14-3/13-4 would be a great season and one loss to Buffalo doesn’t change that

[Ring 6]

I'm certainly not complaining. I called this a successful season already, far better than anyone here could hope for. But I'm also just being realistic that "special" seasons end in a ring or at least a SB appearance for this franchise. We aren't decades removed from our last ring, it's only been 7 years (5 if you felt some vicarious joy from Tompa Brady's 7th). The only exception to that would be 2007 for obvious reasons but we aren't that this year.

Do you remember 2002, 2005-06, 2008-10, 2012-2013, 2015, or 2019-24 with any special pride & joy?

I remember them with the same ultimate level of disappointment I remember every year before 2001 and every year after 2018

 

[farn]

I agree w the OP’s title. If they win the whole thing, it’s magical. If not, we will be talking about an ascending team this spring & summer.

 

[Ring 6]

I think the majority opinion here is that this season is already an unqualified success.

I disagree somewhat with sugar coating Sunday’s loss by saying it was only by 4. Buffalo dominated most of this game. 14 points essentially came on one play drives, and our first TD required a major blown call on the Boutte catch.

This is not to say the team is a fraud. I think they are good enough to beat any team on any given Sunday, but, to beat four good teams in a row is probably a tall order.

For all the heat that the defense (deservedly) is facing for Sunday’s meltdown, I look at the run game as the fatal flow of this team right now. If we had the ability to churn out a long, clock killing drive late in the game, we would’ve won. Well advanced metrics say this is the most efficient pass game in the league, the eyeball test and the drive chart betray that.

The good news is, this is probably the easiest element of a roster to fix.

35-31 is 4 points. We destroyed them in the first half. They weren’t dominating us in the first half, were you napping? So now having long TDs is being dominated? Taking the first play of a drive to the house doesn’t count? Bouttes catch was fine. The ball can move, he didn’t lose control, the commentators stupid “his right hand came off” is irrelevant you don’t need 2 hands for control and if it were a bad call Buffalo would have challenged.

Who is beating 4 good trams in a row NOT a tall order for?
If you are equal to all 4 you have a 6.25% chance of winning all of them.
Every team that win a SB faced a tall order.
We are as roughly good as any team out there.

We ran for 250 yards and you calling that out fatal flaw? Your eyes dint know what they are looking at and you think that makes the results inaccurate.

Poor effort stinky. Try harder next time.

 

[Ring 6]

I agree w the OP’s title. If they win the whole thing, it’s magical. If not, we will be talking about an ascending team this spring & summer.

If not, we will be talking about a missed opportunity that we gave to outcompete 31 other teams for a fixed pool of resources they are all fighting over to improve.
Teams aren’t ascending. They are over and done at the end of the season and then come back with 25-50% new guys next year, and improvement or decline (50/50) in the players they keep compared to the competition.

 

[borg]

I feel all warm and squishy after reading the OP.
Focus on the positive..............Ignore the epic collapse.

 

[mgteich]

The Bills had 3 good minutes in the entire first half.

So how did they dominate the entire game?

27 of those minutes were total domination by New England. 24 points in one half.

If you're going to take away the quick strikes of the Patriots drives, why wouldn't you do the same for the Bills' 54 yard kick off return and the 50 yard bomb (which was intercepted but ruled a catch) by the Bills?

Except for our special teams, the patriots dominated the first half. The Defense was AWESOME and we led 24-7.
=========
Everyone was terrible in the second half, especially the Defense. However, with almost 3 minutes to go the Defense finally forced BUF to punt. And then, as reported by patriots.com
=========
9. Last Chance
Maye couldn't get anything going on the next drive, punting the ball back to the Bills but that's when the Patriots defense stepped up for the first time in the second half, forcing a punt and giving the Pats offense one more crack at it with 2:43 left to play.
But the Patriots offense remained disjointed, and Maye's final fourth-down pass fell incomplete. Buffalo picked up a final first down to seal the win.
==========
It's time for us to move on. For me, I focus on the playoffs and know that what we need most is health.

 

[VrabelJr]

Here's a question: Had the Pats made the playoffs in 2008, they would've faced Baltimore at Gillette. Do they win?

2009 playoffs say no. If I recall correctly, we lost to every playoff team we played in 2008.

 

[TheRainMaker]

2009 playoffs say no. If I recall correctly, we lost to every playoff team we played in 2008.

Yes. They lost to Miami, Indy, SD and Pittsburgh. In real time, I would've thought they could've beaten Baltimore at home. After seeing how tough Baltimore had played NE from 2009, 2011 and 2012, I'm not so sure.

 

[Pape]

This isn’t directed at most people here because I think most people are being reasonable. Let’s face it. How many people before the season started realistically thought we’d be 11-2 before the loss to Buffalo? I think even most optimistic fans or homers would have had us at 9-4/8-5 tops. The sky isn’t falling after one loss and even if we lose again this season the sky isn’t falling. A 13-4 season would put us way ahead of schedule. This team can win in the playoffs and you don’t win them all. Even during our win streak I didn’t think this team was going 15-2. Sometimes you lose games you should win and the other team wants to win too. There were plenty of games we lost during the Brady era that we could or should have won. This team can compete for a championship and if we don’t make it I don’t think it’s because we weren’t good enough. I think it was because we just weren’t experienced enough. Enjoy the ride.

Sunday afternoon/evening


monday...


tuesday...


Wednesday...


better now... thanks for a good post Number12 ... just what we all needed to hear...

 

[EddardSnow67]

I think the majority opinion here is that this season is already an unqualified success.

I disagree somewhat with sugar coating Sunday’s loss by saying it was only by 4. Buffalo dominated most of this game. 14 points essentially came on one play drives, and our first TD required a major blown call on the Boutte catch.

This is not to say the team is a fraud. I think they are good enough to beat any team on any given Sunday, but, to beat four good teams in a row is probably a tall order.

For all the heat that the defense (deservedly) is facing for Sunday’s meltdown, I look at the run game as the fatal flow of this team right now. If we had the ability to churn out a long, clock killing drive late in the game, we would’ve won. Well advanced metrics say this is the most efficient pass game in the league, the eyeball test and the drive chart betray that.

The good news is, this is probably the easiest element of a roster to fix.

In no universe did Buffalo dominate most of the game. That's hyperbole.

 

[maust]

13-4 is a joke. They should be 14-2. If they showed up at all for the Raiders, they'd be 15-1. If they weren't so undisciplined vs Pittsburgh, they'd still be undefeated. They can't find their way to the endzone with a map. The only way this team get's to the Super Bowl is with a ticket. RoBeRT KrAFt iS a J0ke oF aN owNer. Hand job loving glory hound. And Mcdaniels doesn't know how to call plays to save his life. All they did is s3t this franchise back y3ars by eff'ng up the draft slot.


That's my best disgruntled fan I can come up with. Carry on.

Not enough cussing, marginal complaints, entirely too PG.
That wouldn't even register on the Captain Meter

 

[Steve102]

Not enough cussing, marginal complaints, entirely too PG.
That wouldn't even register on the Captain Meter

I think it’s pretty creative.

 

[maust]

I think it’s pretty creative.

 

[TommyD4207]

Not enough cussing, marginal complaints, entirely too PG.
That wouldn't even register on the Captain Meter

And not nearly enough nicknames that you don't really know what they're trying to say.

 

[maust]

And not nearly enough nicknames that you don't really know what they're trying to say.

I'm not sure what this says about me but I get most of them. Guess that makes me either semi-fluent in Captainese or maybe just a guy of a certain age

 

[Steve102]

And not nearly enough nicknames that you don't really know what they're trying to say.

The cult of vertical routeness and cult of verticality.

 

[Ring 6]

Flip side: What is wrong with being appreciative that we've made so much progress?



I'm no expert in philosophy or psychology, but I don't think it's too hard to see why greeting success with expectations of even greater future success till the end of time as challenges continue to get more difficult doesn't often end well. This thing called reality tends to rise up and bite one in the ass.



Peace, out!

It ends well or it doesn’t end well. Your confidence or fear along the way makes no difference.
Why not be positive and hopeful during the ride rather than miserable and afraid?
The result is the same in the end and everyone feels the same. Why not enjoy the ride?

 

[StockingAnarchyNumber12]

It ends well or it doesn’t end well. Your confidence or fear along the way makes not difference.
Why not be positive and hopeful during the ride rather than miserable and afraid?
The result is the same in the end and everyone feels the same. Why not enjoy the ride?

I’m not sure how it’s possible to be miserable during a 11-3 season. We can’t predict if we’ll be good next year so why not enjoy the ride this season?

 

[Ring 6]

I’m not sure how it’s possible to be miserable during a 11-3 season. We can’t predict if we’ll be good next year so why not enjoy the ride this season?

Look around at the doom and gloom this week.

Next year comes next year, dive all the way in and have fun and see where we can go.