see how they perform midway into the season (Bradley Fletcher is the obvious exception. He clearly hit his ceiling in Philadelphia, finished terribly there, and doesn't seem to be improving at all. He'll be, at best, a limited contributor to the team)

My only concern thus far for the team as a whole, has been our inability to finish strong. We allowed the Steelers and Bills to score on multiple possessions in the final quarter. Even though the Pats outplayed and outcoached both teams, they did not sustain the full margin of their lead late into the game.

We had a 18 -point lead against Pittsburgh, and a 22-point lead against Buffalo - and yet won only by a touchdown. And combined, we've given up a total of 53 points in the last two games.

So I wonder...is our inability to finish games something to be concerned about?

New England is no different than most teams. This is the NFL where scores are usually close. How many Superbowl's have the Pats won by more than four points? That's obviously against the very best competition but the reality is save for 2007, games are going to be pretty close because the talent level overall is pretty equal league wide.

This is why coaching is of absolute importance and adding a hall of fame quarterback to that equation is the difference between a top tier team and one that's just middle of the road. That's why every year you'll likely see 12-0 college teams but only two undefeated teams in the regular season in the history of the NFL.

The season doesn't start until Thanksgiving (for us). BB has the team right where he wants them and they'll keep improving (Well on defense, the offense seems to be in mid-season form, but we'll have to see how they adjust after teams figure out how to deal with their formations...like 4TE set).

I used to worry about that, but I've learned that as long as it ends up in the W column then it really doesn't matter.

The only worrisome trend thus far has been the complete defensive reversal from 0 points in the fourth quarter last year (obviously in the back half of the year) to trending to give the majority of the first two games' points in the fourth quarter this year.

That said, major contributor in both cases has been big leads which has softened the scheme looking for the opposing offense to take time off the clock through long drives, but has likewise given up long TD passes which negates that objective.

Fully expect this issue to fade moving forward, much like the OL fears (Ivan Fears?) from last year evaporated as well with some adjustments. Fletcher's role will be minimized either through scheme or elevation of a PS player or other waiver wire pickup. Also expect the front seven to gain more discipline in their rushes (not over pursuing/committing) as they get more practice time.

Isn't there a Patriots adage, about "it is not how you play in September, but how you are playing in November".. so I suspect with a newer D backfield there will be some growing pains.. I personally hate the bend don't break attitude sometimes, but also have faith the BB and his brain trust will make some necessary changes..

An issue last week was the Brady seemed somewhat greedy on his mission, I think he wanted to score over 50 points so Rex could STFU...

Well okay then .... I can relax now.

Not worried ... their defense is still evolving.

while the weather is good the patriots are passing the ball because the young OL is better at pass protecting than run blocking. I think they will work on the run blocking during the bye week, for now they are building up the confidence of the young OL line by letting them play to their strength.

Not worried. Going for it on 4th down and the strip sack changed the game in a flash. Plus Fletcher will be working at Carls Jr by Thanksgiving. He should not be out there.

If this is still happening in December then I will be concerned.

Not yet.

If I were BB, or a simple coach for that matter, I'd be pissed that my team didn't take the game seriously throughtout the 60 minutes. The game is only done when it's over.

Realistically though, both game were out of reach for the opponent, thanks to a great performance, so it is comprehensible that the players took the foot out of the gas at end of each game.

If in a closer game, we still do the same, then I'll be worried (I doubt it will happen, but you never know)

Last season there was an ongoing problem with defensive collapses at the end of half. I don't want to think this is a continuation of that. I'm sure Bill will be making it a point of emphasis that a half is all 30 minutes; a game is all 60 minutes.

Not really.

Squealers game was a 14 point game. They pulled within 7 with about 5 seconds left in the game.
Jills game if they would have just decided to play clock killing offense instead of trying to put 50 on the board that game ends probably 46-19

No. Garbage time points and yards are completely meaningless, unless you bet on the game. We witnessed an entire quarter of garbage time vs. the Bills. The Steelers called TIMEOUTS down 14 with less than a minute to go, just to score a TD. Even if they had recovered the final onside kick, the clock would have run out. There were two seconds left.

So, no. Relax. This is like, the last thing I'm concerned about with this team. Two games where the game was over early in the fourth quarter. 31 other teams would kill for that.

No

The "issue" will change if it's still a game in the 4th quarter. It hasn't been yet.

Yes there is reason to be concerned. The tendency of the defense to flatline after a big lead has been a recurring problem here, for one reason or another. It can quickly become a bad habit- look for it to hopefully go away over the bye week which the team traditionally uses to self-scout.

I am more concerned because we have yet to see aa consistent running game. We are a cold weather team and will need it for the playoffs. Given thatbyy Nov., Wendell and Stork will be back and Blount will be in full gear I think that will remedy itself.

In terms of D I think as the players get more comfortable with the scheme and each other you ll see some more complexity to it making it better.

If the Pats were blowing teams out, it'd be "Are they peaking too soon"?

The win over the Steelers got barely a yawn around here, but that's arguably the best offense in the NFL. The Bills have one of the top 5 defenses in the league. The Steelers are defending division champs, and the Bills were 1 game away from being a playoff team last year. These were tough opponents. The 4th quarter against the Bills was a colossal meltdown. It took a perfect storm of ineptitude on both sides of the ball and by both the players and the coaching staff to make that a 1 possession game. That probably won't happen again. Great (and healthy) start to the season so far.