1400 replies to this topic

[Carmine Hose]

settling for a FG in the third quarter, inside the 10 yard line

On first-and-goal and second-and-goal, they called two moronic inside runs with Woodhead getting a whopping 3 or 4 yards total.

[SMU_Sox]

I'm surprised the defense is the scapegoat on a day where the offense turned the ball over 4 times.

448 yards allowed.

That's a lot. Can't we just agree to blame them both? I think they both are responsible.

[ShaneTrot]

When they were up by 21, I didn't think they needed Hernandez, Haynesworth, Dowling, Vollmer and Chung. Maybe they did?

[Jimy Hendrix]

I'm surprised the defense is the scapegoat on a day where the offense turned the ball over 4 times.

The team executed in no phases of the game today really, but it's a lot easier to be mad at the broken defense that gets torched for 34 than the fucked-up offense that still scores 31 because it's that goddamn good.

[ngruz25]

I didn't see that, but he was probably angry at the fact they inexplicably ran 10 seconds off the clock without affording them the chance to call a TO.

He might have been saying "Why WOULDN'T I take a TO there," which makes sense too, given that they ran time off the clock for some reason.

How many snaps did anyone besides Gronk take at TE?

[Mystic Merlin]

448 yards allowed.

That's a lot. Can't we just agree to blame them both? I think they both are responsible.

Yes, but per the rules of groupthink, there needs to be an ultimate scapegoat. Personally, I have no probably having both coexist in my mind, but collectively human beings suck shit at it. I'm merely countering the narrative.

[shawnrbu]

I'm surprised the defense is the scapegoat on a day where the offense turned the ball over 4 times.

I think it's because we have seen the offense bail out the defense frequently over the last few seasons. When is the defense going to return the favor? The sooner that starts, the sooner I'll feel better about the team's chances in the playoffs.

[j44thor]

I'm surprised the defense is the scapegoat on a day where the offense turned the ball over 4 times.

Because the offense still hung 31 pts on BUF while the D allowed yet another 350+ passing yards, this time with zero sacks.

[Reverend]

The team executed in no phases of the game today really, but it's a lot easier to be mad at the broken defense that gets torched for 34 than the fucked-up offense that still scores 31 because it's that goddamn good.

I think there's a reasonably strong relationship between giving them the ball more often and them scoring more points.

[Jimy Hendrix]

I'm mostly just terrified that this is what our pass rush looks like now any time Haynesworth pulls his fat, now that Pryor's on the DL.

[Reverend]

I'm surprised the defense is the scapegoat on a day where the offense turned the ball over 4 times.

I'm beginning to to think you're wrong and we just imagined the turnovers.

[Jimy Hendrix]

I think there's a reasonably strong relationship between giving them the ball more often and them scoring more points.

Entirely fair, they sucked at everything today. But man, that last three play drive to the 1 yard line when the game was still tied before all the zaniness happened was kind of soul-shattering.

[speedracer]

Because the offense still hung 31 pts on BUF while the D allowed yet another 350+ passing yards, this time with zero sacks.

Only 24 pts net.

[Jimy Hendrix]

Entirely fair, they sucked at everything today. But man, that last three play drive to the 1 yard line when the game was still tied before all the zaniness happened was kind of soul-shattering.

So was that pick six when the game was tied though.

Dammit, everything is bad in Sportstown today.

[phragle]

I'm surprised the defense is the scapegoat on a day where the offense turned the ball over 4 times.

4 TOs and they scored 31 points? Thats fine when you consider how flukey (read: unlikely to happen again) 2 of those picks were.

I'm not even that mad. We have Oakland on deck.

[FullaPoloni]

Have fun while it lasts buffalo. We'll celebrate in January.

With this defense? They might be playing in January, but I'm not confident of any celebrating.

[jmm57]

4 TOs and they scored 31 points? Thats fine when you consider how flukey (read: unlikely to happen again) 2 of those picks were.

I'm not even that mad. We have Oakland on deck.

Really 3 turnovers and 24 vs the D.

Tough to blame the 4th pick 6 on the D.

How many extra possessions can you give a team and expect the D to hold?

[Mystic Merlin]

Yeah, I'm not as angry as I was about 45 minutes ago.

Handle OAK, and get ready for the Jets.

[Turrable]

Honestly, when you combine the injuries, crappy calls, flukey TOs, Buffalo's skill, and Buffalo's motivation, it's pretty impressive that they almost won.

[Soxy Brown]

This is one fucked up WP chart.

Pretty obvious where the turning point was. Pats were driving for at least a FG when they were up 24-17. Brady throws a pick and then, thanks in large part to two penalties, Buffalo goes 95 yards in less than a minute for a game-tying TD. Then Brady throws a pick-6 on the next play.

Pats went from an 86% WP to an 18% WP in about a minute of clock time.

[twibnotes]

448 yards allowed.

That's a lot. Can't we just agree to blame them both? I think they both are responsible.

Not to get all Bruschi, but it would be nice to win a game in which Brady makes a few mistakes. Based on the way our defense has been the last couple years, it's easy to see why Brady might take some seemingly Ill-advised risks.

[KingPK]

The Pats D certainly deserves blame. Hardly any pressure on a historically shaky QB, allowing a 40 year old RB to blow past them, shit tackling, being shredded over the middle and in man. The offense pissing themselves just solidified the suck.

[MarcSullivaFan]

I'm hoping this is one of their one or two everything goes wrong games, ala the Browns game last year. I still believe the defense has the potential to be better than last year with Haynesworth, Dowling, and Chunng on the field.

Some things I'm really concerned about are: (a) McCourty, (b) Bodden, and © the artist formerly known as Jermaine Cunningham.

We should know in the next couple weeks. They are really going to miss Hernandez against the Jets if he's still out.

[phragle]

With this defense? They might be playing in January, but I'm not confident of any celebrating.

Who has a good defense anymore?

[CaptainLaddie]

I wanna punch a baby after that one.

[MarcSullivaFan]

Who has a good defense anymore?

Not many teams. Unfortunately, one that does is in our division.

[Carmine Hose]

The Brown PI call is what killed them. They go from having it 1st and 10 from their 20, up 24-17, to 1st and goal BUF at the one and then a tie game. To me, that's a brutal call, as it is more offensive PI than defensive since the WR initiaited the contact. Brown himself was calling for a flag on Nelson. I mean, the receiver can't just run into a defender and claim he was interfered with. If so, you'd think a team would have a guy do it on every play.

[FullaPoloni]

Who has a good defense anymore?

Lately, whoever we play in the playoffs.....

[jmcc5400]

Pretty sure the second timeout cost the team 15 seconds. After the review, the playclock should have been reset to 25 seconds. Should have let the 25 wind down and then taken the two timeouts after the plays on 1st and 2nd down. Judging from BB's level of animation, he may have been angry either because the refs didn't put extra time on the game clock or because they were winding the play clock down from 40 instead of 25 (or both).

[phragle]

Lately, whoever we play in the playoffs.....

So the Ravens and the Jets

[FullaPoloni]

So the Ravens and the Jets

Do you really think this team is celebrating anything in January? The defense still stinks and McCourty looks to be regressing with his ball skills. Exactly what gives you confidence?

[Jack Sox]

Just a shitty loss, but a definite wake up call to the players that they just need to execute better.

Brady played ok. He made 2 really uncharacteristically poor throws trying to force the ball to Gronk and Ocho. He also had 2 balls picked off that were tipped. I don't believe any of the 4 picks are sustainable events, so that's a good thing I guess.

Get a bad loss out of the system early and move on. This is still a very talented football team.

[bougrj1]

Just a shitty loss, but a definite wake up call to the players that they just need to execute better.

Brady played ok. He made 2 really uncharacteristically poor throws trying to force the ball to Gronk and Ocho. He also had 2 balls picked off that were tipped. I don't believe any of the 4 picks are sustainable events, so that's a good thing I guess.

Get a bad loss out of the system early and move on. This is still a very talented football team.

Exactly. Plus, the last time we lost to the bills we won the super bowl. There, loss = rationalized.

[KingPK]

Smerlas and Butch Sterns on the WEEI postgame? Seriously? Is that station afraid of ratings? I lasted about 10 minutes.

[Jack Sox]

Do you really think this team is celebrating anything in January? The defense still stinks and McCourty looks to be regressing with his ball skills. Exactly what gives you confidence?

Have you ever watched football before? The Packers had some terrible losses last year and they made out just fine. Jesus, the Patriots dropped something like 150 points on all of the 4 conference finals teams last season.

It's a long season and things change. You clearly must know this.

[OldSaintJohn]

Just a shitty loss, but a definite wake up call to the players that they just need to execute better.

Brady played ok. He made 2 really uncharacteristically poor throws trying to force the ball to Gronk and Ocho. He also had 2 balls picked off that were tipped. I don't believe any of the 4 picks are sustainable events, so that's a good thing I guess.

Get a bad loss out of the system early and move on. This is still a very talented football team.

It's a very talented offense. The defense has shown nothing that would say they have what it takes to bring this team to a Championship level

[phragle]

Do you really think this team is celebrating anything in January? The defense still stinks and McCourty looks to be regressing with his ball skills. Exactly what gives you confidence?

It's clear you're being too reactionary after just one loss by three points. Did you sound this way after each of the first two wins?

[FullaPoloni]

Have you ever watched football before? The Packers had some terrible losses last year and they made out just fine. Jesus, the Patriots dropped something like 150 points on all of the 4 conference finals teams last season.

It's a long season and things change. You clearly must know this.

The Packers also had some great defensive performances; when is the last time the Patriots did? BTW, been watching football since well before you were probably born. 3 years plus of mediocre to bad defense leaves me believing that it will be a short post season again.

[FullaPoloni]

It's clear you're being too reactionary after just one loss by three points. Did you sound this way after each of the first two wins?

Actually, I wasn't very confident after the 2 wins. This team has the same strengths and, unfortunately, the same weaknesses as before. There is nothing but blind faith that anyone can point to that would indicate that this team has improved on their weak points. Like I said, I expect them to make the playoffs but don't expect them to hang around for very long. If you've seen something to indicate otherwise, please let me know

[Harry Hooper]

Just a shitty loss, but a definite wake up call to the players that they just need to execute better.

Brady played ok. He made 2 really uncharacteristically poor throws trying to force the ball to Gronk and Ocho. He also had 2 balls picked off that were tipped. I don't believe any of the 4 picks are sustainable events, so that's a good thing I guess.

Get a bad loss out of the system early and move on. This is still a very talented football team.

I think you're letting Brady off the hook on the ball Woodhead tipped for an INT. It was a bad throw. Going forward, however, yes indeed Brady is one of the least things to worry about.

Seemed like the game plan for the D was heavy on man coverage. Regardless of what had been planned, the lack of any real pressure from the DL and the 21-0 lead should have prompted a switch to more zone to reduce chances of big plays on the D.

[Buck Showalter]

The Packers also had some great defensive performances; when is the last time the Patriots did? BTW, been watching football since well before you were probably born. 3 years plus of mediocre to bad defense leaves me believing that it will be a short post season again.

Yup.

The Kool-Aid Sippers can try to rationalize this loss.....but the defense sucks.

And I'm sorry - few love Belichick more than me.....but this is "his" specialty......his talent-evaluation has been awful and he has been unable to create a dominant NFL defense for years now.

This is on The Genius.

Not reactionary.....it is now become an habitual and systemic failure.

[Jack Sox]

The Packers also had some great defensive performances; when is the last time the Patriots did? BTW, been watching football since well before you were probably born. 3 years plus of mediocre to bad defense leaves me believing that it will be a short post season again.

The Patriots defense dominated two teams who played in conference championship games last season (Jets and Bears). Obviously they were a flawed unit (and they still might be) but I hold hope that they will gel as a unit and play stronger when the weather gets colder. They have more talent on defense than they did last year.

Again, Brady threw two really bad passes that got picked off. This is something that he doesn't do often. It's pretty well documented. He also threw two picked that were tipped. Again, not really something he's known for either nor is it really proven to be sustainable skill by a defensive unit.

Listen, the picks happened and that's football. I just don't think a defense can ever expect to do what the Bills accomplished today.

[FullaPoloni]

The Patriots defense dominated two teams who played in conference championship games last season (Jets and Bears). Obviously they were a flawed unit (and they still might be) but I hold hope that they will gel as a unit and play stronger when the weather gets colder. They have more talent on defense than they did last year.

Again, Brady threw two really bad passes that got picked off. This is something that he doesn't do often. It's pretty well documented. He also threw two picked that were tipped. Again, not really something he's known for either nor is it really proven to be sustainable skill by a defensive unit.

Listen, the picks happened and that's football. I just don't think a defense can ever expect to do what the Bills accomplished today.

Hey, I hope that I'm dead wrong, but I've seen nothing this season to make me a believer in this defense.

[phragle]

Yup.

The Kool-Aid Sippers can try to rationalize this loss.....but the defense sucks.

And I'm sorry - few love Belichick more than me.....but this is "his" specialty......his talent-evaluation has been awful and he has been unable to create a dominant NFL defense for years now.

This is on The Genius.

Not reactionary.....it is now become an habitual and systemic failure.

Until now, I would have never guessed you were Michael Felger.

[Jack Sox]

I think you're letting Brady off the hook on the ball Woodhead tipped for an INT. It was a bad throw. Going forward, however, yes indeed Brady is one of the least things to worry about.

Seemed like the game plan for the D was heavy on man coverage. Regardless of what had been planned, the lack of any real pressure from the DL and the 21-0 lead should have prompted a switch to more zone to reduce chances of big plays on the D.

I pretty much agree with everything here, though I can't fully blame Brady for the Woodhead tip/int. Not a great pass but It could have just as easily been incomplete if Woodhead's hand is angled differently (please no one take this as blame on Woodhead, it's certainly not). The play was still unlucky.

The pieces on defense are enough to win a championship, IMO. The scheme is a little perplexing though. I think I noticed one blitz all day and it was effective. I really wish they'd dial it up a little more often.

[Stu Nahan]

The PI call was the turning point and a total joke. That said, Brady killed them today. He played Buffalo back onto the game.

[Buck Showalter]

Until now, I would have never guessed you were Michael Felger.

Sure.....whatever....*shrug*

If that's how you're able to keep hope alive for the season......enjoy.

But for 2 out of 3 contests now --- you've seen prolific offenses like the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills shred this defense.

Not sure what you're watching - but enjoy.

[Mystic Merlin]

Sure.....whatever....*shrug*

If that's how you're able to keep hope alive for the season......enjoy.

But for 2 out of 3 contests now --- you've seen prolific offenses like the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills shred this defense.

Not sure what you're watching - but enjoy.

Well, FWIW, the Bills led the league in points entering this game.

So, while some of your points are valid, you betray ignorance about non-Pats teams. They're the Bills! They must be bad! Ha!

[Jack Sox]

Sure.....whatever....*shrug*

If that's how you're able to keep hope alive for the season......enjoy.

But for 2 out of 3 contests now --- you've seen prolific offenses like the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills shred this defense.
Not sure what you're watching - but enjoy.

The Bills have scored more points than anyone in the league so far - they are 100 % prolific offensively - but yes, please continue with your brilliant analysis.

[Buck Showalter]

The Bills have scored more points than anyone in the league so far - they are 100 % prolific offensively - but yes, please continue with your brilliant analysis.

Talk about brilliance:

They scored 41 against KC in week 1.....who gave up 48 in week 2.

My gosh....the level of stupidity here is astonishing.