The 2013 New England Patriots

[walrus]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

It's funny ... Belichick made his bones a LONG time ago with a lot of help from Lawrence Taylor, and his early success in New England was largely due to a better-than-average defense with smart playmakers all over the place. Then at some point, it seems like he fell in love with a "fantasy football" offense-first mindset, and the playoff success they .

I think most of us have been whining about the D for years and this year I was hoping the D was going to be decent and then all the injuries happened. So then the only hope was outscoring teams. When Edelman is your best receiver you don't have a lot of options. D backs and D linemen are still needed but a real wide receiver taller than a smurf is needed also.
No AFC team was beating that D yesterday, they were awesome. never seen tackling like that, completed pass and then get hit instantly for a few yds. Against an AFC team they get a first down.

 

[whatever]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

How much for those Seahawks secondaries in the window?

 

[Rover]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

As I said in the SB thread, Seattle's D wasn't doing anything special. They have great speed, and the secondary actually watched the freakin' ball. Whoever coaches the Pats secondary should be fired. Manning was trying to do the same thing against the Seahawks, but his receivers were getting jammed at the line, the crossing patterns were well covered, and the corners play man coverage instead of the ridiculous zone that always gets burned. The Patriots team, when healthy, is going to return a ton of talent on D (Wilfork, Jones, Nikovich, Talib, McCourty, Collins, Hightower and Mayo). In coverage however aside from Talib and perhaps Collins the LB, CB's and S's have a terrible technique that gets them burned regularly. Pretty bad when Pete Carroll has coaching figured out better than you do.

 

[Chuck Murray]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

As I said in the SB thread, Seattle's D wasn't doing anything special. They have great speed, and the secondary actually watched the freakin' ball. Whoever coaches the Pats secondary should be fired. Manning was trying to do the same thing against the Seahawks, but his receivers were getting jammed at the line, the crossing patterns were well covered, and the corners play man coverage instead of the ridiculous zone that always gets burned. The Patriots team, when healthy, is going to return a ton of talent on D (Wilfork, Jones, Nikovich, Talib, McCourty, Collins, Hightower and Mayo). In coverage however aside from Talib and perhaps Collins the LB, CB's and S's have a terrible technique that gets them burned regularly. Pretty bad when Pete Carroll has coaching figured out better than you do.

I'm not sure Wilfork can be counted on to play at his previous level. That's a tough injury - especially for his position and his age.

How is it the secondary has such poor basic technique, with a head coach who was formerly regarded as a "defensive genius"?

 

[Rover]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

I'm not sure Wilfork can be counted on to play at his previous level. That's a tough injury - especially for his position and his age.

How is it the secondary has such poor basic technique, with a head coach who was formerly regarded as a "defensive genius"?

I have no idea, and to your comments its amazing Belichick never gets called to account on this. Watching last night I couldn't help but recall that floater that Manning launched over Arrington's helmet on a 3rd down where if he turned around he had a sure pick but instead got a nice view of the receiver converting a 1st down. Against Seattle that would have gone the other way for 6 (and in some ways it did ). McCourty and Gregory are also guilty of this on a weekly basis, as well as Hightower although I'm not going to hang a LB too much for that as coverage isn't his main duty (and with Collins' emergence hopefully he won't be going it much anymore).

 

[mookie1995]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

Can we now look at bellicheats SB victories with a slanted view?
Those were primarily Pete's players (and bobby grier's) along with a bat**** lucky 6th rd pick Brady who managed the offense better than Drew!

Once all the Grier/Pete guys left bellicheat hasn't been able to win.

It's not the videotape!!!! It's just that bellicheat can't pick players!!

 

[rufus]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

they were awesome. never seen tackling like that, completed pass and then get hit instantly for a few yds. Against an AFC team they get a first down.

That's the thing, they were swarming all over the field; to use a hockey terminology, they weren't giving them time and space to do anything. And when they hit someone, they tackled. How many missed tackles have we seen from the Pats defense over the last five or so years, and from the Broncos yesterday. Seattle was just better at basic defensive fundamentals, get to the ball and tackle.

 

[walrus]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

Can we now look at bellicheats SB victories with a slanted view?
Those were primarily Pete's players (and bobby grier's) along with a bat**** lucky 6th rd pick Brady who managed the offense better than Drew!

Once all the Grier/Pete guys left bellicheat hasn't been able to win.

It's not the videotape!!!! It's just that bellicheat can't pick players!!

The talking heads are all over Carrolls ability to pick players so their maybe something to it. I know Belichek hasn't picked to many good ones lately, although he has gotten some decent D the last few years, before that it was horrible.

 

[Scarlet]

Can we now look at bellicheats SB victories with a slanted view?
Those were primarily Pete's players (and bobby grier's) along with a bat**** lucky 6th rd pick Brady who managed the offense better than Drew!

Once all the Grier/Pete guys left bellicheat hasn't been able to win.

It's not the videotape!!!! It's just that bellicheat can't pick players!!

So if that is true, you can stop it with the bellicheat nickname!

 

[Rover]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

The talking heads are all over Carrolls ability to pick players so their maybe something to it. I know Belichek hasn't picked to many good ones lately, although he has gotten some decent D the last few years, before that it was horrible.

Is Carroll GM too? If so that explains things, as I never thought he was a good NFL coach (nice guy though, nothing against him). However, if he's really good at drafting he doesn't have to be a good coach, just stay out of the way once they hit the field! This is also known as pulling a "Shanahan" after Denver's super bowl winning coach of the late 90's.

 

[walrus]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

Is Carroll GM too? If so that explains things, as I never thought he was a good NFL coach (nice guy though, nothing against him). However, if he's really good at drafting he doesn't have to be a good coach, just stay out of the way once they hit the field! This is also known as pulling a "Shanahan" after Denver's super bowl winning coach of the late 90's.

I don't know if he is GM, I don't think so. Either way I'd assume he has some say in personnel.

 

[Rover]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

Is anybody else worried that Belichick is going senile? Unless they plan on landing Revis losing Talib, to the Broncos no less, is a disaster. If he trots out a secondary of Dennard, McCourty, Arrington, and Ryan, 4 guys who still haven't learned to turn around and look for the ball even if a receiver is out of running room at the back of the endzone, I'm going to find something else to do with my Sundays because there's no way they even make the AFC championship game with a crappy secondary. You would think after 10 years Belichick would realize that, but maybe not.

 

[walrus]

Not shocked Talib is gone, what makes it interesting is he goes to Denver

 

[BCeagle]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

Is anybody else worried that Belichick is going senile? Unless they plan on landing Revis losing Talib, to the Broncos no less, is a disaster. If he trots out a secondary of Dennard, McCourty, Arrington, and Ryan, 4 guys who still haven't learned to turn around and look for the ball even if a receiver is out of running room at the back of the endzone, I'm going to find something else to do with my Sundays because there's no way they even make the AFC championship game with a crappy secondary. You would think after 10 years Belichick would realize that, but maybe not.

Not surprised anymore with the Krafts and BB. They use excuses not to sign or resign players to make the team better. They are only looking at the profit margin and don't care about winning the SB or the fans as long we fans keep packing the stadium. They will put a spin that they tried to sign a player or something about value for their picks when trading down. Signing Amendola to make damage control after losing Welker for stupid reasons was something everyone knew was bad because DA was injury prone and proved it this past season. They come up with excuse after excuse and it's getting old around Foxboro.

 

[rufus]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

Starting to look like the old days when Grier was GM.

 

[walrus]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

I guess the contract Talib signed was pretty sweet for Talib not so sure it was good for the Broncos. I doubt Talib is healthy by the playoffs but we'll see on that. Belichak may be a great game coach but he sucks as a GM make player decisions.

 

[Rover]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

I guess the contract Talib signed was pretty sweet for Talib not so sure it was good for the Broncos. I doubt Talib is healthy by the playoffs but we'll see on that. Belichak may be a great game coach but he sucks as a GM make player decisions.

Broncos are doing the right thing trying to win now. Yes they will suck in 2 years when Manning retires and the cap blows up on them but if they win a title who cares? With a top draft pick at QB they can then re-assemble their team much like the Colts have.

I think its time Kraft took away the GM keys from Belichick. Agreed that he's a great coach but he hasn't made good offseason moves since 2007. I can easily see him singing nobody at CB and then claiming he'll fill the position via the draft.

 

[CLS]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

Broncos are doing the right thing trying to win now. Yes they will suck in 2 years when Manning retires and the cap blows up on them but if they win a title who cares? With a top draft pick at QB they can then re-assemble their team much like the Colts have.

...

or they could mire in mediocrity like the 'Boys or 'Skins or in awfulness like the Raiders. And I wouldn't call the Colts a completed project yet. With the way the NFL schedule is set up, it's not hard for a crappy team to get respectable, and "respectable" is what I'd call the Colts at this point. It's hard to get from respectable to really good.

I hate to sound like an apologist, but until the Broncos have actually done something other than get to the SB and get trashed, I'd say their approach is different (and riskier) but not better.

 

[Rover]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

or they could mire in mediocrity like the 'Boys or 'Skins or in awfulness like the Raiders. And I wouldn't call the Colts a completed project yet. With the way the NFL schedule is set up, it's not hard for a crappy team to get respectable, and "respectable" is what I'd call the Colts at this point. It's hard to get from respectable to really good.

I hate to sound like an apologist, but until the Broncos have actually done something other than get to the SB and get trashed, I'd say their approach is different (and riskier) but not better.

That would be all well and good if we hadn't gone 10 years without a Super Bowl. Fact is, if they don't beef up that corner position they are screwed 6 ways to Sunday. They're going to get picked apart against any decent QB. Belichick gets a D in his drafts for the secondary. I just don't see him finding one in the 7th round after he drafts 3 more TE's with his higher picks.

Sign Revis and Jared Allen and this team has improved. Do nothing but bring on scrap heap guys and its a lost season.

 

[Priceless]

Re: The 2013 New England Patriots

Revis has been cut. The Patriots just cut some guy I had never heard of, but then Mike Giardi told me this:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p><a href="https://twitter.com/blackbear93">@blackbear93</a> saves you 3 million</p>— Michael Giardi (@MikeGiardi) <a href="https://twitter.com/MikeGiardi/statuses/443833239216873472">March 12, 2014</a></blockquote>

So the Patriots might be clearing space for Revis....

If he comes to New England, there is a petition ready to go to change the name of Nantucket to "Revis Island"