An Independent Patriots Blog
New batch of DO YOUR JOB tees currently printing, this time with women’s sizes! Hoping to start taking orders by Thursday, not sure if we’ll be able to get them to buyers by the Super Bowl but we’ll do our best.
We’ll keep you all posted. When we have the shirts in hand we’ll open up the store again over in the right hand column.
We do have some XXLs currently in hand.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/new-batch-of-do-your-job-tees-currently-printing/
From the disrespect being laid on the Patriots at every turn this week you’d never know that this team was the number one seed in the AFC, with one of the best offenses in football, and one of the greatest coaches of all time.
Let’s plot out all the talking points this week that the media are hitting on:
These are just the big ones, but seriously, I have yet to hear one single mediot think the Patriots even have a chance in this one. So I don’t know how Vegas still has the Pats as 3 point favorites (down from 3.5 earlier this week).
This doesn’t feel like 2001 where it was truly David vs. Goliath going in, but it’s not that far off. But to be honest I really kind of like it this way. The media can disrespect the Pats, take their words out of context, and generally paint them as a team that is lucky to be there.
But the reality is that the Giants better be ready for a fight that goes down to the end. This Patriots team has not lost a game by more than a possession this year. And the more pressure and negativity that is piled on Brady, the more likely I think it is that he turns in a performance for the ages.
We’ll see how it plays out on Sunday, but this familiar feeling of being an underdog suits New England, and puts them in a position they’ve frequently won from. I guess Vegas knows that too…
Super Bowl XLVI: Breaking Down the New England Patriots Tight End Sets | Bleacher Report
Great stuff from Patriots X and O guru Alen Dumonjic.
Today in Patriots’ players tweets…and they’re off to INDY!
Rob Gronkowski’s New Modell’s Ad “Gronking and Going to the ‘Ship”
Gronk can act too! (except not at all) But I’m left wondering if this ad took on a whole new direction because of the ankle.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/rob-gronkowski-modells-nfl-gronk/
We’re all aware of the Giants crew of defensive ends, and they even like to get all of them on the field at once in a four-DE package referred to as “NASCAR” because of all the speed they bring.
One of the biggest keys for the Patriots will be their ability to get their run game going against this package. Having multiple pass rushers is great when the opposition is passing, but if New England’s offensive linemen are able to make their run blocks it will take the Giants out of their element.
One of the biggest issues in the 2007 Super Bowl was that everyone knew the Patriots wanted to pass the ball. The Giants defensive linemen had little to fear with Laurence Maroney and the Patriots ground game.
But this time things are different. Now the Patriots run their 12 personnel (1 RB/ 2 TE) package more than any other. This package gives them the ability to run or pass with equal effectiveness and without tipping their hand.
Rob Gronkowski has really been the key to their ability to run this offense, so his ankle and how much it affects his blocking and route running will be major areas of concern.
If Gronk is able to play at even 80% it will still give the Patriots the match-up advantage. When the NASCAR package comes in it will be imperative that Benjarvus Green-Ellis makes them pay. If they’re able to do that it will keep the Giants on their heels, and give Tom Brady the extra second he will need when the Patriots do pass the ball.
Lost somewhere in between Gronk’s ankle and the Patriots 31st-ranked passing yards allowed is the storyline that the Patriots are returning to the Super Bowl for the first time in four years with an almost entirely new defense.
Take a moment to think about the latest “old and slow” defense that the football pundits are talking about needing a youth movement, the Pittsburgh Steelers. How overwhelming does it seem to have a complete turnover of that defense (save one single starter) and have them back in the Super Bowl in four seasons?
That is no small undertaking when replacing players as talented on that defense, just like it was no small undertaking replacing legends like Bruschi, Harrison, Vrabel and Seymour.
The pundits love to talk about Belichick’s draft misses, and to be sure there have been plenty of them. That’s what happens when you have a ton of draft picks, you’re going to miss on some. But you’re also going to hit on some, and the Patriots have hit on enough to give Pats fans confidence that this defense is going to only get better, and will be very good for a very long time.
Ron Brace might not live up to the 2nd round pick you selected him with. But Kyle Love and Brandon Deaderick have certainly exceeded all expectations anyone had for when they were undrafted and a 7th rounder respectively.
The fearsome foursome I want to focus on are Jerod Mayo, Patrick Chung, Devin McCourty and Brandon Spikes. Now all have had their performance and injury issues over the first few years of their Patriot careers, but their style of play and temperament have become the signatures of this Patriots defense. It won’t always be perfect with them, but they never get down and they certainly never give up.
The result of Super Bowl 46 will of course be over-analyzed to death, with repercussions on the legacies of Bill Belichick and Tom Brady. But the Patriots defense, for all it’s faults and imperfections, is set up extremely well for the future and the playoff experience that the players have gotten this year will only be a booster to their development.
Not many organizations in NFL history have the kind of continuity that allows for one person in charge to oversee a complete turnover on one side of the ball. Of course it hasn’t been perfect, but returning to a Super Bowl with an almost entirely new collection of hand-picked draft picks and castoffs from other teams should certainly be a major feather in Belichick’s hoodie.