I haven’t had a chance to re-watch the game just yet, I blame this mostly on the fact that I can’t get over my disappointment about losing Andre Carter. Carter was one of the only things that we could get excited about with the Patriots defense. He almost never came off the field, and was finally the pass rusher we’ve been clamoring for for years now.
And now he’s likely gone for the season, and since he’s on a one year deal it’s possible he might not be back with the Pats in 2012. Especially if you factor in his age, time frame for recovery, and the ever-possible shift back to the 3-4 front that he’s not a great fit for.
He was a feel good story for Patriots fans this season and now he’s lost, leaving Mark Anderson, Eric Moore and perhaps Markell Carter to fill the void left by him in the pass rush department.
The Patriots do have options to replace Carter, but nearly all of them will result in going back to more of a specialization defense. Carter could play all the three downs, now we’ll have to go back to having our run stopping RDE and our pass rushing RDE. This is not advantageous for our defense and was one of the biggest problems from 2010 that Andre Carter had fixed.
Now you’ll probably have Shaun Ellis and/or Brandon Deaderick getting RDE snaps when they want to stop the run, then Anderson, Moore and maybe Carter against the pass heavy teams.
Okay, enough about Andre Carter. We’ve got to turn the page. Here are our other quick hit thoughts:
It would be hard to have a defense play much worse than the Pats D did the first three posssions:
- 9 plays, 80 yards – TOUCHDOWN
- 4 plays, 82 yards– TOUCHDOWN
- 10 plays, 64 yards– FIELD GOAL
Then the turnover parade started and the Pats never looked back. Still this is concerning when you think about how the 2009 playoff game against the Ravens started. We cannot afford to get in a quick hole in the playoffs.
Rob Ninkovich has had a great year, but his road performances in Pittsburgh and Denver leave me a bit concerned. When he’s off his game the run defense is about as bad as it can get. He turned it around after a rough start, but again, it’s concerning.
Lot of credit being given to Matt Patricia for scrapping the defensive game plan (4-3 defense) and going to the 3-4. That settled the troops and got them on track. This plus the loss of Carter makes me wonder if we’re headed back to a base 3-4 in 2012.
Glad to see Ochocinco get a TD, but disappointed he didn’t do anything after that. Hopefully it’s just enough of a spark to get him primed for the playoffs. As Jabar Gaffney proved in 2006, it’s totally possible for a receiver to make a season out of a post-season performance.
Benjarvus Green-Ellis’ last three games rushing yardage totals: 14, 19, 17. Wondering the reason he’s regressed a bit this season.
More to come after the re-watch. Hoping to see something out of Ron Brace.