Random Post Game Thoughts

[patchick]

Great job of tackling by the D. I dont think most people realize how hard it is to stop a guy 2 yards in front of the sticks in the open field, I seem to remember a bunch of those tonight.

This has leapt out at me the last few games. Tremendous tackling, NOTHING after first contact and lots of 3rd-down stops short of the marker. Really impressive, especially for such a young defense going against the likes of Adrian Peterson & Antonio Gates.

Some stats worth noting:

- First career 100-yard game for Brandon Tate, may there be many more.

- 5.4 ypc by RBs, 0 sacks allowed. O-line, I salute you.

 

[Ring 6]

This has leapt out at me the last few games. Tremendous tackling, NOTHING after first contact and lots of 3rd-down stops short of the marker. Really impressive, especially for such a young defense going against the likes of Adrian Peterson & Antonio Gates.

Some stats worth noting:

- First career 100-yard game for Brandon Tate, may there be many more.

- 5.4 ypc by RBs, 0 sacks allowed. O-line, I salute you.

One thing that is very reminsent of the SB years, is the Patriots seem to get the extra 3-4 yards after the catch to get past the sticks, and seem to stop the other team. And the later it is in the game, the more it happens.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Hey, anybody think that Bill Belichick is the best coach in football? Anybody wonder about the value of a good coach?

Randy Moss thinks so

 

[jbb9s]

There is a tradition that a player who is traded from the patriots becomes gretaly diminished in ability the day he is traded.

There is also a tradition that Belichick is the best personnel man in the league and knows how to dump overrated players or players on the decline for value before anyone else knows. So you are talking about cause and effect and I am talking about correlation.

 

[AluminumMessiah]

Adrian Peterson's longest rush was for 9 yards, the last time that number was lower was 10/6/08 against the Saints, I love that. Now if they would tighten up the zone in the middle of the field I'd be thrilled.

Good win, Law Firm and Woodhead were huge today.

 

[borg]

The few isolated camera shots showed LBs and Ss covering the former great. They treated him like a guy that can't make cuts and has lost more than a step

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

There is also a tradition that Belichick is the best personnel man in the league and knows how to dump overrated players or players on the decline for value before anyone else knows. So you are talking about cause and effect and I am talking about correlation.

Lawyer Milloy says Hi!

OK i admit that that was for $ reasons $ for talent level

 

[mosi]

Randy Moss thinks so

Damn right. People need to realize that BB is about winning. He will give up the yards and catches as long as he believes it will lead to a win. Plain and simple. The kids just have to trust in him and they pats will be OK.

 

[Kasmir]

Every time i saw moss we had a safety high.

My impression as well. Merriweather was playing particularly deep and shading to Moss every time I could see the coverage.

 

[NewFeep]

I have almost no doubt they will fine him.

He shouldn't be..... It was a clean hit.

 

[jmt57]

I thought my brain was going to explode like that guy from the movie Scanners when Brett Favre just said something about his being injured, but not complaining about it in his post-game press conference.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

I saw Merriweather playing like 30 yards off the LOS allowing Toby Gerhart to run wild for 20+. I saw Harvin running wild underneath all day the same way Welker did before the trade. It's not that hard to see.

I saw that team lose, just like we did before the trade (or the shift which preceeded the trade). What's that old saying, you live by the sword you die by it, too. Bill figured that out sometime between late last season and early this season, and he got sick of dying of self inflicted sword wounds. Everyone on this team now plays like their life depends on it, and from a football standpoint that's as important as elite talent that lacks that instinct. Mental toughness...is doing what is best for the team even when it isn't good for you. Randy lacked mental toughness. A few years ago his talent compensated for that. Last couple of years, not so much. He will still make some plays when his stars align, just not necessarily when you really need them.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Damn right. People need to realize that BB is about winning. He will give up the yards and catches as long as he believes it will lead to a win. Plain and simple. The kids just have to trust in him and they pats will be OK.

Last year he was in danger of losing much of the team. BB fired those vet guys and asserted himself with the kids this year. Some of them needed more time than others to learn to listen. Let's hope it continues.

 

[5 Rings for Brady!!]

This is likely the worst anlaysis of the season.

Why don't you start another one of those lame threads about how much you dislike Chung or something...

 

[MoLewisrocks]

I thought my brain was going to explode like that guy from the movie Scanners when Brett Favre just said something about his being injured, but not complaining about it in his post-game press conference.

And then saying he probably should...LOL Then of course he was followed by the other resident of that same alternate universe where it's always all about me. Gives new meaning to the name teamates...

 

[mgteich]

Like when he dumped Seymour and Branch and Banta-Cain and Hobbs and Thomas and Woody and others? Many of the players he "dumped" were players he didn't plan to re-sign and he wanted compensation before they went. Seymour is a good example. He could have been a all-pro for the patriots (or many other teams) for years, but Belichick had no intention of re-signing him.

Look, I agree that Belichick is the best coach EVER.

I also understand that Belichick wanted to move to a TE oriented offense. I believe that Belichick knew that he could get Branch before he dumped Moss. For me, the reality is that the offense is in transition and Moss no longer fits in. Also, we shouldn't make too much of the desparation pass to Tate. We don't have a downfiield threat. Brady can't afford turnovers in this dink and dunk offense and he doesn't ahve anyone who can reliably get free deep.

I know that I am the odd man out. HOWEVER, I think that the offense would be better with a deep threat who was usually double-teamed and who could get free deep.

There is also a tradition that Belichick is the best personnel man in the league and knows how to dump overrated players or players on the decline for value before anyone else knows. So you are talking about cause and effect and I am talking about correlation.

 

[The_Riddler]

McCourty is the freaking bomb.. this kid is the next coming of Ty Law, but probably tougher...

The next coming ? He's already Ty Law in just his 7th game, absolute stud !

If you notice, when he almost had that first pick, he's already learning from technique mistakes he had made in a couple of the earlier games, on that particular play, he turned his head around to play the ball. A couple of his earlier mistakes were due to him not doing that, now he is, he is on his way!

He's got natural cover skills, he has tremendous makeup speed and we all know how physical he is. Now it's technique and he's already making great headway with that.

There is no question, he is a future Pro bowler, no doubt in my mind.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

I saw that team lose, just like we did before the trade (or the shift which preceeded the trade). What's that old saying, you live by the sword you die by it, too. Bill figured that out sometime between late last season and early this season, and he got sick of dying of self inflicted sword wounds. Everyone on this team now plays like their life depends on it, and from a football standpoint that's as important as elite talent that lacks that instinct. Mental toughness...is doing what is best for the team even when it isn't good for you. Randy lacked mental toughness. A few years ago his talent compensated for that. Last couple of years, not so much. He will still make some plays when his stars align, just not necessarily when you really need them.

They lost because we are a better team, not because of Randy. If Randy was still in NE and Deion Branch was traded tot he Vikings, the result would have been the same. Fact is that Moss has an effect on the game that can't be measured by his statistics. I support the trade as BB did what he had to do but let's not act like Moss is some sort of deadbeat out there who doesn't impact the game.

 

[SuperPatsFan]

In their last 4 wins, the Patriots have had 4 different leading receivers: Tate, Hernandez, Branch, and Welker.

 

[Urgent]

A 4.5 ypc average for BJGE and Little Woody against the Minnesota defense is pretty impressive. Three rushing TD's to one passing TD - seems like it's been a long time since we have seen something like that. To see this in the absence of Maroney, Taylor, and Faulk (and Morris) is surprising. Two udfa's.

Coming out against Minnesota and rushing inside - not what many people would have expected. Excellent game by the New England OL. Great pulling by Neal, great protection by Vollmer and Light, best blocking by Koppen this season. No sacks after 10 the previous three games. And they got a lot better as the game went on, especially after NE took the lead.

The Pats were a little abused by the underneath game, but they played Moss deep and lived with the yac. Very good tackling, improving, about as good as we have seen in the past three seasons. Arrington had his hands full - sort of surprised we have seen no Wheatley and so little Wilhite. Obviously Butler is way down the depth chart at this point. While McCourty looks impressive, we were so excited with Butler at about this point a year ago.

Beautiful broken play by Tate -- although with better hands it would have been a touchdown. Welker and Branch were pretty well contained, with four total receptions between them (and three total to TE's). Still a work in progress without a deep threat. It's a lot easier to cover the underneath stuff when you don't have a safety 20 yards deep.

Still a time of possession concern, even in a game that featured a lot more running. You'd like to see the defense off the field a bit more.

6-1 is unexpected. The team is relatively healthy and the defense continues to improve.