An Independent Patriots Blog
YES YES YES. Finally getting number four took a lot of the stink off of SB42 and SB46. I said all along, even before last season, that getting that fourth title would really make those Super Bowl losses look like a positive feather in the caps of BB and TFB. Now instead of talking about how they lost two to the Giants, it’s that they’ve BEEN TO SIX AND WON FOUR!
Still, there will always be that black cloud over SB42. I just don’t think any team will ever get that close again to 19-0.
It’s an interesting element of BB as a coach, each season the defense starts off vanilla as you say, but this year I feel a little bit differently. I think part of it is that they are now playing more man defense, which is less about disguise and scheme and more about winning one-on-one matchups.
I think the “vanilla” of it all goes back to the early 2010′s when they just weren’t that talented and really needed to win more with scheme and deception than what they do now when they challenge the quarterback to find an open guy before their pass rush gets there.
Also I think sometimes the schematic evolution is based on injuries. Like last year and the emergence of the heavy double-A gap blitzes with Hightower and Collins. Or how they adjusting things in 2011 after Andre Carter went down.
There will always be an element of building from the bottom so everyone is on the same page. But the secondary and linebackers have all been in this scheme for a while now so the carryover is a little more evident.
Offensively I think it’s more about experimentation and finding what your strengths are moreso that keeping things hidden. But in the same vein as the defense, the offense doesn’t need to scheme guys open, they have guys like Edelman, Gronk, LaFell and Amendola who can all get open against any coverage.
One more thing about the defense is the drum I’ve been banging since 2010 about the interior pass rush. Not that I would ever say I’m ahead of Belichick, but I don’t know why it took him so long to not only put increased value on pass rush, but to consider defensive tackles like Easley. Now we see a dedication to interior pass rush, whether it’s the double-A gap blitzes, Easley or shifting Chander inside.
Today’s QBs are just too good at getting the ball out quick. Edge rushers are not what they used to be. Your pass rush must win now by destroying the interior of the offensive line and not letting the quarterback step up, or preferably getting disruption in his face almost immediately.
So many moments to choose from as you point out. I think the one that sticks out most at the top is the Jets Week 1 game, and the bomb to Moss. We hadn’t seen Brady and Moss yet and there were plenty of people wondering how long they’d need to get in sync. Well the answer came immediately. And then immediately after the game came the start of Spygate and really the Patriots have never been seen the same way since.
Most seasons there are a couple games that stick out while the rest kind of become a blur, but I can recall just about every game of 2007. Embarrassing the Redskins, the Browns sticking a bit closer than anyone thought (and that was the game the Giants looked to for defensive insight how to stop NE). I sat in the last row of Gillette against the Steelers and saw the Brady-Moss-Brady-Gaffney play coming from a mile away, literally.
There was also a banner being flown around calling for asterisks before the game, and that was the inspiration for my first ever blog post.
The Ravens game was the one they should’ve lost but some how pulled it out due to the Ravens imploding. Sometimes I wonder if that had been an L if the Pats would’ve been more likely to win the Super Bowl.
We had a big party for the 16-0 game and when you think about it, that might be the only meaningful 16th game of a season for Brady since 2002. Then the next morning my wife and I found out we were pregnant, which probably wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t gone to Boston to see the Steelers game (it’s complicated).
So yeah, just a crazy memorable on a number of levels and as much as the end was the most devastating end of a season imaginable (because you know the Pats were under two minutes from 19-0 and being the indisputable best team of all time) they’ll never take away what a thrill ride those five months leading up to the Super Bowl were.
Last week there were a ton of awesome questions. Not sure if we can replicate that but the floor is open for all things Patriots-related! What’s on your minds, Pats peeps?
After Further Review: Why a young, smart D is a big reason Pats are 8-0
Good read on my bread and butter, the Patriots defense. Can’t help but feel really attached to this group, realizing the defense rebuild that would have to take place in 2008 has been a driving force behind all my Patriots blogging since I started. You look at the defense from 2009, which was just six years ago, and there’s no key contributors left. The defense of 2010 was really the low point and they were only saved because they forced a ton of turnovers. But there was just a lack of talent at all levels.
Now things are totally different. There are homegrown first round picks at every position and every kind of defensive tackle you can imagine to play any kind of down. And as Prisco points out, it’s Collins and Hightower that truly make the defense special, but as I’ve been pointing out, it’s Chandler Jones that can give this team a Super Bowl.
I’m pulling for the Bills for a couple reasons. First is that the Jets scare me more down the road, and I’d prefer that game on 12/27 in the Meadowlands to be meaningless. I also would prefer if they make the playoffs that they end up the 6 seed with a possible trip to Denver in the Wild Card round. I think they’d cause real problems for Peyton in January. Second is that a Bills win will make for more hype leading up to next week’s MNF game against them. It will give Rex some extra swagger and that makes things even more fun.
Enjoyed Chandler miked up, but one thing that was not included in this but was included in Inside the NFL was a pregame pep talk from Matt Patricia that kind of embodied everything I think about Chandler. Patricia said “you’re a great player, you need to be great every week.” The other part was in essence ‘you’re too good not to be productive every week’. And that sums it up, Chandler can be dominant at times but whether it’s been injuries or just off games, he can disappear at times. I’ve said it before, but I think he’s really the key to the Patriots Super Bowl chances the next two seasons. If he dominates three games in Jan/Feb like he’s capable of, Pats will be very hard to beat.
And no, Dominique Easley is not amused by Chandler’s chatty sideline antics.
More to come later today on the conclusion of Bill Belichick: A Football Life, but this has to be the comedy high water mark.
