Back at the top of the AFC!
Pats Posits: Defense Dominates in Houston
We’re going to the playoffs! After a two-game slide the Pats got back on track against the Texans, led by a suffocating defense that made plays with the pass rush and in coverage.
Houston converted just three of 14 third downs and had a total of 189 yards, 126 of which came on three plays. It was as good as this defense has played all season.
On offense, they made the plays they had to, but against a good defense they still looked out of sync at times. The biggest difference was having Gronk back. We all know he’s a game changer and that was once again proven against the Texans.
Now it’s back to home for a (hopefully) easy one against the Titans. Here are the Posits from the game:
– It’s time to give Logan Ryan
his due. A lot of us thought Butler would draw Hopkins in coverage, but it was Ryan and aside from one big catch, Ryan erased Hopkins. Ryan was so inconsistent last season and into the preseason this year, but he’s gotten better each week and has developed a calm savvy to his game.
– Malcolm Butler has been just as good. He and Ryan aren’t getting a ton of interceptions but they’re competitive on every ball thrown in their direction. Now we see Leonard Johnson step right into the slot and do a terrific job, breaking up two passes. Johnson is thicker than Coleman and clearly more experienced. If he can keep it up he might be an important addition for the stretch run.
– No one is harder on Brandon Bolden
than me, but with Blount going down with a hip injury, it was up to Bolden to be the early down back. This was the best game I’ve seen Bolden play as a running back (16 carries, 51 yards). He’s a fantastic special teams player but has lacked the ability to break tackles and make plays. Against the Texans he ran hard. Hopefully Blount isn’t out long, but credit to Bolden for stepping up and playing well.
– Not sure when Freeny got hurt, but Mayo was playing and had his best game of the season. Really looked like he was getting some of his “pop” back. He’s one to focus on in film review this week.
– Just as Keshawn Martin
was starting to click with Brady he muffs a punt and opens the door to a potential Texans comeback (that failed when the defense got a fourth-down stop. Martin needs to shrug this one off, he’s taken real strides in the offense and looked a lot more comfortable this week. The better he fills the Edelman role the more they can hold back on Amendola (by keeping him as the “slot” receiver), and who knows, with Amendola’s contract Martin could end up replacing him.
– Jabaal Sheard has been a beast coming back off his ankle injury that kept him sidelined far longer than we expected. The combination of him, Ninkovich and Jones finally give us a deep rotation of impressive passive rushers who can all set the edge as well.
– It seems like Easley dodged a bullett after going down grabbing his knee. He was riding the bike on the sideline and was seen laughing on the broadcast.
– The big injuries to monitor are LeGarrette Blount (hip) and Devin McCourty (ankle). Both looked fairly innocuous, but neither returned from the locker room. The at least have depth at safety to manage without McCourty, but going down to just Bolden and White would hurt.
– Injuries – Blount (hip), McCourty (ankle), Freeny (hand), Easley (knee)
– Nice to see the offense go 3-for-3 in the red zone but six punts and three three-and-outs made things look sluggish. They look nothing like the score-at-will team of September, but I still don’t think we’ve seen this offense’s capabilities post-Lewis. Hopefully we catch a glimpse of it against a floundering Titans team this weekend.
– All things considered I thought the offensive line was better than they’ve been, and that’s a good sign with two rookie guards playing the whole game. We knew they’d employ Michael Williams to help on Watt and they did a good job minimizing Watt’s impact.
Things have shifted quickly in the AFC with the Andy Dalton injury. Now it looks like Pittsburgh might be the biggest threat to the Pats’ AFC title hopes. At the least they’re the closest thing out there to healthy.
Broncos at Steelers will be big this weekend. With three games to go the Steelers are two behind the Bengals. The Bengals have a two-game western swing, first at San Fran then at Denver. The door is still very open on the Steelers getting the second seed.
The Pats game against the Jets in two weeks is shaping up to be a big one, but first the Titans!
Vrabel a natural in coaching ranks
Vrabel a natural in coaching ranks
Great read about one of the most colorful Patriots of all time. Of all the names thrown around to replace BB – McDaniels/Patricia at the forefront – Vrabel is someone I would definitely get behind. Not that we’re even close to that point yet. I hope.
Julian makes an appearance at practice on Friday, December 11th, 2015.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/spitfiremonk-julian-makes-an-appearance-at/
Think that the Patriots after the rash of injuries this year might ‘learn a lesson’ and try to sign a big name RB/WR/TE next season? And if it does, who is/are the best fit/fits?
But what if they get injured then? I don’t see how signing big names helps prevent injuries. They’re returning their entire offense and are staring down the barrel at having to keep Hightower/Collins/Chan and even Butler the following season.
However I did start to put together a rough list of offseason needs for this year and here’s an early look.
- Tackle (Vollmer/Cannon entering last years)
- Early Down Running Back (draft, Gaffney, Blount is FA)
- Linebacker (middle guy, coverage speed, cut & re-sign Mayo on cheap)
- Cornerback (badly need depth, look FA deals)
- Wide Receiver (Amendola possible cap casualty)
- Tight End (always a need, find ideal Gronk compliment at Y-TE)
- Guard (Are Mason/Jackson/Kline the answer?)
- Defensive End (Sheard/Ninkovich/Chan entering last years)
- Defensive Tackle (always a need)
Edelman back at practice and things are starting to look up for the rest of the season.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/edelman-back-at-practice-and-things-are-starting/
If the Pats don’t get a bye and finish with the #3 seed, who would you rather them face out of Pittsburgh, Buffalo, NYJ or KC?
I really do think they’ll end up with a bye but let’s play. Or put it this way, they’ll either end up with a bye or the Steelers don’t make the playoffs since they have to play both the Broncos and Bengals and could very well win both of those game, plus you have the Bengals vs. Broncos.
The Chiefs scare me the least. I know some are scared of them after last year but I have a hard time seeing them come in and upsetting the Patriots in New England.
Next I’d go Buffalo simply because they’re just a little less talented than the Jets. But they’ve got some good pieces to give us some problems, especially if their run game gets going. But I think the gameplan to beat them is well-known to the Pats and very executable.
The Jets are a little scary given their overall talent. The Week 16 game in New York should be a doozy and that will give us a better sense of where both teams are at after their down-to-the-wire game in Week 7. The question for them boils down to whether or not Fitzpatrick has a perfect game in him. If he does I could see them pulling off the upset.
I’m going Steelers last because as I said, I think it’s an unlikely matchup because if they win the games they need to to get in, it will likely propel the Pats into a bye. Still they have the best quarterback of the bunch and while I like a lot of the Jets pieces better, I just give the Steelers a slight overall edge and their deep speed with Bryant and Brown is worrisome.
