Can someone more knowledgeable than I please give a position-by-position analysis of how we match up against the Patriots? Our O-line vs. their DEF and vice-versa? Our secondary compared to their WR's, etc.? Special teams? I have my own opinions but I'd like to hear from some guys who have really studied their positions and players. Is there hope for an upset? TIA.
When the Jets have the ball: F'ing Score!!!! When the Pats have the ball: Smash their f'ing heads!!!! Special teams: Uhhh, I was kinda in the bathroom Coaching: Edge Patriots......duh! Intanginbles: Did you know I park really close to Fireman Ed? Final: Jets 24 Pats 20
Here's my take as a Patriots fan.... NE's offensive line appears to be much stronger in the running game than in pass protection. Particularily at LT w/ Matt Light. Aaron Schobel just schooled him all day Sunday. (Much like Abraham did over the years). The rest of the line looked pretty solid. NE's running game is dramatically improved with a healthy trio of Dillon, rookie Lawrence Maroney, and scat back Kevin Faulk. The receiving corps is VERY thin to say the least. They're relying on Troy Brown and two other receivers who've practiced a total of 6 times between them in their Patriots' career. (Doug Gabriel and rookie Florida WR Chad Jackson). Apparently Randy Moss thinks highly of Gabriel so take that for what it's worth. Jackson was appraenlty the most impressive rookie in the mandatory camps prior to training camp, which appears to be saying something given how Maroney has looked so far. My understanding is that the Jets secondary is pretty solid so I would say that NE will only have some sucess throwing if they can establish a solid running attack forcing NY to bring 8 men in the box allowing Brady to try and expolit single coverage matchups down field with TE Ben Watson or the previosuly mentioned WR's. When the Jets have the ball: NE's front 7 is pretty stout. The front 3 of Richard Seymour, Vince Wilfork, and Ty Warren are very solid. Bruschi is expected back this week to tandem with Junior Seau in the middle. That leaves Mike Vrabel and Roosevelt Colvin on the outside. If that group is healthy on the field, I'd be hard pressed to ID a better front 7 in the entire league. The secondary is led by Rodney Harrison and Eugen Wilson at safety with emerging 2nd year corner Ellis Hobbs (completely neutralized Lee Evans on sunday) and Asante Samuel at left and right corner. I think the Jets receivers pose a strong test for that secondary. However I don't think that's really the key for the Jets passing game. If the front 7 can neutralize the run, it will be up to them to force NY into passing situations and pressure Chad. I see the Patriots employing the bend, don't break approach this week. I wouldn't be surprised to see the Jets move the ball down field witha lot of 6 and 7 yard completions. The game will hinge on which team's offense can excecute in the red zone. I think the kicking game is a wash. NE covered kicks against Buffalo very well last week. I think the coaching matchups are going to be somewhat of a wash as well. Mangini and Belichick know each other very well. Belichick also gameplanned against Schotenheimer's O last year when he was with San Diego so he's got some familiarity there. I think if the Jets play a perfect game and play mistake free football, it could be an exciting game. If NE gets out to a lead early than it could be a very long day for Chad.
theres definitely hope for an upset, but its going to take perfect execution. IMO their best players happen to be their 3 DL. and obviously Rodney Harrison. CB's Samuels and Gay are pretty good but using 3 or 4 recievers (whether the 4th is a WR or TE) will show their lack of depth and open things up. Roosevelt Colvin is a good pass rusher in their scheme, I would expect them to test Mangold and Ferguson with various twists and stunts while sending Colvin after Penny. If Chad can take advantage of what I expect to be a Zone coverage featuring a banged up Bruschi and a ancient Seau in the middle, itll help. That of course will only work if Chad is mistake free, since other DB's will be looking to jump his routes. Our D will have to shut down the run. cause you always need to count Brady in for a big day although none of their recievers appear too good for our DB's Thomas and Hobson will be tested in pass pro against NE's TE's (especially Watson.) I say if we win the TO battle, and we can slow down their running game. we win. easier said than done though.
Thanks for the input so far, fellas. Sounds like I can get through this with enough self-medication beforehand. Any other thoughts?
dude they have tom brady this guy has a rocket arm he can zip a pass anywhere, i think there gonna get alot of big plays
dude, we have Chad Pennington, he has a noodle arm and can't really zip a pass anywhere, but he's a hell of a lot smarter and will be floating passes over the defenses head into Jerricho Cotchery's hands all day, and then banging Tom Brady's sister on the sidelines when the defense is on the field.
I have a good feeling about this weekend for some wierd reason. The Pats did not look like the Pats that we go to war with every year last weekend. The smart money never bets against Bill B, but I still have the feeling that we might win this one if Chad plays like he did this past weekend.
The Pats games always come down to their front 7 completly blowing up our OL, our running game and Chad. We are going to be in a lot of 2 TE formations. Baker getting out and making plays is going to be a key to our ability to score points. If we can loosen up the front 7 we have a shot. Until we prove we can I don't think we really do. I think we can cover their WR, I think they are going to kill us with the running game.
I wouldn't say the smart money 'never' bets against the Pats. He loses games, and they haven't won the SB EVERY year he's been there. We kinda knocked them out in 02 and the smart money was on Denver in the playoffs last year. I think Reche Caldwell is their # 2 receiver now. Lets smack em in the mouth and see what happens. The crowd is going to be crazy Sunday at 4. Ugh....4.
Brady is not indestructible and we've all seen him make mistakes when pressured. It takes a lot to get him flustered but it's been done. Problem is, I'm not sure we can bring enough pressure. Our defensive players are going to have to be wild men out there for 60 minutes. They can cover the WR's, I'm pretty sure of that, and if he insists on going to them often he'll get burned by Dyson, Miller, Rhodes et al. So it's the running game for them... early and often. I'm expecting a very low-scoring game for the first several quarters while both coaches explore the weaknesses. But I didn't like the way the Titans were able to move the chains at will last Sunday... probably the most disappointing part of the game for me. Even after we knocked the starch out of them with the Coles and Baker plays in the 4th quarter with only 3 minutes left, our DEF still allowed them to march it down the field and they came damned close to tying the game up at 23-23. As certain as I'm posting here, Belichick is watching game film of that right now as we speak and going over every play with Brady and the offense, determining the best avenues of attack. So whatever the Titans did to us Sunday to move the ball, expect huge doses of it this weekend. And those were the Titans, not the Patriots. Offensively, if we can run the ball we have a chance. This is very important. I think Barlow needs to remind us of why we traded for him this Sunday. The O-line needs to continue blocking well and he needs to hit those cracks with as much authority as he's ever had. This is a huge day for Barlow... it may even make or break his entire career. I don't see Blaylock getting much and Barlow has the size to get the yards, so it'll be all up to Barlow. Fumbling is out of the question. If we can do this as a base, it opens the doors for other possibilities... even tricky, Brad Smith-type stuff. I do think our receivers can catch balls on the Pats and make them sweat, but if we don't establish some sort of ground game, Belichick will pounce on that like a kitten on catnip and force Chad to pass under extreme duress, which has never been pretty. Our wideouts are fresh off a confidence-builder in Tennessee. They should all feel good about themselves and have a high confidence level, especially if the crowd is really into it. On Special Teams, I'm confident Graham will give it his best, but we're going to need Nugent to lose whatever the hell was going on last Sunday and get well beyond it. We'll be fortunate to get the ball to the 30 for him and he HAS TO have a big day for us. We can't leave any points on the table on Sunday. I am talking 4 FG's, minimum. And no misses. Aside from all that, we have a shot. If I were Mangini, I'd tell the team I'm proud of every one of them and the way they played in Tennessee. I'd tell them to watch the penalties foremost and aside from that, go out and be loose, play loose and have a good time. Remind them we're the underdogs in our own stadium and if we're going to lose, we're going to lose fighting and playing well as a unit.
The Pats had one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL last year. So, most of their efforts have been to fix that problem. I expect a lot of plays that take advantage of any unbalanced defense from differences in their pass and run coverage. The transition areas are probably most sensitive. Probably a big day for Baker and Barlow.
That is a pretty darn good analysis coming from a Pats fan. Thanks for the good, somewhat non-homeristic, post!
The pats we play sunday are NOT the pats of old. The 'old pats' hung in and won most of their games with late cluch field goals, even in the playoffs and SB's. They are not a scoring machine, never have been. They are a solid, well coached, blue collar team (more like the Giants of old). You beat the Pats by matching their mistake free football and don't turn the ball over. When playing the Pats the most you can hope for is keeping the game close into the 4th quater. Their running game is better than ours, even though we have a better OL and our running game will be much better later on. Our passing game (protection and recievers) is better than theirs. They will run for more yards, we will pass for more yards. This will be a close game. The 5 1/2 point spread is too big, with the Jets playing at home. This game will be won or lost by 2 or 3 points max. Jets 24 NE 23
Anyone who thinks after this past Sunday that we will automatically win this week are crazy. We still have a long way to go. Let's just hope we can stay in the game against the Pats this time. That will be a victory in and of itself.
I don't think anyone said we will automatically win. However, the Jets and Pats looked like pretty even teams this weekend.
Here's my analysis: The Pats are a much better all-around team, but that doesnt mean its an easy victory for them. Maroney is a stud, straight up stud and the NE O-line is significantly upgraded, our Run D had better step it up this week big time. While we know Brady is Brady and can pick you apart, I think it would be wise to pack the box with 8 or 9 guys to stop the Pats run game and take our chances with their weak(er) recieving core. Offensively we must establish some sort of running game, which is easier said than done. We should continue the short passing across the middle darts that we threw last week. Bruschi and Seau, while good LB's are slowing down and it would be wise to throw across the middle towards them. Of course New England will gameplan like they always have against Chad and force him to try and throw deep 15-20yd outs, something that's been his weakness. If we can establish a fairly decent ground game, it will open up the middle a little for our passing game; if we can't, Pennington is going to forced into making those deep sideline outs, and the Pats corners will jump on them, making it a LONG day. Something I think we have going for us is the fact that Mangini knows Belicheck and the New England team so well. He knows what kind of gameplan they will throw at us, and the ways they've hid their weaknesses over the years. On the flip side, Mangini may have been Belicheck's right hand man all those years, but Bill might not know what to expect with the kid running his own show. That's sort of an advantage we have is that our CS is an enigma, and we should try and take advantage of that by throwing a few curveballs at Belicheck. (this is where brad smith comes in)
