An Independent Patriots Blog
Jabaal Sheard strip-sacks Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jamie Collins picks up the fumble. For the second week in a row, the Patriots defense comes up with a strip-sack and a touchdown. Go defense!!
https://www.patspropaganda.com/pottsisstarksheart-jabaal-sheard-strip-sacks/
Tom Brady finds James White for a 9-yard TD that tied up the game.
One good moment from this one.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/pottsisstarksheart-tom-brady-finds-james/
The Patriots need just one win in their final two games to secure the top seed in the AFC so against a Jets team that currently sits outside the playoffs and badly needs a win and help to get in, you might wonder what Bill Belichick’s mindset is – rest the walking wounded, concede a possible loss and focus on sealing up homefield in Miami against a Dolphins team with nothing to play for?
Or play to win regardless of injuries and playoff seeds? If you’ve been following Bill Belichick long enough, it’s a pretty good guess he’ll play to win, but with Devin McCourty and Danny Amendola expected to sit the Pats will be less than full strength once again in 2015. Really, it’s the season’s defining characteristic.
One interesting development is that we will get a look at Steven Jackson this week, possibly the latest and most recognizable in-season name addition Belichick has ever made. If Jackson has five games of any amount of beast mode left in him (after an extended period off), the Pats will have an entire new dimension in the playoffs.
Here’s the gameplan for the Jets, where all that really matters is getting through it healthy. If they have to seal up the conference in Miami so be it.
Tom Brady led the Pats in carries with four the first time these teams met in October and that will tell you all you need to know about how they viewed the Jets defense – that they had to throw it 54 times.
Now, the Pats will have just Keshawn Martin and Brandon LaFell (and maybe Chris Harper) dressed as receivers in this one. So replicating last game’s attack would be difficult.
Gronk was largely shut down last game by Calvin Pryor, until Pryor went down with an injury. Gronk finished with 11 catches for 108 yards and a touchdown. This week Pryor is back, and without Edelman or Amendola to worry about, there’s a good chance Revis could see Gronk at times as well.
One big element from the first matchup was Brandon LaFell’s first game of the season where he dropped multiple passes. LaFell has had an up and down season, but he’ll need to catch everything thrown his direction in this one.
The conservative approach for this game would be to give Steven Jackson, Brandon Bolden and James White plenty of action. They don’t have the personnel to go light and fast, so they’ll definitely use plenty of heavy sets with Cameron Fleming and Michael Williams on the field.
Then they’ll get Jackson some work and hopefully take some of the pass rush pressure off of Brady. Of course it’s all contingent on actually moving the ball with the run and there’s no guarantee this season that they can get the running game going without loosening up the defense with the quick passing game first.
If they can’t move the ball on the ground the game will come down to Keshawn Martin and how many tough third down catches he can make. The Jets have the resources to take away Gronk and LaFell, so Martin (and James White) will have to come up big for the Pats to put up 20+ points.
The story of the first meeting was the Jets going 8-of-14 on third down, including conversion on three third-and-10′s. Those kind of conversions are killers, especially when you’re winning the battle on first and second down.
Whether it was because of injury or not, they held Chris Ivory and the Jets run game to just 89 yards rushing. That set up plenty of third and longs but the Pats just couldn’t get off the field and thus, the game was really close.
Last time the Pats double Brandon Marshall and gave Eric Decker to Malcolm Butler. Decker had six catches for 94 yards and five of them came on third down.
Can the Jets get their running game going this time? Malcom Brown and Alan Branch will need their best games as nothing breaks the Patriots defense quicker than when their run defense goes soft.
Then there’s Bilal Powell in the passing game who has emerged as a threat out of the backfield. They might need to put a safety on him, but…
Devin McCourty’s likely absence will impact how well they can double team Brandon Marshall. What if Chung can’t go either? Duron Harmon will be a huge key player and we might see Nate Ebner or Tavon Wilson playing an important in-box role with coverage responsibilities.
As much as I’d love to put a huge nail in the Jets playoff coffins, I’m really only worried about not sustaining a playoff-run-altering injury. We’re so close, it seems like all the big guns should be ready for January, let’s just get through these last two games and make another run at this thing.
Balanced Jets Offense as Much of a Threat as their Vaunted Defense
Always enjoy insightful reads from Matt Chatham breaking down the progression of the Jets offense. This only reinforces for me how important it is to stop Ivory. The big key to that is Dont’a Hightower playing because if you have him and Collins along with run support from Patrick Chung the Pats shouldn’t have to put 8 in the box to stop Ivory. But if Hightower is out it’s going to be a lot harder with Mayo or Freeny in there.
The Patriots are back in the division this weekend as the Jets come to Foxboro riding high with a 4-1 record. Things are never dull with the Jets and this game is no exception despite the lower amounts of chatter without Rex Ryan involved.
It’s an especially exciting weekend for me as I’ll be making my yearly pilgrimage back home to Massachusetts to attend the game. I’ll also be visiting tailgates with some swag to give away, so if you’re going to be there (and you have free food/drinks) please drop me a line! The grand prize will be finding a set of Patriots-Jets fans there together and then giving them tickets to the rematch in New Jersey in December.
Without Rex Ryan I’m having a little trouble adjusting to the new Jets under Todd Bowles who sounds a lot more measured than Rex ever did. That scares me a bit, because often you could count on Rex’s Jets to psych themselves out or get too caught up in the Patriots mystique. Still, Rex’s Jets always played us hard and close and while Bowles’ defensive philosophies are similar, we’ll see if he can get the same kind of effort Rex always did.
This is the kind of game that the football season is all about. The Jets have a great defense that will test Brady like he hasn’t been tested before this season. And on the other side of the ball, they have enough balance to really make the Patriots defense prove how good they are. These are the matchups I blog for!
Here’s my gameplan!
There’s no denying the Jets have as talented a front four as you’ll find in the NFL, and their secondary, led by old pal Darrelle Revis, can play any kind of game. The Jets will bring pressure in this one, so Brady’s presnap reads are a huge key.
That said, if the Patriots are “on time” with their offense, the offensive line isn’t going to have to worry about prolonged blocking of the Jets’ front. The ball will be out in two seconds. But if the Jets are able to surprise Brady by taking his first read away and making him hold it an extra second or two, things could get dicey.
Personally I think the best gameplan for the Jets will be to load the field with defensive backs and use a rotating combination of Richardson, Williams and Wilkerson as the pass rushers, leaving Harrison in a reduced role. Dare the Patriots to run, but don’t allow short passes without punishment and sure tackling.
The key is making Brady’s protection hold up against just three rushers and forcing him to fit the ball into tight windows downfield. The big hope with this gameplan is stopping the run with a reduced number of bigs in the box.
Lots of questions this week about how the Jets will match their corners, but I think it will be mix and match depending on the down. Some are curious about Revis on Gronk, but I think that’s something the Jets will want to avoid. Forcing him to tackle Gronk is not going to be ideal. More likely is Revis on Edelman, as they’re very familiar with each other.
But the biggest problem for the Jets might be Dion Lewis. As we saw last week, Gronk and Edelman can be taken away, but the Jets don’t have a clear answer for Lewis, especially if the Pats spread them out, forcing Davis or Harris out into space to cover the shifty running back one-on-one. You might recall Danny Woodhead having some big games against the Jets for similar reasons.
The other two big keys are Amendola and LaFell (as signs are pointing to him being activated for his first game of the season). No one is talking about them, but they’ve both been clutch compliments to Gronk and Edelman. If Buster Skrine is out (which it looks like he will be) the Jets corner depth will take a hit and open up chances for Amendola especially.
But what it all boils down to is patience for the offense. The Jets will make some plays, but if Brady can extend plays in the pocket while the Jets are rushing three and dropping eight, he’ll make his share of throws. If they get him off balance early it could be a grind for the offense this week.
We’ve seen plenty of Ryan Fitzpatrick throwing for a bunch of yards against a passive defense waiting for him to throw interceptions, which he always did.
Brandon Marshall has 37 catches for 511 yards and four touchdowns already, but my primary concern is Chris Ivory and the running game. That’s why I believe it’s key that Dont’a Hightower plays this week. The dropoff in run defense with Freeny and Mayo is too severe and puts so much pressure on Collins.
If Sheard can’t go it certainly hurts as well, but that could open the door for Trey Flowers to make his debut. Pass rush isn’t the issue this week, it’s about stopping the run on early downs and forcing third-and-longs. That’s prime Fitzpatrick interception territory.
The size of Marshall and Eric Decker against our cornerbacks does concern me and it makes me wonder if we’ll once again use physical safety Patrick Chung in more of a cornerback role this week. Butler should go hard at Marshall and give him problems. Logan Ryan saw some of Decker in 2013, that experience should help.
The wild card is my boo Dominique Easley because the Jets haven’t had to deal with a Patriots defense that had an explosive defensive lineman like him before. Easley’s so disruptive and is just hitting his stride. He made a number of key plays last week in big situations and this is a chance for Easley to take it to the next level.
Most of all I just hope the Patriots coverages stay aggressive. For the most part they’ve been a man team again this year and I’d prefer to keep that going rather than sitting back in zone and giving Fitzpatrick the quick easy passes he thrives on.
1. Win First Down
The Jets offense is going to be severely limited if they’re not picking up yardage on the ground with Chris Ivory early. But if Ivory is ripping off five or six yards on first down they’ll start rolling. While this points to more Siliga/Branch inside to start, the progression of Easley, Brown and Hicks was showing up last week so there’s no need to get away from the interior rotation. The question might be if Ninkovich and Chandler Jones can hold up all day without Sheard to spell them a bit. If Sheard can’t go, getting Trey Flowers into his first game action might be a necessity and he could bring some excitement with his physical play. How soon we forget he was the best defensive rookie in the preseason.
2. Put The Game On Fitzpatrick
This of course is directly related to winning fist down but the other way to accomplish this is to get an early lead. The Jets offense is far more effective playing from in front. If they’re forced to throw the ball 40+ times chances are they’re going to lose. In a way it’s the same gameplan the Jets should try on Brady. Take away the quick throws, make him digest the defense and put the ball downfield. That’s not Fitzpatrick’s game so that’s the game we have to make him play.
3. Patience On Offense
The Jets defense is talented and is going to make plays, but what makes the Patriots so tough is how patient and relentless they are. It might take some time to lock in on what the Jets are doing. They might get to Brady a couple times. Maybe even force a turnover. But it’s always just a matter of time before the Pats offense starts clicking. While an early touchdown drive would be ideal to put pressure on the Jets offense, countering the Jets aggressiveness over the course of the game is a big key.
4. Don’t Forget to Run
The Jets have the best run defense in the league, so it might be tempting to just spread them out and let Brady go to work with the scalpel. But with the Jets likely to go with a defensive back-heavy gameplan, it’s important to keep handing the ball off to Blount and Lewis. Even quick screens on the perimeter serve the same purpose – keeping the Jets from dictating. Force them to adjust. And when the time is right, pick up the tempo and take away any attempts at complex blitz schemes they might want to employ.
5. Win
This is always my fifth key because it’s the only thing that really matters. This game is really important for the Patriots because if they don’t win now the odds are higher that the division will still be in doubt when they have to end the year with back-to-back road trips to the Jets and Dolphins to end the year. We want those games to be meaningless, but holding serve at home in the division is the number one goal heading into the season. The next two games will tell us a lot about the 2015 season, and putting down a worthy rival like the Jets would be a good way to silence the crowd saying the Patriots haven’t played anyone good yet.
Very excited to have a couple tickets to give away to this weekend’s game between the Patriots and Jets, courtesy of NRG! Now we’ve done plenty of ticket giveaways before but this one is a little different because it’s for a Patriots fan AND a Jets fan!
Yes, what we’re looking for are a fan from each team who are friends and want to go together, aka Pats-Jets Frenemies! So what we need is a picture of you and your friend in Pats and Jets swag showing your #FanEnergy!
Rules:
1. Tweet a picture of you and your friend in your respective Patriots/Jets gear! The more the fun the better!! You love football, you just root for different teams!!
2. Make sure to tag me, @PatsPropaganda and use the hashtags #FanEnergy & #Patriots.
3. Finalists will be picked Tuesday at 8pm EST, at which time voting will open on PatsPropaganda.com to pick the winners.
4. Winners will be announced Wednesday at 8pm EST.
And this is just phase one of our Frenemy FanEnergy giveaway as two lucky Pats-Jets Frenemies at this weekend’s game are going to win tickets to the rematch in New York in December!! Details to come on that one.
Good luck to all the Pats-Jets fans out there!!
I have to admit I was worried about Gronk without a veteran TE presence but so far this year he’s been nails. Really impressed with his ability to bring it blocking and receiving equally. Just an impressive all around tight end who can do it all and do it all well. Turns out Gronkowski was […]
