An Independent Patriots Blog
In honor of the upcoming Football Life: Cleveland ‘95, and since it’s Friday night, it’s a good time for a little BB PB&J (with PB on BOTH sides!!!)….
Cooking with Bill Belichick (by SportsMockLive)
https://www.patspropaganda.com/in-honor-of-the-upcoming-football-life-cleveland/
Couple different thoughts on this, first I think that his debut against the Titans was pretty outstanding, even aside from the fumble recovery for TD.
He’s been down the last two weeks though, and that’s nothing too surprising for a rookie. His snaps have increased each week, with him playing 55 of 74 against the Ravens. I think if the coaching staff was disappointed in his play we’d be seeing less and less of him.
Part of the problem too is that he’s being asked to do a lot of different things at strong side linebacker, while also splitting time with Spikes in the nickel defense. He’s been at the point of attack a lot. So that’s a lot for any player to handle, much less a rookie.
As with all rookies you can expect some inconsistency but lets not forget there haven’t been many rookie linebackers to come in and start for Bill Belichick. I still think Hightower has an extremely high ceiling and I hope we see him bounce back this week. He should be a central part of the game plan and his physicality and tackling should put him in position to make an impact.
Beating man coverage a key. Welker noted that the Bills mix things up coverage-wise and “play a lot of different type of man coverages, and they do a good job with that.” Welker and fellow receiver Brandon Lloyd had success beating man coverage Sunday night in Baltimore, so this will be an area to watch once again. “You’ve got to make sure you’re not sloppy with them, and run great routes,” Welker opined, later adding that the game has added importance because it’s the team’s first AFC East contest.
Sterling seems like he’s off to a good start after a so-so camp as he’s passed Ras-I Dowling on the depth chart. I wrote earlier this week that he could possibly be considered to take over Arrington’s starting outside corner spot too. One thing about Moore is that he seems like he has a knack for making plays and there weren’t enough of those last week.
I am not CelticsPatriotsman, though he’s got to be the best Patriots-centric editor on YouTube. My YouTube page is here, and it’s loaded with the best Pats videos, including many of CelticsPatriotsman’s.
Week four of the Patriots season has always seemed like a proving point where we get a sense of just what kind of team we’ve got this year.
Let’s take a look back at all the week four games since 2005, the last time the Pats closed the first quarter of their season out with a loss.
2005 – Pats are mauled at home by the Chargers 41-17, coming off a costly win in Pittsburgh that saw them lose both Matt Light and Rodney Harrison for the season. This set the tone of inconsistency as the Pats would go on to lose three of their next seven. This was arguably one of the worst Patriots teams in the Belichick era.
2006 – Coming off a disappointing loss at home to the Broncos 17-7 in what was supposed to be a “revenge game” the Pats had to go to Cincinnati to face a 3-0 Bengals team that had just beat the Steelers. Many were predicting this was the end for the Pats, but New England responded with a 38-13 beatdown of the Bengals, who had looked like an offensive juggernaut up to that point.
2007 – In hindsight it may be easy to overlook the 2007 Pats 34-13 win over the Bengals in this week four, but in the lead up to the game there were quite a few pundits who thought the Bengals would hold their own at home. Still, the 2007 Pats tend to be outliers regardless, but this was a big win on Monday Night Football that kept the undefeated train rolling.
2008 – The Pats had a bye in week four but they needed that extra week to regroup after the Wildcat coming out party that handed them a shocking 38-13 pounding at home from the Dolphins. The Pats played well enough to win, but it was clear that the Pats were just not the same without Tom Brady. The following week they looked listless in a 30-10 loss to the Chargers.
2009 – The Pats were coming off a home win against the Falcons, but the Ravens were undefeated and looked like the class of the AFC. The resulting 27-21 Pats win showed a toughness not demonstrated very often in 2009, but it was proof that the talent was there if they could just put it all together. Which they never did. If there was one year where week four wasn’t a sign of things to come, this was it.
2010 – The Pats looked really vulnerable in the three prior games. They squeaked out wins against the Bengals and Bills, and had looked lethargic in a 28-14 loss to the Jets. Going into Miami on Monday Night looked to be a tough match up, especially with the 2-1 Dolphins playing the Jets tougher than the Pats had. But the the Pats rolled on the back of their special teams and defensive play, coming out with a dominating 41-14 win that reminded the NFL they weren’t going anywhere.
2011 – The Pats were coming off game in Buffalo where they blew a 21-3 lead and the 2-1 Raiders had put up 69 points in their last two games. Raiders fans were confident as they always are, knowing Oakland is never an easy place to play. The Pats showed great focus and the kind of perseverance that would become a trademark of their 2011 season, pulling out a 31-19 win.
As you can see the Patriots almost always lose a game and/or have some shakiness in the first three weeks of the season, which has set up some pivotal battles in week four that more often than not reveal some of the characteristics of this year’s team.
In most cases the Patriots have responded, but either way we should have a better sense of just who the 2012 Patriots will be come Monday.
1) I’m not sure if you’re being facetious or not, but my feelings on Sergio Brown are pretty well documented so I’m just going to leave this one alone.
2) Personally I think this version of the 4-3 is a positive step for BB’s defensive philosophy, but yes, so much of it’s success is predicated on Ninkovich. When’s he on he’s a solid player and one that I like, however he’s got to be more consistent. Because when’s he’s off it really hurts the entire defense.
3) The thing that has the natives restless is how conservative BB is with his defense. I’m not sure how much more aggressive RAC made them, but I think we could all live with a little more attacking a little less soft zone.
Friday is Patriots Q & A day, send your questions here.
Bills pressure will be different than what the Patriots faced last week vs. Baltimore – Baltimore brought more pressure from different looks, where they would overload a side and bring rushers from different places. Buffalo is built to get pressure with their front four. They will look for match-ups and try to use inside rushes to prevent Brady from stepping up in the pocket and allow big-money edge rushers to get there against the Patriots tackles.
Sometimes scout’s breakdowns actually make me think I almost know what I’m talking about…
This one too:
“The Patriots must disrupt timing of Buffalo passing game and make Ryan Fitzpatrick uncomfortable. The Buffalo offense is based off quick reads and decisions. C.J. Spiller has added speed in the running game, and the difference between Spiller and Jackson is the speed to exploit defense. Jackson runs hard, has vision and is a quality back, but Spiller speed exploits creases in defense created by the spacing of Buffalo’s offense. If Spiller is out, an explosive element is gone from Buffalo’s game plan. New England must gang-tackle Jackson – he’s strong enough to break through the initial hit – and hit Spiller often.”
Brady and Vereen connect for two touchdowns vs. Panthers. Vereen has been paired with rookie James White in a two pass-catcher backfield. That kind of personnel should stress defenses with poor coverage linebackers.