What a difference a half makes. The Pats looked shakey on Offense and beatable on Defense. In the first half it looked as though the Steelers would win this one. They had long scoring drives, held the Pats to 3 and outs and were even getting some breaks. How many times did you see Vrable come around the corner and almost get to Rothloesberger while being TACKLED by the O line? I saw one series of 5 in a row.
Take away the bomb to Moss and the Pats scored 7 first half points. Brady was pressured into hurried throws that became incompletions, they went 3 and out twice and failed to score when Pttsburgh muffed the punt. The Steelers had scoring drives of 59,77 and 36 yds in the first half. In the second half, Brady had time to throw and the Pats had scoring drives of 89,50 and 89 yds. All of those drives would have been TD's except that Moss dropped a Brady laser in the back of the end zone. (Brady later said that he was glad Moss dropped it, because he threw it as hard as he could and it was nice to know he's still got it.)
On Defense the half started with two punts. Then, as the Pats D usually does, it was bend but don't break. It was also very encouraging to see the Pats make some stops in the red zone, though they are still last in the league in red zone D, at least they're trending the right way. The Steelers drove for 56 and 57 yds twice, before being stopped on 4th down plays. It shows the difference in coaching. The Pats saw what blitzes Pittsburgh was using and adjusted the protection accordingly. Brady was hit only once and was not sacked. the Steelers, on the other hand, kept doing the same things on D and never adjusted. They could run the ball almost at will (see 32 rushes for 182 yds) yet at the goal line they call a shovel pass, a fade pass and a reverse to Ward. STUPID. JUST STUPID. Credit to Rodney for his text book coverage on the fade and then making the stop on Ward at the goal line, but those were just STUPID play calls. Maybe Joshy isn't the only incompetent offensive coordinator in the league.
So much for drafting McFadden with the first round pick. The Pats just don't need to run the ball. They called pass plays 37 straight times to take command of the game. The best example came on the drive that started at their own one yard line. They hit Welker 4 straight times to move into Steeler territory and there was no one getting anywhere near Brady.
Speaking of passing...has anyone seen Donte Stallworth? Looked to me like Gaffney was out there more than Stallworth in 3 wide receiver sets, not to mention Gaffney's production (7 catches 122 yds and a TD). Moss had 7 catches for 135 yds and 2 TDs, while Welker had 9 catches for 78 yds and a TD.
I think...
Stallworth is definitley OUT next season
Watson is the easiest tight end in the league to tackle
Rodney is back to the Rodney of old (HGH?)
Brady is the best QB to EVER play the game
The Pats will trade out of their high first round pick and draft a slew of Defensive players
Fans have no idea what they're doing when they vote for the Pro Bowl.
Eugene Wilson is 4th in votes at free safety
Bruschi is 1st in votes at ILB
Jarvis Green is 2nd in votes for DE
Chris Hansen is 1st in votes for Punters (he's the Patriot's punter by the way)
Moss has dropped way too many passes in the last 3 weeks (my unofficial count is 7)
The Pats won't beat the Jets by as much as people think. (see Nor'Easter)
Showing posts with label Rodney. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rodney. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Monday, November 05, 2007
9-0
The game of the century lived up to the hype - for once. Who would have thought it? Certainly not I. I knew the Colts D was good, but I never imagined they were THAT good. After the game, most experts were crowning the Pats as superbowl champion, giving the Colts no chance to win in Foxborough in January. They are dead wrong. What wins games in January? Good defense and a good running game. It's pretty obvious that the Colts possess both and pretty obvious that the rematch not only will happen, but also that it will be another close game. As good as the Colts were running it and playing D, let's face it the Pats weren't on their game and were still able to pull it out against it all.
I already know what the league will do about rookie referree John Parry and his officiating crew. Nothing. The league needed this to be a close game. That's why the Pats got a franchise record 146 penalty yards to a mere 25 for the Colts. I'm not a math whiz, but that's about 121 free yards for the Colts. Add that to the 329 yds the Colts 'earned' and you get a total of 450 yds. Yet, somehow the Pats D was fantastic and quite simply they won this game by overcoming Manning and the officials and keeping the Pats in the game long enough for the offense to mount it's comeback.
How good was the Pats defense? Take away the bullshit pass interference calls and a flukey 73 dump off to Addai before the half and the Colts would have a total of 7 points. Yup, a 24-7 blowout of the mighty Colts AT Indy. Not only did they hang tough early, but they closed the game out in the fourth. When the Pats pulled within three, the D forced a punt. When the Pats went ahead leaving Manning 3+ minutes to score the winning TD, the D stepped it up and made Manning turn it over. Ballgame.
The difference Rodney Harrison makes can not be overlooked. He held Dallas Clark to 2 catches, picked off a pass and finished with 6 tackles.
Oh and don't forget that the Pats D had one other obsticle to overcome, perhaps the biggest of all. One Josh McDaniels. I've had no reason to get on Joshy yet this season, but that's just because the talent on O has been enough to win games so far. In a game where they needed some offensive strategy, the offense was feable for 51 minutes. That's a direct result of an inept offensive coordinator, my friend Joshy. Where do I begin? Moss catching balls inside of 5 yds while sending Stallworth deep for a jump ball. Not getting the ball to Welker until the fourth. If you want to or have to throw quick passes to the WR throw them to Stallworth and Welker, not Moss. How about Maroney running for nearly 5 yds/carry in the first half and then getting one touch in the second half - a 3rd and one that they refused to account for and block Bob Sanders. Good job Joshy. Did anybody know coming into this game that Dwight Freeney is a great pass rusher? Maybe we all should have told Joshy about Freeney. How many times was he in Brady's face, forcing an early throw or an incompletion or nailing Brady right after he threw it. Joshy, Matt Light needs help with Freeney before he kills Brady. Here's a suggestion for you. Line up Kyle Brady next to Light and let them beat down Freeney the entire first half. How about lining Rodney up in the slot and having him run down the line and smash Freeney a few times. Beat his ass into submission and THEN single him up with Light. A realistic way to slow the pass rush is to use the screen pass. Joshy used the screen pass once. ONCE! Take notice Joshy, I'm not letting you off the hook for the rest of the season.
The fact is, that this game was won in the offseason. When it came down to it Brady hit Moss, Moss Moss, Stallworth, Moss, Welker, Moss and Welker. How about the one handed grab that Moss made? I've never seen a catch that good. Moss had his second TD of the game taken away on another bullshit call, offensive pass interference on Moss who never even touched the defender. Moss was unstoppable, but it was Welker that made the difference in the game. His returns in the fourth set up the TD drives. And he made an incredibly smart play on his last catch. The Pats were facing 3rd and 7, if they didn't convert Manning was gettng the ball back. Welker runs a great route, makes the catch and then drops like he got shot before rinning out of bounds. If he runs out, the Pats need to make another first down. Instead, he flops, stays in bounds and the Pats take a knee the rest of the way. Genius.
In the postgame Manning said they need to get healthy. The fact is, in the fourth quarter with the game on the line and the Pats closing in, Manning had two chances to end the game. He choked. First posession 5 plays and a punt. Second posession 5 plays and a Manning 'fumble' into the hands of Colvin. Two drives that took a total of 4:50. Better get your team healthy Peyton. Good excuse but typical of Manning - blame everybody else.
But these Colts are very good and they'll be back, on January 21st as a matter of fact, in the AFC Championship game in Foxborough. Peyton's already got his excuse, it's gonna be cold.
I already know what the league will do about rookie referree John Parry and his officiating crew. Nothing. The league needed this to be a close game. That's why the Pats got a franchise record 146 penalty yards to a mere 25 for the Colts. I'm not a math whiz, but that's about 121 free yards for the Colts. Add that to the 329 yds the Colts 'earned' and you get a total of 450 yds. Yet, somehow the Pats D was fantastic and quite simply they won this game by overcoming Manning and the officials and keeping the Pats in the game long enough for the offense to mount it's comeback.
How good was the Pats defense? Take away the bullshit pass interference calls and a flukey 73 dump off to Addai before the half and the Colts would have a total of 7 points. Yup, a 24-7 blowout of the mighty Colts AT Indy. Not only did they hang tough early, but they closed the game out in the fourth. When the Pats pulled within three, the D forced a punt. When the Pats went ahead leaving Manning 3+ minutes to score the winning TD, the D stepped it up and made Manning turn it over. Ballgame.
The difference Rodney Harrison makes can not be overlooked. He held Dallas Clark to 2 catches, picked off a pass and finished with 6 tackles.
Oh and don't forget that the Pats D had one other obsticle to overcome, perhaps the biggest of all. One Josh McDaniels. I've had no reason to get on Joshy yet this season, but that's just because the talent on O has been enough to win games so far. In a game where they needed some offensive strategy, the offense was feable for 51 minutes. That's a direct result of an inept offensive coordinator, my friend Joshy. Where do I begin? Moss catching balls inside of 5 yds while sending Stallworth deep for a jump ball. Not getting the ball to Welker until the fourth. If you want to or have to throw quick passes to the WR throw them to Stallworth and Welker, not Moss. How about Maroney running for nearly 5 yds/carry in the first half and then getting one touch in the second half - a 3rd and one that they refused to account for and block Bob Sanders. Good job Joshy. Did anybody know coming into this game that Dwight Freeney is a great pass rusher? Maybe we all should have told Joshy about Freeney. How many times was he in Brady's face, forcing an early throw or an incompletion or nailing Brady right after he threw it. Joshy, Matt Light needs help with Freeney before he kills Brady. Here's a suggestion for you. Line up Kyle Brady next to Light and let them beat down Freeney the entire first half. How about lining Rodney up in the slot and having him run down the line and smash Freeney a few times. Beat his ass into submission and THEN single him up with Light. A realistic way to slow the pass rush is to use the screen pass. Joshy used the screen pass once. ONCE! Take notice Joshy, I'm not letting you off the hook for the rest of the season.
The fact is, that this game was won in the offseason. When it came down to it Brady hit Moss, Moss Moss, Stallworth, Moss, Welker, Moss and Welker. How about the one handed grab that Moss made? I've never seen a catch that good. Moss had his second TD of the game taken away on another bullshit call, offensive pass interference on Moss who never even touched the defender. Moss was unstoppable, but it was Welker that made the difference in the game. His returns in the fourth set up the TD drives. And he made an incredibly smart play on his last catch. The Pats were facing 3rd and 7, if they didn't convert Manning was gettng the ball back. Welker runs a great route, makes the catch and then drops like he got shot before rinning out of bounds. If he runs out, the Pats need to make another first down. Instead, he flops, stays in bounds and the Pats take a knee the rest of the way. Genius.
In the postgame Manning said they need to get healthy. The fact is, in the fourth quarter with the game on the line and the Pats closing in, Manning had two chances to end the game. He choked. First posession 5 plays and a punt. Second posession 5 plays and a Manning 'fumble' into the hands of Colvin. Two drives that took a total of 4:50. Better get your team healthy Peyton. Good excuse but typical of Manning - blame everybody else.
But these Colts are very good and they'll be back, on January 21st as a matter of fact, in the AFC Championship game in Foxborough. Peyton's already got his excuse, it's gonna be cold.
Friday, October 05, 2007
Browns Game, Notes
What a great week it's been. The weather's great, the Pats are undefeated, the SOX are up in the Divisional Series and the Yankees are down. Who could ask for anything more? How about some Patriots notes....
Tom Brady has won the AFC player of the month for September.
Rodney is back and should be in the lineup come Sunday.
David Thomas was placed on IR for the second straight season.
In his place they signed Marcellus Rivers to a two year deal.
I haven't even noticed that Seymour Money isn't playing. It doesn't appear that there is much of a difference between he and Jarvis Green. Green has been doing a great job filling in, he is 7th on the team in tackles with 14 and second in sacks with 3.
The Pats are scoring an avg. of 37 points a game while giving up only 12.
The Pats are also #1 in the league on 3rd down conversions - offesively AND defensively.
The O is converting 51% of 3rd downs.
The D is holding opponents to only 30% conversions on 3rd down.
Adalius Thomas is serving "Humble Pie" to his teammates to remind them not to get too big headed. T-shirts were printed that say "I eat" on the front and "Humble Pie" on the back. Players have been wearing them in practice. Word is that a special hoodie was also printed for Belichick that says "Humble Pie" on the back, while the front reads "I serve".
Keep yourself glued to the tube this week if you're a football fan. There are a TON of great games
starting with the college games on Saturday.
Oklahoma v. Texas
Georgia v. Tennessee
Virginia Tech v. Clemson
Ohio State v. Purdue
AND THE BEST OF ALL #9 FLorida at #1 LSU - DON'T MISS IT!!!!
On Sunday the good match ups include:
Chicago v. GB
TB v. Indy
Seattle v. Pitt
Detroit v. Wash
Ny v. NY
Jags v. KC
Balt v. SF
Here's what you need to know for The Patriots hosting The Browns on Sunday:
The Browns have a pretty good offense, ranked 11th in the NFL, but the D is pretty poor, at 31st overall.
On Offense you'll see an average QB in Derek Anderson. He's completing 52% of his passes for 9TD's but has thrown 5 interceptions. Kellen Winslow is the main target at TE He's got 20 catches and a TD but a whopping average of 19 yards per catch. Then there's Braylon Edwards. He's got 18 catches and 4 TDs and another big average of 21 yards per catch. The featured back is 'chip on his shoulder' Jamal Lewis who's rushing for nearly 5 yds per carry.
The X factor in this game is special teams. The Pats will have to bring it on Sunday. Brown's returner Josh Cribbs has already brought one to the house and is averaging 34 yds per return. If he scores on Sunday it could give the Browns some momentum and some much needed points. (see the 17 point spread)
I expect to see a Patriots gameplan similar to last week. Soft zones on defense to prevent the big play. It's the same old frustrating bend but don't break defense. It worked tremendously against Cincy last week and we should see the same thing this week. On offense, the Pats will run and then run and then run some more. The Browns give up an average of 160yds rushing a game. Ball control, long drives leading to scores - all day. Hopefully Maroney will be healthy and will be able to contribute to the running attack, but either way the Pats have enough runners to gash the Browns.
I think that Belichick won't try to run it up too much on old friend Romeo,
but I don't see the Browns getting in the end zone.
Pats 31
Browns 6
Tom Brady has won the AFC player of the month for September.
Rodney is back and should be in the lineup come Sunday.
David Thomas was placed on IR for the second straight season.
In his place they signed Marcellus Rivers to a two year deal.
I haven't even noticed that Seymour Money isn't playing. It doesn't appear that there is much of a difference between he and Jarvis Green. Green has been doing a great job filling in, he is 7th on the team in tackles with 14 and second in sacks with 3.
The Pats are scoring an avg. of 37 points a game while giving up only 12.
The Pats are also #1 in the league on 3rd down conversions - offesively AND defensively.
The O is converting 51% of 3rd downs.
The D is holding opponents to only 30% conversions on 3rd down.
Adalius Thomas is serving "Humble Pie" to his teammates to remind them not to get too big headed. T-shirts were printed that say "I eat" on the front and "Humble Pie" on the back. Players have been wearing them in practice. Word is that a special hoodie was also printed for Belichick that says "Humble Pie" on the back, while the front reads "I serve".
Keep yourself glued to the tube this week if you're a football fan. There are a TON of great games
starting with the college games on Saturday.
Oklahoma v. Texas
Georgia v. Tennessee
Virginia Tech v. Clemson
Ohio State v. Purdue
AND THE BEST OF ALL #9 FLorida at #1 LSU - DON'T MISS IT!!!!
On Sunday the good match ups include:
Chicago v. GB
TB v. Indy
Seattle v. Pitt
Detroit v. Wash
Ny v. NY
Jags v. KC
Balt v. SF
Here's what you need to know for The Patriots hosting The Browns on Sunday:
The Browns have a pretty good offense, ranked 11th in the NFL, but the D is pretty poor, at 31st overall.
On Offense you'll see an average QB in Derek Anderson. He's completing 52% of his passes for 9TD's but has thrown 5 interceptions. Kellen Winslow is the main target at TE He's got 20 catches and a TD but a whopping average of 19 yards per catch. Then there's Braylon Edwards. He's got 18 catches and 4 TDs and another big average of 21 yards per catch. The featured back is 'chip on his shoulder' Jamal Lewis who's rushing for nearly 5 yds per carry.
The X factor in this game is special teams. The Pats will have to bring it on Sunday. Brown's returner Josh Cribbs has already brought one to the house and is averaging 34 yds per return. If he scores on Sunday it could give the Browns some momentum and some much needed points. (see the 17 point spread)
I expect to see a Patriots gameplan similar to last week. Soft zones on defense to prevent the big play. It's the same old frustrating bend but don't break defense. It worked tremendously against Cincy last week and we should see the same thing this week. On offense, the Pats will run and then run and then run some more. The Browns give up an average of 160yds rushing a game. Ball control, long drives leading to scores - all day. Hopefully Maroney will be healthy and will be able to contribute to the running attack, but either way the Pats have enough runners to gash the Browns.
I think that Belichick won't try to run it up too much on old friend Romeo,
but I don't see the Browns getting in the end zone.
Pats 31
Browns 6
Monday, September 03, 2007
Here Comes the Roster, et al
The roster has been trimmed to 55 guys. Though NFL teams are supposed to be at 53, the Pats can temporarily hold 55 because Rodney will not count until after week 4 and they still have a time to 'activate' Asante. I think the only real surprise with the roster moves is that they indeed kept 6 wide receivers - for now. It also appears that Tory James will only be around for another day or two until Asante is activated. David Thomas was removed from the P.U.P. list (it says here that he's the BEST tight end on the team) but it remains to be seen how healthy he is and how many games he might still miss. The Pats have also cut Reche Caldwell.
Oh, and there is the little matter of Richard Seymour being placed on P.U.P. He will not be eligible to play until the 7th game of the season - IF he's healthy by then. I'm not even sure what's wrong with him (Maybe he pulled a muscle trying to carry his money around). Fortunately, (or maybe intentionally) the Pats have lots of depth in Jarvis Green and with the emergence of LaKevin Smith, who held his own this preseason. We probably won't even notice Seymour's absence. I know I won't.
The players that were cut and cleared waivers that have been signed to the practice squad are Bam Childress, CJ Jones, Corey Mays, Clint Oldenburg and Santonio Thomas. Players that were cut and claimed by other teams include Garrett Mills by Minnesota and Justin Rogers by Dallas.
And now Rodney...
Let me just say that you should NOT be surprised that he was using HGH. I'm fairly certain that they've all used it to some degree. Human beings are not just born that big and fast. HGH cannot be tested for and that's why the feds are starting to go after the places that sell the stuff. Rodney happened to purchase his from the latest company to be busted. So he was forced to admit that he bought it and used it. I can't say I blame him. He was at the end of his career, had suffered 2 seasons of injury and desperately wanted to get back on the field. At least that's his story and I believe him.
It is interesting to speculate just when the Pats found out that Rodney was going to be suspended. I think it's obvious that they knew going into last Thursday's game because Meriweather played the entire game at Safety after playing 95% of his practice reps at corner in training camp. It also makes me wonder if they 'caved' in to Asante when they got word of Harrison's suspension. Why else would they suddenly agree to remove the franchise tag for next season and bring him in when they did? If they knew they were going to cave, why wouldn't they have done it early in camp so he'd be ready for week 1? As I posted previously I was upset with the Pats for giving in, but maybe they didn't have a choice when given the news of Rodney's suspension.
I'm looking to post my predictions for the 2007 season later today!
Oh, and there is the little matter of Richard Seymour being placed on P.U.P. He will not be eligible to play until the 7th game of the season - IF he's healthy by then. I'm not even sure what's wrong with him (Maybe he pulled a muscle trying to carry his money around). Fortunately, (or maybe intentionally) the Pats have lots of depth in Jarvis Green and with the emergence of LaKevin Smith, who held his own this preseason. We probably won't even notice Seymour's absence. I know I won't.
The players that were cut and cleared waivers that have been signed to the practice squad are Bam Childress, CJ Jones, Corey Mays, Clint Oldenburg and Santonio Thomas. Players that were cut and claimed by other teams include Garrett Mills by Minnesota and Justin Rogers by Dallas.
And now Rodney...
Let me just say that you should NOT be surprised that he was using HGH. I'm fairly certain that they've all used it to some degree. Human beings are not just born that big and fast. HGH cannot be tested for and that's why the feds are starting to go after the places that sell the stuff. Rodney happened to purchase his from the latest company to be busted. So he was forced to admit that he bought it and used it. I can't say I blame him. He was at the end of his career, had suffered 2 seasons of injury and desperately wanted to get back on the field. At least that's his story and I believe him.
It is interesting to speculate just when the Pats found out that Rodney was going to be suspended. I think it's obvious that they knew going into last Thursday's game because Meriweather played the entire game at Safety after playing 95% of his practice reps at corner in training camp. It also makes me wonder if they 'caved' in to Asante when they got word of Harrison's suspension. Why else would they suddenly agree to remove the franchise tag for next season and bring him in when they did? If they knew they were going to cave, why wouldn't they have done it early in camp so he'd be ready for week 1? As I posted previously I was upset with the Pats for giving in, but maybe they didn't have a choice when given the news of Rodney's suspension.
I'm looking to post my predictions for the 2007 season later today!
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