PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

A Look Back at Belichick’s Masterful 2016 Offseason

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It was yet another game in which the Patriots were able to cruise from start to finish, as they racked up their 13th win and moved one step closer to acquiring the #1 seed in the AFC. A 14-2 record and the #1 seed appears very likely, which is an incredible achievement for any team, yet the accomplishment probably won’t elicit more than a casual shrug of approval out of the majority of Patriot Nation, along with some snide remark about how they really should have been 15-1. We have been blessed as Patriot fans to witness the greatest run of any team in the history of the NFL, yet it is still important to appreciate just how they are able to reach the level of play we have seen this year. With that being said, let’s take a look back at the (masterful) 2016 offseason and how it managed to rebuild and retool the Patriots, setting them up for the success they are currently achieving.

Belichick the GM was nearly perfect on his moves this offseason, with his first acquisition being the signing of Chris Hogan away from the Buffalo Bills on a front-loaded 3 year, 12 million dollar offer sheet that the Bills were simply unable to match. Hogan, who never had more than 450 yards in this first three seasons in the NFL, has racked up 653 yards on 34 catches to go along with a league-leading 19.2 yards per catch in 2016. Hogan has brought a viable, consistent deep threat to a Patriot offense that had lacked one since the day Randy Moss last put on a Patriot uniform. That is not to say Hogan in anyway resembles Moss and his capabilities, but what Hogan is able to do for the offense by stretching the field and not allowing the opposing secondary to key on the underneath crossing routes fills a role the Patriots have not had since the Moss days.

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Pats Posits: Peaking Pats Dispatch Overmatched Jets

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Merry Christmas!! The Patriots wiped out the Jets 41-3 on Christmas Eve, moving to 13-2 with just one win in Miami next weekend standing between them and homefield advantage in the AFC. If there was any worry about a repeat of 2015, when the Pats lost to the Jets and Dolphins to close out there season, it was quickly apparent Bill Belichick’s squad came to prove a point on Saturday.

There’s plenty of praise to go around — Malcolm Butler had two interceptions and a recovered fumble, LeGarrette Blount put up his team-record 16th and 17th touchdowns and the defense was once again near impossible to score on. Tom Brady was, well, Tom Brady and, perhaps most importantly, NO ONE GOT INJURED!

The 13th win of the year only cemented what we had learned the last two weeks, that the Patriots are now firing on all cylinders and are peaking at the perfect time.

Here’s the Christmas edition of the Pats Posits…

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Best/Worst in Weekly Patriots Links-12/24

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“Just ’cause you got the monkey off your back doesn’t mean the circus has left town.”

Bye Bye Denver. See you next year. (Roughly) Same time, same place. Mile High demons are officially exorcised. Between last season’s regular season collapse, and the thorough beatdown (see above) at the hands of that Bronco defense in Denver for the AFC title, this “monkey” was real and needed to be conquered. That being said, the job is not done. Far from it. The road to the Super Bowl must run through route 1 and the Pats are in control of their own destiny. Before we move along that road, let’s talk about last Sunday afternoon.

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Patriots Gameplan: Week 16 vs. New York Jets

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The 12-2 New England Patriots look to take another step toward securing homefield advantage as they welcome the 3-8 New York Jets. The Jets beat the Pats in Week 16 of 2015, helping to knock them from the first overall seed. This time the Pats are at home and against Bryce Petty they’ll look to dispense with the recent spat of close games with the green and white.

Just four weeks ago in the Meadowlands, the Pats overcame a 17-13 hole with nine straight points to win 22-17. But now the Jets are already focusing on the offseason and the Pats are looking to prevent a repeat of last year’s collapse that allowed the AFC Championship to be played in Denver instead of New England.

Here’s the gameplan for a Christmas Eve edition of Patriots-Jets…

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Coffin Corner: Only choice for COY. Sorry, guys.

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Congratulations to the Patriots. The AFC East is done. Again. Forget the Masters, Jim Nantz: this is the tradition unlike any other. The New England Patriots sew up the AFC East before week 17. Below are the weeks the Patriots clinched the AFC since 2009:

Week 15: December 18, 2016 (also 1st round bye)

Week 14: December 14, 2015 (Week 15: 1st round bye)

Week 15: December 18, 2014 (Week 16: 1st round bye)

Week 16: December 22, 2013 (week 17: 1st round bye)

Week 13: December 12, 2012 (week 17 1st round bye)

Week 15: December 18, 2011 (Week 16 1st round bye)

Week 16: December 26, 2010 (Week 16 1st round bye)

Week 16: December 28, 2009 (No 1st round bye)

That’s 8 straight years of division dominance, 7 years of conference dominance and Super Bowl contention. It’s amazing, hard to fathom, and even harder to write about evidently. I’ve seen nary an article citing the Coach of the Year as Bill Belichick. National columnists have run out of angles to demonize this team’s historical greatness, so now they churn out “Baltimore – Pittsburgh week”, like this hailed historical rivalry wasn’t for the 3 seed or focus on circling the wagons for owners of teams who defend domestic abusers or hypocritically accuse teams of malfeasance. Or focus on Jeff Fisher’s pathetic resume. Or his successor (someone got page views pitching Pete Carroll to leave Russel Wilson and the Seahawks, WTF?!). All because the best of NFL writers struggle to write about historical greatness.

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Let’s Go Get a GD Snack: Week 16 Scouting Report vs. New York Jets

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What a satisfying win. Everyone keeps talking about how this win feels old fashioned, behind a stout defense and a balanced and effective offensive attack. The Broncos are also a team every Pats fan wanted to see squished by the big foot of TB12/BB. Now with a first round bye (holla) and the fate of their seeding in their own hands, I don’t expect to see them to take their foot off the gas. That’s not Belichick’s style. Plus, better to only rest guys who are hurting in Week 17, you don’t want them to get too rusty sitting on their couches in January for too long. The Jets games are always an intense battle but the Patriots are riding high and could seriously feast here.

Here’s everything you need to know about the NY Jets, aka, “The Slaves of Ryan Fitzpatrick.”

Week 16 vs. New York Jets

Saturday December 24

1:00 pm, CBS

Low 40’s/High 30’s, minimal chance of precipitation, 12 mph winds

[table id=17 /]

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Patriots vs. Broncos Film Review: Defense Edition

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It was one of the most dominant defensive performances of the last decade and one that I couldn’t wait to jump into. The Patriots defense had a slow start to 2016, but with each passing week they’ve gotten better and better. In the last three games they have the second-best third down defense in the NFL, and have risen all the way from 28th early in the season to 7th overall on third down.

The emergence of Trey Flowers as veterans Rob Ninkovich, Jabaal Sheard and Chris Long got their games going now has the entire defensive front clicking. And don’t just take my word for it, here’s what Belichick had to say on Tuesday:

“I think in our case what I’ve seen from this team, especially defensively but really in all three phases of the game, is a commitment to work hard and get better. You take small steps every day. Those pile up after days, weeks and months together. I think that’s really what’s happening with our team is they’ve worked hard. They’ve improved, improved a little bit each day. They maybe improve a little bit each week in certain areas. I think we do things better now than we did a few weeks ago. We did them better a few weeks ago than we did them a couple of months ago, which is the way it should be.”

Let’s take a closer look at the All-22.

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