Hello New England Fans

[Hael]

My impression from watching a bit of Dallas this year, is that their Oline is a bit overrated (they seem to have taken a step back relative to the incredible performance from last year), but that their defense is underrated. They were frequently getting pressure on some good Olines, and had some pretty good coverage.

Also, imo, the Pats have an underrated D and and overrated O. Yes yes, lots of points, Brady/Gronk/Edelman/ etc. But it seems at times that its mostly been a lot about the opponents mistakes, and not just sheer dominance like in 07/10/11. Don't get me wrong, we're still completely elite there, but we won't be throwing 50 points a game like some think we will and our oline rooks will hit the proverbial wall at some point.

Meanwhile our D has gotten a lot of flak from people on this board, but it looks much more fundamentally sound than is given credit for (a little like how last year through 4 games people were moaning about our D).

One area the Pats are not given enough credit for is our special teams. Imo we have the best overall s.t unit in the NFL.

 

[blueberryicedcoffee]

How has Byron Jones been playing for you? There weren't many pre-draft that liked him more than me so I'd love to know how he's worked out for you. I believe he's switched to a strong safety role. Is that right?

He was my number one guy too. It's a shame the Cowboys switched him to safety because I'd love to have seen what he could do as an outside CB.

FS, actually, which is very important in the Tampa-2 scheme. A good FS allows all the CBs and the SS to play much more aggressively. Based on his skillset and instincts from what I've seen, I believe he will either be a very good CB or a great FS. I am all for the move to FS for Byron.

As far as his play goes, he has been doing well. He's been inconsistent at times, which is to be expected from a rookie DB. But he hasn't given up any big plays, and his instincts + athleticism are obvious. He's a very smart, athletic, instinctive player. That's all you can ask for in a 1st round pick.

The rookie we're most excited about is Randy Gregory. The kid looks like he's already been in the NFL for a few years. It is scary how good he is already. It's up for debate, but I consider him the biggest loss this year besides Tony of course. Fortunately he'll be back after the bye; he's been wrapping up his ankle in marijuana and it's healing up nicely.

 

[blueberryicedcoffee]

My impression from watching a bit of Dallas this year, is that their Oline is a bit overrated (they seem to have taken a step back relative to the incredible performance from last year), but that their defense is underrated. They were frequently getting pressure on some good Olines, and had some pretty good coverage.

Also, imo, the Pats have an underrated D and and overrated O. Yes yes, lots of points, Brady/Gronk/Edelman/ etc. But it seems at times that its mostly been a lot about the opponents mistakes, and not just sheer dominance like in 07/10/11. Don't get me wrong, we're still completely elite there, but we won't be throwing 50 points a game like some think we will and our oline rooks will hit the proverbial wall at some point.

Meanwhile our D has gotten a lot of flak from people on this board, but it looks much more fundamentally sound than is given credit for (a little like how last year through 4 games people were moaning about our D).

One area the Pats are not given enough credit for is our special teams. Imo we have the best overall s.t unit in the NFL.

I believe our OL will rebound. They have taken a step back since the loss of Bill Callahan, our OL coach. But still, they oldest player on the OL is 31, and we already have his replacement in La'el Collins. Still have a 24 year old All Pro LT, a 24 year old All Pro RG, a 24 year old Pro Bowl C, and very good LG/RT. They will rebound, and I'd still take them over any OL in the league, if not based on age/potential alone.

 

[manxman2601]

FS, actually, which is very important in the Tampa-2 scheme. A good FS allows all the CBs and the SS to play much more aggressively. Based on his skillset and instincts from what I've seen, I believe he will either be a very good CB or a great FS. I am all for the move to FS for Byron.

As far as his play goes, he has been doing well. He's been inconsistent at times, which is to be expected from a rookie DB. But he hasn't given up any big plays, and his instincts + athleticism are obvious. He's a very smart, athletic, instinctive player. That's all you can ask for in a 1st round pick.

The rookie we're most excited about is Randy Gregory. The kid looks like he's already been in the NFL for a few years. It is scary how good he is already. It's up for debate, but I consider him the biggest loss this year besides Tony of course. Fortunately he'll be back after the bye; he's been wrapping up his ankle in marijuana and it's healing up nicely.

With Collins, Jones and Gregory (what a bunch of prosaic surnames), you have the potential for a transformative draft. It's a shame they'll catch the tail-end of Romo's career only (probably).

 

[blueberryicedcoffee]

With Collins, Jones and Gregory (what a bunch of prosaic surnames), you have the potential for a transformative draft. It's a shame they'll catch the tail-end of Romo's career only (probably).

In between now and Week 11 when Tony comes back, we have

Patriots
bye
Giants
Seahawks
Eagles
Bucs

I'm predicting we'll beat the Giants, Eagles and Bucs. I'm also wondering about the Seattle game. They don't scare me, and we beat them last year in SEA (albeit with Tony pulling some miracles out of nowhere). But if we only beat NYG, PHI and TB, we'll still be 5-4 when Romo comes back, and our schedule is a cakewalk after that.

Teams that win the Super Bowl are usually teams that get hot and healthy towards the end of the season. I'm hoping that's the case with my Cowboys this season.

 

[Double TE]

No chance you guys beat the Giants. Maybe Philly and likely TB. Giants actually scare me when we play them

 

[manxman2601]

In between now and Week 11 when Tony comes back, we have

Patriots
bye
Giants
Seahawks
Eagles
Bucs

I'm predicting we'll beat the Giants, Eagles and Bucs. I'm also wondering about the Seattle game. They don't scare me, and we beat them last year in SEA (albeit with Tony pulling some miracles out of nowhere). But if we only beat NYG, PHI and TB, we'll still be 5-4 when Romo comes back, and our schedule is a cakewalk after that.

Teams that win the Super Bowl are usually teams that get hot and healthy towards the end of the season. I'm hoping that's the case with my Cowboys this season.

I'll be wishing you good luck from Monday onwards

 

[blueberryicedcoffee]

No chance you guys beat the Giants. Maybe Philly and likely TB. Giants actually scare me when we play them

I don't know. We've beat the 5 games in a row. Division games in the NFCE are always crazy.

 

[lurker1965]

I ...
So what about the Patriots do I not already know? What players should I watch out for?
...

Slater on special teams - not as a returner.