Trying to understand the 'Garbage Time' phenomenon
 

Quite often in here people refer to the Pats opponent racking up yardage and stats in 'Garbage Time' as Meh,no big deal.

Why is garbage time stuff acceptable to the average fan?,Doesn't the average fan want the team to keep focus and play the full 60 minutes?,is there a reason to just totally let down the guard and let the other team slip in a little closer?,I find it concerning when the team does not go full throttle and keep the other team from doing anything that it didn't do for 3 quarters.

Is it maybe some of the guys getting tired or is it just not mentally focused?,that concerns me down the stretch when playing the next 4 teams that are not exactly world beaters.

In just today's games involving playoff contenders,Pittsburgh kept the pedal to the metal against Cincy and won going away,Baltimore built a lead and crushed down the Browns,The 49ers kept on getting farther and farther ahead of the Rams and didn't let up and shut them out.....I would like to see the same here on both offense and defense and not give the other team a glimmer of hope.

No reason why a score like the 45-3 drubbing of the Jets last year should not occur often when the team is in position to do so unless someone is not playing hard late in the game.

I just think that a good team,a team that is worthy of making it to the playoffs in hope of a Super Bowl title would be certain as well paid pros to not let up,good teams ram it down the opponents throat and don't take the foot off the gas.

To win a playoff game against a MUCH better team than the Colts,this team if having a decent sized lead,better keep going until the gun sounds...I hope Belichick rams this down the guys throats in team meetings this week.

Re: Trying to understand the 'Garbage Time' phenomenon
 

Until they can run the ball effectively, and continue to make progress on defense (that progress was halted today..obviously), I don't know what to think.

Yes, I agree that about the garbage time topic, but I don't know if it ultimately matters in the big picture or not?

The fear I have is just not playing good pass coverage, and not being able to run the ball well enough to close out games.

Re: Trying to understand the 'Garbage Time' phenomenon
 

What another concerning thing was that IIAC,the Colts were the 31st ranked defense against the run.....Our RBs ran poorly today and I don't quite understand why...maybe the team missed the blocking efforts of Wendall and Connolly up the middle?,Maybe McDonald is not a great run blocker?

Re: Trying to understand the 'Garbage Time' phenomenon
 

No such thing as garbage time. Look at the giants vs philly last year.

Maybe it's that we're just not that good? Our O had what...two three and outs in a row and the D gave up drives of 80+ yards in a row like it was nothing and that was supposedly our #1 CB getting beaten out there.

Oh well...i'll take the W and onto next week. We need to get healthy and start having some sort of a regular unit out there. There are like 2-3 new faces on D every week.

Re: Trying to understand the 'Garbage Time' phenomenon
 

They stopped playing as hard when they were up 31-3 in the 4th quarter against an 0-11 team.

I don't like it, but I can understand it.

They weren't real worried about their opponent getting a garbage TD or even two when it would chew up most of the clock. Obviously the level to which it occurred is unacceptable, and you'd like to see them shut the Colts down completely, but that lack of effort is probably pretty unlikely to happen in the playoffs.

Let's see how the D responds next week.

Re: Trying to understand the 'Garbage Time' phenomenon
 

It's ok : would we feel better if they had stopped the Colts and that Wilfork got concussed or Mayo would have broken a leg ?

Drop back, try things, don't lose... Let's chill. The D isn't that good. Let's all accept that and see if the offense can carry us to a few wins in January.

Re: Trying to understand the 'Garbage Time' phenomenon
 

Well, we already know that the D isn't very good even when the starters are playing, so it's not really noteworthy that they suck when they're playing a bunch of scrubs and guys out of position. They trounced the Colts for the duration of the part where they were trying, got the win, avoided major injuries, and got to try some new stuff out. How is that a bad result?

Re: Trying to understand the 'Garbage Time' phenomenon
 

I have an idea about how to improve our rushing game; give our best ball carrier more than 6 carries in the game.

Re: Trying to understand the 'Garbage Time' phenomenon
 

"Garbage time" makes more sense, if you take a look at the Curran article.. that indicates the BB was trying different players at different positions.

Also think that the Offense lost their focus, and got complacent.

Re: Trying to understand the 'Garbage Time' phenomenon
 

Three consecutive three-and-outs in the fourth quarter is disconcerting, but when you are up 31-3, it's natural to coast and not have a sense of urgency.

If you find your blood pressure rising about this, go watch the highlights of the Dallas Cowboys "icing their own kicker." It will make you laugh and grateful for what goes on around these parts.