Hello Indy!!!
Instead of using defensive linemen as rushers in practice, coach Bill Belichick had much lighter players — mostly linebackers — attack the unit from all angles. They won’t replicate the size of the Giants players, such as the 6-foot-3, 255-pound Osi Umenyiora. So they focused on the speed. “We have a group of guys who have done it all week for us,” offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia said. “They’re undersized, but we just have them going as fast as they can go, just giving us the fastest tempo they can give us. That’s been a huge help.”
https://www.patspropaganda.com/patriots-giants-super-bowl-7/
When trying to describe Adams and what he does, team employees shrug. Some profiles indicate he should be 57, but he has no official biography with the team and therefore no way to check. He is in the coaches’ box during games, but no coaches or players will say whether he is the one talking to Belichick on his headset. What they do say is he dissects tape better than anyone they’ve seen; that he can see things on the field that nobody else would ever find; that he is brilliant; and that he attacks football problems for Belichick, whom he leaves his office to see two or three times a day. “I think he has a photographic memory,” O’Brien says. Others who have worked with him say the same thing. “Essentially, he is one of the people who meet with Belichick at Belichick’s level,” explains Jay Robertson, who was an assistant coach at Northwestern in the early 1970s and has remained friends with Adams since. Adams has always been a genius in that way you might read about in a book or see in a move but never believe such a person could be real. He was raised in the elite prep schools of Massachusetts: Dexter School in Brookline and Phillips Academy in Andover, and there was no limit to what fed his curiosity. But his passion was football.
Great stuff on the mystery man Ernie Adams. I think I could possibly be the only person in the world to have his autograph.
Final Pats thoughts on Super Bowl’s Eve
It still seems surreal but the Patriots will be playing in the Super Bowl tomorrow. Wow. I’ve tried to block out thoughts of what the story lines might be whether the Pats win or lose, but it will be nice to finally get on with it.
I love how the media coverage for this Super Bowl played out for the Patriots. Not many in the national media are picking them to win. Tom Brady’s shaky AFC Championship left the pundits two weeks to praise Eli Manning.
The constant Super Bowl 42 highlights were rough to watch, but for at least this week I was able to be at peace with that game. I’m sure it will be back in the vault of shame if we lose this one too.
But with all the questions and discussion of that game, and even Spygate, I have no doubt that the Patriots motivation has been nothing but fueled by this week’s media headlines.
The Patriots played it low key, and the general mood from Bill Belichick and the team was one of quiet confidence. And the Giants and New York media have just kept throwing gasoline on the flames.
I expect Gronk to play like he’s not even hurt. But if he’s a little limited I think the Pats can protect him and still have him be effective. If he’s severely limited it could really be a problem. Having Vollmer back really does help them out by taking some blocking slack from Gronk.
I think Jerod Mayo and Brandon Spikes are going to have big games for the Pats. The Giants have been vulnerable to blitzes up the middle and I think the Pats will attack them there.
The defensive line has to dominate this game, if they don’t get to Eli he will pick us apart. Mark Anderson needs to come up big. But so do Gerard Warren and Kyle Love. Of course I expect Wilfork to be his usual self, is that too presumptuous?
I am most curious to see how the Pats choose to cover Nicks, Manningham and Cruz. My guess is that they’ll spin the dial a lot and try to make it hard for Eli to know who’s covering who.
I expect the Patriots to play like they have something to prove, and it seems like the Giants are buying into their own hype a little too much. But who knows whose side the Football Gods will be on. No way to know who’s going to get the bounces and the calls and really, there’s a good chance those will determine the game.
I just hope it goes our way.
Sleep well my Patriots brethren. For tomorrow we play for a Super Bowl.
Note to self: Do NOT slack off around Jerod Mayo. The Patriots fourth-year linebacker and team captain plays hard on the field because of the upbringing he had off it. At 25 years old, Mayo is regarded as a veteran by his teammates and head coach Bill Belichick, who sang his praises at a Super Bowl media session on Wednesday. I relayed Belichick’s comments to Mayo who credited his grandfather, a former Sergeant in the Air Force, with instilling toughness and discipline in him at an early age. Mayo said he’s not afraid to give his teammates a little kick in the pants if they fall out of line. The video above is my conversation with Jerod.
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
https://www.patspropaganda.com/pepperonsports-note-to-self-do-not-slack-off/
