2 Consecutives years the vaunted Patriots defense lost Championships

[dhamz]

Re: 2 Consecutives years the vaunted Patriots defense lost Chasmpionships

Tom Brady and the offense did their job both years, they got their team in position to win both years.

No they didn't.

Tom Brady and the offense had a 3rd and 4 with just over 2 minutes left to win the Indy game and didn't convert. Putting a game away by grinding out first downs late is the offenses job. Getting the ball back with 3:20 left and going 3 and out is a disaster and one Brady said haunted him all offseason.

Also, the longest drive the offense put together the last 3 quarters of that game was 34 yards. Had they been able to win the Indy game it actually would have been the special teams that deserved a great deal of the credit as Hobbs and Troy Brown continually set up the sputtering offense in great field position in the second half allowing them to get field goals and a 20 yard TD drive.

The Super Bowl failings have been talked about endlessly in this thread and others.

Football is a team game. The offense and defense both had chances to win each of those games and failed to execute.

 

[pepper03]

Re: 2 Consecutives years the vaunted Patriots defense lost Chasmpionships

The defense didn't hold against the Rams, didn't hold against the Panthers and barely held on against the Eagles, despite playing against a hobbled T.O.. The defense failed to hold in the game last season against the Colts. All this, and this year's Super Bowl is the one people are blaming the defense for. In a game where the loss was clearly on the shoulders of the offense, people pick on the defense.

I don't know why this isn't brought up more often.

If the Pats aren't the last team with the ball in SB 36 and 38-do they win? It's certainly worth thinking about.

This was a team loss. The defense was not on the field at the end of 36 or 38 because the offense scored last with little or no time left. I wasn't filled with confidence in either of those games that if it came down to the D they would have held.