This is what it sounded like at Gillette as the Patriots were introduced against the Colts.
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
https://www.patspropaganda.com/this-is-what-it-sounded-like-at-gillette-as-the/
indianapolis colts
https://youtube.com/watch?v=-O_O2v1Z3wo%3Ffs%3D1%26hl%3Den_US
Don’t let the title fool you, the Pats weren’t playing the Minneapolis Colts last night. Full highlights…
(Source: http://www.youtube.com/)
https://www.patspropaganda.com/dont-let-the-title-fool-you-the-pats-werent/
More Notes on the Patriots surviving the Colts
Rewatched the short cut of the game this morning (mostly just the defense), here are a few more thoughts to pass along…
I never thought I’d say this but the Patriots need to get Jonthan Wilhite back. Patrick Chung has quickly become one of the emotional leaders of the team, but he struggles when he’s forced to be in coverage all the time. With Wilhite out Chung was relegated to, as far as I could see, entirely nickel corner responsibility. Not that Wilhite is a pro bowler but he is a better slot corner than Chung. When he comes back Chung can rotate in with Sanders and Meriweather at safety. Of course it might not have made much difference against the Colts as Meriweather and Sanders were in deep coverage most of the day and Chung excels near and around the line of scrimmage.
It looks like my one wish of next offseason, aside from no lockout, is for the Pats to re-sign Logan Mankins long term. Everyone is singing his praises, about what a difference he’s made with his leadership and nastiness. I know Dan Connolly has been really solid this season and is probably the future right guard once Neal retires, but Mankins is a special player who plays where BB values players the most, on the line.
How good has the Lawfirm been this year? And how nice was it not to have a Laurence Maroney fumble yesterday?
When you have a young defense that’s going to give up yards you can’t make mistakes. You must play solid football and that’s what the Patriots did yesterday. One turnover could’ve been the difference.
Say what you will about the Patriots defense but they were the difference in the game. The were better at stopping the run than the Colts and they forced three more turnovers. No matter what the stats say they were the better defense yesterday.
Nothing’s more annoying than a DeadlineHollywood.com-esque TOLDJA! but I have to say I was pretty dead on with my defensive game plan based on what the Pats did in 2009. Arrington was on Wayne, McCourty was on Garkon, Chung was on Collie/White. The front was indeed Cunningham- Wilfork – Wright – Banta-Cain and we saw lots of Guyton and not much Spikes. Maybe all this film study is starting to pay off.
What I didn’t see coming was the Kyle Arrington at defensive end wrinkle. Seems like BB always likes to do at least one thing to Peyton Manning that no one has seen before. Unfortunately Arrington never sacked him, and I think the Pats got a little too cute with it in the 4th quarter when the Colts just started running right at him and picked up some big yards.
Vince Wilfork has to be all-pro this year, he is an absolute beast and is a leading an excellent young defensive line that can stop the run.
I shake my head imagining how good this team would be with Bodden and Ty Warren, but I digress…
Notes on Surviving: Patriots hang on vs. Manning and Colts
There were a lot of eerie similarities between this year’s Patriots Colts match up and previous games of the rivalry. Of course lately we know a lot about blown leads. And this one came very close to being a blown lead.
But finally we also saw something ala 2003, a big defensive play to preserve the win at the last moment. Then it was Willie MacGinest’s goal line stop. This time it was James Sanders, a guy who deserves a big play as much as anyone.
Never celebrated, it was Sanders who was credited with galvanizing the 2009 defensive backfield. He’s a quiet leader. Knows his assignments and does his best to get them done. It was good to see Sanders finally come through with a clutch play, his career lacked a notable big one until he made that interception.
Though the defense gave up a whopping 78% of their third downs, they did pick off Peyton Manning three times. That’s three times more than the Colts defense picked off Tom Brady.
So yes, they looked like swiss cheese but they had less holes than the Colts and made more plays. More big plays. That is a big positive going into the final six games.
But it is still a very big question mark if this Patriots defense can shut down three good quarterbacks en route to a Super Bowl.
The good news is that the Patriots are very much vying with the Jets for the first seed in the AFC. This is a race the Pats must win because whoever finishes in second place in the division will be looking at a five seed, even though they’ll probably have the second best record in the conference.
That’s what makes it interesting when you have two teams in one division both atop the conference. I have no clue how the Jets have won the last three games. Three miracles. They’ll be confident when they come to Foxboro, they’re 5-0 on the road.
The Patriots offense is amorphous and as balanced and potent as we’ve seen. The Randy Moss offense was dynamic, but this offense is so versatile they can play with power or finesse with the same personnel grouping.
However, Brady and company did sputter at the one time you can’t sputter…the fourth quarter. All they really needed was one more decent drive to bleed the clock out and they had two chances to get it. Went three and out on both of them. Consistency is something that will be stressed this week.
Unfortunately there really isn’t much time to savor this one. Thanksgiving kickoff against the Detroit Lions is 85 hours away.
Note – the best part of this picture could be the heartbroken dude in the Reggie Wayne jersey just above the ref.
https://www.patspropaganda.com/note-the-best-part-of-this-picture-could-be-the/
Kyle Arrington the Defensive End
One thing that will be worth a close look on the rewatch is the little wrinkle of using Kyle Arrington as a pass rusher with his hand in the dirt. It’s not often you see a defensive back lined up at defensive end. It seems like BB wanted to see if Arrington could exploit the right tackles quickness. While he got close he never got to Manning. Jermain Cunningham on the other hand got just enough pressure to force Peyton into the game sealing interception. Big players make big plays at the biggest moments and that’s what Cunningham did.