PKChallenge NY JETS vs NE Patriots Game Preview and keys to the game

Discussion in 'Game Threads' started by PMCRW, Sep 7, 2007.

  1. PMCRW

    PMCRW New Member

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    Peter's Picks Peter Says: New England 23, New York 16 The Fans Say: New England (87%)

    The GM Certified Injury Report New England
    No injuries to report
    New York
    No injuries to report

    Sports Illustrated's Game Preview
    Posted: Wednesday September, 2007 01:53PM, Updated: Wednesday September, 2007 01:53PM

    The New England Patriots had a successful offseason. It's now time for them to translate that success to the field.

    Opening the season with perhaps the highest expectations of the Tom Brady-Bill Belichick era, the Patriots face a tough test Sunday when they visit the AFC East rival New York Jets.

    This game is a rematch of an AFC wild-card playoff matchup from Jan. 7, won 37-16 by the Patriots at Foxborough. Brady passed for 212 yards and two touchdowns while improving to 6-0 during his career in home playoff games - all of them coached by Belichick.

    The Patriots - who went 12-4 to win their fourth straight AFC East title - advanced to the AFC championship game at Indianapolis, where they let a 21-3 lead slip away en route to a 38-34 defeat.

    After the loss, New England spent the offseason aggressively retooling its roster. To bolster an aging linebacking corps, the Patriots signed two-time Pro Bowler Adalius Thomas away from Baltimore.

    To provide Brady with the reliable targets he lacked in 2006, New England signed wide receivers Donte' Stallworth from Philadelphia and Wes Welker from Miami, and acquired former All-Pro Randy Moss from Oakland for a fourth-round draft pick.

    The flurry of moves has made New England a popular pick to win its fourth Super Bowl in seven years, but the Patriots are trying their best to ignore their press clippings.

    "The amateurs do all the picking,'' said Thomas, who had a career-high 11 sacks last season. "Pros just come and prepare for work.''

    Coming off a 2006 season in which he caught 42 passes for 553 yards - both career lows - for the Raiders, Moss missed all four preseason games with a hamstring injury. He returned to practice Monday, though, and hopes to play against the Jets.

    Moss, Stallworth and Welker are the projected starters at wideout, with former Bengal Kelley Washington and the returning Jabar Gaffney also on the active roster.

    On the ground, running back Laurence Maroney will be expected to carry a heavier load. Maroney rushed for 745 yards and six touchdowns as a rookie in 2006, while splitting carries with the now-retired Corey Dillon.

    "Being a very physical back like Corey is definitely not a part of my game,'' Maroney said. "I'm looking for the best route to get around you. If I can outrun you that's what I'm going to do. If I can put a move on you that's what I'm going to do. If all else fails and I've got to drop the shoulder, that's what I'll do.''

    New England's revamped offense may need to find its form quickly, as the defense will open the season without two important parts. Safety Rodney Harrison is suspended for the first four games after violating the league's substance abuse policy, and Pro Bowl defensive lineman Richard Seymour is on the physically unable to perform list due to knee problems and will miss at least the first six weeks.

    The Jets are looking to build on a surprising 2006, in which they improved from a 4-12 record the previous season to go 10-6 and reach the playoffs in Eric Mangini's first season as coach.

    Mangini - a former Belichick assistant in New England - is downplaying that success in a manner similar to his mentor.

    "Each year is its own entity,'' Mangini said. "You have to do the same things every camp, every step of the way, to achieve the same level that you did. Prior results don't predict future results, kind of like the stock market.

    "Every season, there are teams that were disappointing that suddenly had very good seasons and teams that expectations were high for that didn't. You see it year in and year out.''

    New York lacked a clear No. 1 running back in 2006, and sought to remedy that by acquiring Thomas Jones from Chicago and signing him to a four-year contract. Jones rushed for 2,545 yards over the last two years for the Bears, whom he helped reach the Super Bowl last season.

    "This is a totally different team, totally different situation,'' Jones said. "I'm the type of person to just play football. I don't get too much into people's personalities and how people coach. I just do what I'm asked to do.''

    A strained calf hampered Jones for much of training camp, but he's expected to be ready for the season opener. He'll seek to diversify an offense led by quarterback Chad Pennington, who earned comeback player of the year honors in 2006 by throwing for a career-high 3,352 yards - more than 2,000 of them to wideouts Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery.

    The Jets, who allowed 14 points or fewer in seven of their last eight regular season games in 2007, drafted cornerback Darrelle Revis with the 14th overall selection. New York hopes he can improve a secondary that includes safety Kerry Rhodes, who had four interceptions, 92 tackles and five sacks last year.

    Including postseason, New York has lost eight of its last nine meetings with New England. The lone Jets victory in that span was a 17-14 win at Foxborough on Nov. 12.

    The Patriots have won six consecutive road games against the Jets - spanning Brady's entire career as starter - by a combined 160-84.

    New England is looking to win its fourth straight season opener.

    Patriots at Jets
    NEW ENGLAND'S GAME PLAN

    1. Spread the Jets out. Tom Brady is one of the best in the business when working out of the spread set, and this week the Patriots should use the formation extensively. The Patriots quartet of Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Donte Stallworth and TE Benjamin Watson have a decided advantage over the Jets' secondary.

    2. Run the ball in the Red Zone. The Patriots will move the ball by using the spread formation, but they also have to be successful running Laurence Maroney between the tackles to score touchdowns in the red zone.

    3. Stop Thomas Jones. The Jets brought in Thomas Jones to give them a presence in the running game and alleviate some of the pressure on Chad Pennington. The Patriots have to take Jones out of the picture by using a combination of run dogs and eight-man looks to take away his running lanes. Expect to see Tedy Bruschi and Adalius Thomas attacking the "A" gaps on first down.

    NEW YORK'S GAME PLAN

    1. Use the no-huddle offense. The Jets have tinkered with the no-huddle in the past, but this week would be a great time to use it extensively. The no-huddle would add some juice to an offense that has struggled during the preseason and force the Patriots to stay simple on defense. Facing a simplified defense would make it easier for Pennington and the offense to find their rhythm.

    2. Avoid Asante Samuel. The star corner has a penchant for making interceptions and game-changing plays. The Jets should attack Tory James or Randall Gay on the other side. They're susceptible to double moves.

    3. Bend, but don't break. The Jets will see a lot of three- and four-receiver sets and should counter by sitting in zone coverage, forcing Brady to settle for underneath throws. If the Jets tackle well and don't give up a lot of yards after the catch, they can win with this patient strategy.
     
  2. MayoGate

    MayoGate Active Member

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    WTF??? Not Cool.. :rofl2:
     
  3. PMCRW

    PMCRW New Member

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    how i missed that, i will never know....:lol:
     
  4. winstonbiggs

    winstonbiggs 2008/2009 TGG Bill Parcells "Most Respected" Award

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    Pray for rain and a Wet field. Put Brady on his back and hope when Chad throws up prayers all day that Coles and Cotch continue to out wrestle the ball from a crap Patriots secondary.
     
  5. PMCRW

    PMCRW New Member

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    i'd rather have a clean game where we just beat them outright. Mother nature can screw us over too...
     
  6. MayoGate

    MayoGate Active Member

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    Winston my man.. .You've been kinda lost this week. I was look forward to your in depth, unbiased break down of the Pats.. :up:
     
  7. Footballgod214

    Footballgod214 Well-Known Member

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    Jets game strategy: Beat the bastards.
     

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