The Cakewalk

[jboston19]

The Jags seem very talented and very inconsistent. As long as Tom can be kept upright, we should win. I Don't see a one dimensional offense beating the Pats.

 

[Ring 6]

Facing the Steelers defense, devastated by the Shazier injury, instead of the Jaguars defense, is an easier path. Yes, everyone on the planet would rather face the Jaguars offense than the Steelers offense, but those came as part of package deals. Preference here is a legitimate issue, IMO.

I think the difference is the matchup of bortles vs B.B.
the last 2 weeks bortles has literally been afraid to make throws down the field to his WRs. Belichick is known for making QBs do what they are uncomfortable doing and making them beat you that way.
Bortles is going to have to take the throw he is afraid to make,eat the ball or throw into coverage.
I think bortles, the way he is playing now against a belichick defense is the biggest mismatch going and creates a better overall matchup for the patriots regardless of the defense than a team that could win a shootout.

Agree it would be arguable whether good o/bad d or good d/bad o would make a better match up but bortles mental state make it the best match imo this week.

 

[Deus Irae]

I think the difference is the matchup of bortles vs B.B.
the last 2 weeks bortles has literally been afraid to make throws down the field to his WRs. Belichick is known for making QBs do what they are uncomfortable doing and making them beat you that way.
Bortles is going to have to take the throw he is afraid to make,eat the ball or throw into coverage.
I think bortles, the way he is playing now against a belichick defense is the biggest mismatch going and creates a better overall matchup for the patriots regardless of the defense than a team that could win a shootout.

Agree it would be arguable whether good o/bad d or good d/bad o would make a better match up but bortles mental state make it the best match imo this week.

Bortles' mental state was just fine yesterday.

 

[Ring 6]

Bortles' mental state was just fine yesterday.

I disagree. He wouldn’t take throws down the field.

 

[Deus Irae]

I disagree.

Then either you didn't watch the game, or your analysis of it is useless.

 

[Ring 6]

Then either you didn't watch the game, or your analysis of it is useless.

Ok buddy, you know all. I was dreaming that he was ignoring open throws to check down or run.

 

[RelocatedPatFan]

I disagree. He wouldn’t take throws down the field.

7 passes at or behind the LOS (completing 6 of 7)
9 passes between LOS and 10 yards (completing 5 of 9)
9 passes > 10 yards (completing 3 of 9 - 1 completion being a TD)

• 6 of 9 were between 10 and 20 yards
• 3 of the 9 went >40 yards with 1 completion

1 pass unaccounted for?

Chart: Blake Bortles Divisional Playoffs Chart

 

[Ring 6]

7 passes at or behind the LOS (completing 6 of 7)
9 passes between LOS and 10 yards (completing 5 of 9)
9 passes > 10 yards (completing 3 of 9 - 1 completion being a TD)
3 of the 9 went >40 yards with 1 completion

1 pass unaccounted for?

Chart: Blake Bortles Divisional Playoffs Chart

Yup

 

[RelocatedPatFan]

Yup

I think it supported your position. Especially when you consider the results.

 

[Deus Irae]

Ok buddy, you know all. I was dreaming that he was ignoring open throws to check down or run.

The irony here is, of course, that you think you know it all. Here's the reality:

The general game plan was for Bortles to keep it short and tight as a safe complement to the running game, and to let the defense do its job. He did just that. The Jaguars were also 8 of 14 on 3rd down, which tells us that they were able to get the sticks moving. And then there's the Bortles to Cole pass, which was sure as hell a downfield throw.



This worked to the tune of 45 points scored by the Jaguars.

So your analysis of Bortles in the game sucks, and it's worse than useless, because it's completely off base.

 

[Ring 6]

The irony here is, of course, that you think you know it all. Here's the reality:

The general game plan was for Bortles to keep it short and tight as a safe complement to the running game, and to let the defense do its job. He did just that. The Jaguars were also 8 of 14 on 3rd down, which tells us that they were able to get the sticks moving. And then there's the Bortles to Cole pass, which was sure as hell a downfield throw.



This worked to the tune of 45 points scored by the Jaguars.

So your analysis of Bortles in the game sucks, and it's worse than useless, because it's completely off base.

Yes he threw one deep ball.

There were many times just like against the bills where he had receivers open down the field and wouldn’t throw. That’s what happened in the football field.

The passing 3rd down conversions were almost all either short distances or check downs and dump offs that needed a rac for the first down. On one with a 3td and ten with no rush before he even set up to read if anyone was open he scrambled. He is afraid to push the ball down the field.

But I’m sure the patriots coaching staff won’t look at his bortles played they will just say 8/14 45 points it’s not important to look at the actual plays he made.

It is a profound weakness in this QB right now a belichick will expose and attack it.

 

[LivinLovin&Breathin_Brady]

To the haters... So, now that the Pats mauled the Titans on both sides of the ball on the way to the big win most of us felt was likely, all I'm hearing is how NE lucked out playing the weakest team in the playoffs and got a bunch of help from the refs to boot.

So which is it? Now that it's over and they "were who we thought they were" (apologies to Dennis Green, may he R.I.P.), did the Titans not, as Romo insisted, have the bigger, stronger, more physical OL and DL that was going to out muscle the Pats in the trenches, keep the game close, and pull out a win in the end like they did last week in Kansas City?

After those two mighty Heisman trophy winners, Henry and Mariota, had been respectively held to 28 yards rushing (2.33 avg.) and sacked eight times behind that vaunted OL you told us about, are we now to understand they were really just chopped liver?

Now that a tighter than expected first quarter, that saw the Titans actually take a lead , is over and your wishful thinking of what we were watching unfold has dissipated quicker than a fart in the wind (or Andrew Luck's career ), do you suddenly expect us to come down with a collective case of amnesia about how you told us we were taking the Titans too lightly, expecting a cakewalk when we were actually in for a dogfight?

So which is it haters? You can't have it both ways!

A dogfight... and now it's a cakewalk because we won very convincingly, with one strange, but correct call IMO.

Can't wait to see their reaction next Sunday. The press is overrating those kittens in Jacksonville and acting like New England don't stand a chance against that D. Watch how quick they blame the referees and the clock keeper for that 13 - 38 New England victory next week, as if Minnesota didn't score 10 of their points from ref assistance on those suspect DPI calls all game.

Our schedule and the remaining teams suck no doubt, but why is everyone (the press and haters) acting like there was any competition in the AFC this season to begin with. They all had NE picked for the SB at the beginning because the division was weak. Why is everyone acting like there was any real competition in the NFC this season? The league looks horrible this season, and looked almost as bad last season, except for a handful of teams. It explains why people are tuning out. New England is superior because they are reliable and consistent. Honestly we have looked suspect in half of the games we played this season; but by default, we've been better than everyone else.

I expect a cakewalk to 6. Those frozen kitties won't stand a chance at the razor.

 

[Ring 6]

I think it supported your position. Especially when you consider the results.

Right and my position was seeing it with my own eyes.
B.B. will see it to. Expect either bortles running for his life or making throws he doesn’t want to. (Or throwing into tight coverage underneath).

 

[DaBruinz]

Romo tried to sell us early on how strong the Titans were in the "trenches" on both sides of the ball.. at the end of the game 8 sacks by the Pats and 0 sacks by the Titans; 65 yards rushing for the Titans, 101 yards rushing for the Patriots.. guess he oversold that.

Thought Romo talked too much Sat Night with a lot of useless information, to the point where it was not enjoyable..

To be fair, the Titans DID lose their All-Pro RT late in the 1st quarter. That being said, though, someone mentioned that most of the sacks came from the Center to the Left Tackle. Not from the right side.

As I stated in my post in the Romo Rant thread, I felt Romo had, overall, gotten better as the year went along, but that he took a step back in this game.

 

[DaBruinz]

Reminded me of the familiar refrain about the coaches headsets and the Pats were allegedly messing with them, then we found out the NFL controlled the headsets..

The whole BS about 1 second left was a lot of hype in an effort to create some sort of controversy.. the Pats have to be cheating, no one can be this consistent, or can they.

Easy way to end the controversy. Set the clock up to show tenths of a second when under 10 seconds. Should be very easy to do.. The NHL does it.. NBA does it.

 

[DaBruinz]

Romo should have known that the league uses a neutral clock operator in the playoffs

Why should he have known that? It's not well published knowledge.

 

[DarrylS]

To be fair, the Titans DID lose their All-Pro RT late in the 1st quarter. That being said, though, someone mentioned that most of the sacks came from the Center to the Left Tackle. Not from the right side.

As I stated in my post in the Romo Rant thread, I felt Romo had, overall, gotten better as the year went along, but that he took a step back in this game.

Why be fair??? If Solder went down, I would expect the same from Tennessee... the point is that Romo touted how great the Titans were in the "trenches" and somehow that gave them an edge in this game..

Cannon went down early in the season... Waddle went down and Fleming stepped in and the beat went on...

 

[goheels22002]

Yup

Bortles looked pretty good to me. That said, I thought the Steelers safeties played way too soft and the linebackers failed to cover underneath. Most of it was just the Steelers failure to see and adjust their defense to what the Jaguars were doing. I thought the Jags did a very good job of mixing up throws outside the numbers with stuff underneath. Their crossing patterns were well executed all day.

The passing chart shows a nice mix of play calls and Bortles awareness of the Steelers slow to react pass defense. The Pats will make it much more complicated for him on Sunday. But I agree with you that the Patriots need not worry much about him taking shots down the field like we saw Ben Roethlisberger and Drew Brees take this weekend. Brees and Payton love to go deep - I'm glad they are no longer in the field.

Do you know why David Harris was inactive? I think he's a key guy this weekend to help keep Bortles at home and to take away that rushing attack which looks very good to me. It was nice seeing Grissom so active and quick to the QB.

 

[PatsDeb]

The actual answer is we indeed have the easiest road to the Super Bowl we've ever had but it's because we earned it by getting the #1 seed.

and KC and Pittsburg did us the favor of crapping the bed in their own houses.

 

[luuked]

Yes he threw one deep ball.

There were many times just like against the bills where he had receivers open down the field and wouldn’t throw. That’s what happened in the football field.

The passing 3rd down conversions were almost all either short distances or check downs and dump offs that needed a rac for the first down. On one with a 3td and ten with no rush before he even set up to read if anyone was open he scrambled. He is afraid to push the ball down the field.

But I’m sure the patriots coaching staff won’t look at his bortles played they will just say 8/14 45 points it’s not important to look at the actual plays he made.

It is a profound weakness in this QB right now a belichick will expose and attack it.

I think I said often enough that I think he is a bad QB that kills his team with inconsistent play. So please realize that defending Blake ****ing Bortles is the last thing on my mind.

With that being said..

How do you know how much of it is play design & instructions to keep it safe and close vs. how much of it is Bortles being "afraid" ?

Seeing players open downfield on the broadcast angle without even knowing if Bortles was looking there or whether it was simply a decoy route to drag coverages away is below PFF level of guessing. From everything we have seen Bortles is very much capable of delivering all kinds of throws. The issue is that he is terribly inconsistent and streaky to the point where in some cases you can't even trust him to hit a screen or checkdown that is a few yards out.

And dont get me wrong this is a big problem because from my point of view this is the WORST kind of QB. If you have one that consistently is bad and can't do certain things you can scheme around that (or find a replacement). But the ones that on some days can make all the throws and on others can't hit a barn are the ones that kill teams at some point. Because nothing can be considered high percentage with them.

So again.. how do you know that it was Bortles that prevented Bortles from throwing passes and not Coughlin/Marrone/Hackett ? I mean lets keep in mind what Marrone said in the preseason about passing:

"For me, I like to run the ball every play," Marrone told reporters. "None. Zero. I want to go back to the old way. I want to change the game."