What began as a great week for Pats Nation featuring a massive win at the Meadowlands obviously took a spin for the worst with the news #87 needs back surgery. Let’s get to that a little later and kick off with some good news first. I genuinely don’t care what their record is, who their quarterback is, or how they played the week before. The New York Jets cannot be underestimated and far more times than not, the matches between the Pats and their bitter rivals turn out to be a single possession grind it out bar fight. Although ugly at times, and not without its cons (Gronk, Gostkowski missing yet another field goal, Brady limping all over the field…), it was a well earned win and one the team, coaching staff, and fan base can collectively feel good about. The defense turned the ball over in huge spots, Brady was his surgical self when it mattered most, and Revis was put on not one, but two posters (game winner below).
Let’s stay on #24, who must have known this time around, it’d be no fun because the rabbit had the gun. Bill Speros (All 22), fondly known as “The Obnoxious Boston Fan” by his loyal twitter following, wrote on the Patriots/Revis fallout following his departure from the team and how Sunday turned into closure of some sort:
That’s the sort of thing you might hear at someone’s retirement ceremony. Or their wake. And one wouldn’t blame Brady for thinking Revis’ best days are buried in You Tube. A former All-Pro and future Hall of Fame selection, Revis has been bludgeoned by just about every receiver he’s lined up against this season. Two weeks ago, Revis explained his woes this season by saying, “I’m old.” Revis is 31. Brady turns 40 in August.
Speros pulls no punches, and you just have to love it. Looking forward to seeing Revis again in a couple weeks. The way this year has gone for the former all-pro corner, it could be the last time #12 and #24 square off.
Let’s stick with the good news vibe here until we absolutely have to cross the Gronk bridge. If I had told you last year that Marcus Cannon would settle in to be a really truly solid starting right tackle, you’d have told me to stop spending my days at Ricky Williams’ gym and my nights at Alan Branch’s penthouse. Well, he has, and he has also been healthily rewarded for it with a 5 year, 32.5 million dollar pact (14.5 guaranteed). What a story (Mike Reiss, ESPN). The morning of the agreement, like Nostradamus himself, PatsPropaganda’s very own Sam Hollister took a look at the improvements Cannon has made which led to this deal. Sam writes:
Last season, Pro Football Focus ranked 67th out of 82 eligible offensive tackles in the NFL with a 43.0 overall grade, the worst of his career… At times last year, it looked as if Cannon was a rookie just learning the position, not a fifth-year vet who has spent his entire career in New England. Cannon’s performance last season only makes his play this season even more remarkable; PFF (Pro Football Focus) ranks him 17th out of 80 eligible tackles this season, tied with Solder. His grade, 83.0, is nearly double his grade from 2015.
In other words, if you’re not on board with this, get on board. It’s a mutually beneficial deal and by no means restricts the Pats from locking up any of their other priority free agents (Hightower, Butler, Bennett, etc.).
Moving along here with a really cool piece from MMQB’s Tim Rohan, who takes us on a tour of Matt Patricia’s career and gives us a glimpse into Bill Belichick’s process:
Belichick likes hiring assistants young because they have a “clean mind,” says Mike Judge, a former Patriots coaching assistant, and Belichick can program them to think the way he wants. Josh McDaniels was selling plastics in Cleveland when Belichick hired him. Bill O’Brien had no NFL experience and was the offensive coordinator on Duke team that had just gone 0-12. Eric Mangini was a Browns ball boy and public relations assistant.
This was a really strong piece. In a year that Patricia has gotten more criticism than he’s used to, it’s very relevant. I’d be the first to tell you the defense has underperformed thus far this year, and the questions raised about Matty P have been legitimate ones, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that the guy is a very talented coach. Another bit:
With Patricia in his ear, (Jerod) Mayo found most of what he said came true. “It was like having a cheat sheet for the exam,” Mayo says. “Like having the answers for the test.”
Don’t take that statement too literally, Patriot haters, wouldn’t want you to lose anymore sleep over .000003% air in a football. The Pats’ defense can answer the call over the last few months of the regular season, and I have faith Big Matt will put them in a position to do so, starting this week against rookie #1 overall pick Jared Goff and the Rams.
I’m not going to spend too much time on LA because there’s only one team that can beat the Pats this Sunday, and thats themselves, but the Jim Thomas (St. Louis Dispatch) column linked above gives us a glance at this weekend’s competition from an insider:
The Saints scored touchdowns on seven of 13 possessions against the Rams. If you count the late collapse a week earlier against Miami, that’s nine touchdowns allowed in the last 15 series for the Rams’ defense. That’s not what elite defenses do.
It certainly doesn’t sound like it. Talented players clearly haven’t formulated into an effective unit for LA, on either side of the ball. Other than a few flashes from the big names (Donald, Gurley, etc.), on paper, this one has the makings of an all New England show.
Well, we’re 960 words into this and I still haven’t gotten to the most critical story of the week/month/season. Rob Gronkowski has gone under the knife. Again.
Just terrible, terrible news. Yes, it’s bad for the Patriots. Yes, it puts a dent into the odds this year. But at this point for Rob, it’s bigger than that. This is devastating for the game of football. The greatest tight end to have ever played can’t stay on the field and it’s truly a shame. The injuries (read: surgeries) are really starting to alarmingly pile up now, and at some point Gronk is going to have to do whats best for him. For now, all we can do is wish a safe and speedy recovery for the big fella, but I wouldn’t expect to see him again this season. As far as on the field impact? There’s no replacing Gronk, but looking down the depth chart and finding a guy like Marty Bennett staring back at you has to provide some sort of silver lining. Plus, Dion is back, Mitchell is emerging, the running game has held its own, and that guy Brady isn’t bad either. Robert Mays (The Ringer) wrote on Gronk here:
In Gronk’s absence, Brady can throw to Lewis, fellow running back James White, tight end Martellus Bennett, and his stable of receivers. Bennett isn’t the vertical weapon that Gronk is, but he’s still among the best pass-catching tight ends in football. Any offense will be hampered without a true big-play threat, but a Patriots unit that features a combination of space-exploiting talent and Brady is well-equipped to stay afloat without one.
Agreed. My bigger concerns are still on the other side of the ball. But we’ll see how it plays out.
To wrap up this week, I highly recommend Antrel Rolle’s Players Tribune piece “Five Lessons From a Life In Football”. Antrel took us from his childhood, to his college days, to his NFL days, all the way into retirement. It was a phenomenal read, done partly in tribute to his college teammate and friend Sean Taylor (RIP), whom he spoke about at length in the article. Brilliant stuff. The good, the bad, the ugly, the rollercoaster that is football. Antrel concludes with:
My son is one of the biggest reasons I am at peace with leaving the game. I can still run with any guy on the field, but I want to make sure I can do that for a long period of time. I want to be able to exhaust myself with my son, and throw myself into his life and be a great father. That doesn’t mean you’re going to see me out on the football field running around with my son. Nope. My son’s playing baseball. Dad’s taken enough punishment for the both of us.
Damn. Powerful stuff. The Players Tribune is a tremendous concept, especially when the players reflect on a personal level like this. Truly recommend checking it out.
In the meantime, we’re onto LA. Next man up. See you next week.