{"id":20356,"date":"2018-11-18T05:00:14","date_gmt":"2018-11-18T10:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/?p=20356"},"modified":"2018-11-17T12:15:06","modified_gmt":"2018-11-17T17:15:06","slug":"new-england-patriots-news-11-18-afc-east-notes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2018\/11\/18\/new-england-patriots-news-11-18-afc-east-notes\/","title":{"rendered":"New England Patriots News 11-18, AFC East Notes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning, and here is your <\/span>Sunday Patriots news 11-18, & AFC East Notes<\/b>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Some Quick Hitters this morning<\/span><\/p>\n

Not a SB Team? \u00a0<\/b>Former Patriot front office assistant to Bill Belichick, Mike Lombardi stated he has serious doubts that this Patriot team has what it takes to make it to the Super Bowl this year. On a podcast, he was direct in his belief. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTo me, this is not a good Patriots team. I have been saying it all year,\u201d Lombardi said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey struggle to make explosive plays. Whether they have Gronk or don\u2019t have Gronk, I think it is really problematic for them. When they are on the road \u2014 they didn\u2019t have Shaq Mason at right guard, Ted Karras had to play in there \u2014 I thought the Titans did a great job. And Corey Davis here is a guy who has had one play over 25 yards all season. He had a 23-yard against the Eagles and a 55-yarder. The guy really makes plays down the field and he had seven (catches) for 125 (yards) in the game. That is not good.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Did you Know? <\/b>That yesterday November 17 was the 50th anniversary of the famous \u201cHeidi\u201d game. In 1968, the Jets and Raiders were locked in an epic shootout and the network cut away from the game to broadcast the film \u201cHeidi\u201d in their 4 p.m. time slot. The Raiders scored twice in the last minute to win 43-32, but the only people in America that got to see that were the fans in the stadium. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Did you Know Pt.2?<\/b> With 147 yards passing next week against the Jets, Tom Brady will become the NFL leader in passing yardage, regular and post-season combined. <\/span>
\n<\/span>Peyton Manning ……………………….79,279<\/span>
\n<\/span>Tom Brady ……………………………. \u00a0\u00a079,133<\/span>
\n<\/span>Brett Favre………………………………. 77,693<\/span>
\n<\/span>Drew Brees ………………………………77,255<\/span><\/p>\n

Did you Know Pt. 3: <\/b>Since 2003, the Patriots are 46-7 (.868 win percentage) following a loss. That doesn\u2019t bode extremely well for a Jets upset next week in the Meadowlands, but that is why they play the games.<\/span><\/p>\n

Did you Know Pt. 4: <\/b>Things that make you go hmm. There was a stat on social media, the other day, and I truly can\u2019t remember who posted it to give proper credit, but here is a good one, especially for the \u201cBelichick can\u2019t draft\u201d crowd. <\/span><\/p>\n

Teams with the most draft picks\u00a0that are still in the NFL:<\/span>
\n<\/span>Bengals\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a061<\/span>
\n<\/span>Ravens\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 54<\/span>
\n<\/span>Seahawks 54<\/span>
\n<\/span>49ers\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a053<\/span>
\n<\/span>Patriots\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a052<\/span><\/p>\n

Now factor in WHERE the Patriots draft in relation to those other teams as well as everyone else, and presto!, their ratio isn\u2019t so bad now, is it? <\/span><\/p>\n

James White <\/b>set a new personal best with 66 catches and is only 11 away from a new Patriots record. Tony Collins set the team record with 77 catches in 1986. White is also right on pace with some of the best #s of catches by a running back after 10 games. <\/span>
\n<\/span>Reggie Bush\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a02007\u00a0 New Orleans\u00a0 67<\/span>
\n<\/span>Larry Centers\u00a0 \u00a01996\u00a0 Arizona\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a067<\/span>
\n<\/span>Matt Forte\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 2014\u00a0 Chicago\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a067<\/span>
\n<\/span>James White\u00a0 \u00a0 2018\u00a0 New England\u00a0 66<\/span><\/p>\n

Kaepernick to the Patriots Rumors: <\/b>\u00a0The Patriots were rumored in September to be in talks with QB Colin Kaepernick to bring him to New England to back up Tom Brady. At the time, Patriots owner Robert Kraft, kind of dismissed that idea, not really confirming or denying it was true. However, in an interview with Devin Gordon of the NY Times, Kraft had this interesting tidbit about Kaepernick. \u201cLet me say this: I would very much like to see him in the league,\u201d Kraft said. That should stoke the Kaepernick to NE rumors again. <\/span><\/p>\n

Heating Up in the Colder (Snowy?) Weather: \u00a0<\/b>Since 2001, the Patriots are 101-29 with a winning percentage of .784 on or after Thanksgiving. That is the best in the NFL. Under Bill Belichick, Patriots teams always seem to get better as the season rolls along. Let\u2019s see how this starts out in 2018 next week against the Jets.<\/span><\/p>\n

Now Things Get Interesting, Pats Down the Stretch: <\/b><\/h3>\n

Last week we wrote that the Patriots lost a golden opportunity to keep pace with the Chiefs who are 9-1 and now two games ahead of the Patriots in the AFC. The loss dropped New England out of the top two as Pittsburgh only has two losses (6-2-1). But the Patriots are far from out of the running for a bye once the playoffs roll around. Why? Take a look at the schedules of the teams involved. <\/span><\/p>\n

The Chiefs (9-1) have an upcoming game this week against the Rams, and also have games upcoming against the Chargers, the Seahawks (in Seattle) and a possible trap game against the Ravens who have a tough defense. <\/span><\/p>\n

The LA Chargers (7-2), I still have a hard time NOT saying San Diego, have games coming up against the Steelers, Chiefs and possible trap games against the Ravens and Bengals. <\/span><\/p>\n

The Steelers (6-2-1) have the Chargers and then the Patriots and Saints in back-to-back games and also play the Jaguars today, the team who beat them twice in Pittsburgh last season. <\/span><\/p>\n

The Patriots (7-3) have games with Minnesota, Miami (on the road where they always seem to play like poo-poo) and the Steelers<\/span><\/p>\n

Everybody can\u2019t win out, they all play each other. And think about this, the Chargers are only a game behind the Chiefs in the loss column, that division is far from locked up. So, the Patriots are in a position where, if they play well down the stretch, should be in a great position to lock up a first-round bye for the playoffs. The games will get very intriguing from here on out. <\/span><\/p>\n

Areas That Need Improving Down the Stretch:<\/b><\/h3>\n

With the Patriots off this week, they always do their own self-scouting and look to where the team feels it needs improving to finish the season strong. We\u2019re going to post our own analysis on where we feel the team needs to improve to get a bye in the first round of the playoffs and possibly parlay that into another game for NE in February. <\/span><\/p>\n

Improve Special Teams-<\/b> Specifically the coverage units. Very uncharacteristically for a Bill Belichick team, the Patriots have been bad in kick coverage this year. They currently rank 29th and 31st correspondingly in Punt and Kick coverage. <\/span><\/p>\n

That is not good, especially with a defense that has had its struggles this year. The team seems to have already addressed those issues. They brought in STs\/LBs Albert McClellan, formerly of the Ravens last week and just signed Ramon Humber who has spent time with the team in the past. <\/span><\/p>\n

The return units are actually rounding into form quite well. The Patriots rank 2nd in the league in kickoff return yardage and 2nd in punt return average. <\/span><\/p>\n

Get a Healthy Gronk and Burkhead Back for the Offense- <\/b>The Patriots offense, while scoring at the 8th best mark in the league, can actually be much, much better. They\u2019ve been very inconsistent and need to get their key skill position players healthy as well as their offensive line for a late-season push. <\/span><\/p>\n

Gronkowski has missed several games and has been hobbled for much of the season beyond that. Besides being the best overall tight end in the game when he\u2019s healthy, he provides matchup nightmares for defensive coordinators. If opponents double him, they leave someone else open. He\u2019s a devastating blocker in the running game as well. Jacob Hollister has also been hurt most of the year, so it has left the tight end position with very little production. Dwayne Allen has two catches on the year. <\/span><\/p>\n

Burkhead is a very valuable piece as he can spell both Sony Michel in the running game and James White in the passing game. While he\u2019s the equal of neither in their respective strengths, his versatility makes him keep opposing defenses honest. Getting both Gronkowski and Burkhead back and healthy for a stretch run will do wonders for the Patriots offense.<\/span><\/p>\n

Where\u2019s The Beef (Pass Rush)-<\/b> Thru the first 10 games the Patriots have just 15 sacks. That is 30th in the NFL and isn\u2019t going to get it done. While they have gotten decent enough pressure on opposing QBs, the pass rush has to get home with much more regularity. It is a big difference between an incomplete pass on 2nd and 4 because of pressure and facing a 3rd and 12 or 13.<\/span><\/p>\n

Trey Flowers has been outstanding and does so many things well, but the other players need to step up their games more. Although even Flowers would be best served with a bit more production as well. <\/span><\/p>\n

They\u2019ve been creating some extra pressure by using corner and linebacker blitzes. But as we\u2019ve seen before, the best teams will pick up on those and it can be a dangerous situation if they do. <\/span><\/p>\n

Brady Needs to Spread the Wealth Around-<\/b> One of the things that has reared its ugly head last week in the loss to the Titans was the fact that Brady was locking into his primary receivers (Josh Gordon, Julian Edelman, James White) and has pretty much ignored his secondary WRs (Chris Hogan, Phillip Dorsett). <\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s always been a sure sign that Brady is struggling and that needs to change. Brady had Hogan wide open with what appeared to be a touchdown last week, instead, forcing the ball to Edelman on 4th down. <\/span><\/p>\n

This plays into what we mentioned above and getting everyone back and healthy but he needs to do a bit better job overall and certainly to use all of his weapons. He said as much this week.<\/span><\/p>\n

Brady and the Cliff…Keep Praying Boys, It May Come True Someday:<\/b><\/h3>\n

Our buddy Mike Dussault from Pats Propaganda wrote a very intriguing piece the other day where he said there is a very real number of national football writers and NFL fans that can\u2019t wait for the demise of Tom Brady. Mike hit it right on the head and I would encourage everyone <\/span>here to check it out<\/span><\/a>. And it is true. <\/span><\/p>\n

Many of the hot take artists are really just jock sniffers wrapped up in a suit on national television. Brady has never fit the narrative because he was never supposed to be \u201cthe guy\u201d. A 6th round draft pick #199 taken behind some of the quarterbacks that went before him in the draft that were\u00a0underachievers…would be a politically correct term. He was supposed to be an asterisk on the minds of all. \u201cRemember Tom Brady?\u201d \u201cOh yeah, that unathletic kid from Michigan that won a bowl game…he wasn\u2019t going to ever make it in the NFL.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Remember 2001, that was a great story…9\/11, We are all Patriots…yeah he had his moment but to the hot take crowd that was his 15 seconds. Now move over kid, the great one \u201cManning the #1 pick in the draft, he is the ONE.”<\/span><\/p>\n

But 2003 happened and the kid showed it wasn\u2019t a flash in the pan and he led another final Super Bowl drive to give his team another win and the hot take crowd wasn\u2019t happy. By 2004, the great story had turned to an open hatred of him, his unquotable coach and the team that won 3 out of 4 Super Bowls. <\/span><\/p>\n

After leaving Manning in the dust with eight Super Bowl appearances and five wins, now the cretin, ultracrepidarians can\u2019t wait for him to fail. Which is why after every Patriot loss, they rush to the microphone to spew their latest drivel about the \u201ccliff\u2019 or whatever else they do. Don\u2019t bother. One of those loudly proclaimed after the 2011 Super Bowl loss to the Giants that \u201cTom Brady will never see another Super Bowl\u201d Three SBs and two wins later, now this buffoon rushes to the microphone to say\u2026\u201dAll of those don\u2019t really count\u201d. Okay. <\/span><\/p>\n

The two real questions are #1. Who would hire someone who is more wrong than the worst weatherman in the U.S.? And #2, Are your lives so pathetic, the hate for all things NE so bad, that you rush to listen to this after every NE loss? I wonder how bad the cheering will be against Brady this February when NE and NO have the Super Bowl QB AARP game of the ages? \u00a0Don\u2019t bet against it.<\/span> I called it before Week 1 <\/span><\/a>and I\u2019m sticking to it until proven otherwise. Fast forward to the 37:15 mark and there it is.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Let the hate flow thru you…”<\/p>\n

Who You Have This Week? NFL Week 11 Predictions:<\/b><\/h3>\n

Last week: 7-7 Season 96-50-2 Bye Week: NE, Buf, Mia, NYJ, Browns, 49ers<\/span><\/p>\n

Thursday night\u2019s pick <\/span>\u00a0Seahawks <\/b>over Packers 1-0 <\/span><\/p>\n

Cincinnati at Baltimore: <\/span>Ravens<\/b>
\n<\/span>Dallas at Atlanta: <\/span>Falcons<\/b>
\n<\/span>Tampa Bay at NY Giants: <\/span>G-men<\/b>
\n<\/span>Pittsburgh at Jacksonville: <\/span>Jaguars<\/b>
\n<\/span>Houston at Washington: <\/span>Texans<\/b>
\n<\/span>Tennessee at Indianapolis: <\/span>Colts<\/b> (SB Hangover)<\/span>
\n<\/span>Carolina at Detroit: <\/span>Panthers<\/b>
\n<\/span>Denver at LA Chargers: <\/span>Bolts<\/b>
\n<\/span>Oakland at Arizona: <\/span>Raiders<\/b>
\n<\/span>Philadelphia at New Orleans: <\/span>Saints<\/b> (are we having fun yet?)<\/span>
\n<\/span>Minnesota at Chicago SNF: <\/span>Vikings<\/b>
\n<\/span>Kansas City at LA Rams MNF: <\/span>Rams <\/b><\/p>\n

Thursday Early Pick: Seahawks <\/b>over Packers<\/span><\/p>\n

No AFC East Notes this week as everyone is on the bye week. We\u2019ll have those back next week. <\/span><\/p>\n

Follow me on Twitter @SteveB7SFG or email me at<\/span><\/i> stevebpatsfans@gmail.com<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n

Listen to our<\/span><\/i> Patriots 4th and 2<\/span><\/i><\/a> podcasts on blog talk radio as Russ Goldman, Derek Havens and myself from<\/span><\/i> PatsFans.com<\/span><\/i><\/a> discuss the latest Patriots news.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Getting both Rob Gronkowski and Rex Burkhead back and healthy for a stretch run will do wonders for the Patriots 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