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Oakland (+ 14 1/2) @ New England

oldunclemark

By oldunclemark
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Well this Pats offense looks worse than last year.

 

One day, BB and Kraft are going to regret not getting Brady a good wideout after Moss and Branch were done. Maybe they won't, considering their egos, but he don't really have anyone to throw to compared to what Manning and Brees are passing to.

 

16 points against the Raiders at home, at this point, I'm not even convinced this team can compete with Denver on the scale of what the AFC will come down to.

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Well this Pats offense looks worse than last year.

 

One day, BB and Kraft are going to regret not getting Brady a good wideout after Moss and Branch were done. Maybe they won't, considering their egos, but he don't really have anyone to throw to compared to what Manning and Brees are passing to.

 

16 points against the Raiders at home, at this point, I'm not even convinced this team can compete with Denver on the scale of what the AFC will come down to.

Actually it looks better than last year for what that is worth. The first few games last year, the receivers were not even in the right position. Not sure if you watched the game but in the second half, they seemed to hit their groove with Brady hitting Lafells and Wright who have not been targeted at all. He was also throwing to Amendola but every time he completes one, the O gets called for PI. Very frustrating. I believe the talent is there but still sloppy. In three trips inside the five yard line the Pats had a ground ball snap to Brady that he had to throw away, Vareen trip over his own feet on the way into the end zone and Gronk dropped a pass in his hands in the end zone. That is 21 points instead of 9. So they are getting the ball down there and driving the field but not finishing.

 

And say what you want about the O but the D has let up 7 and 9 points the last two games. That is championship defense and the Pats will need that MORE than the O putting up 30 which does not happen in the playoffs anyways. I would rather win 16-9 at this point in the season than 38-28.

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One day, BB and Kraft are going to regret not getting Brady a good wideout after Moss and Branch were done. Maybe they won't, considering their egos, but he don't really have anyone to throw to compared to what Manning and Brees are passing to.

 

After watching this team claw their way through three weeks of offensive ineptitude, I'm inclined to agree with Bogie on this one. 

 

I understand that the post-Moss era was going to be built around Hernandez and Gronkowski, but it's been over a year since Hernandez was arrested, and Gronk has missed the bulk of the last two seasons going back to the initial broken forearm against Indy in 2012. 

 

This team, for whatever reason, is absolutely terrible at drafting and developing receivers in their system. They've always had an active and reliable slot guy, starting with Troy Brown and then Deion Branch, Wes Welker, and now Edelman. You really have to go all the way back to David Givens to find an outside-type guy who they drafted and played with success. It can't just be that guys have trouble integrating into the system... if it's THAT difficult, then they should change the system. 

 

And the offensive line... man, if I'm Belichick, I'm calling Dante Scarnecchia this morning to try to woo him out of retirement. 

 

I know it's early, and I'm confident that they'll improve on offense as we go, but it's been frustrating to watch this team through three games. On the upside they're 2-1 and the defense looks good, but they're not playing aggressive football on either side of the ball. Where is the lock-down coverage? Where's the pass rush? They had six sacks on Minnesota but barely touched a rookie QB yesterday. 

 

Maybe I'm just not being patient enough. I thought, two road games to start, OK... they didn't look great. But at home, against a terrible team like Oakland? That was about as shallow a win as it gets as a fan. 

 

It'll turn around I think. Just frustrating here early on. 

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After watching this team claw their way through three weeks of offensive ineptitude, I'm inclined to agree with Bogie on this one. 

 

I understand that the post-Moss era was going to be built around Hernandez and Gronkowski, but it's been over a year since Hernandez was arrested, and Gronk has missed the bulk of the last two seasons going back to the initial broken forearm against Indy in 2012. 

 

This team, for whatever reason, is absolutely terrible at drafting and developing receivers in their system. They've always had an active and reliable slot guy, starting with Troy Brown and then Deion Branch, Wes Welker, and now Edelman. You really have to go all the way back to David Givens to find an outside-type guy who they drafted and played with success. It can't just be that guys have trouble integrating into the system... if it's THAT difficult, then they should change the system. 

 

And the offensive line... man, if I'm Belichick, I'm calling Dante Scarnecchia this morning to try to woo him out of retirement. 

 

I know it's early, and I'm confident that they'll improve on offense as we go, but it's been frustrating to watch this team through three games. On the upside they're 2-1 and the defense looks good, but they're not playing aggressive football on either side of the ball. Where is the lock-down coverage? Where's the pass rush? They had six sacks on Minnesota but barely touched a rookie QB yesterday. 

 

Maybe I'm just not being patient enough. I thought, two road games to start, OK... they didn't look great. But at home, against a terrible team like Oakland? That was about as shallow a win as it gets as a fan. 

 

It'll turn around I think. Just frustrating here early on. 

Hard to disagree with what you wrote but perhaps I was the only one encouraged by the O yesterday. I thought Brady did a good job spreading the ball around in the second half and Gronk actually started to look a bit like his old self. The red zone is what was frustrating. Too many mistakes down there - the ground ball snap to the end the half, Vareen tripping over his feet, Gronk dropping the ball right in his hands. And the offensive penalties are still there although they were less than the other two games.

 

Perhaps we watched two different games on defense. I thought the defense was rock solid. The Raiders never threatened a TD and kicked long FGs. The sacks might not have been there but the pressure was on Carr forcing him to miss a lot of throws. I think when  you hold a team to 9 points that is about as good as it gets in the NFL no matter who you play. Oakland does have some talent on that team with MacFadden and some speedy receivers and Carr is not terrible by any means. And of course the pick at the end was caused by great coverage causing Carr to throw the check down into a sea of Pats players for a pick.

 

I do think things will get better on O but honestly I think the play calling has been pretty bad. That may be a factor of the Oline but I think Josh has to get our guys out in space more. Edelman, Vareen, Ridley all have great athleticism and speed. Throw some WR screens or hook patterns. How about some misdirections like Seattle runs? Brady is a great ball faker and I am not sure I have seen one in two seasons now. They have to be creative with the talent they do have. Find way to get the ball to Amendola. How about a reverse sweep with him? He is lighting fast. It is ridiculous to not have plays for him without a WR getting called for PI.

 

On the plus side, run game is still a great strength and not turnovers either. This is why we are 2-1 not to mention STs which have been awesome. Gostkowski has been the MVP of this team offensively with this Fgs and touchbacks. Not to mention our punter who has a booming kick.

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And the offensive line... man, if I'm Belichick, I'm calling Dante Scarnecchia this morning to try to woo him out of retirement. 

 

 

Actually I think BB needs to get involved directly. When something is this bad the head coach in this case who has the experience and power to motivate by getting rid of people if need be is required.

 

Offenses, particulary Olines,  don't get in sync till week 8. The trick is to have a good winning record in the meantime.

 

To Bogie- Moss or any star WR is no good without an oline.

 

To the poster who said NE is in decline- They've been in decline since 2005. They must hold the record for years in decline.

Not sure what the losing record is overall. Maybe someone could help with that :)

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Hard to disagree with what you wrote but perhaps I was the only one encouraged by the O yesterday. I thought Brady did a good job spreading the ball around in the second half and Gronk actually started to look a bit like his old self. The red zone is what was frustrating. Too many mistakes down there - the ground ball snap to the end the half, Vareen tripping over his feet, Gronk dropping the ball right in his hands. And the offensive penalties are still there although they were less than the other two games.

 

Perhaps we watched two different games on defense. I thought the defense was rock solid. The Raiders never threatened a TD and kicked long FGs. The sacks might not have been there but the pressure was on Carr forcing him to miss a lot of throws. I think when  you hold a team to 9 points that is about as good as it gets in the NFL no matter who you play. Oakland does have some talent on that team with MacFadden and some speedy receivers and Carr is not terrible by any means. And of course the pick at the end was caused by great coverage causing Carr to throw the check down into a sea of Pats players for a pick.

 

I do think things will get better on O but honestly I think the play calling has been pretty bad. That may be a factor of the Oline but I think Josh has to get our guys out in space more. Edelman, Vareen, Ridley all have great athleticism and speed. Throw some WR screens or hook patterns. How about some misdirections like Seattle runs? Brady is a great ball faker and I am not sure I have seen one in two seasons now. They have to be creative with the talent they do have. Find way to get the ball to Amendola. How about a reverse sweep with him? He is lighting fast. It is ridiculous to not have plays for him without a WR getting called for PI.

 

On the plus side, run game is still a great strength and not turnovers either. This is why we are 2-1 not to mention STs which have been awesome. Gostkowski has been the MVP of this team offensively with this Fgs and touchbacks. Not to mention our punter who has a booming kick.

 

I thought Brady was moving better in the pocket yesterday (noted that in another thread) and to me, that seemed to make a huge difference. He looked a little better in the second half, I agree. He's still not getting a lot of help but is also still contributing to the problems (bad overthrow on a ball to Gronk in the first half). 

 

I hear you regarding the defense... it was a good effort, but considering that it was an 0-2 team with a rookie QB, it didn't impress me a ton. So far the D has been battered by a 1-2 Dolphins team, and has shut down an AP-less Vikings team and a horrible Raiders team than may not win three games this year. They've done alright but it feels like better competition would be shredding them quite a bit more than the current teams they're playing.

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I thought Brady was moving better in the pocket yesterday (noted that in another thread) and to me, that seemed to make a huge difference. He looked a little better in the second half, I agree. He's still not getting a lot of help but is also still contributing to the problems (bad overthrow on a ball to Gronk in the first half). 

 

I hear you regarding the defense... it was a good effort, but considering that it was an 0-2 team with a rookie QB, it didn't impress me a ton. So far the D has been battered by a 1-2 Dolphins team, and has shut down an AP-less Vikings team and a horrible Raiders team than may not win three games this year. They've done alright but it feels like better competition would be shredding them quite a bit more than the current teams they're playing.

They have to stop playing Revis in zone. Let him man up. Also, Browner comes back after next week. Defense could be improved with him.

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They have to stop playing Revis in zone. Let him man up. Also, Browner comes back after next week. Defense could be improved with him.

 

Yeah I don't know what's going on with that. It seems like at times they're covering well and jamming guys, and at other times they're playing way off the line. 

 

Maybe we'll have a better idea once they match up with a team that has an elite receiver. They haven't really run into one yet.

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Yeah I don't know what's going on with that. It seems like at times they're covering well and jamming guys, and at other times they're playing way off the line. 

 

Maybe we'll have a better idea once they match up with a team that has an elite receiver. They haven't really run into one yet.

Cincy in two weeks.

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If you want a bit of a chuckle, every point in this game was scored by a player whose last named ended in "-kowski" (saw this on Twitter).

Gronkowski (scored lone TD in game)

Gostkowski (scored the extra point and FGs for the Patriots)

Janikowski (scored the FGs for the Raiders)

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Of course that happens after a holding call takes away a Raiders TD.

 

Now I get to hear all week how the Patriots are Super Bowl bound.

(Hey, last week, the Patriots got a "big win" for beating up the hapless Vikings if you listened to the news around here).

 

I don't think we listen to the same radio shows, read the same news, or watch the same TV shows, because I didn't know anyone who was all that excited about beating the Vikings last week. 

 

You wouldn't happen to be spreading anti-Patriot sentiments on purpose now, would you?  ;)

 

How about your Bills though? Excited about the 2-1 start or are you bummed that they came back down to earth a little bit last weekend? I don't think EJ is the answer for you guys at QB. Defense looks pretty good though. 

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I don't think we listen to the same radio shows, read the same news, or watch the same TV shows, because I didn't know anyone who was all that excited about beating the Vikings last week. 

 

You wouldn't happen to be spreading anti-Patriot sentiments on purpose now, would you?  ;)

 

How about your Bills though? Excited about the 2-1 start or are you bummed that they came back down to earth a little bit last weekend? I don't think EJ is the answer for you guys at QB. Defense looks pretty good though. 

 

I never felt good about going into the game yesterday. The Bills IMO aren't built for coming from behind several possessions (they were still calling an extremely conservative gameplan even after the Chargers went up 10), and the Chargers were too much (although to their credit, our defense settled down and kept us in the game).

 

I agree too, I'm not all that woo'd by Manuel either at this point. At this point I'm practically expecting an incomplete pass every time a pass is required (it's a different feeling than I have watching other QBs, believe me). I remember after losing our opener last year to the Patriots all the Bills fans wanted to extract the positives out of the game, especially with Manuel's play (I didn't, I just felt that once teams had a good enough amount of film on Manuel that that'd be the end of him).

 

We are stuck with Manuel for at least another year, considering we gave up next year's first to get Watkins (which, again, great player on the wrong team if you ask me). If Watkins doesn't pan out here this franchise is in deep, deep trouble.

 

Houston is up next for us, led by ex-Bills QB Ryan Fitzpatrick. Not sure how I feel about this game. Either Fitz will be Fitz (turn the ball over numerous times) or he'll look like Dan Marino against us. Game looks like it's going to be on TV here next week, so stick around.

 

Believe me, every time I wanted to be excited for football this year, a caveat came into my mind saying "But the Patriots have Darrelle Revis!" (same feeling I got going into 2007).

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If you want a bit of a chuckle, every point in this game was scored by a player whose last named ended in "-kowski" (saw this on Twitter).

Gronkowski (scored lone TD in game)

Gostkowski (scored the extra point and FGs for the Patriots)

Janikowski (scored the FGs for the Raiders)

 

Really? ;)

http://forums.colts.com/topic/31248-oakland-14-12-new-england/#entry887790

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I never felt good about going into the game yesterday. The Bills IMO aren't built for coming from behind several possessions (they were still calling an extremely conservative gameplan even after the Chargers went up 10), and the Chargers were too much (although to their credit, our defense settled down and kept us in the game).

 

I agree too, I'm not all that woo'd by Manuel either at this point. At this point I'm practically expecting an incomplete pass every time a pass is required (it's a different feeling than I have watching other QBs, believe me). I remember after losing our opener last year to the Patriots all the Bills fans wanted to extract the positives out of the game, especially with Manuel's play (I didn't, I just felt that once teams had a good enough amount of film on Manuel that that'd be the end of him).

 

We are stuck with Manuel for at least another year, considering we gave up next year's first to get Watkins (which, again, great player on the wrong team if you ask me). If Watkins doesn't pan out here this franchise is in deep, deep trouble.

 

Houston is up next for us, led by ex-Bills QB Ryan Fitzpatrick. Not sure how I feel about this game. Either Fitz will be Fitz (turn the ball over numerous times) or he'll look like Dan Marino against us. Game looks like it's going to be on TV here next week, so stick around.

 

Believe me, every time I wanted to be excited for football this year, a caveat came into my mind saying "But the Patriots have Darrelle Revis!" (same feeling I got going into 2007).

 

The Bills seem like they're "just" a QB away from being a really good team... I know that's a big piece to be missing, but I like the coaching staff, and they have nice talent on both sides of the ball. Watkins was expensive for you guys but he looks like the real deal. Always hard to tell where a guy's ceiling is without a top QB throwing him the ball. 

 

San Diego is going to be a tough team this year... wouldn't read too much into last week. 

 

Enjoy the season dude! 

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