Patriots Pregame Thread Pre-Game - Divisional Round Texans at Patriots

[Sect140]

Its time for another Marcus Jones KO return to the house.

My prediction is Pats win 31-17, a defensive game but MJ has a pick six and a punt return for a TD.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

Regarding crowds, our fans have traveled really well too this year. Multiple stadiums had very audible mvp chants for Drake, especially in Baltimore where its not very common for opponents to take over the place. I remember major roars during our key plays in Baltimore and tampa. Vrabel chants in Tennessee.

 

[mgteich]

It seems that everyone will be healthy enough to play, although Landry may have limited reps.

I think that we have an open roster spot, so we can add Jennings. We can also activate Austin and demote Minor.

If we need an additional STer, that can be an elevation. Personally, I prefer a C/G as one of the elevations, especially if Munford can play. If not, Bryant needs to be active.

 

[Uptown]

 

[40yrpatsfan]

I could hear it on TV .
IT SOUNDED MUCH LOUDER than normal, I mentioned it in the GDT.
People there said it was really loud.
KEEP BEING LOUD!

Oh it's gonna be loud all right.

This is the thing. It's like the Indy playoff games in '03-04 or those cold Baltimore games years later, where the opponent is a real threat to our season, yet they might be vulnerable too.

This crowd knows the Pats have the juice to prevail, they just need a little help to unlock the juju and affect the outcome, push things over the edge. They are participants not spectators. Add in 7 years of frustration. The Texans are gonna think they landed on another planet.

 

[FCB02062]

Looking decent for a snow game tomorrow

 

[SlowGettingUp]

Most Theologians believe in afterlife or eternal life.

The question - Do they have NFL football there ?

The Refs down in that other place are really something. A flag on every single play.

 

[Ross12]

I am on the fence on the snow. On one hand, I think it would definitely slow down Houston's defense. On the other hand, Maye is pretty untested in the snow and I don't really know how he'll perform. He had a bit of a hard time with some rain against Tampa earlier this year (even though they did ultimately win pretty handily). I'd also like for Gonzo, Davis and Jones to be able to clamp down on their depleted receiving corps, and a slick field may let those guys get open. So there's some risk there.

 

[Zoomnbyu]

I'd rather he throw the INT to Marcus Jones.

Barmore would probably advance 5 yards before he gets taken down.

But if Barmore gets it you might get a Fat Guy Touchdown Dance. An underrated movie FWIW.

 

[denverpatsfan]

Denver has an equally rabid fanbase. My guess is that the cost of living has risen there with so many West coasters moving in.

You have no idea how much the cost of living has increased here.
$12 beers
$30 pizzas
$20 salads

Never mind the essentials.
Gas is still cheap relatively speaking. It should be we have oil and a refinery here.

 

[DaBruinz]

Not sure why Patriots.com isn't showing the same info as HoustonTexans.com when it comes to the Texans Injury Report:

Nico Collins and Justin Watson are both OUT.
Trent Brown is questionable.

 

[mgteich]

You have no idea how much the cost of living has increased here.
$12 beers
$30 pizzas
$20 salads

Never mind the essentials.
Gas is still cheap relatively speaking. It should be we have oil and a refinery here.

Price Of Beer At Every NFL Stadium 2025

Buying beer at different NFL games vary in price. Take a look at how much you will spend on a 16 oz beer at each stadium.

1075thefan.com

 

[Triumph]

You have no idea how much the cost of living has increased here.
$12 beers
$30 pizzas
$20 salads

Never mind the essentials.
Gas is still cheap relatively speaking. It should be we have oil and a refinery here.

I've been there for a few Pats games.

The last time IiRC, Pats lost to Manning. Costs were slightly higher, but not enough to choke a horse. I'm sure that's all changed.

 

[patfanken]

I am on the fence on the snow. On one hand, I think it would definitely slow down Houston's defense. On the other hand, Maye is pretty untested in the snow and I don't really know how he'll perform. He had a bit of a hard time with some rain against Tampa earlier this year (even though they did ultimately win pretty handily). I'd also like for Gonzo, Davis and Jones to be able to clamp down on their depleted receiving corps, and a slick field may let those guys get open. So there's some risk there.

To me, Snow is a big nothingburger as how it affects play. WIND is a far bigger factor. Snow, if it accumulates, can be factor in as far as a degree of slipperiness goes, which would favor the offense to a degree. But how much will accumulate if it doesn't start until, say, gametime. It WILL add to the aesthetic of watching the game, but unless the wind gets up into the 15-20 range, weather isn't going to be a big factor. And at 30-36 degrees, I wonder if the cold is as much of a factor as we make it out to be. (though the teens or low 20's would be.)

Also aren't most fields heated these days which makes accumulation even more difficult. Nah; The snow will make the game "pretty", but will have a minimal effect on the outcome

 

[PatsFan2]

Not hard with that Defense.

 

[Rob0729]

I could hear it on TV .
IT SOUNDED MUCH LOUDER than normal, I mentioned it in the GDT.
People there said it was really loud.
KEEP BEING LOUD!

I think the fans are definitely into it maybe even more so than the Brady years. I think the fans in the stadium got a little too complacent during those years.

But a big thing is that they closed the open end of the stadium. Gillette was really poorly designed in terms of crowd noise. The stands are farther back than most stadiums and the open end of the stadium allowed a lot of the crowd noise to dissipate. If you look at the loudest stadiums, the stands are stacked high close to the field and the stadium is really tall and enclosed, some with a roof.

 

[Triumph]

The Refs down in that other place are really something. A flag on every single play.

Some people complain about the heat.

It's a dry heat though.

 

[slash83]

Anyone else a little concerned about the snow showers? I get it should slow down their pass rush but we don’t know how well Maye will be able to sling it.

 

[A Defiant Goose]

To me, Snow is a big nothingburger as how it affects play. WIND is a far bigger factor. Snow, if it accumulates, can be factor in as far as a degree of slipperiness goes, which would favor the offense to a degree. But how much will accumulate if it doesn't start until, say, gametime. It WILL add to the aesthetic of watching the game, but unless the wind gets up into the 15-20 range, weather isn't going to be a big factor. And at 30-36 degrees, I wonder if the cold is as much of a factor as we make it out to be. (though the teens or low 20's would be.)

Snow adds a Gillette stadium mystique that is gonna be make the Houston Domecows poop their pants

 

[NFL Mystique]

Tell us you didn’t watch the games without telling us.

Well the game was up in the air until the Henry TD. " struggle" was a bad word to use though.

I pointed out with video earlier in this thread that the Steelers had big plays to be had against the Texans on Monday night and they blew it. A wide open DK Metcalf drops the ball right in his hands and no one between him and the end zone twenty yards down the field. Rodgers underthrew a wide open Calvin Austin sprinting towards the end zone which forced Austin to slow down and get tangled up with the CB. Rodgers gets sacked with a lane for him to step up and avoid the rush with DK Metcalf wide open down field (Rodgers is strip sacked and changes the possession allowing the Texans to score).

Any of those plays are converted and it is a different ball game. Any one of those plays could have resulted in a Steelers TD. The last one would have been a 14 point difference in the final score since the Texans scored off the turnover.

People are turning the Texans defense into the Legion of Boom or the 2000 Ravens or the 85 Bears based on recency bias. They are arguably the best defense in the NFL this year, but don't look at it as a special all time defense as they are being talked up this week. They are middle of the pack in terms of allowing big passing plays this year. There are other teams including the Browns, Bills, and Chargers (the Pats played them and are 3-1 against) who have given up less passing years. The Seahawks have given up less points and the Pats only gave up like one point a game more than them.

The Texans defense has weaknesses. And Maye and the Patriots' offense is built to exploit them. As I stated, they are middle of the pack in giving big plays. They are susceptible to a scrambling QB. They play primarily zone defense where Maye feasts and McDaniels loves to design plays to exploit the points where defenders hand off receivers from one zone to the next.

One of the reasons why the Pats struggled against the Chargers last week early is because the Chargers (a primarily zone defense team) switched it up to playing a lot of man coverage. They were good at it, at least for a while. I don't know if the Texans are built for that strategy. They have success in man coverage on limited basis, but they their success because they do play zone and play cover 3 or cover 4 allowing their DBs and LBs to cover shorter areas which allows them to be more aggressive to the ball.

And I don't know if on a short week they can revise their defense to be more man like the Chargers did. Don't forget that the Chargers basically had two weeks to prepare for the Pats. They knew they were going to be the seven seed and them resting their starters against the Broncos almost guaranteed they would be facing the Patriots in the Wild Card round.

And it was most of these guys (Patriots) first playoff game. They are human and there had to be a level of nervousness. Also can't forget the Chargers have a better QB (Imo) over Texans. Stroud is no bum. But he is not in that upper tier of QB's.