AFC Championship Game : Patriots vs. Colts -- Pre-Game Thread

[West Philly Patriot]

I dont know if I agree with that. Kubiak's scheme is built on running the ball consistently. As BB would say -there is no defense which allows 10 yards on first down frequently as a gameplan. Without the running game , baltimore wouldve been in more 3rd downs and we wouldve had more chances to get off the field.

Doesn't seem logical to me either. I think we were just getting cut all game long. Kubiak is really good at this, he's hung his hat on it for nearly 2 decades now.

 

[KamikazeKnight]

I find it hilarious how the chicken littles have already come out here in force with their "last team the Pats want to face" and "Can't come back from a deficit against this team."

They did it twice against Baltimore.

 

[West Philly Patriot]

I agree, we had trouble with him last time. We can't have Chung cover him, I wonder if we put Browner or Collins on him.

Collins put the actual straps on fleener last playoffs not the Sergio brown straps where he really got his ass kicked the entire game kind.

 

[Palm Beach Pats Fan]

We owned the trenches last time, and the Colts have not gotten bigger or stronger. All of the main reasons we kicked butt should still apply, if we avoid mistakes and yet stay aggressive

 

[patsfan-1982]

I hope that will work, but Ayers is not close to the caliber of athlete that Wilson is. Collins is, but are you going to waste him as a spy? That means he is not rushing and he is not covering anybody. I think Bill will have a plan, but the best matchup for our D as presently constructed is a conventional passing team, not a running/improv pass team like SEA.

you could be right but IMO i think the pats have a better shot at beating the Seahawks then the packers if the pats get there cause i think the packers could just out score the pats with a perfect game by Aaron Rodgers

 

[kudzif]

The colt's secondary is pretty good, and i think they can cover our guys.I remember even in the game we won in Indy their Db's were glued to our guys. What killed them was that they could not stop our run game, so their good coverage got overlooked. I think how we run will determine how the game goes.
If we can't run over them then it is going to be an extremely close one.

 

[patsinthesnow]

Not sure if how to use Revis has been brought up yet.

The last game, Revis was on Wayne and shut him down. However, Wayne is pretty much toast. He hasn't scored a TD since week 9 and has 1 reception in the two playoff games.

Can Revis handle Hilton? Arrington did a pretty good job vs. him last time. Putting Revis on Wayne would be a waste this time around. Maybe Fleener?

 

[TheBostonStraggler]

Tonight the Colt OL handled a more Pass Rush potent Denver DL than the Patriots will present. With the Indy OL giving Luck good protection/time, I think it is fair to say he delivered pretty well (what should have been 27 points against Denver at Mile High is a good overall score). I was impressed with some of his difficult but successful third down throws to keep the chains going.

Luck is likely to have time to throw again. It just is what it is, the Patriots biggest weakness, IMHO, is a lack of even an average Pass Rush. Yet as long as we contain the Indy run game, which puts Luck into some unfavorable down/distance situations, I like our chances to get stops as well as keeping them out of the endzone most of the time.
If, on the other hand, our Rush D sucks again? The Raven type game will repeat itself with Brady and the offense needing to score 4 to 5 TDs again. Our D has to be a better Run D than what was shown against Baltimore. The QBs we will face simply cannot be given the advantage of significant rushing yard totals.

What was of notice about the Colts win tonight is how well they played Run D (and how well their base Pass Rush played). Where did the soft Run D go that we faced in November?? If this improved Run D is not a one game aberration, the Patriots' task is significantly more difficult (here comes another all out air attack!).

Given Manning's performance last night as well as most of the last month of games or so, I'm no longer sure Indy should have been the favored opponent to play us in the AFCCG. Denver looked so weak on offense, average on D, generally looked ripe for being dismissed, and a team that would have been dismissed in Foxboro.
Whatever one thinks of Manning, the guy has been an excellent QB for many years. But this game makes me believe either he is significantly injured or it's time to consider hanging it up. Either way a good team to face in Foxboro. ((IMHO the Indy game wasn't a choke by Manning, it felt more like the showing of a guy who just didn't have it at that needed playoff level)).

 

[Froob]

This is this week's last team the Pats wanted to come to Foxboro. Funny, last week it was the Ravens even with the Colts being a possibility to come into Foxboro.

In all fairness though, the Ravens put up one HELL of a fight. Many on here gave them no chance.

 

[TheBostonStraggler]

Not sure if how to use Revis has been brought up yet.

The last game, Revis was on Wayne and shut him down. However, Wayne is pretty much toast. He hasn't scored a TD since week 9 and has 1 reception in the two playoff games.

Can Revis handle Hilton? Arrington did a pretty good job vs. him last time. Putting Revis on Wayne would be a waste this time around. Maybe Fleener?

I hear ya, however, I think the focus is wrong. I believe the Patriots, assuming Browner is ok, can and will adjust to whatever the Indy WR passing scheme is. We have the horses to present good coverage to any team and make it acceptably difficult for any QB to be productive. It's our Rush D that has me worried and should be the focus. IMHO we are living on borrowed time if we allow that many productive runs again (though I am hoping that Rush D performance against the Ravens was an outlier).

 

[TheBostonStraggler]

We'll have to get pressure up the middle from Hightower and Collins blitzing because BB will probably use Nink and Jones to keep Luck in the pocket.

I'm right there with ya hoping for the same thing. But I believe this is what they call 'wishful thinking'. The Pats' Pass Rush is what it is. Expecting it will help shore up or change the course of a game just is not realistic IMHO.
The Patriots' D will shore up or change the course of a game two ways: (1) through solid and adapting pass coverage, and (2) aptly or better containing the run game.
Anything short of these two accomplishments will result in an opposition score approaching the ballpark of "31".

 

[PP2]

Luck has shown he is still good for a boneheaded play or two. He will find out that those are the game-changers this deep into the season.

I would not be surprised to see a significant rearrangement of our D, to mess up how Luck will key off it. Perhaps something along the lines of a FS/CB switch like what we did in '03. Definitely expect much more sub D than we saw with Ravens, esp. nickel and the occasional dime.

I expect a healthy dose of Gray/Blount hammering on the IZ runs working off 6 OL, with Fleming the extra OL, as he was in the first game. Expect to see all linemen active.

We won against them by 22 points, but expect BB to pull out tape of us destroying the Jets 45-3 only to get whacked in the postseason by them.

 

[sambam94]

I hear ya, however, I think the focus is wrong. I believe the Patriots, assuming Browner is ok, can and will adjust to whatever the Indy WR passing scheme is. We have the horses to present good coverage to any team and make it acceptably difficult for any QB to be productive. It's our Rush D that has me worried and should be the focus. IMHO we are living on borrowed time if we allow that many productive runs again (though I am hoping that Rush D performance against the Ravens was an outlier).

I don't think Herron can gash the Pats..he's OK, but not special.

 

[Guts]

Hopefully the defense shows up and not play like they djd against Baltimore.

 

[tombonneau]

I know it's verboten to not be worried, but this team does not worry me. As good as Luck is, he will have 2-3 bonehead throws. It happens every game. I just don't see enough material differences from the last few times these teams have played to cause concern.

Yeah Fleener will gash them for 100 and Luck will have like 400 yards but it'll all be in vein. I expect a 38-24 type game with the game not even being that close. Just too much recent history to have me think otherwise. People will cite the 45-3 Jets game, but come on, that's a division rival who had already beaten and played Pats tough.

Until proven otherwise, the Pagano/Luck Colts are no more than a crosswalk to the playoff next game. It would take a lot to go wrong for Pats to lose this one.

 

[PlainOldEd]

The negative about this is just that...we may have seen the last manning-Brady duel last year...

And it was an afc champ game loss on our part

Uhhh, what?

 

[gitgronked82]

super excited.




for a multitude of reasons, i hope this is a blount game.

 

[blackglass3]

Colts went into Denver and won a playoff game. More than the Patriots can say...

Indy can win this game. Don't sleep on them.

 

[A man named Brady]

Wayne is finished. Lock up Ty again and it's a wrap

 

[juny]

I don't think Herron can gash the Pats..he's OK, but not special.

Herron didn't play when these teams played earlier in the season and he's WAY better than Richardson. Pats need to contain Fleener better than last time too.