The fact that they're second in the NFL in point differential says otherwise.This year's Pats team isn't good enough on offense to overcome such a horrible defense.
The fact that they're second in the NFL in point differential says otherwise.This year's Pats team isn't good enough on offense to overcome such a horrible defense.
Its the best offense in the league with everybody healthy. Dion Lewis was one of their best players last year when healthy, and he might be getting back into the mix. The defense isn't even as bad as the 2011 abortion. There's some red flags about the defense, but panic and writing the season off because off the defense is a dramatic overreaction/example of recency bias. Unless Brady dies they should be 11-2 heading into Denver.Yeah, what? This is a top 4 offense in the league if not the outright best. Two of the others in the conversation are quarterbacked by a rookie and Matt Ryan. In what looks like a pretty down year for the league as a whole it's not at all crazy to think they can 2011 it, and that team was a dropped pass away from winning it all.
The mighty Dallas Cowboys let Big Ben throw for 400+ yards, 3 TDs, and 0 INTs while sacking him exactly once. That's not exactly a championship-level performance on defense. Yes, the Cowboys won the game but they won it based upon their offense. If Brady can put them into the end zone to end the 4th quarter they are going to OT despite the poor defensive showing.They gave up 31 at home while healthy and never stopped Seattle all night even with Seattle using a OL made up of five Stephen Hawkings. That is getting torched in every sense of the word.
They were lucky they only lost by 7.
A lot of that has to do with a cupcake schedule. They also caught PIT at the perfect time.The fact that they're second in the NFL in point differential says otherwise.
The frustrating part is they are probably a Chandler Jones away from tipping the scales to a defense that could carry them at times. That trade just looks so, so bad in hindsight. The excuse can't be that they didn't have the talent, they did and let it walk out the door.The mighty Dallas Cowboys let Big Ben throw for 400+ yards, 3 TDs, and 0 INTs while sacking him exactly once. That's not exactly a championship-level performance on defense. Yes, the Cowboys won the game but they won it based upon their offense. If Brady can put them into the end zone to end the 4th quarter they are going to OT despite the poor defensive showing.
No one is pretending the Patriots even have an above average defense at this time. But, they are well-rounded enough for them to be a top 2 or 3 SB favorite.
Losing Jones hurts but also remember it netted the team Thuney and Mitchell.The frustrating part is they are probably a Chandler Jones away from tipping the scales to a defense that could carry them at times. That trade just looks so, so bad in hindsight. The excuse can't be that they didn't have the talent, they did and let it walk out the door.
Who hasn't played a cupcake schedule though?A lot of that has to do with a cupcake schedule. They also caught PIT at the perfect time.
The best QB they had faced prior to yesterday was probably Andy Dalton.
Your second point is better than the first. As DrewDawg points out, there are more than a few cupcakes on most good teams schedules this season. Dallas and the Patriots, for instance, each play all the AFCN teams in a down year in that division.A lot of that has to do with a cupcake schedule. They also caught PIT at the perfect time.
The best QB they had faced prior to yesterday was probably Andy Dalton.
They had a very real shot to win the game anyway.For as bad as the defense was, and they were bad, up until that fumble by Edelman, the defense had been doing pretty good limiting the Seahawks to field goals in the red zone. If Edelman doesnt fumble there the Patriots had a very real shot to win that game (not that I am blaming Edelman for the loss).
Yeah, pretty sure BB wouldn't have traded Jones if he had foreseen that he'd be moving Collins in a midseason addition-by-subtraction move. Even legends make mistakes.I don't think it would turn them into a defense that could carry them, but a couple of pass rushing plays a game might make a difference and its not like the guys they've replaced Jones with have been better against the run. They got some value for Jones, but that does look like a miscalculation right now.
Pretty much anyone in the AFC West/NFC South/NFC EastWho hasn't played a cupcake schedule though?
This is silly. He said he writes hundred of letters to people...he probably has written so many letters, and not one has every been referenced out loud in the possibly contentious circumstances of a presidential rally during a bitter election campaign.W
.
EDIT: also, if we're talking goats, Belichick has to step up and take blame. He talks all the time about minimizing distractions and putting the team first, and then distracts the team by getting involved in public political statements last week. That was really stupid, selfish and short-sighted of him, and it could not have possibly helped this week in preparing for the game. I was extremely disappointed in his actions. He comes off like an enormous hypocrite.
He claims he writes all those letters. I stated upthread I thought that was almost certainly false.This is silly. He said he writes hundred of letters to people...he probably has written so many letters, and not one has every been referenced out loud in the possibly contentious circumstances of a presidential rally during a bitter election campaign.
"Don't ever write a little Bill, someone might read it out loud and then your football team won't be able to win. Bigly!"
http://www.nfl.com/belichicklettersHe claims he writes all those letters. I stated upthread I thought that was almost certainly false.
He should have known better.
That Bill had to spend some time during the week addressing the reaction to his letter does not tell me that he was any less prepared for that game than he would have been. He issued a statement about it and moved on. That Trump is controversial doesn't increase the amount of time he had to spend on it. Not that I think it would have mattered had this happened in an ordinary week, but that it was a bye week strengthens my view that BB had ample time for Seattle notwithstanding that he had to address and answer some questions about his letter.Well lessee, I have a functioning brain, so I can see that the head coach of the team took the time and energy to insert himself into a contentious public political discussion in an election week with a public letter to a um, controversial candidate, and then had to address and deflect the entirely predictable negative attention that came from that. This is in spite of the same coach for years telling us that distractions are bad and that total focus is needed to win on the football field, so he comes across like a huge hypocrite. The head coach is in charge of every last aspect of the team and has a direct result on the performance of the team on the field. Taking time and energy to cause a huge distraction in the week leading up to the Seattle game undoubtedly affected the team. How could it not?
Crowd noise, on the other hand, has no apparent affect on the game result. People have been bitching about the crowd for years, and the team still wins 93% of their home games.
So surely you can see the difference.
Did he ever say if that ball slipped? Because it was severely underthrown, and not in a "Brady can't throw deep" kinda way.Right. Let's keep the focus where it ought to be: on Brady's INT which never would've happened if he hadn't talked to Trump.
I think it did slip. The ball went straight up in the air. He actually had Mitchell open on that had he been able to get it down here.Did he ever say if that ball slipped? Because it was severely underthrown, and not in a "Brady can't throw deep" kinda way.
Why are you so sure it's false? Based on...how often you write letters? Based on...how you know he's such a fan of Instaface? And yet, somehow, suddenly he picked right now to write his first ever letter to someone?He claims he writes all those letters. I stated upthread I thought that was almost certainly false.
He should have known better.
If you or BB don't see how possibly writing a public letter to the cheeto-looking fascist on the eve of an extremely contentious election and then dealing with the entirely-forseeable fallout from that act might take away from preparations for the Seattle game then we're all done here.You're absolutely correct that the Patriots have had an incredible run of success at home, and on the road too, obviously.
But you're saying that there's no way crowd noise could have made one iota of difference in this particular 1-score game.
While simultaneously arguing that BB was irresponsible for allowing The Letter to distract his team, contributing to the loss.
THE LETTER!!!! Why didn't Bill think of the children!
fair enough...although I was more invested in The Letter issue than the crowd noise one.I split out the crowd noise discussion to a new thread.
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/greg-cosells-week-10-review-seattles-strategic-wrinkle-that-gave-new-england-fits-180122166.htmlThe Seattle Seahawks had to figure out a way to pull off a road upset at the New England Patriots, who hadn’t lost since Tom Brady returned.
The answer for them turned out to be the use of empty backfield sets in critical situations. The Patriots had a ton of trouble defending the Seahawks when they cleared out the backfield. That was the key strategic element for the Seahawks in a tight game.