PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

Mike Dussault

Patriots Gameplan: Super Bowl 53 vs. Los Angeles Rams

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It’s hard to believe we’re back once again in the Super Bowl. That this Patriots Dynasty thing is still going strong. I’m not sure when I’ll ever be able to wrap my head around it, but for now, I’m just trying to savor every moment.

I took a look back at my Seahawks, Falcons and Eagles Super Bowl gameplans and there is plenty to glean from those and how the games ultimately unfolded. The Patriots’ slow starts, the miraculous plays on both sides and that final key clutch play needed to win it.

It’s hard to really boil things down to their simplest elements needed to win this kind of game. That’s what Bill Belichick excels at, finding just a handful of points to focus on and often when they get out I’m excited to see that I wasn’t too far off with these gameplans I’ve been writing as a permanent feature of the blog since 2014.

How do the Rams stack up to the three most recent Super Bowl matchups? They certainly have an exciting young coach and a collection of new and old talented players needed to win the game. We search for common threads in the Patriots’ Super Bowls, but it has always just boiled down to the final few plays in the final five minutes that decide who wins.

They were down 10 points in the fourth quarter to the Seahawks. They were down 28-3 to the Falcons in the third quarter. They were a fourth down stop away from beating the Eagles last year. What’s clear is these games are a seesaw and the Patriots excel at staying the course no matter how bleak it looks.

With two weeks of buildup there’s been plenty of dissection going on and now it’s time to jump in with my gameplan! Let’s Go!

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Belichick Super Bowl 53 Hoodie Prediction

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Last year I felt like I failed Patriots Nation. The only truly important part of my illustrious blogging career is tracking Bill Belichick’s hoodies and knowing which ones he should wear in the biggest games.

For Super Bowl 52 I failed to see the biggest factor for Belichick and his hoodies in the biggest game of all. It was just sitting there staring me in the face and had I alerted Belichick via his ladyfriend Linda Holliday of this factor we might be sitting with six rings already.

For a coach known for cutting off his sleeves, it’s actually the common thread in the three Super Bowl losses. How did I miss it? There’s no excuse.

So here we are, on the verge of another Super Bowl and I’ve been #blessed with another chance to redeem myself with a simple disclaimer — DON’T CUT THE SLEEVES!!

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5 Matchups to Define Super Bowl 53

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The Patriots have no shortage of old Super Bowl matchups to go back and consider when looking at the Los Angeles Rams and what might make the difference in Super Bowl 53.

Eight Super Bowls, all of which really could’ve gone either way. But here the Pats are at 5-3 in those tight games. What a stressful rollercoaster they’ve all been!

Many are hoping that this one won’t take another year off their lives, but really, the Patriots gift to the NFL has been this thrilling games that are a far departure from some of the blowouts of the 80’s and 90’s.

Since 2000, the average margin of victory in a Patriots Super Bowl? 4.25 points. The other 10 they didn’t play in? 15.3 including blowouts of 35 (2013, Hi Peyton), and 27 (twice, 2000 and 2002). Just three of those 10 were a single digit margin of victory.

No one will cry for us, but that kind stress has added up over the years and probably why I feel pre-nauseous already. I can’t help but assume this one will be close too and that it will be decided in five key matchups.

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Couture Belichick Hoodies For All at Super Bowl 53 Opening Night

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I’m still in shock that last night many of the Patriots and Rams players and coaches were put into what could only be described as Belichick Fashion Hoodies for opening night.

There’s just no other explanation and it feels like one weird troll job by the NFL where they’re tipping the hat to Belichick. The short sleeves. The gray. The floppy hood up top. Who else has ever worn anything close to this style of sweatshirt? Where? Ever?

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Pats Posits: Super Bowl Week LFG

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After eight Super Bowl trips the New England Patriots have had their fair share of all kinds of Super Bowl bye week intrigue. The first time around against the Rams they were the scrappy backup QB underdogs, facing a mighty passing attack that was looking for a second Super Bowl.

It was supposed to be the birth of the Rams dynasty, instead it was the birth of the Patriots’. And here we are, 18 years later, after Spygate, Deflategate, TB12gate and every other little gate in between, once again in the only game that truly counts when you’re a dynasty.

Now we’re debating how good the AFC East has been over the last two decades and whether or not Julian Edelman is a hall of famer. I’ll take that over Super Bowls 42 or 49 bye week intrigue any time.

I always try to look at each year in and of itself. That’s what Bill Belichick does. With the benefit of hindsight it’s easy to look back and connect common threads between these individual teams.

The 2018 Patriots have some of the very best of them — a tough, resilient football team that plays hard together. They’ve made the clutch plays. And they’re another in a long list of fully functional football machines.

Did they suck on the road this year? Yup. But were they also one of the most balanced and fundamentally sound teams of the Belichick era at home? Definitely.

That home team has showed up twice in the playoffs against two very good teams. Hate them all you want, but the Patriots proved their doubters wrong by following the path of the 2001 and 2004 teams, teams that won the AFC Championship on the road against a favored opponent, redeeming their in-season stumbles.

Because they sucked so badly on the road this year made it doubly satisfying, especially against such a talented team who had haunted them a couple times in recent history.

Let’s hop into a bunch of Posits on some of the key storylines.

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Super Bowl 53 Early Scouting Report: Los Angeles Rams

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I couldn’t help but jump into some Rams research this morning, as much as I’d like to bask in the glow of the win in Kansas City forever. With just one opponent left to beat there is total clarity and the Rams were just sitting there waiting for me.

Yes, Jared Goff has that certain nothing that Eli and Foles had, but what is more scary is the Rams have the kind of interior defensive line those Giants and Eagles teams did.

Aaron Donald and Ndamukong Suh are easy nightmare fuel for a pocket passer like Tom Brady. Add a fast and aggressive defense around them and this Rams has all the pieces needed to slow down the Patriots attack.

Let’s dive into some other initial impressions of the Rams.

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