Idle thoughts - The WOW edition

[vyrago]

I long ago stopped treading into that sewer of pollyannas, chicken-littles and trolls. Last night, during halftime, I took a peek. Pages 94-98, and mu suspicions were confirmed. It was actually worse than you mentioned, and added in was a level of vulgarity that I just hadn't seen in a long while. I did note that a majority of the commenters on those pages seemed to have <1K comments, and most on a handful to a couple hundred.

I see no reason to participate in that thread, or any others while the game in in progress, unless I was unable to watch the game and had to listen to it on the radio. Just waves of negativity, cursing, and trollishness enough to wonder if the collective ages of the participants didn't hover around 14-15.

"collective ages of the participants didn't hover around 14-15"

Bingo!!

 

[SVN]

I think the game ball should go to Flacco and Harbaugh for their enormous egos gave us the win.

Baltimore was demolishing the pats with the run. When they got the ball back with plenty of time on the clock, I expected them to truck us with the run over and over for the win. But the egos emerged, and the Ravens came out passing. I just knew an interception was coming. Thank goodness!

As far as the rest of the game, I really thought we were in trouble when Stork went down. I hope he can get back soon. I thought I heard sprained MCL somewhere.

I also felt that all the critical fouls went against the patriots. I have always felt the refs tend to help the underdog to keep the games competitive but I don't want to sound like a tin foil hat guy.

The Ravens banged up offensive line was very impressive. The double teams on Wilfork were textbook. As a football fan, it was very interesting to watch. As a pats fan, it scared the heck out of me.

It was great to see Hooman and Amedola make some plays. Even if they don't make another play in the next game, teams will have to worry about them.

Overall - huge sigh of relief.

Btw - I love seeing Brady dish it back to Harbaugh earlier. Saying they need to read the rulebook

I forgot to mention this in my earlier comment.BB mismanaged the clock but the ravens did worse after converting the 4th down with over a minute and 40 secs left. Even if flacco had hit a TD there , there was enough time for the pats to come back and worse came force OT. Bad sequence for the Ravens players and coaches.

 

[Huckleberry1]

Here my Idle Thought.......


Calling out Ian

Ian..... Your headline reads. RAVENS CRY FOUL AFTER LOSS TO THE PATRIOTS

It should simply read..... RAVENS CRY AFTER LOSS


not to nitpick brother..... Just saying'

 

[Patters]

A lot of really good insights patfanken, but a few other thoughts:

The Pats obviously started really slow. BB has talked about the speed of the playoffs, how each game gets faster. I think the Pats started off expecting to play a regular season game and it took them awhile to shake off the bye week and get a sense of what was really going on. In some ways, I don't the game was as close as it looked, but between flat footed playing on those first two Flacco drives and Brady's boneheaded pass at the end of the 2nd, the Pats found a way to keep the Ravens in contention.

I think one reason we didn't have a running game was because Gray was injured and Blount was ill earlier in the week. I don't think he was 100% for this game. That said, the Pats were clearly prepared for the short passing game.

There was no clock management problem at the end of the game. For BB, it was whether or not he should trust his D to defend the end zone with a maximum of 14 seconds left. Who would really expect him to do otherwise? While he might have been able to run a few offensive plays that killed those seconds, there are risks in that too.

 

[patfanken]

Some Comment on the comments.

1,. We are probably taking too much time on the end of the game strategy. When you think on it, there are always reasons to to do it one way or the there, and just as many reasons not to. Handing the ball off for 2 or 3 plays would have eaten up more of those 14 seconds, but you get the risk of a fumble. Taking a safety at the end bring into the possibility of a FG to win the game, and the issue of the big return. Doing it the way we did, eliminates all that, but brings into play the hail mary. Maybe the answer is, there was no PERFECT way to play that final 1:39, just different ones.

2. It was very frustrating to see so many calls and non-call go against us, starting from the reversed 3rd down catch. However the real problem seems to me to be the arbitrary nature of how the calls are made. I think the pendulum needs to swing back. They need to simplify the rules rather than make them more complex. Extend the area of contact another 5 yards. Ignore incidental contact and contact that doesn't significantly impair the receiver from running his route.

3. He's a thought. One way to diminish holding on the OL would be to have all offensive linemen wear mitts without fingers to it would be impossible to grab, That would eliminate a great portion of the holding.

3. Too much will be made of the 31 points given up, and not enough about how good the offense was, how mentally tough this team is, and how we have a defense that FINALLY made the final stop.

4. The offense scored 35 points and STILL left 6-14 points on the table when they took the 2 sacks after getting to the 20, and the poor series after the McCourty pick.

5. Not looking forward to hearing the narrative that will be coming from the media, especially if Denver wins convincingly. However I am getting used to it. In fact I'll probably happily put on my best Rodney impression and EMBRACE it.

6. One thing to remember that Denver will be an entirely different defensive problem. The will be better, but it will be a difference in philosophy.

7. Kudos should go out to Solder and Volmer. Volmer just shut Dumerville out, and with the exception of one inside move, Solder just shut Suggs up. Given that Brady threw the ball 50 times, the protection as a whole wasn't great, (too many QB hits) but wasn't bad either, More importantly got better as the game went on.

 

[letekro]

Seen a lot of comments to the effect that the oline/kline were ok in the second half. I have to disagree, partially. The tackles held up quite well and Vollmer wad dominant. The interior line including Kline was abused all night. Constantly being driven into Bradys lap. BB knew enough to not call any deep passes or runs because those guys would never be able to get it blocked. I hope the short passing game will be enough going forward, but still worried about what SEA could do to us with a similar defensive line and corners that can play press man

 

[pencilneckgeek]

Would not take the risk of handing the ball off... they were deep in their own endzone, they had 99 seconds to kill they took off 84 seconds out of a possible 90..

BB showed confidence in his ST's and Defense, the Hail Mary Pass from 52 yards has close to a 0% of success..

http://archive.advancedfootballanalytics.com/2012/09/hail-mary-probabilities.html

Understood, but I don't like deferring to the law of averages given the way the refs had called that game. Still, I will be interested in seeing if Mr. Burke has something to say about the overall strategy of running out most of the clock and punting in that situation.

 

[SVN]

I missed one thing. In the euphoria of the go ahead TD, I think we missed to point out what an amazing throw that was from Brady. One of the more underrated passes in the game.

 

[pencilneckgeek]

Seen a lot of comments to the effect that the oline/kline were ok in the second half. I have to disagree, partially. The tackles held up quite well and Vollmer wad dominant. The interior line including Kline was abused all night. Constantly being driven into Bradys lap. BB knew enough to not call any deep passes or runs because those guys would never be able to get it blocked. I hope the short passing game will be enough going forward, but still worried about what SEA could do to us with a similar defensive line and corners that can play press man

Agreed on the observation, but I'm more concerned by Potroast reprising his January 2014 AFCG next week. Seattle's front wins with speed more than size and strength, whereas Knighton and the Ravens have more of the latter, and that's an issue for the Pat's roller-skating interior OL. (They do roll quite well, when pulling, however. I look forward to seeing some of that again next week.)

 

[patfanken]

I missed one thing. In the euphoria of the go ahead TD, I think we missed to point out what an amazing throw that was from Brady. One of the more underrated passes in the game.

Agreed, that was his best throw of the night. It would have been too bad had LaFall not made that one handed catch because his other hand was being held, and no foul was going to be called.

Brady had his share of misses (about 3 IIRC) but not bad given the conditions and 50 attempts. He also got bailed out by his receivers a few more times than I'd have liked. With the exception of on Gronk drop, all the receivers were VERY good in tough conditions....on both sides.

When you come right down to it, it was a very well played ball game.

 

[heavyde050]

The Ravens are physical, mentally tough, capable of making the big play, and well coached. That makes them a very serious playoff threat. They seem to struggle a bit more with consistency during the regular season than the Pats and put up a few stinkers (the Houston game, for example), but they are not to be under-estimated. We were fortunate to pull this one out - we earned it, but games this close can easily go either way - and I hope we will benefit from having been tested.

The Ravens are talented (though utterly unlikeable to me), but this game was so close partly because of a few huge calls that went the Ravens way.

The game was classic, but I would not discount what could have happened had the DPI class been called evenly in the game.

To be honest, John Harbaugh's crying after the game and use of the word deception really rubs me the wrong way. His team benefited much more from the officiating and he should just take the loss to the better team in stride.

 

[SacPete1]

Always love reading your idle thoughts Ken.
Just a few to add/reiterate:

1. If you just looked at stats, you would say Brady had an excellent game and really Flacco played well minus the last pick but you really have to look at the game to see the remarkable differences. Flacco had a great running game and when pressured really couldn't deliver. Meanwhile, the Ravens were coming at Brady all night and while the Oline played well for the most part, Brady took alot of hits and he had no running game. This makes his performance all the more amazing and really he carried this team on his shoulders. Speaking of hits, how was Jernigan not flagged for pile driving Brady on one hit. I thought Brady would have separated his left shoulder the way it appeared to support all of Jernigan's weight.

2. Couldn't believe the DPI call on Revis! If you're going to call that, then you really need to call a heck of a lot more holding and PI.

3. Resilience! Again, I think its Brady's most incredible asset and the one that define's in game leadership more than anything. I was down but not completely out when the Ravens were up 28-14 but when McCourty made the pick and then they went 3 and out while the score was then 28-28, I felt the momentum could have swung one last time in the Raven's favor. Add to that the Revis holding which was the right call IMO and I was just getting that sinking feeling. But when they held them to 3 pts, it was such a huge relief and the momentum once again swung. That whole emotional sequence starting with McCourty's pick was unreal.

4. Run D
I heard Stirling Sharpe say that in order for NE to advance to the SB, Brady would have to play better. What???? He didn't mention giving up 31 points and getting gashed on the ground. How are these guys employed?
When NE started to run blitz or bring down Chung, they had more success but as this was happening I thought oh boy, here comes the play action bomb. Luckily the outside coverage was good but I don't think the Ravens could have drawn up a better scenario for their offense to succeed. Alot has been mentioned about the lack of pass rush which is fair but stopping the run is priority one.
Luckily, the Broncos really run from shotgun draws and have a completely different style than the Ravens and I don't think the Colts can run period.

5. Offensive running game
While I'm glad and had hoped we were going to see a heavy pass attack, I think the score dictated even more use of it. Denver's secondary is much better than Baltimore's but the discussion on strategy for next week can wait.

By the way Ken, can you please post a game strategy topic early in the week so we can get things rolling.

 

[PatsFanInVa]

...and it was the very end of a frigid game where a lot of fumbles had been pried from cold, stiff fingers. I think that might well have been a factor, because BB has been very creative in the past about using up extra second. Remember the game that ended on a 4th down with Brady running around deep in the pocket then throwing a long ball out of bounds?

Time for a classic BB motivational guest appearance ahead of next weekend's game... (in this case post-mortem via video...)



(please read humorously and not politically. Thank you.)

 

[patsfan13]

The refs were terrible we are lucky it didn't cost us.

The throw for the int by Brady, not enough arc, but if it had more arc does Gronk get kiled by the closing Safety? Rare bad read by Brady.


RE Revis penalties, perhaps ticky tack, but Smith Sr is a Great receiver and has been for a LONG time, he should be in the HoF when he retires, but many years in Carolina may cost him that honor.

 

[PScottman]

With the exception of on Gronk drop, all the receivers were VERY good in tough conditions....on both sides.

When you come right down to it, it was a very well played ball game.

I'm not sure people have any real inkling as to how HARD that ball gets when the temps are below freezing (especially below 20 degrees) as they have to overinflated them in addition to the now rock hard leather/synthetic leather. The ability to get a good "feel" or grip is tremendously decreased too.

I expected a drop in completion percentage given the conditions. both from the passer and receiver perspective.

 

[PP2]

6. Really Bad thing - The DL/LB's- Didn't get to the passer, didn't stop the run.

8. Bad thing - It wasn't a stellar coaching job to start the game. To me it looked like it was the Ravens who had the 2 weeks to prepare and not the Pats. The Ravens came out and did exactly what they wanted in those first 2 drives. They seemed to know exactly what to expect from the Pats D and exploited every advantage.

First off, the Ravens gave us everything they had. They get up for us like nobody else. This was a Ravens team that absolutely did not reflect their 10-6 record.

Second, I don't think it's possible to overrate their ability t0 crack-block in the run game. They can move people at will when they want to (being so big, physical and athletic), which is why we saw Forsett end up in the flat so often (because we were not crack-replacing). We did a better job on that in the 2nd half.

 

[patfanken]

-

RE Revis penalties, perhaps ticky tack, but Smith Sr is a Great receiver and has been for a LONG time, he should be in the HoF when he retires, but many years in Carolina may cost him that honor.

Yes he has been, but lets not get carried away. Its not like this guy had 8 catches and 120 yds. He had THREE catches and 60 yds, including one tipped TD. NONE of the Ravens receivers had more than 60 yds, while the Pats had 4 receivers who had MORE than 60

 

[patsfan13]

-
Yes he has been, but lets not get carried away. Its not like this guy had 8 catches and 120 yds. He had THREE catches and 60 yds, including one tipped TD. NONE of the Ravens receivers had more than 60 yds, while the Pats had 4 receivers who had MORE than 60

Exactly, Revis had a good game you won't be perfect against a guy like this. I remember how he abused Talib and many other CB's in this league, which was my point.

 

[patsfanincleveland]

That's an interesting take. 35-17 was the kind of score most of us "optimists" predicted, and if you forgot the first 7 or 8 minutes of the game, that's what you got.

ken

I would also look at the running yardage. 80+ in 1H and it was closed out 2H.

A great point indicative of the game is Baltimore going for it on 4th down. You don't do that if you feel you have the better team.

When analyzing games the three questions for conclusions is:

Did it happen?
Did they sustain it?
Can it be replicated?

If someone was to watch the final three quarters, I bet many would arrive at different conclusions. Brief periods of excellence is really the result of great leadership.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Kan, great stuff especially the comments on the comments.

However I was hoping you'd up your game post season. No more "Idle" thoughts for playoff games.