That was then: Celebrating what was

Spelunker

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Speaking of Bledsoe, NFL Throwback, which is one of the very best channels on YouTube, posted this excellent shoot-out from 1994 between Bledsoe and Marino:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrQb2xmtbBk


Things that stand out:

- The Patriot's secondary is like, unconsciously bad. Zombie, post-surgery Marino just destroys them.
- Bledsoe hangs in there with Marino for most of the game, if he could have only just cut down on those pesky interceptions (he threw 27 of them in 1994).
- Before basically every team adopted the west coast offense, these guys were just slinging the ball all over the place. It's awesome to watch.
- The field is atrocious, the dirt infield is thick, caked mud and appears to have made running the ball impossible.
- The officials are also terrible. There is a lot of complaining about the rules today, but these guys here are clowns.
- Willie McGinnest starts a fight in the third quarter.
- Ben Coates is a total beast and has a game that mirrors the best of Gronk that we would see 20 years later. Bruce Armstrong is also awesome, in a less obvious way.
That Crittenden TD is nuts.
 

bigq

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That game hurt and I remember the emotional roller coaster. Fryar absolutely torched the Pats secondary. Maurice Hurst was badly victimized. So many 3rd and long conversions by the Dolphins. And the Coates fumble late in the game was a kick to the nuts.
 

jose melendez

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27 picks is crazy. That's like four seasons worth for Brady. That doesn't seem that long ago but man the game was different then.
Really fun rewatch. Obviously he's not as good as Brady, but man was Bledsoe electrifying after so many years of grabage football. And Ben Coates is as nasty as I remember.
 

bigq

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This isn't exactly "celebrating", but Malcolm Mitchell was, briefly, a Patriots hero. He's struggling to find himself post-football.




https://sports.nbcsports.com/2019/09/11/nfl-retirements-layden/
That was an interesting read. A check in every year or two would be a good follow up longer term story. Getting off topic but I do wonder whether NFL careers, which are short on average relative to other major sports, will decline going forward as a result of growing long term health concerns. Salary growth will impact that dynamic as well.
 

SoxinSeattle

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That Crittenden TD is nuts.
Great post.
- I fucking love Drew Bledsoe. He was fun to root for and the beginning of the better days for Pat's fans.
- Seeing Kevin Turner possibly concussed is sad knowing how his life turned out
- What the fuck was up with that infield?
- Ben Coates was an absolute bad ass. The original Gronk
- Parcell's front butt on full display
- I had forgotten Irving (kitchen Knife) Fryar played for the Dolphins
- I also forgot how much I hated Dan Marino
 

Bernie Carbohydrate

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- I had forgotten Irving (kitchen Knife) Fryar played for the Dolphins
What an arc for Fryar:

Early career: Talented but troubled: Kitchen Knife, guns, gambling, drugs (so much drugs), arrested, suspended, etc. Left a game with an injury and drove into a tree on the way home.

Late career: The Reverend: Found God, became a consistent all-pro, redemption story for NFL films

Post-Career: Ummm...bank fraud?
 

BaseballJones

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Teams that beat NE in 2018 and their record since....

Week 2, Jacksonville beat NE 31-20. Since then they've gone 4-12.

Week 3, Detroit beat NE 26-10. Since then they've gone 6-8-1.

Week 10, Tennessee beat NE 34-10. Since then they've gone 5-4.

Week 14, Miami beat NE 34-33. Since then they've gone 0-5.

Week 15, Pittsburgh beat NE 17-10. Since then they've gone 1-4.

So combined, since beating NE, these teams have gone 16-33-1. Ouch.
 

Seels

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I don't really know where else to put this, but they're doing the top 100 games ever, and at #40 there have been 0 Patriots games.

Pretty wild -- every one of the Brady Super Bowls except 53 should make any top list.
 

Al Zarilla

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I don't really know where else to put this, but they're doing the top 100 games ever, and at #40 there have been 0 Patriots games.

Pretty wild -- every one of the Brady Super Bowls except 53 should make any top list.
Wasn’t the Snowplow Game #94 or something? SB 39 probably doesn’t make it if it isn’t included in 40-100. 53 also, as you say, shouldn’t. Last year’s AFCCG with the Chiefs and all the other Super Bowl games I would bet are included in 1-39. Maybe, hopefully, not 46. That stupid AFCCG loss to the Colts is probably included also. Another favorite is the divisional game win over the Ravens (Edelman to Amendola TD) after the 2014 season.

Maybe this would fit in the Celebrating What Is thread.
 
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mauf

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Wasn’t the Snowplow Game #94 or something? SB 39 probably doesn’t make it if it isn’t included in 40-100. 53 also, as you say, shouldn’t. Last year’s AFCCG with the Chiefs and all the other Super Bowl games I would bet are included in 1-39. Maybe, hopefully, not 46. That stupid AFCCG loss to the Colts is probably included also. Another favorite is the divisional game win over the Ravens (Edelman to Amendola TD) after the 2014 season.

Maybe this would fit in the Celebrating What Is thread.
The only Pats’ Super Bowls I’d expect to crack an all-time top 100 are 36, 42, and 51 [Edit: forgot 49] and I’d expect all three [four] to crack the top 40. I’d expect to see the 2001 divisional round game against the Raiders in the top 40 too. Given the recency bias in all these lists, last season’s AFCCG is a lock to be there too. So the Pats will be very overrepresented in the top 40, but not so much in the top 100 — which I think is a fair reflection of the franchise across its entire history.

Edit: Wrote 50 in instead of 51, and somehow forgot about 49. No way 49 missed the top 100 entirely, so it will be top 40 as well.
 
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Mollyspop

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That Crittenden TD is nuts.
Amazing. Isn't that funny, though - I remember being in a friend's house, out at the beach and listening to this game (a Labor Day hurricane was hitting the Cape) but I thought I remembered them beating the Dolphins! Tough getting old...
 

PedroKsBambino

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The only Pats’ Super Bowls I’d expect to crack an all-time top 100 are 36, 42, and 51 [Edit: forgot 49] and I’d expect all three [four] to crack the top 40. I’d expect to see the 2001 divisional round game against the Raiders in the top 40 too. Given the recency bias in all these lists, last season’s AFCCG is a lock to be there too. So the Pats will be very overrepresented in the top 40, but not so much in the top 100 — which I think is a fair reflection of the franchise across its entire history.

Edit: Wrote 50 in instead of 51, and somehow forgot about 49. No way 49 missed the top 100 entirely, so it will be top 40 as well.
I'd expect the 2006 AFC championship game to be on there too.
 

mauf

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Snow Bowl Game. Adam’s kick to tie it was a top 10 all time play for me, but I’m very prejudiced.
That’s the divisional round game against the Raiders that I mentioned. I was deliberately non-specific, because fans outside New England remember it more for the “tuck rule” than for Vinateri’s amazing kick. And that’s frankly why it’s top 40 instead of clocking in somewhere in the 41-100 range — it launched a dynasty, and also the lingering perception among haters that the Pats get more than their fair share of breaks.
 

Al Zarilla

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That’s the divisional round game against the Raiders that I mentioned. I was deliberately non-specific, because fans outside New England remember it more for the “tuck rule” than for Vinateri’s amazing kick. And that’s frankly why it’s top 40 instead of clocking in somewhere in the 41-100 range — it launched a dynasty, and also the lingering perception among haters that the Pats get more than their fair share of breaks.
You did mention that game. I was going to say that the snow probably raised that game up a level for the sheer different look it gave. I remember thinking it was magical when I first tuned in. Brady completed 9 consecutive passes in the drive that got it to 13-10 Raiders in the fourth quarter, and he scored the touchdown himself in a run up the middle (and fell down in the snow after spiking the ball).
 

InstaFace

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Do you credit the defense with the extra point? Either way impressive, I was just wondering. Also, here's to another pick 6 and a shutout to make it 0 on the year.
well you can't both credit the other team with the extra point from the TD scored against the defense, and also deny the defense credit for that PAT when they get a pick-6. Either way you count it, it nets out.
 

Archer1979

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Just saw this on ESPN describing the NFL 100 Exhibit:

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/27859626/lombardi-trophy-53-super-bowl-rings-old-helmets-nfl-100-exhibit

"The centerpiece is the Vince Lombardi Trophy, enclosed in glass with all 53 Super Bowl rings. It is professional football's version of the crown jewels. From the Green Bay Packers' relatively modest Super Bowl I ring to the New England Patriots LIII ring, which resembles a small chandelier, it's a priceless lineup of diamonds and history. "
 

pedro1918

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I was listening to a local DC radio station yesterday and the hosts were going on about how great it is that the Capitals won the Stanley Cup in 2018 and the Nationals are going to the World Series. They were talking about how lucky DC fans have been this past two years.

At first I chuckled. Then I realized they are correct. A Stanley Cup Final and the World Series in back to back years is great thing.

And I appreciate my experiences as a Boston sports fan even more.
 

InstaFace

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Cross-posting from the Browns pregame thread:

This is [Belichick's] 25th season as an NFL head coach, with him sitting on 299 wins for season + playoffs. Let's assume his team wins (at least) 6 of their remaining regular-season games and playoff games. Belichick would then have averaged 12.2 wins per season (including playoffs).

Also, fun Belichick fact: in New England, his winning percentage in the playoffs (.750, 30-10) is greater than his winning percentage in the regular season (.746). Though it'll be tied if they get to 12-0 this year. But how sick is that?

Brady, at 214-60 as a starter (.775), would need 5 straight playoff wins more for this to be true for him.
 

jcaz

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Tom Brady is now 245-70 including postseason. Drew Brees (165-116) is second with 80 fewer wins, 46 more losses. Tom has started 31 more games than Brees, despite entering the league only 1 year before him. The extra games are obviously due to the Pats deep runs in the playoffs.

Brady has a record of 104-46 on the road. Those 104 road wins would place him 8th overall.

The other awesome stat is that Eli has lost 120 games - 50 more than Brady - while starting 71 fewer games than TB12.

https://www.footballdb.com/stats/qb-records.html?type=&alltime=&sort=w
 

InstaFace

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Well, second among active QBs anyway.

All time, Brady is second in games started, to Favre, by 7 games. If he makes his remaining starts this year he'll pass Favre.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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The road record stat is interesting. Most guys are around .500 or worse. Montana and Brady really stand out. Manning a notch below. Then guys like Stabler, Staubach, Roethlisberger, McNabb, Tarkenton, and, a little under the radar (my radar at least), McNair.
 

BrazilianSoxFan

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bakahump

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That Sucks about Malcolm. Was really one of my favorite non big name players of run. Smart guy. Surprise with his connections and intelligence he isnt working to become something in the NFL or College. (Coach, Sports management, Media Relations, Student Athlete Advocate, Union, announcer etc etc). But maybe it hurts to bad to be that close.

I hope it works out for him.
 

Hendu for Kutch

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I just watched a video which went over the biggest blown lead in every team's history. Brady was responsible for 4 of the other 31, which is pretty silly.

He led the biggest comebacks ever allowed by the Bills, Bears, Broncos and the 28-3's.
 

ifmanis5

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With the win today the Pats clinch 19-straight winning seasons. 21 (1965-1985) by the Cowboys is the record. A win next week would set the record for most consecutive 10-win seasons at 17, breaking the 49ers record of 16 (1983-1998).
 

MuppetAsteriskTalk

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With the win today the Pats clinch 19-straight winning seasons. 21 (1965-1985) by the Cowboys is the record. A win next week would set the record for most consecutive 10-win seasons at 17, breaking the 49ers record of 16 (1983-1998).
'65 Cowboys were 7-7 so I think that puts the record at 20 ('66-'85). Unless they count .500 as a winning season.