Are the Pats better off being the 2 seed?

[mvrabel50]

Rex Grossman completed 59.4% of his passes for 252 yards, 2 TDs, and INT. That certainly doesn't suck, but that isn't Montana-like. It wasn't even close to Grossman's best game of the season.

Orlofsky had something like 80 yards passing until the 4th quarter with the Pats up by three TDs. That certainly isn't Montana-like.

Young got something like 220 of his 400 yards in garbage time.

Tebow had 194 yards and most of them came in garbage time.

I am not excusing the defense for not playing a full 60 minutes, but people get too hung up on game stats and not what happened during the game. Not one of the QBs that Pats have faced over the last four games would be considered a good game by a Tom Brady or Drew Brees or Aaron Rodgers or even second tier QBs. If the Pats made the opposing QB look anything romotely like Joe Montana, the Pats wouldn't have been 4-0 over the stretch.

Was using Montana figuratively, not literally. my point was that they've played terrible QBs who have had decent games against our suspect secondary and that they aren't really making "strides" since they haven't really been tested.

Grossman lost his job to John Beck
Orlovsky was behind Curtis Painter in Indy's depth chart for most of the year
Vince young is another backup
Tebow is an option QB

You can say they're fine with their bend/dont break philosophy, but i'm afraid it's going to be bend and break when they have to play against a decent qb, which luckily might not be until the AFC championship game if we get there.

 

[ATippett56]

I can't deal with another one and done in the playoffs.

The New England Patriots should not be afraid of the Texans, Broncos, Ravens, Jets.

 

[ausbacker]

How can you be better as a 2 seed?
Besides the matchup in the first game depends on BOTH widl card round games.
It seems you are afraid of Bmore for some reason?
As a 2 we would play them if the 6 beats the 3, which is a wounded team. and as a 1 we play them if the 3 beats the 6.
I don't see an advantage, although I don't fear the Ravens either.

Perish the thought I agree with Andy on this one. It's better to have the #1 seed than the #2 seed.

 

[BlueThunder]

Making strides? We've been making crappy QBs look like Joe Montana for the past 4 weeks.

Ummm...Montana would be winning those games if that were the case.....

Yds don't equal points......

 

[Rob0729]

Was using Montana figuratively, not literally. my point was that they've played terrible QBs who have had decent games against our suspect secondary and that they aren't really making "strides" since they haven't really been tested.

Grossman lost his job to John Beck
Orlovsky was behind Curtis Painter in Indy's depth chart for most of the year
Vince young is another backup
Tebow is an option QB

You can say they're fine with their bend/dont break philosophy, but i'm afraid it's going to be bend and break when they have to play against a decent qb, which luckily might not be until the AFC championship game if we get there.

I understand that it is figurative, but I was pointing out how people overreact to the final box score.

Grossman did lose his job to John Beck, but he has had some very good games. Rex Grossman is Jeckyl and Hyde. He has had some great games. Better than he played vs.the Pats. He played far better vs. the Giants and Cowboys this season.

Orlovsky absolutely suck vs. the Pats minus one drive for over three quarters. It wasn't until the Pats made wholesale changes on defense when he actually broke 100 yards passing for the game in the fourth. Orlovsky's performance vs. the Pats is way overrated. The Pats totally shut down the Colts' offense until the game was out of hand.

The Pats also shutdown Vince Young after the first two drive until Young padded his stats in the fourth quarter.

Tebow is an option QB who did very little passing yesterday other than a handful of plays. He did more on the ground than he did in the air.

I'm not saying the Pats defense has been stellar or even above average, but people since there and look at total yards and ignore what happened in the game. The Pats shutdown QBs like Orlovsky and Young until they have three or four TD leads in the fourth and allow them to get garbage time yards and then they cry about it. Both Orlovsky and Young both got more passing yards when the game was out of reach than they did when their teams had a legitimate shot at winning. You can add Chad Henne to that list.

 

[PatsFan24]

Assuming the Pats get a 1st round bye, are they better off going in as the 2 seed? I know they won't be playing at Gillette if they face the Steelers in the AFC Championship game but I think they'll have an easier matchup in their first playoff game. They'll probably end up playing Houston instead of Baltimore. Then we just hope that Baltimore beats the Steelers and the AFC Championship goes through Gillette.

I can't deal with another one and done in the playoffs.

Not at all. First is much better.

 

[Lifer]

I can't possibly imagine a Bill Belichick/Tom Brady led Patriots team ever losing to the Ravens at home in the playoffs. Oh wait...............

 

[SVN]

Forget the defense. It is what it is. We are like the colts now. So we need our offense to step up in the playoffs and our offense is what has let us down like it let the colts down during all those years in the playoffs except 2006.

 

[IllegalContact]

no....going to pittsburgh or baltimore or houston is not preferable to playing in foxboro regardless of the results the last 2 years.

home is where the heart is.

 

[PatsFan24]

Hoping for 4 strait home games broken up with a bye week!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[IllegalContact]

Hoping for 4 strait home games broken up with a bye week!!!!!!!!!!!!

and then a short ride to indy

 

[bostonia3333]

If NE can play HOU and CIN, that would be my dream. All the other teams are scary. It would be ulcerating to see the Jets again, but the Pats should be able to handle em.

I dont think NE beats Balt and/or PIT. Gotta hope Brady is absolutely perfect like he was against JAX in 07. Brady's margin for error keeps getting smaller and smaller with every year of his career as his defense continues to get worse and worse.

 

[IllegalContact]

If NE can play HOU and CIN, that would be my dream. All the other teams are scary. It would be ulcerating to see the Jets again, but the Pats should be able to handle em.

I dont think NE beats Balt and/or PIT. Gotta hope Brady is absolutely perfect like he was against JAX in 07. Brady's margin for error keeps getting smaller and smaller with every year of his career as his defense continues to get worse and worse.

screw that......

the jets, then the steelers......then the packers

everything else is just a lesser amount

 

[BadMoFo]

You are a brave man to say this in public, my friend. I had one of these "bring on the Jets" posts all cranked up and then cheesed out when it came time to hit the "Submit Reply" button. It gives me the creeps to think about a re-match in the playoffs with Rex and those guys. I'm rooting for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Same here. We all know the Jets will not win the Super Bowl, but what will make their season will be beating us. I would rather they lose in the wild card round, or better yet, miss the playoffs completely.

 

[supafly]

That would be my guess as well. I'd really like to see SF win tonight but they'll be without Joe Staley and probably Patrick Willis; plus Frank Gore is not 100%. Denver finishes at Buffalo and home vs KC; I think they'll win both games which would give them the AFCW. I think the Giants will beat the Jets, but then they'll back into a playoff spot when Cincinnati loses at home to Baltimore in week 17.

The DEN Broncos could actually blow the upcoming game to BUF and it wouldn't matter in the least.

All DEN has to do is beat KC in the last game, and the division is theirs.