With the Broncos coming in on short rest after an emotional win, I wanted to see the Pats come out in the hurry-up and wear down that D from the get-go. I got what I asked for and then some. What an awesome performance by the offense. The byproduct of the offense scoring at will was also forcing the ill-equipped Broncos to air the ball out to catch up. Of course it didn't help Tebow that the D came to play like in no other game this year. Fourteen or fifteen negative plays? That's unbelievable. Other thoughts:
- The Broncos did a good job on Gronk in the December game, only to get eaten alive by Hernandez. Seems like this time they played them both more straight up and still got killed by them both. Matchup nightmares, these two.
- I don't care if Vollmer is a better run blocker than Solder. The Pats' bread-and-butter is throwing the ball and I like Solder in at RT for that job. He and Light had a great game the other night, keeping Miller and Dumerville away from Brady. More of that and nobody is stopping this offense.
- The Pats D pulled things together in the December game after switching to a 3-4, so obviously they were starting the game in that formation. That Denver had not even the slightest answer for it in two games speaks volumes on Denver's coaching.
I hope the Pats continue the no-huddle starts against Baltimore (and beyond... :crossesfingers: ) to get those defenders huffing and puffing as soon as possible. The Pats have looked their best all season when doing so and have looked lethargic at times when they come out huddling after each play. Knocking Baltimore back on its heels is key, minimizing Ray Rice's influence on the game and forcing it into Flacco's hands. The 2009 playoff game was a script on how everything that could go wrong did: Ray Rice running wild, turning the ball over and giving Baltimore short fields, getting down big to that D, letting Flacco (4-for-10 that day) off the hook. No way that happens again. Not with this Pats team.
Regards,
Chris
