Armen Da Pats Fan
2nd Team Getting Their First Start
- Joined
- Sep 13, 2004
- Messages
- 1,633
- Reaction score
- 38
First, the Maroney stuff…
Since I am always right at the front of the line to bash the kid, I will also push my way up front to congratulate him on two pretty solid games against the Jets and the Saints…
I don’t like his recent case of fumble-itis (coughing it up in three straight games), but I do like the way he is running harder and lowering his shoulders/head and delivering blows to defenders. (He damn near knocked out Darren Sharper last night!)
He also has developed a great nose for the end zone.
The only bad thing I saw last night (fumble aside) was on one play when he seemed to stop cold and stand straight up and Jonathon Vilma wrapped him up for a 2-yard loss. Other than that, he has been looking pretty good.
I still think we should have taken a flyer on Larry Johnson and I still don’t think Maroney is our long-term answer, but he is more than serviceable for now.
Second, who we are and where we stand…
To me, after 12 weeks of football, this is how I see the 2009 Pats.
Explosive on offense, decent on defense, uneventful on special teams.
The offense (read: Brady) relies too much on two players – Welker and Moss – but those are two pretty damn good players.
We still need a solid cold-weather, knock-the-snot-out-of-the-defense running back and that guy may already be on the roster, but he needs to reveal himself (Sammy Morris, can you hear me?)
I know Charlie Weis is now rich beyond his wildest dreams ($18m buyout at Notre Dame – donuts and Malomars all around, bartender!) - but I still would love to see the roly-poly one come back and run this offense.
The defense seems to get shaky at the most inopportune times against good teams, allowing big comebacks by Denver and Indy, and never getting any tread at Nawlins.
That said, I still like our young kids. I think Belichick needs to be looking for a shutdown cornerback and primo pass rusher, but we can be okay with what we have right now.
Dean Pees really needs to find a way to motivate these young players to stiffen up in critical situations these last few weeks before the post-season or they will be in trouble come January.
I miss Mike Vrabel a lot.
For me, the bottom line is this:
My expectation is that the 2009 Pats will win 11-12 games, win their division, pull a wild card playoff game at home, win it, then go on the road and lose.
Anything above that would be a pleasant surprise, as would the continued development and confidence of Laurence Maroney.
Post-Script:
Now that I live back up in the Commonwealth, I will miss going to the annual Pats game at Pro Player Stadium, or whatever the fork they call it now. We didn’t win often down there in my 25-30 Pats games between the Orange Bowl and Pro Player, but when we did, it was fun to ride the Fish Heads out of the building!
I did get to go the Falcons game end of September, and I’ll be back out at Gillette tailgating at Rodman Ford and watching my lads play the Jags on 12/27/09, so it ain’t all bad, but there is nothing like beating the Fish in Miami!
Peace,
ADPF
Since I am always right at the front of the line to bash the kid, I will also push my way up front to congratulate him on two pretty solid games against the Jets and the Saints…
I don’t like his recent case of fumble-itis (coughing it up in three straight games), but I do like the way he is running harder and lowering his shoulders/head and delivering blows to defenders. (He damn near knocked out Darren Sharper last night!)
He also has developed a great nose for the end zone.
The only bad thing I saw last night (fumble aside) was on one play when he seemed to stop cold and stand straight up and Jonathon Vilma wrapped him up for a 2-yard loss. Other than that, he has been looking pretty good.
I still think we should have taken a flyer on Larry Johnson and I still don’t think Maroney is our long-term answer, but he is more than serviceable for now.
Second, who we are and where we stand…
To me, after 12 weeks of football, this is how I see the 2009 Pats.
Explosive on offense, decent on defense, uneventful on special teams.
The offense (read: Brady) relies too much on two players – Welker and Moss – but those are two pretty damn good players.
We still need a solid cold-weather, knock-the-snot-out-of-the-defense running back and that guy may already be on the roster, but he needs to reveal himself (Sammy Morris, can you hear me?)
I know Charlie Weis is now rich beyond his wildest dreams ($18m buyout at Notre Dame – donuts and Malomars all around, bartender!) - but I still would love to see the roly-poly one come back and run this offense.
The defense seems to get shaky at the most inopportune times against good teams, allowing big comebacks by Denver and Indy, and never getting any tread at Nawlins.
That said, I still like our young kids. I think Belichick needs to be looking for a shutdown cornerback and primo pass rusher, but we can be okay with what we have right now.
Dean Pees really needs to find a way to motivate these young players to stiffen up in critical situations these last few weeks before the post-season or they will be in trouble come January.
I miss Mike Vrabel a lot.
For me, the bottom line is this:
My expectation is that the 2009 Pats will win 11-12 games, win their division, pull a wild card playoff game at home, win it, then go on the road and lose.
Anything above that would be a pleasant surprise, as would the continued development and confidence of Laurence Maroney.
Post-Script:
Now that I live back up in the Commonwealth, I will miss going to the annual Pats game at Pro Player Stadium, or whatever the fork they call it now. We didn’t win often down there in my 25-30 Pats games between the Orange Bowl and Pro Player, but when we did, it was fun to ride the Fish Heads out of the building!
I did get to go the Falcons game end of September, and I’ll be back out at Gillette tailgating at Rodman Ford and watching my lads play the Jags on 12/27/09, so it ain’t all bad, but there is nothing like beating the Fish in Miami!
Peace,
ADPF
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