Great breakdown from OT on Collins’ breakout game! The biggest question is can he do it again this weekend? Consistency is one of the toughest things for a rookie to pick up and he has little margin for error against the Broncos.
Speaking of animals, fullback James Develin and tight end Michael Hoomanawanui deserve special mention, because they were also phenomenal in the run game. Hoomanawanui played 100 percent of the offensive snaps (74) for the first time this season, while Develin was in for 35 plays, his second-highest play count, and both were absolutely crucial in the run game. Develin was a sledgehammer coming through the hole as the lead blocker, and crushed Darius Butler to pave the way for Blount’s first touchdown. Hoomanwanui struggled a couple times when lined up against Mathis in run blocking and pass protection but otherwise did a great job of sealing the edge and springing Blount. Blocking tight end Matthew Mulligan, who played a season-high 35 snaps, also performed admirably in the run game.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/speaking-of-animals-fullback-james-develin-and/
Special teams captain Matthew Slater made the point that this will be the first road playoff game for the Patriots since 2006, which means everyone but kicker Gostkowski (joined Patriots in ’06), offensive lineman Logan Mankins (’05) and Tom Brady (’00) will be experiencing a road playoff game as a member of the Patriots for the first time.
Quick hits from the New England Patriots locker room – ESPN Boston
The Ravens game at the end of the season certainly showed this is a team that is capable of bringing their A game on the road, but their struggles through most of the year to play a full 60 minutes on the road are undeniable. They especially can’t afford a slow start like the one they had last time against the Broncos.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/special-teams-captain-matthew-slater-made-the/
FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Week 19 DVOA Ratings
FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Week 19 DVOA Ratings
The other item that will stand out is that the Patriots now rank No. 1 in weighted offensive DVOA, despite losing Rob Gronkowski in Week 14. The Patriots have had a consistently good but not dominating offense now for two months, though. The Pats had a season-high 74.8% offensive DVOA against Pittsburgh in Week 9, took Week 10 off, and then put up a fabulous 57.5% offensive DVOA against Carolina in Week 11. The haven’t matched those two games, but they have been between 10% and 40% on offense in all seven games since. Denver, after adjusting for opponent, has actually been below that three times since midseason: Week 12 against the Patriots (-3.2%), Week 15 against the Chargers (5.2%), and then this week against the Chargers (6.2%), although obviously part of that are huge opponent adjustments based on how bad San Diego was on defense in the first three months of the season.
Tom Brady as Underdog Gives Old-School Feel to New-School Peyton Manning Rivalry | Bleacher Report
Do you think dobson has a chance to play this weekend? I think Brady will want to take a shot off play action with the running game and now chris harris jr being injured.
I sure hope so. There’s a laundry list of reasons they need him, aside from the fact that this is the second-biggest possible game an NFL team can play in. Thompkins’ unknown injury status, the lack of any other X-receiver currently healthy, and the Broncos’ pass defense all have me praying Dobson can gut it out.
Just not a good sign that he reinjured the foot though. Someone tweeted to me today that WEEI said he could’ve played vs. Indy if not for the weather. I don’t totally buy that because he missed practice all week and that included at least one inside the dome.
They really need him and this would be the perfect chance to step up like the defensive rookies did last weekend. If we don’t see Dobson it will be a anticlimactic end to a rookie season that looked like it would be promising just before the bye week vs. the Steelers, but was barely seen again.
