PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

Film Review: Patriots vs Colts

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The Patriots rolled to a second impressive win in a row, beating the Colts with their second 38 burger in a row. With Julian Edelman back, Josh Gordon immediately working his way in and Sony Michel‘s continued improvement, the chatter about a lack of weapons has quieted down. Which could only mean one thing, it’s time to complain again about the defense.

After watching the All-22 I continue to really like what I’m seeing from the Patriots defense and despite some holes in the win over the Colts, they are playing as simple and fast as I can remember them. The tackling is locked down. The edge is being set. The extra yardage and busted coverages are slowly disappearing. It all looks impressive and was on good display for most of Thursday night.

The Patriots should have earned a ton of confidence after the last two wins have wiped out the bad taste of back-to-back road losses. Still, there will always be questions about the defense because this league is designed for offenses to succeed. The question is whether or not the defense makes the key plays down the stretch and that will most likely be the case against the Chiefs this weekend.

Here’s a bunch on what else stood out from the film review.

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Pats Posits: Full Speed Ahead

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The Patriots put together another impressive performance, winning their third game of the season with a 38-24 trouncing of the Colts on Thursday night. Tom Brady threw his 500th touchdown pass, a 2007 Moss-esque connection with Josh Gordon that saw the receiver outleap three nearby defenders. Meanwhile Julian Edelman returned to his first game action since Super Bowl 51 and the defense had three takeaways, leaving everyone to rest assured that the Patriots are still very much the Patriots.

Sony Michel took some monster strides as well, rushing for 98 yards and a touchdown that featured an impressive stiff arm. James White caught a team-leading 10 balls as everything seemed to finally be coming into focus for the Pats offense. It wasn’t all perfect, games on Thursday nights never are, but there was enough carryover from the bounce back Dolphins win to feel like the 3-2 Pats are starting to establish a true identity.

More on it all in a bleary-eyed Posits as I get ready to head out to shoot episode two of Foxboro & Friends.

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Patriots Gameplan: Week 5 vs Colts

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This post is sponsored by Goldberg and Wiegand.

Just like that there’s another game for the Pats, a Thursday night meeting with the Colts who we haven’t seen since Week 6 of 2015. The Patriots-Colts rivlary certainly needed a little cool down period after a decade of Brady-Manning then Deflategate. Two seasons have passed and it’s a good time to renew those old bad feelings.

The Patriots once again staved off their annual demise in September and bounced back with a dominant win over the Dolphins that reassured everyone that the New England Football Machine roars onward. Teams truly have to prove it every season and that’s why the Patriots continue to be the class of the NFL.  Some teams may play perfect and catch them early in the season and get lucky, but like the house in Vegas, it’s just a matter of time before the Patriots start winning again.

The return of Julian Edelman and the hopefully-continued development of Josh Gordon are what we’re all watching fro tonight. Those two players could put the Patriots back in the conversation about the most dangerous offenses in the NFL. Meanwhile, the defense has two lights out games, and two stinkers. On a short week, things won’t be any easier on them, at least they’re at home.

What do the Pats need to do to get the win before an extended off-week at 3-2? Here’s the gameplan.

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Film Review: It All Goes Right for Pats D vs. Phins

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I am pretty sure this was my favorite defensive football film watch of all-time. Simply put it was the second time in four weeks that the Patriots defense executed across the board. The pressure was consistent even with four, they were tough on first down, they got takeaways. I’m not sure what more you can ask from a defense and that’s almost a little scary.

It really puts a spotlight on how inexcusable the two performances on the road were, but those are done and the Pats need to figure out how to live up to the performances against Houston and Miami every week. Here’s a bunch of rapid-fire thoughts as I digest the brief and spectacular film review.

— The defense was just totally in sync as it was vs the Texans. It’s beautiful to watch as the coverage perfectly matches the receivers and the pocket breaks apart forcing an uncomfortable throw. Again and again, we’re reminded that when defenses simply get off blocks and make tackles they can look monumentally better. That was the case in this one.

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Belichick Hoodie Update: A New Cut Hoodie Rises

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The Patriots bounced back after two road losses with a merciless domination of the Dolphins back in the friendly confines of Foxboro. Getting into stats before October is a sample size recipe for overreaction, but now in Week 5 let’s take a quick look at the signature statistic of PatsPropaganda, the Bill Belichick Hoodie Database.

Last season, the Hot Jacket surpassed the infamous cut gray hoodie in wins and win percentage. It was once again the centerpiece of the Belichick gameday attire. The biggest twist of the year was when Belichick wore the old blue Reebok Hoodie under his winter jacket in the AFC Divisional game against the Titans.

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Pats Posits: Order Restored

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And just like that the New England Patriots reminded everyone what they seem to forget every single year no matter what — that a well-coached football team can quickly go from looking terrible to dominant when everyone is playing on the same page. The Patriots didn’t suddenly go out and grab a bunch of new more talented players, they just all did their job and the result was a confidence-restoring win over the Dolphins.

The defense didn’t allow a drive over five plays long and forced two turnovers. The offense got Sony Michel going and the positive effects trickled down through the rest of their game, as they converted 10 of 15 third downs and put up a season-high 38 points. It was a total team effort and was beautiful to watch.

Yes, it feels like order has been restored to our lives. The Patriots are not done and with the promise of Josh Gordon, who showed some flashes in 18 snaps with two catches both coming on third downs, along with the return of Julian Edelman, it’s hard to feel anything but good vibes now about this Patriots team and that’s a welcome relief after the last two weeks.

It’s a quick turnaround to face the Colts on Thursday night and there are still areas to improve, but at 2-2 the Pats are still very much in control of their season and showing signs of how high the bar should be set for this team despite what all the critics murdered them for over the past two weeks.

More on that and everything else in the Posits…

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