Snapshot of AFC playoff picture: Broncos on top, while Patriots hold on to No. 2 seed
Snapshot of AFC playoff picture: Broncos on top, while Patriots hold on to No. 2 seed
These next two games are huge and really, defining for the 2013 Pats.
First, comes a chance to clinch the division in Miami, a team that went on and offseason spending spree hoping to take the Pats down. If the Pats can end their season in person while sealing up another division crown it would be sweet.
Then comes the Ravens, who got the Pats twice last year, including a thorough second-half domination in the AFC Championship. There isn’t another team out there that the Pats owe a loss to than the Ravens.
If the Pats can win these two games on the road, given everything they’ve gone through this season, I’ll consider 2013 a success no matter what happens in the playoffs.
There Will Be No Tailgating At The Super Bowl
There Will Be No Tailgating At The Super Bowl
And yet another reason why the Super Bowl game itself is just the worst. The real games are the conference championships. They feature real fans and a real football atmosphere and most of the time the time feature good rivalries.
Super Bowls are exhibition games where everything is too long and overhyped. There’s really no way to fix it, it’s the biggest game on the planet and they’ll continue to make it a production not made for the teams playing and their specific fans, but as one big sterile corporate advertisement for the NFL.
Like most, I’m hoping for a heavy conditions game that really affects things. I know the Pats could muster a win there in February, but a lot of NFL teams would really be taken off their game by any weather issues.
Siliga has us intrigued, because we haven’t seen that type of effective two-gapping from a Patriots defensive tackle since Vince Wilfork’s season-ending injury.
Picked-up pieces from 1st-quarter review – New England Patriots Blog – ESPN Boston
Well, if there was one small silver lining defensively, it was Siliga yesterday. Granted the Browns rushing offense isn’t exactly a fearsome one, but any port in a storm, you know?
Otherwise, I think it’s official that the Pats are just an average defense now. Talib seems up and down is kind of his thing and it seems like he saves his good games for the good opponents. He’ll need to be lights-out in the playoffs.
The pass rush is just too inconsistent. I like Ninkovich and Chandler as the three-down defensive ends, but they’ll need to address their sub-packages this offseason. I’d even like to see Michael Buchanan get another shot. Andre Carter doesn’t have much left in the tank.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/siliga-has-us-intrigued-because-we-havent-seen/
Hate having to do these, but it’s the only way we send our beloved Pats off into the dark night until next season…
https://www.patspropaganda.com/hate-having-to-do-these-but-its-the-only-way-we/
It’s also the injury, I think, that permanently changes the way the Patriots view Gronkowski. From this point forward, the Patriots can no longer depend on Gronkowski to be a player they expect to have around for any length of time. They can’t build an offensive scheme or a long-term game plan around a healthy Gronkowski, because the odds of him staying that way are just too low to make planning around him a logical choice. I would be shocked if the Patriots didn’t acquire a tight end in the offseason who they expect to use as their starter going forward, with Gronkowski mixed in as a weapon only if and when he’s ready.
Bill Barnwell on Week 14 in the NFL – Grantland
Sadly, I agree…
https://www.patspropaganda.com/its-also-the-injury-i-think-that-permanently/
