#1 Gost has been rock solid this year. Yes he missed 1 XP but that will happen to every kicker at some point. I seem this as a big confidence gaining day for him.
Yes, I've been on this since last week. Seriously, he is putting together a great season to this point. He looks like Gost of old.
#2 This Defense improved some things. Yes a fair amount of the help was bad offense but also you didn't see many guys left open. There was one Winston missed (he had Jackson for a 60 yard TD) and 2 he just didn't happen to see but generally it was much improved. Still plenty to clean up but this is the first time I felt they actually did a lot to force stops. The run D was good on the whole except for 1 drive when they got gashed.
Agree completely. I feel they played a very competitive game. Obviously you want to see less penalties. Ideally, you want to see the Pats correct this (which you touched on #3). But overall, I was very pleased with the competitiveness. Tackling was better, while not perfect.
The run game from Q2-Q3 was very poor. But Q1 was textbook. Maybe stamina was an issue. I think both teams had bouts of being gassed. I'll be watching that closely against the Jets.
#3 Penalties were the biggest issue in this game. Get let them get out of 3rd and 4th down situations due to penalties. I think these will be cleaned up. It is easier to fix than other things. The Pats will not lose in the playoffs due to jumping off sides on a punt or a hands to the face on 3rd and long. They will be smarter by then.
Yup.
#1 The OL still has a ways to go and I don't know if it gets fixed. Solder just isn't what he use to be and I don't think it is just technique. I think his body is failing him and you can't coach that up. Andrews just doesn't have NFL starter talent. He takes coaching well and tries hard I think but he always looks over matched by his opponent and manages to hang on through grit and technique or just get beat. Also Allen has not blocked well either really.
The line has been putrid and, maybe bordering hyperbole a bit, I'll say that they're going to get Brady killed. I think he is already dealing with something. It could be something or it could be that he's sore on only four days in between games. Either way, he was getting up pretty slowly on almost every knock down or sack. He's hurting.
Solder, in particular, is not playing well at all and he's the most likely culprit to getting Brady hurt. I think there is something to his health being an issue. He's never been a great LT, but he's definitely been better than this in the past. Your mind, especially a smart guy like him, doesn't often just fail you. Your body, however, can. Who knows?
The interior line is lacks strength. They're just hard workers who I think have maybe overachieved a bit. I do think Thuney is legit. Andrews has been a binky of mine since he signed here and I called it early that he'd be the starter over Stork. But yeah, he's just really the biggest overachiever of the bunch. Mason is incredible in the running game and getting out on the perimeter on outside plays. He suffers in line blocking and in the passing game. Cannon, I feel, has been mostly solid.
#2 Without Edelman not having Gronk isn't an option. It's as simple as that. He makes the offense go and opens up other things. Cooks makes big plays at times but Gronk sustains drives and scores points by making 3rd down clutch catches and chunk plays routine. No Gronk and their chunk yardage plays dried up and they stall.
I'll add that it really hurts them in the red zone. That's where Gronk truly becomes the biggest cheat code in the NFL, whether he's getting the ball or not. Think of Shane Vereen in the 2014 RS game against Denver. He's wide open right before the half on a 4th down play (I believe), and it's because Gronk takes three players with him on a crossing route. Things get a lot tighter, particularly inside the 10-yard-line without someone like that to clear up space.
#3 Hightower is so key right now. They made it work okay at times without him last year but that is just not working right now. They have no one to put next to him and certainly no one to replace him. They need him there just to stop the bleeding. Part of me is honestly starting to reconsider the value McClellin adds. While I don't think he is good really I do think he would be a better option next to Hightower than Van Noy or Roberts generally. Harris may as well not be here.
High is always key. It still is funny to me when I think back to the days when people talked about how he was good (this was after all the early calls for him to be cut), but he doesn't make big plays. He not only makes big plays in the biggest of moments, he stabilizes the whole D. McCourty said as much after the game.
On the whole this team has a ton of issues but I still think they win the super bowl if they don't lose anyone else big. There is a lot to improve but we underestimate how fast those improvements can happen particular for fixes like mental errors and penalties. The only thing I think will be a big issue come playoff time is the OL. I think not much can be done to improve it but they will make it work and be good enough.
This is where I may slightly disagree with you. I don't think they can still win the SB
AT THIS TIME. They're just too flawed in so many areas right now. Injuries, inconsistent play, penalties/discipline, poor execution, communication. There's a lot of work to do, which I know you agree, and it's hard to see them in the SB right now. The good thing, however, is nobody other than KC (maybe) has done much to separate from the pack at this point. It will take hard work, but I know and trust that this coaching staff can get it fixed.
Overall, I am also very pleased and encouraged by what I saw tonight, especially on a short week. Yes, TB helped us a bit - BIG SHOUT OUT TO NICK FOLK - HERE'S LOOKING AT YOU KID. But we got a win in a must win game coming off a loss on a short week on the road. What the hell do you want from these men? Isn't this how we won games earlier in this run? Anyway, props to the team. Let's build.
