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As we enter the final chapters of this season long saga it might be the time to look back at some of the more memorable events. So let me enjoy the hubris of naming the top ten events of this season.....TO DATE ….as it affected the Pats.
1. Myra passes- RIP
2. The lockout ends – Thanks Bob
3. Carter, Waters, and Anderson are signed – 2 first team all pros and a 10 sack addition make this perhaps the best FA haul in the league, despite the failures of the Ocho and Haynesworth signings
4. Wright, Barrett, Dowling, Boddin, and Pryor are all lost to injuries., and drastically effect the defense
5. Solder emerges, and makes what would have been a devastating loss of Volmer, moot
6. The Pats survive during a period where they were down to their #4 center for 2 games
7. Love and Deadrick emerge and make the losses of Wright and Pryor more manageable
8. Chung, Spikes, and Fletcher return to the defense, solidifying the run defense
9. Hernandez gets fully healthy after his early season injury and the Gronk/Hernandez era truly begins around game 12, when the league realizes a truly revolutionary offensive shift has occurred. Something that in the future we will see other teams turn to, just as we have seen the league turn to 3-4 defenses and spread offenses
10. Chung comes back,. McCourty moves to S in some subpackage,s and Moore emerges as a viable CB and the pass defense becomes better
Other moments I thought were important and could have easily been among the top 10 were:
a. When they cut Haynesworth proving once again, what happens on the field is how you are judged, not what your PRIOR resume says. That solidified the locker room
b. When Matt Light was signed. Not much was made of it when it happened, but where would we have been without him
c. The mental toughness that was built up coming back from those BIG early deficits against the Eagles, Denver, Miani, and Buffalo. Unlike in 2009 when things went bad, these guys didn't flinch. Actually this last one should be in the top ten, but I'm too lazy to make the changes
Some things I find curious -
1. I find it curious that a team that could let up well over 500 yds of offense, and give up 32 points, despite having the advantage of 5 turnovers; could consistently be called by everyone in the media “a great defense”. While I was impressed their hard hitting, acknowledge that some of those turnovers where caused by the defense, and effusively thank them for knocking out the toughest team in the tourney (I did not want to face that offense in a dome in Indy); I DON'T understand how that could be called a great defensive effort. On the other hand maybe it was for this day and age in the NFL.
But if the Saints could manage 32 points despite 5 TO's...on the road, I think the equally dynamic Pats offense can do at least as well in a dome without all the TO's
2. I find it curious how the mediots can't wait to jump off the “offense is king” bandwagon to hype the “defense wins championships” band wagon. Do these guys have ANY shame. Do they even listen to any of their previous comments, before they make their next uninformed pronouncements.
3. I find it difficult to figure out GB's melt down. Yes the Giants played well, but it was like GB completely forgot the reasons for all their successes of the past 2 seasons. It is somewhat comforting to know there is now another fan base who knows the kind of pain and anguish we felt back in February of '08 and to a lesser degree last season. “Ain't great expectations a b!tch sometimes”
4. There have been many posts and a few threads pointing out the banality of trying to put some importance to that playoff loss in 2009.as it relates to this game. It would be a waste of your time and mine to repeat them again. Suffice it to say, there has been too many changes to the roster, and too much time has gone by for there to be any residual effect of that loss on THIS Pats team.
HOWEVER what I find very interesting is that inside the Ravens lockerroom it DOES have meaning Like most bullies, they actually think that that beat down will have an effect on the Pats psyche. They are counting on it.
They obviously choose to ignore 3 important facts that even go beyond the changes to the rosters, the time, and where the 2 teams are right now. They seem to forget that the Pats are STILL 6-1 all time vs the Ratbirds, they have already beaten them SINCE the playoff loss, and as badly as the Pats played that day, they STILL won the last 3 quarters 13-9. I wonder how wonderful Joe Flacco feels about coming here after that “awesome” 4 completion performance.
5. I wold be very happy to see the officials we had in the Denver game do our last 2 games. They kept their flags in their pockets for both sides. No ticky tack calls were made. They had control of the game and let the 2 teams play. I also liked the job the officials did in the SF/NO games and in the Ravens/Texans game. The job that the refs did in GB was a travesty.
6. I find it curious how this board has ganged up on Mangini and what is being interpreted as his anti Pats comments on this game. Now it is fair to hate him for his inglorious departure from the organization. But he could be the best ESPN analyst they have on air. I actually learn stuff when he talks. He lets us know what stuff bothers Brady. That you have to disguise your coverages. He lets us know what a DC is thinking in how to stop the TE offense. What you hear is football talk from him. He knows the “they haven't beaten any winning teams” or “the Ravens have beaten all the good teams”, are meaningless references With Manigin you hear things like motioning and shifting bothers the Pats defense, or that stopping the Ravens screen game will be a key. Or that the Ravens aren't really a power running team, but run a stretch run game. I think its time we give the guy a break. I'm sure no one regrets his actions in leaving more than he does.
7. I don't know why, but it always pisses me off when Eli Manning is credited with "winining the 2007 Superbowl, when he facts are that the Giants won DESPITE his play. Now I applaud his play his year, and he truly NOW deserves to be mentioned among he elite QBs in he league. But in THAT game, he was less than an observer, he was the guy who on multiple occasions tried to give that game away, only to be bailed out by pure luck or bad play by the Pats.
8. I'm curious to see which of the 2 NFC teams Pats fans want to face in the superbowl (should we get past the Ravens) The Giants look like the tougher match up, but the chance for redemption seems just too good not to happen. And it would be nice to be the underdog for a change.
Keys to the Game
General comments: I think that if both teams play their best game, the Pats should win. However if on this given Sunday the Ravens play their best game and the Pats don't, they can easily lose it. THAT lesson was made abundantly clear in SF and GB last week. So people who think that this is going to be some kind of Denver-like walk over are going to be in for a rude awaking.
Baltimore has a RB who is quick and darting. This is the kind of RB who usually gives us the most problems. Baltimore has 2 TE's who can present many of the problems that the Pats TE's do to other DC's Baltimore has a DL capable of applying pressure with just 4 rushers Baltimore is VERY strong up the middle of their defense with Ngata, Lewis., and Reed.
That being said here are the Keys (IMHO)
DEFENSE
1. Stop the run (or at least control it) Anything under 120 total yds rushing would be a decent job
2. Stop the Raven screen passes to Rice
3. Stop Flacco going deep. He throws a nice deep sideline pass, and he has 3 guys who can go get it. A Boldin who isn't going to out run anyone, but has the size and strength to physically go get it Plus in Lee Evans and Torrey Smith 2 guys who are legitimate speed threats. It makes sense for Flacco to throw a number of these balls because 2 of the 3 outcomes are positives. (catch, incompletion, flag) Interesting that they lack a true slot guy
4. Beware the 2 TE's off of play action pass.. I wouldn't be surprised to see Baltimore take a page from the Steeler playbook in this game. They certainly have the TE's to do it.
OFFENSE - Here the issues are much simpler
1. Protect Brady
2. Show a representative run game
Lots of stuff to digest on this one. Take your time, its a long week until we get to game time
1. Myra passes- RIP
2. The lockout ends – Thanks Bob
3. Carter, Waters, and Anderson are signed – 2 first team all pros and a 10 sack addition make this perhaps the best FA haul in the league, despite the failures of the Ocho and Haynesworth signings
4. Wright, Barrett, Dowling, Boddin, and Pryor are all lost to injuries., and drastically effect the defense
5. Solder emerges, and makes what would have been a devastating loss of Volmer, moot
6. The Pats survive during a period where they were down to their #4 center for 2 games
7. Love and Deadrick emerge and make the losses of Wright and Pryor more manageable
8. Chung, Spikes, and Fletcher return to the defense, solidifying the run defense
9. Hernandez gets fully healthy after his early season injury and the Gronk/Hernandez era truly begins around game 12, when the league realizes a truly revolutionary offensive shift has occurred. Something that in the future we will see other teams turn to, just as we have seen the league turn to 3-4 defenses and spread offenses
10. Chung comes back,. McCourty moves to S in some subpackage,s and Moore emerges as a viable CB and the pass defense becomes better
Other moments I thought were important and could have easily been among the top 10 were:
a. When they cut Haynesworth proving once again, what happens on the field is how you are judged, not what your PRIOR resume says. That solidified the locker room
b. When Matt Light was signed. Not much was made of it when it happened, but where would we have been without him
c. The mental toughness that was built up coming back from those BIG early deficits against the Eagles, Denver, Miani, and Buffalo. Unlike in 2009 when things went bad, these guys didn't flinch. Actually this last one should be in the top ten, but I'm too lazy to make the changes
Some things I find curious -
1. I find it curious that a team that could let up well over 500 yds of offense, and give up 32 points, despite having the advantage of 5 turnovers; could consistently be called by everyone in the media “a great defense”. While I was impressed their hard hitting, acknowledge that some of those turnovers where caused by the defense, and effusively thank them for knocking out the toughest team in the tourney (I did not want to face that offense in a dome in Indy); I DON'T understand how that could be called a great defensive effort. On the other hand maybe it was for this day and age in the NFL.
But if the Saints could manage 32 points despite 5 TO's...on the road, I think the equally dynamic Pats offense can do at least as well in a dome without all the TO's
2. I find it curious how the mediots can't wait to jump off the “offense is king” bandwagon to hype the “defense wins championships” band wagon. Do these guys have ANY shame. Do they even listen to any of their previous comments, before they make their next uninformed pronouncements.
3. I find it difficult to figure out GB's melt down. Yes the Giants played well, but it was like GB completely forgot the reasons for all their successes of the past 2 seasons. It is somewhat comforting to know there is now another fan base who knows the kind of pain and anguish we felt back in February of '08 and to a lesser degree last season. “Ain't great expectations a b!tch sometimes”
4. There have been many posts and a few threads pointing out the banality of trying to put some importance to that playoff loss in 2009.as it relates to this game. It would be a waste of your time and mine to repeat them again. Suffice it to say, there has been too many changes to the roster, and too much time has gone by for there to be any residual effect of that loss on THIS Pats team.
HOWEVER what I find very interesting is that inside the Ravens lockerroom it DOES have meaning Like most bullies, they actually think that that beat down will have an effect on the Pats psyche. They are counting on it.
They obviously choose to ignore 3 important facts that even go beyond the changes to the rosters, the time, and where the 2 teams are right now. They seem to forget that the Pats are STILL 6-1 all time vs the Ratbirds, they have already beaten them SINCE the playoff loss, and as badly as the Pats played that day, they STILL won the last 3 quarters 13-9. I wonder how wonderful Joe Flacco feels about coming here after that “awesome” 4 completion performance.
5. I wold be very happy to see the officials we had in the Denver game do our last 2 games. They kept their flags in their pockets for both sides. No ticky tack calls were made. They had control of the game and let the 2 teams play. I also liked the job the officials did in the SF/NO games and in the Ravens/Texans game. The job that the refs did in GB was a travesty.
6. I find it curious how this board has ganged up on Mangini and what is being interpreted as his anti Pats comments on this game. Now it is fair to hate him for his inglorious departure from the organization. But he could be the best ESPN analyst they have on air. I actually learn stuff when he talks. He lets us know what stuff bothers Brady. That you have to disguise your coverages. He lets us know what a DC is thinking in how to stop the TE offense. What you hear is football talk from him. He knows the “they haven't beaten any winning teams” or “the Ravens have beaten all the good teams”, are meaningless references With Manigin you hear things like motioning and shifting bothers the Pats defense, or that stopping the Ravens screen game will be a key. Or that the Ravens aren't really a power running team, but run a stretch run game. I think its time we give the guy a break. I'm sure no one regrets his actions in leaving more than he does.
7. I don't know why, but it always pisses me off when Eli Manning is credited with "winining the 2007 Superbowl, when he facts are that the Giants won DESPITE his play. Now I applaud his play his year, and he truly NOW deserves to be mentioned among he elite QBs in he league. But in THAT game, he was less than an observer, he was the guy who on multiple occasions tried to give that game away, only to be bailed out by pure luck or bad play by the Pats.
8. I'm curious to see which of the 2 NFC teams Pats fans want to face in the superbowl (should we get past the Ravens) The Giants look like the tougher match up, but the chance for redemption seems just too good not to happen. And it would be nice to be the underdog for a change.
Keys to the Game
General comments: I think that if both teams play their best game, the Pats should win. However if on this given Sunday the Ravens play their best game and the Pats don't, they can easily lose it. THAT lesson was made abundantly clear in SF and GB last week. So people who think that this is going to be some kind of Denver-like walk over are going to be in for a rude awaking.
Baltimore has a RB who is quick and darting. This is the kind of RB who usually gives us the most problems. Baltimore has 2 TE's who can present many of the problems that the Pats TE's do to other DC's Baltimore has a DL capable of applying pressure with just 4 rushers Baltimore is VERY strong up the middle of their defense with Ngata, Lewis., and Reed.
That being said here are the Keys (IMHO)
DEFENSE
1. Stop the run (or at least control it) Anything under 120 total yds rushing would be a decent job
2. Stop the Raven screen passes to Rice
3. Stop Flacco going deep. He throws a nice deep sideline pass, and he has 3 guys who can go get it. A Boldin who isn't going to out run anyone, but has the size and strength to physically go get it Plus in Lee Evans and Torrey Smith 2 guys who are legitimate speed threats. It makes sense for Flacco to throw a number of these balls because 2 of the 3 outcomes are positives. (catch, incompletion, flag) Interesting that they lack a true slot guy
4. Beware the 2 TE's off of play action pass.. I wouldn't be surprised to see Baltimore take a page from the Steeler playbook in this game. They certainly have the TE's to do it.
OFFENSE - Here the issues are much simpler
1. Protect Brady
2. Show a representative run game
Lots of stuff to digest on this one. Take your time, its a long week until we get to game time
