Cummulative Thoughts on the Game (Bal at NE)

[Patriot Missile]

I thought the pass rush was the best I've seen out of the last 4 games. I thought it was better than most games last season too.

I thought Sammy Morris was an X-factor out there on third downs and clearly was the difference in this close game. Faulk chipped in as well, but that is a given every game from him.

Welker although not a huge impact statisticaly definately had an impact on the offensive playcalling and how Baltimore defended. Huge + just Welker being in the lineup.

Funny how people love Merriweather now. Half of this board had condemned him to comlete bust without giving him 2 or 3 years to develop. I hope Butler will now receive some slack until he makes it to his 3 year mark. BTW Butler looked fantastic today at times.

The McGowan guy looked pretty darn good today. Came up with some big plays.

Thoughts on the game itself. I thought we could of played better in pass coverage. Albeit we were missing Mayo and Wilfork was hurt as well.. However Mason was tearing us up until he went down and we probably benefitted from Gaethers injury. Sure do hope he is ok. Unfortunately injuries are part of the game and both teams deal with them in their own way. I would of been interested to see how they dealt with Mason and what kind of adjustments they would have made.

Definately a big win today, they beat an ELITE team today so we have to feel real good about how the team is coming along. The great thing is I think the Pats are going to get better as the season progresses.

 

[DaBruinz]

Cant expect to gain yards when you hand it off to Maroney up the middle. That simple..

Aiken always has me yelling at him, he gets a lot of bone head penalties.

Can't expect yards to be gained up the middle when there are no holes there to run through

Faulk and Taylor BOTH had issues running up the middle today when the holes weren't there... Of course, no one wants to mention that..

 

[Garbanza]

Good post, agree with most of your points, especially the D and Meriweather. The kid can flat out close on a play. Too many times today, the CBs seemed to be a split second late. Quite a few tips balls too. They are going to turn into turnovers as the season progresses.

Rice ran for what? 150? That is good run defense?

Maroney played well? What game were you watching?

 

[Garbanza]

Can't expect yards to be gained up the middle when there are no holes there to run through Faulk and Taylor BOTH had issues running up the middle today when the holes weren't there... Of course, no one wants to mention that..

Explain why Taylor, Faulk and Morris could then.

Seriously, enough with the Maroney apologies. He's a first round BUST.

 

[Xplicit]

Can't expect yards to be gained up the middle when there are no holes there to run through

Faulk and Taylor BOTH had issues running up the middle today when the holes weren't there... Of course, no one wants to mention that..

wrong wrong wrong, I don't remember seeing Morris or Taylor get anything less than a yard even when there wasnt a hole. They hit it hard unlike Maroney.

 

[tombonneau]

GET MARONEY INTO SPACE....dump off to maroney all day, please, the guy is a beast in open space

This x 1,000.

It's been three years, and for the life of me, I can't understand why this doesn't happen 2-3 times a game. I could count on two hands the number of times they've dumped it off to Maroney in space, yet it would take me at least 20 hands to count how many yards he's gained. Sort it out, offensive staff.

 

[tombonneau]

You forgot one point: Chris Hanson = Bonehead.

It's been too many seasons now watching this guy kick from the opponent's 40 yard line and coming away with touchbacks.

Unacceptably brainless, and he had two of them today.

My new nickname for Hanson is Touchback. Not creative, but sadly very, very apt.

 

[alvinnf]

I thought Sammy Morris was an X-factor out there on third downs and clearly was the difference in this close game. Faulk chipped in as well, but that is a given every game from him.

Love them with Morris in the backfield as a FB. Would love to see them do more of that. I think they could get mix it up better and protect Brady better with a TE and an extra versatile FB/RB.

 

[tombonneau]

Love them with Morris in the backfield as a FB. Would love to see them do more of that. I think they could get mix it up better and protect Brady better with a TE and an extra versatile FB/RB.

What's great about that formation is that they've mixed it up almost 50/50 vs. handing it to Morris as the upback and giving it to the deep back. Gives the D a lot to think about in short yardage.

(I'd say a huge upgrade from the upback handoffs to Evans ...)

 

[jefmblrd]

I'm really becoming a big fan of Ninkovich. He played very well today when he was in

I agree and have been saying that since the preseason. He has good speed, sets the edge well and plays smart. I can see him making a bigger and bigger contribution throughout the season and into the future.

 

[H8R]

Not that it matters, but what do you guys think the outcome would have been if Clayton makes that catch and the Ravens have 4 shots at the endszone. I know it does not matter, but what's your thoughts.

 

[amhunt2]

Offense:

Brady isnt completely back, but he very soon will be
and his timing with welker isnt all the way back either, that will change when welker can practice again

aiken is not a 3rd/4th WR option, i would take galloway instead

we ran well the 1st half, then BAL must have made some type of adjustment cuz we couldnt run any more in the 2nd half....we didnt make any adjustments to counter BAL

the playcalling for the offense ranges every single week, some weeks its atrocious (jets) others its brilliant (falcons) and some weeks its like this, almost atrocious, it was so boring and repetitive....

randy moss is dogging it all right....i personally only saw about 5 blocks from him that sprung the guy w/ the ball for an extra at least 5 yds

GET MARONEY INTO SPACE....dump off to maroney all day, please, the guy is a beast in open space

light always has what i will start coining the "dark moment"....u never know when its gonna come...maybe every game, maybe itll wait 5 games, but it will come and usually on a crucial play......he was doing extremely well all night, and then got faked out so bad.....thats something thatll never change though

our O-line did really well today i thought....Bal D isnt allmighty, but its still good

refs keep leting defenses commit pass interference with our WR's and not call it....its getting annoying....

the guy who went for brady's knees (clearly on purpose) should be fined and suspended for a while....

our red zone O is improving, but i would feel better if we didnt have to convert crucial 4th downs every game


DEFESE:

its better then we thought.....it really is, giving up 14 pts to a team that averages 34+ a game? amazing

and this team can hit....the drops at the end of the game wernt do to luck, they were do to our secondary hurting their WR's, that they became scared.....it worked at the end....

we were really close to 3 picks today.....only got 1, sooner or later the %'s will go our way

the word of the game? pressure....not so much the 4th Q, but for the early part of the game our D-line was busting through like crazy...loved what i saw

and we can blitz, believe it or not, effectively.....we hit Flacco A LOT today, and i liked it

our run defense is good, and will be good all year, our pass defense is coming along...that second ravens TD was a miscommunication

our red zone D is very good

our cb's were getting manhandled at the beginning of the game...they settled down

i dont like what i see of springs...always a step too late

guyton has officially played above average in mayo's absense

and finally, the brightest spot of the Defense......Brandon Meriweather take a bow, owwww, this kid is electric, hes on one side of the field, sees something WAY before it develops, and makes the play.....hes close to ed reed level....
i cannot wait to see where this kid goes in his career (canton wise)

NOTE: (spelling error) The correct spelling of "cummulative" is cumulative.

Please continue

 

[ALP]

NOTE: (spelling error) The correct spelling of "cummulative" is cumulative.

Please continue

noted....


im not bothered enough to change it though....

 

[slash83]

Could not watch the game live thanks to my bug a boo gf, glad we won though and glad I got DVR. Cant wait to watch the game, heard nothing but good things on Meriweather, Butler, Bodden and company.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

Dunno if anybody's mentioned this yet but Darius Butler had some superb moments, esp. defending the near-TD pass in the end zone

 

[Brady to Brown]

I'm really becoming a big fan of Ninkovich. He played very well today when he was in

Love him and when he gets a chance he hits like a mack truck.

 

[ALP]

Dunno if anybody's mentioned this yet but Darius Butler had some superb moments, esp. defending the near-TD pass in the end zone

i personally didnt notice butler, but did notice that springs was slow....maybe new starter next week?

 

[SidelineSid]

Not sure why people say Guyton had a good game. He washed himself out of more than a few running plays.. Including the long run by Ray Rice...

As for no one being near Maroney, I wouldn't say that. There were people near him.. I agree that he needs to continue upfield. When he slows down is when he loses all momentum and allows the other team to make plays.

Wait wait wait. I know that Guyton had some trouble getting off of his block on that play. However, the reason Ray Rice ran so far was because James Sanders was too busy tackling the ground. He whiffed hard on that play. As a result, there was no one to contain the run on the right side because he was the safety. It took the left side of the defense to chase him down in pursuit.

 

[Metaphors]

Setting the Tone
It is so important to put together a drive coming out of halftime. The Pats offense didn't get points, but it kept the Baltimore defense on the field for 12 plays and 4 minutes. The Ravens are talented but not deep. Also gave the Ravens a long field on their first drive.

Side Note: Can someone please tell Hanson that he is allowed to pooch punt towards the sideline? Seriously, try it. It almost always ends up with a result inside the 20.

Side Note #2: Harbaugh gave the Pats a gift on this drive. You just can't abuse the officials for 2 solid minutes and expect them to just take it. The call in question (illegal contact) was a little touchy but certainly a reasonable call. Those 15 yards were a serious boost to a scuffling Pats offense. More on Gentlemen John later.

Play of the Game

4-1-BLT 45 (5:17) W.McGahee right guard to BLT 45 for no gain (G.Guyton, B.McGowan).

Pats up by 6 and the clock starting to become a factor. How HUGE was that stop!!!! I don't know what else to say about McGowan. Yes I do...Extend his contract NOW! They have him for cheap next year, but dude just turned 26 and fits this defense like a glove. I know they extended Sanders and have Chung in the wings. Don't care. He just makes plays.

I also know that Guyton isn't the biggest or strongest guy. And sometimes gets knocked around or takes bad angles in the running game. But he is fast, active and playing WAAAAAY over his head under difficult circumstances. When Mayo gets back, watch Guyton take this experience and become a playmaker on the weak side.

Have a strong feeling that this game turns out badly if the Ravens convert that play. Left the Pats offense in prime position to close out the game.

But......On the ensuing Pats drive, with the Ravens dejected and their defense wearing down, someone made perhaps the dumbest play call I have ever seen. On 3rd and 4, roll out Brady (not even a bootleg) and have him throw on the run to Welker running to the sideline. Even ignoring the fact the Welker was probably short of the 1st down anyway....WTF!

Brady excels at everything except throwing on the move. And having Welker run an out pattern is possibly the worst use of his abilities. This page of the playbook should be shredded, burned and inserted up the backside of whoever thought it was a good idea at this crucial point in the game.

And of course.....

4-4-BLT 39 (3:39) C.Hanson punts 39 yards to end zone, Center-J.Ingram, Touchback.

Sigh.

Just (Please be quiet - edited)

Note to Ray-Ray...You can stop the praying out loud in front of the camera thing whenever someone gets hurt (thankfully it looks like Gaither will be OK). Nobody is buying it. It is kinda doubtful that God pays much attention to football injuries and even if He does, I am pretty sure you aren't in His "Five".

Oh and while I'm thinking about it...when you stop a RB for a gain of 2 on 4th and 1, sprinting up the field like you just won the Super Bowl makes you look a little silly. Dial down the stimulants a little. May also help with your sweating issue and frighteningly uncomfortable facial expressions in post-game interviews.

Back to Gentleman John. What "Spots" are you referring to in your post-game "I would never criticize the officials for their blatant bad calls" rant?

The fake FG? It was a reception, not a punt. You don't mark the ball where it crosses the sideline. You mark the ball when the player actually touches out of bounds.

The 4th down run? (by the way, did I mention how HUGE that stop was?) Sorry coach, he didn't make it. Holding the ball forward after you are already on the ground doesn't count. If that spot was so horrific, challenge it! Oh yeah, you didn't have any left due to your challenge-palooza on the previous Pats series. The only spot you should be *****ing about is the terrible one you put your team in by losing your challenges and 2 timeouts.

 

[Patriot Missile]

Not sure why people say Guyton had a good game. He washed himself out of more than a few running plays.. Including the long run by Ray Rice...

As for no one being near Maroney, I wouldn't say that. There were people near him.. I agree that he needs to continue upfield. When he slows down is when he loses all momentum and allows the other team to make plays.

I wasn't very impressed with game overall either but I was pretty wowed by his recovery speed on some of those plays he washed himself out of. He's not no Mayo but there is no denying his speed and athletisim.