The Patriots Report: Week 10

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Do not let the score fool you, this Jets-Patriots game was a lot closer then the final result indicates.  The Jets dropped 3 potential picks, choked on a 20-yard field goal in their opening drive, and somehow muffed a punt that allowed New England to put points on the board.  Mark Sanchez also left Tom Brady too much time at the end of the first half allowing Brady and the Patriots to score a much needed touchdown.  Coach Ryan was so mad at this decision that he called what Sanchez did "the stupidest play of all time" I think he needs to settle down a bit on that one.  Up to this point, I did not write a single thing the Patriots did well, the Jets basically handed them the game with all of the mistakes I just mentioned.  I am not trying to take anything away from New England, they seized control of the AFC East (they have basically a 2-game lead because they swept the Jets) and showed flashes of what made them so great in the past.  What I am trying to do is caution people that this win means nothing in the grand scheme of things, the Patriots are average at best right now and are no where near contender status.  One thing that may or may not benefit them is their schedule.  They have by far the easiest schedule of anyone in their last seven games and could easily polish off the season at 13-3.

The Patriots Report: Week 9

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I was debating when to write this, I figured doing it in about two days when the NFL picture has settled from this week would be a good time.  Then I saw the highlights and some sport casters screaming out 'shades of David Tyree!' on Ballard's catch that brought the Giants to the Patriots 30, and I couldn't take it any more.  Firstly, full credit to the Giants, they came into Foxborough and abused the Patriots offensive line and had complete control of the game for the most part.  Eli made the throws he had to as well, and overall Belichick got completely outclassed by Coughlin...again.  Now that that is out of the way it is time for people to throw some water on themselves.  The Tyree catch is one of the luckiest plays not just in NFL history, but in sports history. Bringing it up on a moderately difficult catch does not do it justice.  Second of all, to say that the Giants actually beat the Patriots is not enough without mentioning that the Patriots beat themselves just as much.  I will break down exactly how they managed this in a little bit.  Before I get to that however, I feel that as the designated 'Patriots writer' this season I should post the following police report that came out a short while after the game.

MISSING


Name: Chad 'Ochocinco'
Responds to: Chad, Mr. Ochocinco, Number 85, or any variation of saying eighty-five
Last seen: Reporting to Patriots training camp
He usually can be found dropping open passes and looking sad on the sidelines of National Football League games.  The New England Patriots have asked the Boston Police department to look into allegations that Ochocinco is an impostor, because they can't believe that a former all-pro could be this terrible. Any information would be appreciated, if found please contact the Patriots immediately.


Reports that the Patriots secondary also ran away with Ochocinco have not yet been confirmed.

The Patriots Report: Week 8

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After praising the Patriots defense and hailing the BYE week as a point where Bill Belichick would finally patch things up and turn the Patriots into a Juggernaut, the Pittsburgh Steelers came and shoved everything I said into the same vortex that Donovan Mcnabb's career went to.  Seriously, it was painful watching 'Ben' pick apart the Patriots secondary like he was Joe Montana in his prime.  You would think that after the fourth straight catch by Heath Miller someone on the Patriots sideline would suggest they stop blitzing and allowing a zillion passing lanes.  I cannot stress how abysmal the Patriots were on Sunday, even their offence was sluggish, managing a meager 17 points for the game.  Before I continue it should be acknowledged that the Steelers played a hell of a game and literally kicked the Patriots ass, they handled their business like a contender should (and after the smack-down they laid, I have them and the Ravens as the primary AFC contenders).

So what the hell is wrong with the Patriots defense?  They are missing three starters, but this is no excuse because they used to thrive in situations like this, remember the days Troy Brown would cover the opposing teams best receiver?  Back then it didn't matter who played defense they were great for some reason, not so much anymore.  Poor drafting? A very big factor, their only decent draft pick in recent years has been Patrick Chung, Belichick has to accept some of the blame here, there is no excuse for picking so poorly in four consecutive drafts.  Lastly, some of the blame has to go on the players.  If you are playing a professional sport that you love, you should hold yourself accountable and do whatever it takes to be better.  So far this season, the Patriots defenders have not improved and if they don't the L's will pile up faster than everyone thinks.  At this rate, the Patriots will qualify for the playoffs as a wild-card and get demolished by Pittsburgh or Baltimore whenever they got to them.  The really sad thing about this is that the Patriots are still probably the third best team in the AFC, they picked an absolutely terrible year to suck defensively, if they were even decent I would have them penciled in to the Super Bowl.

Since there really isn't much more to say about the Patriots, a few quick hits from other parts of the NFL:

49ers: Do you realize that they still play the NFC west five times?!  They could easily finish the season 13-3 and get a first round Bye and a guaranteed home game in the playoffs.  Whether or not they can do anything with Alex Smith at Quarterback remains to be seen.

Ravens:  This season they have played some inspiring defense, they were setting some incredible records until they allowed Arizona to score 27 points against them.  Just throwing it out there, I don't think they will allow that much for the rest of the year.

Eagles: Finally played like the team everyone expected them to be, and even sweeter for them is that they are one (you read that correctly) game out of the playoffs.  An 11-5 finish isn't out of the question if they play every game like they did against the Cowboys.  

Titans: Chris Johnson has disappeared off the face of the earth

Giants: Playing the Patriots next week for the first time sense the '18-1' game, if Belichick doesn't throw his best and most secret game plan at them to try and humiliate them then I think his pulse should be checked.

The Patriots Report: Week 6

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What a day of football!  First we were treated to a Lions 49ers game (who would ever have thought that this would be the marquee match-up of the day?  The teams were a combined 9-1 with the one loss in OT) that featured a Montana-esque throw from Alex Smith to win the game.  Following that, we saw two coaches (well really only one, the media says they had to be separated but it looks like Harbaugh is just trying to get away from the lunacy of Jim Schwartz) get into a post game argument with team officials having to step in, how great would a playoff game be between these teams?  Also to coach Schwartz, you've been trash talking, yelling, and intimidating teams sense the season started you can't tell me that you're getting upset about what you love doing kind of sucks when it happens to you doesn't it?  Schwartz was just bitter that his team lost, and over-reacted to a harmless pat/slap on the back.  At that point Harbaugh could have said "nice game coach" and I still think Schwartz would have snapped.  The real shame here is that the confrontation will overshadow the 49ers performance.  They held Megatron to no touchdowns, extended their streak of not allowing rushing touchdowns or 100 yard rushers and themselves ran for 200+ yards.  In the process Alex Smith threw a pass that if Manning or Brady threw you would have to clean the post-game rooms following the analyst's reaction (I will let you figure out what would need to be cleaned) this team is legitimate!

Enough about San Francisco though, this is called the Patriots Report and was the second game of FOX's double header and it might have been better than the one preceding it.  The Patriots and Cowboys came in knowing that Buffalo lost to the Giants so a win for the Patriots would give them the sole lead in their division, and the Cowboys needed to keep up with the Giants (and maybe the Eagles).  The general consensus was that this would be some sort of 41-38 affair with defense taking a back seat.  It is really funny how the consensus can be so wrong sometimes.  The Patriots easily played the best defensive game of the season while their offense put out its worst performance of the year.  I think that they will be happy with the result because they now know that if their offence fails them they can hang around with their defense.  Furthermore, the Patriots now head into a BYE week riding a 3 game winning streak.  This gives coach Belichick 2 weeks to patch things up on the defensive side of the ball and if they manage to do that, they will have earned 'contender' status.  I wont hit you with boring stats anymore, I will just offer thoughts from now on (unless the stat in question is a major one).  The only thought worth mentioning this week is the brilliance of Tom Brady.  Did anyone else have trouble remembering Brady just destroying a team with execution in a 2 minute drill?  This is part of that mystique that the Patriots lost and this is another indication that they may be regaining it, this felt like the early 2000's Patriots: keep it close with defense, let Brady win it for us at the end,  Considering that this won them 3 Superbowl's Patriots fans should be happy to see it again.  There is still a very long way to go for New England, but today they took steps in the right direction, even if it meant doing things the old way.

Some information: Luka is MIA due to being swamped with exams, expect articles about the Eagles from him when he finishes them all (or attacks a helpless TA).


-Daki

NFL Week 4

Tweet This past Sunday I was at the Bills – Patriots game, so I was not able to watch the Saints game. The game in Buffalo was absolutely amazing, but since the Patriots are Daki’s team, I’m going to allow him to cover the game and retell the story of how Tom Brady got embarrassed by Chan Gailey’s Bills.

Like I said, I missed the Saints game so I won’t be able to report on New Orleans this week. I’ve scavenged NFL.com for the highlights, but I don’t feel that makes my opinion on the game any more relevant than anyone else’s. So instead, I will list the 5 things I’m most looking forward to for this coming week of football.

Jerseys – While I was in Buffalo, they kept showing highlights of games that were playing around the league. I noticed that a few teams wore their classic jerseys and didn’t think much of it. However, at halftime, the broadcasters spent a solid 5 minutes discussing which teams have the best classic jerseys and why the league should allow teams to wear their classics whenever they feel like it. One broadcaster was particularly in love with the Saints throwback, which in my opinion looked absolutely disgusting. I’m excited to see which teams will rock their throwbacks this week and for the remainder of the NFL season. It’s always fun to get a glimpse at some of the awful uniforms these NFL teams used to wear (Except the powder blue chargers. They really should just make that their permanent jersey for home and away games.)

Eli “Haters gonna hate” Manning – One thing that boggles my mind in sports is how some players manage to get undervalued and blamed, no matter what they do. Eli Manning is a prime example of a player that has done literally everything asked of him, and still gets hated on for no real reason. When he was drafted first overall, people thought that was a waste of a pick. When he lead his team to a Superbowl and beat the undefeated Patriots, people said any QB could have done it with his defense. Some people like to pretend they know something about football and bring up points like, “He’s crap! Last year he led the league in picks.” If you watched any of the Giants games, you’ll know that half of those picks were tipped balls and passes that receivers swatted to the defensive backs. Well last week, Manning absolutely torched the Eagles defense with 4 TDs, no INTs, and almost 300 yards. I’m excited to see how he’s going to respond this week against Arizona, and if this will finally be the year that Eli gets the respect he deserves.

Darren McFadden vs New England’s Defense – McFadden and Felix Jones split the carries in the Arkansas Razorbacks backfield. They were drafted the same year, Darren going to Oakland and Felix going to Dallas…who really won? Through the first 3 weeks of the season, Darren McFadden is the leading rusher in the NFL while Felix Jones is average at best for the struggling Cowboys. No one has been able to stop McFadden this season and it doesn’t look like this week will be any different. The Patriots will be visiting the Raiders this week and their run D has looked shaky at best. Fred Jackson took a serious toll on the Pat’s D last week and I doubt they will have an answer for Oakland’s rushing attack this week. Why don’t they just stack the box and negate the rush attack? Well, Jason Campbell has been blessed with a random rookie receiver, Denarius Moore. For a fifth round pick-up, this kid can BALL! Looks like another tough week for New England, and another big week for Darren McFadden.

Showdown of the week: Jets vs Ravens – Both teams are 2-1, but in my head, they both have something to prove. I’m not really sure why, but it seems like both teams are just not playing to their full potential and they really need to get back to what they do best: talking shit and backing it up. This is definitely the most enticing match-up of Week 4 and is sure to be a good defensive showing. Even though the defenses have been dismal this season, you know this game is gonna be packed with huge hits and at least a couple scuffles. Joe Flacco, like Eli Manning, is another player that doesn’t get the respect he deserves. Last week he had a huge game with almost 400 yards and 3 TDs, and compared to Jets QB Mark Sanchez, he looks like a field general. The difference in the game will be the Ravens offence, which can actually play consistently and will manage to outscore the Jets in a close, defensively dominated game. If I had to guess a score I’d say Ravens win 21-17.

Why is Chad breaking my heart?! – Chad Ochocinco has been my favourite player for years and is the reason I got into football. No matter what you say, the man loves the game and simply wants to win. However, since he’s become a Patriot, he hasn’t really been playing like it. Week 3 at Buffalo, he was given the chance he’s been waiting for and earned the role of starting WR. His statline was terrible, but he did create defensive mismatches which allowed Gronkowski and Welker to get 1 on 1 coverage at least a handful of times. When the game was on the line, the Pats ran a perfect play against the Bills’ zone coverage and Chad executed his corner route to perfection. Tom Brady spotted him and lobbed the ball perfectly in the endzone for a would-be game-tying TD, only to have Chad drop the pass. There was really no excuse to not catch the ball, and that play single handedly made the statement that Ochocinco is simply not understanding the Patriot offense. I think he deserves another chance, but at the rate he’s going, I don’t know how much longer Chad will be in New England. PLEASE get it together Chad!

The Patriots Report: Week 2

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With the Buffalo Bills completing a spectacular comeback against Oakland and the New York Jets dismantling the hapless Jaguars, the AFC East suddenly had two 2-0 teams; neither of which was the Patriots.  This looks like it will be a very tough division to come out of this year so it was important for New England to win today and keep up with its division rivals.  Needless to say, the Patriots played some excellent football for a second straight week and took care of business against the Chargers of San Diego by a margin of 35-21.  This was the tenth straight regular season win for the Patriots, making Bill Belichick only the second coach ever (behind Don Schula) to have three separate streaks of ten or more wins over his career.  The defense answered the call against the Chargers by forcing four turnovers and (for the second straight week) having a four-down goal-line stand.  If last week's performance on D was a C+ this week is easily a B+.  Twenty-one points is still a lot to give up to a team (this number has to be less by the time the Patriots reach the playoffs) even if that team is the explosive Chargers.  The forced turnovers were a big positive and it was a much better overall performance.  It will be interesting to see if the Defense can keep improving week to week, if they do watch out!

On the offensive side of the ball it was more of the same.  Tom Brady is looking to start a new streak of accuracy and got off to a quick start (3 Touchdowns 0 Picks, 31/40 passing) for good measure he also threw for over 400 yards again.  I know it is a little too early to talk about MVP awards, but if Brady can keep having games like this he should win it unanimously.  Another bright spot for the offense (and trust me there are a lot) was the emergence of Ochocinco.  Now, he did not have a spectacular game by any means but he did make catches which had an impact on the game (including a 30 yarder).  I said this last week: If he is your worst player on offence you are golden and it applies again, once he gels with Brady more expect more catches and Touchdowns.  His partner in crime Deion Branch once again showed his excellence, easily destroying the Chargers secondary for 8 catches and 129 yards.  The Patriots two tight-ends (Gronkowski and Hernandez) caught all the touchdown passes that Brady threw this game and are emerging as a very potent duo.  If they can keep playing at such a high level I really can not see how any team can stop New England, giving Brady five legitimate receivers is like playing Madden against a baby.  Also, if New England can keep going on mammoth 99-yard drives immediately following a goal-line stand, it will make things much easier on their defense.  One last note on the offense: They can run the ball too.  BJGE (yes, I am too lazy to type out his full name) gutted out a solid game with an excellent 4.1yds/carry including the game-icing touchdown run.  The key for the patriots going forward will be how they fare against their division rivals.  They can not afford to fall back as it is shaping up to be a very tough race for home field advantage.

Next week we will get to see if the Bills are for real when the Patriots visit them in a big early season game.  If the Bills win they will announce their arrival, if the Patriots win; they will be 3-0 with 2 division wins and 2 road games out of the way.  It's not a must-win by any means necessary, but if I'm coach Bill Belichik, I would want to keep this momentum going.

I will be covering New England throughout the season, for more of My work follow me on Twitter @ Daki_4, and follow the other writers as well

The Patriots Report: Week 1

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Before I get to my thoughts on the Patriots, just a few other notes I forgot to mention in my preview of why this team should get more respected.

 -They came up with the 'introduce yourself as a team' concept that everyone is copying now in the Super-Bowl
-Tom Brady refused to do endorsements without his line-men, he also bought them really expensive watches
-This team routinely destroys opposition that talks shit with my favorite obliteration coming against the Chargers in the 18-1 season. (notable exception: Jets, although I expect that to change this year)

Now that that is out of the way, on to my thoughts about last night's game against the Miami Dolphins.
I have to admit, I did not watch the entire game but I saw it in parts.  This was due to a phenomenal U.S. open final between two class-act athletes.  Seeing as there is no more tennis, next week I will be able to give a better summary of the happenings of the Patriots.  Of the parts that I did catch the number one thing that should worry Pats fans is the defense.  Now, Cabrock made an excellent point in his debut post about why defenses are struggling across the NFL so I will give the Patriots until week 3 to show me something defensively.  The thing is, the pass-rush was excellent, last season Chad Henne would have thrown 5 picks under that kind of pressure but it looks like he improved vastly.  The secondary was decent, including some good one-on-one coverage but the line-backers were dreadful.  For now we are tossing this up to a lack of film and preparation but this team will not accomplish anything if they keep letting teams bully them with easy scoring drives.  If the Patriots can get even an average performance game in and game out from their line-backing corps I believe that they will truly be a force to be reckoned with this year.

On the offensive side of the ball there is only one thing you can say: wow!
Tom 'Terrific' recovered from his first interception in 11 months (this isn't mentioned enough, that stretch was actually incredible) to go on and throw for 517 yards and 4 TD's.  This was largely fueled by a super fast no-huddle offense that had the Patriots snapping the ball quickly and often, completely overpowering and exhausting the Dolphins defense to the point where they had to use up a time-out just so they could get some rest.  The receivers were exceptional as well (with the exception of Ochocinco who only had one catch, but if he is your worst receiver you know you are good) Wes Welker tied an NFL record with a 99-yard catch, Gronkowski and Hernandez bullied corner-backs that tried to cover them and the offensive line gave Brady incredible protection throughout the contest.  Even their duo of running backs both had a very good 4.9yds/carry nights to keep the Dolphins on edge.  If the Patriots keep playing offense like this, getting into the playoffs wont be a concern, if they keep playing defense like this however, a Super Bowl is unlikely.  All in all it is only week 1, the Patriots are off to a good start and have their home opener against the Chargers next week.  That game should provide us with more insight into how the season will unfold for the 2011 New England Patriots.

Again, appologies for the shortness of the article, watching a full game next week will allow me ot provide more insight.  As always if you like the article or the site follow me @ Daki_4 on Twitter

And then there were 5...

Tweet Ladies and Gentlemen, I have arrived! I'm going by the alias of Cabrock Jones and I'm amped to be contributing with my opinions on this year's NFL season. 3 of the other guys will be following their favourite teams, so amongst other random rants, I will be covering the New Orleans Saints.

So, let's get down to business! Everybody is acting like Thursday night's opener was absolutely spectacular and that Aaron Rodgers should be handed the MVP immediately....why? Sure the game between the Saints and the Packers was high scoring and really entertaining, but in reality, neither team can be even remotely happy with their performance. If there was one thing to be learned for the 2011 season opener, it's that the lockout has deteriorated the league's defences. Why did both quarterbacks have amazing performances, with a combined 6 TDs, 0 INTs and over 700 yards of passing? Because throwing is throwing!

In the offseason, teams couldn't train at their facilities, they weren't allowed contact with their coaches, and they had no access to game film or team playbooks. Though this affects both sides of the ball, player-run workouts would be MUCH more beneficial to the offensive players because running routes and practicing concepts is pretty similar year-to-year. Drew Brees held training camps during the summer and, though he didn't have the 2011 Saints playbook, he led the offense through basic concepts and many of the plays that the team ran in 2010.

Though the defence ran their own version of training camp, the lack of game film and availability of actual coaching proved to be devastating. Practicing your defensive schemes against a half-assed offence in the middle of the summer heat is completely different than kicking off the NFL season against a Super bowl-winning head coach and a top 5 quarterback.

Luka already covered the game in an earlier post, so I won’t talk too much about it. I will admit that the Saints had one of the worst defensive outings that I've ever seen, but even still, Drew Brees and the offense showed that they're still volatile and capable of scoring at any given moment.

Here's how my report card of the New Orleans Saints looks:
Offense - A
Defence - C+
Special Teams - B+
Coaching - A-
Overall - A-

Since I missed most of the Week 1 games, I'll end my introduction here. It's gonna be fun talking with these guys about their thoughts on opening weekend, the upcoming games, and the NFL season in general. Who knows, maybe if Jovan posts some stupid entertainment pieces I'll get involved in that too.

Kicking Off the NFL Season

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As I have previously written, we here at the Millennium blog will spend a lot of our sports coverage on the NFL.  Our writers have each chosen their favorite teams to write about (with a small exception) and throughout the year we will be 'covering' our chosen teams, as well as writing about the league in general.  Now, initially I was going to write about the 49ers (my team) but when I brought it up with my friends the conversation went something like this:

Me: "So Im gonna do the 49ers then"


Friend: "What?! Why?"


Me: "Well, they are my fav-"


Friend: "That's not the point, we want people to be interested in the blog, write about the patriots, no one cares about San Francisco.  It will be much more interesting this way"

Well then.

So as it stands the following teams will get highlighted by us: Patriots, Saints, Eagles, Cowboys.  Look for weekly or bi-weekly features on those teams as well as a 'picks/gambling' column Saturdays and articles covering other interesting story lines which are sure to develop.  Without further ado I present you the most polarizing team in the NFL... the Patriots!

Love them or hate them you have to show this team respect.  There is literally no player who is above the team as we have seen over the years with guys such as Randy Moss, Richard Seymour, Lawyer Milloy, Ty Law, and most recently Ty Warren being cut, traded, or released.  All of those players were very good at the time of being cut, but so far only Seymour has managed to continue his career effectively; the rest of the players never re-captured the magic and faded to obscurity.  I respect sports teams that stick to the age old cliche of 'there is no I in team' and the Patriots swear by it.  A second reason this team should have your respect is because of the way they approach everything.  To them it is about the hard work and sacrifices, not luck and talent.  Say what you will about spy-gate, but this teams record is better following spy-gate then it was before and that is counting an entire missed season from Tom Brady.  Lastly, two words: Bill Belichick.  Would you WANT to play for any other coach?  I never get tired of him finding new ways to mess with opponents and use players out of position to great effect.  There truly is not a better coach in the league at this point.

Over the last few years the New England Patriots have not had the playoff success that they would have liked.  There are big questions surrounding the team and their ability to contend for what seems like the millionth year in a row.  The Patriots tried answering all of those questions by having a very good free-agent and draft stock-up.  In fact, the only reason people do not talk about this is because the Eagles made all the headlines.  The biggest addition in my opinion will be Albert Haynesworth.  The Patriots have not had a true play maker on defense sinse Seymour left and poor Vince Wilfork has had to shoulder the defensive line load by himself.  With Haynesworth this changes, look for the Patriots to have a fierce pass-rush and be a top defense once again.  People will have their doubts about players clashing with the coaching staff, but Bill Belichick usually turns the biggest cancers into model team-mates.  Offensively there really should not be much concern as the Patriots have a top 3 QB (Brees, Manning, Brady in some order) in Tom Brady, Wes Welker returns one year healthier and that offensive line never seems to fail.  Look for the Patriots to be one of the higher scoring teams once again with Brady sure to draw some MVP votes his way.

Patriots Report Card:

Offence: A
Defense: B
Special Teams: A-
Coaching: A+
Prediction: A 12-4 finish and a trip to the AFC Championship game, Ochocinco with 10 Touchdowns.

You will get the rest of the  NFL's major points of interest from Luka, but I do feel obligated to give a Super Bowl pick, so I will do that with some other predictions:

MVP: Tom Brady
Most Improved team: Lions
Most disappointing team: Ravens
Best potential match-up: Any combination in the Eagles, Packers, Saints NFC trio, I can't wait.
Superbowl match up: Eagles and Patriots

Like the article?  Leave a comment or follow me on Twitter at Daki_4.  Look for much more NFL content to come as the season starts up.