Gronk, Cooper, Solder downgraded to OUT

[Jackson 2]

It's downright odd the seemingly mystical power Fat Bertrand has over Zo. It's spooky.

Reminds me of Big O when he had Smerlas, DeOssie and Sheppard licking his boots on the Big Show back in the day

Good analogy. It seems the overwhelming, dominant personalities overwhelm those around them. Zolak, Smerlas DeOssie and Sheppard aren't shrinking violets by any measure, but they all seem(ed) to defer to the dominant guys around them.

 

[RobertWeathers]

Good analogy. It seems the overwhelming, dominant personalities overwhelm those around them. Zolak, Smerlas DeOssie and Sheppard aren't shrinking violets by any measure, but they all seem(ed) to defer to the dominant guys around them.

Yep. They are all wired to follow the coach. Big O and Bertrand are the coaches.

 

[Dorito Dink]

The great thing about football is that the games, wait for it, still have to be played *gasp*

Lots of variables go into each game and those variables are even greater the first game of the season. We still have a good defense, a QB who can move a little with his legs and find Edelman/Hogan/Amendola/Bennett (not a bad grouping) in the short to intermediate routes, and the best coach of all time.

Let's at least keep a little bit of faith.

 

[Big Bucks]

Guys are we 100% certain this is fitness related as apposed to contract related as to why 1. Gronk hasn't practised 2. Gronk hasn't played pre season 3. Gronk hasn't got on the plane.

 

[Joey007]

Agree. The game always still has to be played. Any given Sunday folks.

I think our receiving options will be fine. We have Bennett now as much better insurance for Gronk. And we will have all the WR's in with Jules, Dola, Hogan, and Mitchell.

It will be tough without Solder, though on the blindside. It will equal some great coaching by coach Scar to get a good performance from those guys tommorow night.

 

[Todd Bradley]

The game obviously just got tougher to win, but I'm still not chalking this up as a loss.

There's a reason Bill kept 4 TEs and now you see why.

People seem to forget how good Bennett actually is and the flashes Derby showed in PS. Yeah the TE spot is much much weaker, but it's not the end of the world. Arizona still has to focus their attention on a potenial 2 TE set.

I'm more worried about Solder and Cooper being out than I am Gronk. Our line is so unpredictable, but these two guys being out makes things a little clearer....and not in a good way...

 

[varjao]

I did see that coming as there was reports from Gronk not being 100%, when he says that he doesn't want to play through injury. Release Baby Gronk AJ Derby.

What concerns me is that hammys don't heal that fast, I'm questioning his availability for the next game too. And well, the O-line, smh, it's gonna be a long year.

 

[TBR]

While Gronk is obviously the greater player, Solder's absence makes this even worse.

I still would've felt confident with Garoppolo having time to throw to Bennett/Edelman/Amendola/Hogan as his receiving options.

A great defense + any QB with time to throw (^especially to that group) should give you a decent shot to win.

Now we're relying on Waddle stepping up big time.

 

[Palm Beach Pats Fan]

My predicted unsung hero is James Develin. We will need his lead blocking to be able to run the ball, and we WILL run the ball.

 

[Kdo5]

Oh well. I don't see how this team wins on sunday. Solder already out. Maybe the defense can keep it close.

Look I'm fairly pessimistic about our chances but never say never. Garropolo needs to just play decent, get us a few scores. If our defense is as good as we think, a win is not out of the question.

 

[A man named Brady]

If the patriots win It will be one of the most impressive regular season wins of BB's career.

On the road against a top 3 team without your starting QB TE and Left tackle starting a QB who has never started a game in the NFL

 

[PatsFanSince74]

If the patriots win It will be one of the most impressive regular season wins of BB's career.

On the road against a top 3 team without your starting QB TE and Left tackle starting a QB who has never started a game in the NFL

"impressive." Yeah, that would be an understatement...

 

[DaBruinz]

Everything hinges on the play of the Pats O-line. If Waddle, Cannon, and Karras don't play beyond expectations, then it's going to be a long game and Ryan Allen, Joe Cardona, and the Punting unit will have more work in the game than they had in the 1st 6 games last season..

 

[patfanken]

If you really want to panic, think about this. The Pats are going against the superbowl favorites, ON the road, without their projected LT, RT, RG, and the GOAT QB, and the most impactful non-QB player on offense in the league. Literally they will be going into AZ with almost half their offense, PLUS 2 of those 5 players are the 2 most dominant offensive players in the league.

So would a win in AZ be impressive. You bet it would be. But I would remind people that BB has won a LOT of games (and superbowls) WITHOUT having so called "superstar" players on his roster. Brady won a lot of games long before be became the GOAT

But I was thinking. Do you remember a couple of years ago when the Pats went up to GB to play a white hot GB team. IIRC, the general feeling on the board was that we'd likely lose that game, and when we did in a close competitive game, no one was particularly surprise OR upset.

If you are going to lose a game under tough circumstances, no better time to do it than on the road against an NFC opponent. The reality is now that virtually the entire month of September is like an extended TC, with teams looking to establish an identity. I look forward to tomorrow's scrimmage, and all the things will will START to learn about this team.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

I'm betting on a loss here and I usually NEVER bet against the Patriots. This game just seems to have a recipe for a loss. Though, the last time we started 0-1 we won the Superbowl.

CRAZY fact (iirc) :
since 2001 every season that that started with a loss has led to a sb victory (3 titles in 3 seasons)

The ones that started with a win yielded 1 sb (1 title in 12 seasons)

 

[Brady_to_Moss]

I wonder if Gronk camp game in with anything like they did with the entire arm situation