Not that Good, Not that bad!

[sarge]

After some time to sit back and try to put what we saw last night in the proper perspective, I have come away with two things I am fairly sure of.

Not that good
The Pats running game.

Less we forget Atlanta had the worse run defense in the league last season. For those who don't remember just how bad Atlanta was at stopping the run, think about this.

Last year an injured Corey Dillon behind an oline that blocked like crap all season put up 106 yards on 23 carries. I haven't gone through his stats on every game last season, but I am fairly confident that was our best running game all season.

Both Dillon and Maroney looked real good last night. And what impressed me the most was what they both did after initial contact.

But let us remember, if there was one team that was the worst to use as a measuring stick for your running game, it is the Atlanta Falcons.

Fortunately the Pats ran the ball at will. It would have been very bad if they couldn't run the ball againbst Atlanta.

Not that bad!
The run defense

As bad as the Atlant run defense is, there run offense is that good. They were the number one rushing team in the league last year. A lot of that is due to Vick. But they still run the ball very well.

I didn't think the first string D (minus more then a few starters) looked all that terrible against the run. They gave up some big runs, but it wasn't like the 2004 regular season game against Pitt where they just ran it for 6 yards pop every time a back touched the ball.

I think the run D will most likely be fine.

Receivers on the other hand. I think they will be that bad, but that is a whole other discussion.

 

[RayClay]

After some time to sit back and try to put what we saw last night in the proper perspective, I have come away with two things I am fairly sure of.

Not that good
The Pats running game.

Less we forget Atlanta had the worse run defense in the league last season. For those who don't remember just how bad Atlanta was at stopping the run, think about this.

Last year an injured Corey Dillon behind an oline that blocked like crap all season put up 106 yards on 23 carries. I haven't gone through his stats on every game last season, but I am fairly confident that was our best running game all season.



Both Dillon and Maroney looked real good last night. And what impressed me the most was what they both did after initial contact.

But let us remember, if there was one team that was the worst to use as a measuring stick for your running game, it is the Atlanta Falcons.

Fortunately the Pats ran the ball at will. It would have been very bad if they couldn't run the ball againbst Atlanta.

Not that bad!
The run defense

As bad as the Atlant run defense is, there run offense is that good. They were the number one rushing team in the league last year. A lot of that is due to Vick. But they still run the ball very well.

I didn't think the first string D (minus more then a few starters) looked all that terrible against the run. They gave up some big runs, but it wasn't like the 2004 regular season game against Pitt where they just ran it for 6 yards pop every time a back touched the ball.

I think the run D will most likely be fine.

Receivers on the other hand. I think they will be that bad, but that is a whole other discussion.

5.94 last night to be exact, Sarge.

 

[BLITZKRIEG]

I thought RB L. Maroney looked great. You guys may have got yourselves a very nice future RB with that pick. He runs hard, and he's big. Reminded me of RB S. Jackson alittle.....

As for the rest of the offense, I thought the starters looked very solid. Brady was on target most of time, and I didn't see any signs of problems within the first string unit. They weren't on the field long either though....

QB M. Cassel unfortunately wasn't that impressive last night. He looked raw, and played with uncertainty in my opinion. Bottom line : The Pats OL needs to make sure nothing ever happens to Brady, because at this stage{after one pre-season game}, Cassel has a long way to go.....

The Pats defense was alright, it wasn't the true starters, so that must be taken into effect. All in all they had some good plays / bad plays, but it was a good performance for the Patriots. You looked strong....

 

[spacecrime]

I thought it was about right for a BB first pre-season game. What he is doing and what we are looking for are two different things.

He starts from scratch and works toward teh opening season. We evaluate performance without regard to this context.

If Cassel is antsy the first half, we see it as a sign he needs a vet backup rather than part of the process of getting ready for the season.

If the run D is porous, we see it as symptomatic of a team fault, whereas it is often that BB does not game plan, preferring to look to individuals one-on-one performance. It is like taking the team out of team sport.

The overall effect is that of a horrible effort, but look back to the last two year's first preseason games. Same thing.

BB is primarily evaluating players, IMO. The trying to win comes from the players, not the game plan, and that effort is another evaluation point of the players.

I think the game was so close, unike other preseason games I've watched, becasue I think Jim Mora Jr was doing the same basic thing.

 

[Murphys95]

QB M. Cassel unfortunately wasn't that impressive last night. He looked raw, and played with uncertainty in my opinion. Bottom line : The Pats OL needs to make sure nothing ever happens to Brady, because at this stage{after one pre-season game}, Cassel has a long way to go.....

I agree, Cassell's pocket presence was fair at best last night. He looked nervous and played with happy feet much of the time. Still, it's only one exhibition game - at this point it's hard to make many judgements. I look to see more of him in the next few weeks...and hopefully some improvement.