The OFFICIAL Patriots vs. Dolphins POST-Game Thread

[PatsBoy12]

Do you think he zeroed in on Gronk in the first half because of the shaky protection, no one else getting open, or just bad QB play?

Hard to tell for me without getting the coach's tape.

I think it could be a combination of all of those things you listed, Adrewgarr. I have to think that there were receivers open on at least a few of the Gronk forced throws. I also have to think that maybe Tom is doing it because he knows Gronk is reliable and will come down with most of the throws. I don't think he feels that way about any of the other receivers, except for maybe Julian.

The O-Line has been a huge disappointment this season, nonetheless. Any QB, even the great Tom Brady, will begin to "see ghosts" and get "happy feet" when he's consistently getting hit and being forced to play with a badly swollen hand he sustained after getting hit yet again last season.

With all that said, I really do expect to continue to see strides offensively. The O-Line must get better and healthier. Losing Vollmer for a long period of time (possibly the season) hurts tremendously (no pun). Gronk is still working his way back into game shape. The young receivers, particularly Dobson, must continue to learn and grow. And the coaching staff needs to realize that Ridley is the best runner on the team. Maybe they are just trying to keep him fresh for the home stretch and playoffs, but it's annoying to see Blount out there looking like he's running backwards because he has no explosiveness or speed.

 

[cavtroop]

That wasn't a tip. It looked like a forward lateral.

Note the exception:

A player may not bat or punch:

(a) A loose ball (in field of play) toward his opponent’s goal line or in any direction in either end zone.

(b) A ball in player possession.

Note: If there is any question as to whether a defender is stripping or batting a ball in player possession, the official(s) will rule the action as a legal act (stripping the ball).

Exception: A forward or backward pass may be batted, tipped, or deflected in any direction at any time by either the offense or the defense.

 

[QuantumMechanic]

Some old school stats out there by Brady and the Pats today:

Brady 13 of 22, 166yards 1 TD 1 INT
I count 37 runs, 22 pass plays

116, not 166.

 

[Harrisoned!]

This team just won a game with 250 yards of total offense. We should be doing backflips right now by stealing one, but by no means do I feel good.

 

[Deus Irae]

What I think we know about this team:

• Can't stop the run
  
• Need Talib back, but Talib & Dennard make an excellent CB pair and the moves dating back to last year (Dennard/Talib/McCourt to S) have turned the defensive secondary from a major weakness to a strength
  
• McCourty still struggles with ball skills when running away from the QB, and is definitely better suited to safety than corner, but he's a quality safety
  
• Anyone who tries arguing that Welker isn't missed needs to be drug tested immediately, but.....
  
  Amendola's going to play better moving forward, as he shakes off the concussion and gets used to playing with a shredded groin
  
• Gronk's still not Gronk, or he'd be making some of these catches from the past two weeks
  
• Edelman, Dobson and Thompkins are very much hit-or-miss when it comes to being open and/or ready to catch the ball
  
• Blount needs 3 steps to get going and probably shouldn't be the short yardage runner, but.....
  
  Blount's probably the team's most punishing RB once the play gets past the LOS
  
• Peyton Manning is missing receivers, making bad reads, locking onto receivers and throwing bad picks just like Tom Brady, but.....
  
  he's throwing to a much better group of receivers. If/When Amendola and Gronk get up to speed, the Patriots offense should start looking better
  
• Spikes hits like a jackhammer, but still sucks in coverage. Having said that, he looked ok on a few pass plays today and was a big part of shutting down that Dolphins team
  

There's more, but that seems like a pretty good start.

 

[Deus Irae]

This team just won a game with 250 yards of total offense. We should be doing backflips right now by stealing one, but by no means do I feel good.

Every other team in the AFCE lost today, making the 6-2 Patriots the only AFCE team that's above .500 at the halfway point, and giving them a two game lead heading into the season's second half.

Now, feel good.

 

[Harrisoned!]

Every other team in the AFCE lost today, making the 6-2 Patriots the only AFCE team that's above .500 at the halfway point, and giving them a two game lead heading into the season's second half.

Now, feel good.

The crumminess of the AFCE doesn't really make me all warm and fuzzy. They're going to have to go through better teams than NYJ/MIA/BUF to compete in January.

That said, still a long way til then. Team has time to gel and heal up a bit.

 

[PatsBoy12]

Every other team in the AFCE lost today, making the 6-2 Patriots the only AFCE team that's above .500 at the halfway point, and giving them a two game lead heading into the season's second half.

Now, feel good.

It's just tunnel vision at its best, Deus. Harrisoned is insatiable. He likely became a fan in 2007. He wasn't around to see the championship teams, I presume. They won ugly quite often. Brady wasn't putting up gaudy numbers and the team wasn't scoring 30 ppg. I'm not suggesting the team doesn't have issues, but what team doesn't. The Broncos looked unstoppable for the first few weeks and came crashing back down fast, even though they managed to win today. Some posters, I've resigned, just don't know anything about the nuances of football.

 

[PatsBoy12]

What I think we know about this team:

• Can't stop the run
  
• Need Talib back, but Talib & Dennard make an excellent CB pair and the moves dating back to last year (Dennard/Talib/McCourt to S) have turned the defensive secondary from a major weakness to a strength
  
• McCourty still struggles with ball skills when running away from the QB, and is definitely better suited to safety than corner, but he's a quality safety
  
• Anyone who tries arguing that Welker isn't missed needs to be drug tested immediately, but.....
  
  Amendola's going to play better moving forward, as he shakes off the concussion and gets used to playing with a shredded groin
  
• Gronk's still not Gronk, or he'd be making some of these catches from the past two weeks
  
• Edelman, Dobson and Thompkins are very much hit-or-miss when it comes to being open and/or ready to catch the ball
  
• Blount needs 3 steps to get going and probably shouldn't be the short yardage runner, but.....
  
  Blount's probably the team's most punishing RB once the play gets past the LOS
  
• Peyton Manning is missing receivers, making bad reads, locking onto receivers and throwing bad picks just like Tom Brady, but.....
  
  he's throwing to a much better group of receivers. If/When Amendola and Gronk get up to speed, the Patriots offense should start looking better
  
• Spikes hits like a jackhammer, but still sucks in coverage. Having said that, he looked ok on a few pass plays today and was a big part of shutting down that Dolphins team
  

There's more, but that seems like a pretty good start.

I do believe you've covered all the bases. I agree with everything you typed and was just about to type something like this. There's no need now, though.

 

[Kontradiction]

I'd like to see people shut the **** up about Brady and McDaniels. That play calling was solid overall and Brady was great once the OL and WR's pulled their heads out of their asses.

 

[RIpats88]

It looks like Gronk is still working his way into game shape...still had a limited snap count...amendola appears to be as well

Pats need to go to ridley early and often only use blount once they have a lead to wear down the defense. also, I think they need to utilize the hurry up more often.

Brady/the offense seemed most comfortable from that than the usual drop back huddle offense.

 

[PatsBoy12]

I'd like to see people shut the **** up about Brady and McDaniels. That play calling was solid overall and Brady was great once the OL and WR's pulled their heads out of their asses.

Interestingly, I was just coming to post Reiss' ups and downs, in which he lists McDaniels as a "down." I agree. This is the first time all season that I was irritated by the playcalling. I'm not suggesting it hasn't been bad before, but today it actually got to me. Brady dropped back on a 3rd and 2 on one play late in the game that just had me fuming. Give Ridley the damn ball and let him pound it in for the first down. Anyway, I don't want to rant about that since that's not why I came in here tonight. Here is what Reiss put up:

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- At an initial glance, a look at who is "up" and who is "down" from the team's victory over the Dolphins:

Up
Stephen Gostkowski -- On a day when the Dolphins struggle with their field goal operation, the work of the Patriots' kicker and the team's operation stands out. Gostkowski remains on his game with strong kickoffs, and field goals from 34 and 48 yards.

Devin McCourty -- Safety continues to play at a Pro Bowl level, with a beautiful play along the sideline to tip an interception to Marquice Cole.

Rob Ninkovich/Dont'a Hightower -- Defenders team up for a game-changing sack in the third quarter, which is when the game starts to swing. Ninkovich has the initial pressure and Hightower gets credit for the sack. Ninkovich later adds a sack.

Logan Ryan -- Rookie cornerback doesn't play on defense in the first half but provides a big spark in the second half with a blindside strip sack and solid coverage.

Down
Brandon Bolden -- With extended playing time, running back can't seem to get it going in both the running and passing games.

Run defense -- Dolphins control the line of scrimmage in the first half, with 22 rushes for 103 yards.

Josh McDaniels -- Offensive coordinator limits Stevan Ridley to just six first-half snaps (not including kneel-down), keeping one of the team's top threats on the sideline. It's possible the decision came from head coach Bill Belichick as a form of discipline for Ridley's reaction while scoring a touchdown last week.

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/new-england-patriots/post/_/id/4752043/ups-downs-for-the-patriots-4

 

[Kontradiction]

Interestingly, I was just coming to post Reiss' ups and downs, in which he lists McDaniels as a "down." I agree. This is the first time all season that I was irritated by the playcalling. I'm not suggesting it hasn't been bad before, but today it actually got to me. Brady dropped back on a 3rd and 2 on one play late in the game that just had me fuming. Give Ridley the damn ball and let him pound it in for the first down. Anyway, I don't want to rant about that since that's not why I came in here tonight. Here is what Reiss put up:




Ups and downs for the New England Patriots - ESPN Boston

Not seeing the logic there. Reiss lists McDaniels as a down for a terrible decision that, reportedly, came from the top.

 

[PatsBoy12]

Not seeing the logic there. Reiss lists McDaniels as a down for a terrible decision that, reportedly, came from the top.

My reason for being upset about McDaniels is different. I should have clarified that I agree he should be listed as a "down" but not for the same reason Reiss did. I kind of did, but not to the extent that it wouldn't cause someone confusion. Nonetheless, I think McDaniels was bad today and the misuse of Ridley, not matter who is responsible, is reprehensible just like the playcalling.

 

[Ivan]

Man, that was a tough loss. Time for Brady, Belichick, and the Kraft's to go, and they are going to have to burn down the stadium to get rid of all the bad juju this team has surrounded itself with. Absolutely pathetic, a pitiful roster and a joke of a team.




That's all i have to say, if time permits I will read the second half of the game thread when i get the chance..............................

 

[Deus Irae]

Not seeing the logic there. Reiss lists McDaniels as a down for a terrible decision that, reportedly, came from the top.

The Brady6 nonsense has metastasized.

 

[Bobs My Uncle]

I can't believe the key injuries happening to this team this year. Hopefully they stop and this team can be relatively healthy come playoff time.

 

[Ivan]

I can't believe the key injuries happening to this team this year. Hopefully they stop and this team can be relatively healthy come playoff time.

I can't believe Belichick chose all these players who get hurt. He may be an OK coach but he sucks as a GM, any good GM knows you don't fill your roster with players who get hurt and can't play. Geesh.

 

[doesntmatter1]

So happy that we won but the offense is somewhat pissing me off. Other guys have to be open when brady is throwing to a tripled gronk. I didn't really see much improvement in our passing game, but it was windy so I'll let it go for now. I was begging for us to just run the ball. How can a rb get hot if he is taken off the field every other play. It felt like if we didn't throw a single pass and played like georgia tech or navy we would have put up more than 30 points.

Besides kerley ripping us apart, our secondary has been great all year. Also, it was nice to see our linebackers blitzing instead of getting roasted in coverage. I don't like seeing us getting ran over but i'm satisfied in the improved pass rush trade off.

Lastly, the refs felt guilty over last week and helped out a little. I don't care what the haters say, they owed us a divisional win lol.

 

[Brady6]

These are my thoughts after today’s game, I have some positives and negatives overall, either way though it is good to see them with a record of 6-2 with just one more game before the bye week.

1. I am glad they won the game; it was really nice to see the team bond together and pull it out.
2. Josh McDaniels should be fired; his play calling is awful and predictable. The play Brady was intercepted on could have been diagnosed by my local high school football team.
3. Ridley not being on the field is ridiculous, whatever the issues are that Josh McDaniels or Bill Belichick are having with him and attempting to punish him for need to be dealt with during the week and not on Sundays.
4. Chris Jones continues to be one of the most impressive rookies in the NFL; 7 total tackles, 1 sack, 2 tackles for a loss and 1 quarterback hit, he reminds me of a young Mike Wright.
5. Aaron Dobson has separated himself from the rest of the rookie wide receivers; he likely had his best day as a pro today with receptions on 4 of his 5 targets for 60 yards and a touchdown.
6. Amendola is not Wes Welker by any stretch of the imagination and continues to be the most disappointing free agent signing we have had since Thomas.
7. Chandler Jones is quickly becoming a top 10 defender in the NFL.
8. Hightower had the best statistical game of his career with 10 total tackles, 1 sack, 2 tackles for a loss and 1 quarterback hit; I was very happy to see him rebound after a poor game last week.
9. Logan Ryan can grab his crotch all night…
10. Should we file a missing persons report for Tavon Wilson? I have never seen a player fall off the face of the earth like him; some may say Bequette but Bequette was never on the earth. Either way are 2ND and 3RD round picks from a year ago being nonexistent this season is not acceptable.