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Same old Pats offense without Gronk is more like it..... it's amazing how "the safer" they try to make the league the more the injuries pile up, it's having the same effect on my game enjoyment as the 3 on 3 Overtime has had in the NHL, the level of key players on the injured list this year is insanity and not totally avoidable, but the league does itself NO favors with limited practice in pads and absurd "safety" rules.....

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Same old Pats offense without Gronk is more like it..... it's amazing how "the safer" they try to make the league the more the injuries pile up, it's having the same effect on my game enjoyment as the 3 on 3 Overtime has had in the NHL, the level of key players on the injured list this year is insanity and not totally avoidable, but the league does itself NO favors with limited practice in pads and absurd "safety" rules.....

 

Gronk played in most of the game though, so it's not like the Patriot offense was affected yet...and they actually did a good job to get the game into OT.  But we'll find out soon enough.  And yeah, so many injuries right now. 

 

 

Same old Pats D. The Patriots had won how many games in a row before this loss...13? 14?

 

The offense has bailed out the Pats D more times than not, but the defense has done its share many times including the biggest INT in NFL history. The defense that gave up 7 points in the AFC Championship game The defense that picked off Flacco twice in the last 16 min of the AFC Divisional round.

 

The defense that didn't allow a TD to the Giants in the second half a few weeks back, and got the big stop allowing the offense a chance to win late. The defense that preserved a TD lead last week against Buffalo.

 

The Pats defense could make the stops for 10 straight weeks, and a few bad plays, and it's same old Patriots defense..

 

Had a feeling this post was coming, and I understand why. 

 

But I've already chronicled how this D has disappeared in some very big spots through the years, to the point where it's kind of become predictable.  Carroll's absurd playcall at the end of last year's Super Bowl really got the Pats off the hook...Butler made a great play, no question, but Carroll was shredded in a lot of circles and rightly so. 

 

Now there are definitely some givens re:  the Patriots under BB.  He's obviously an excellent coach.  Brady is obviously one of the best QBs of his generation (I don't get into "Greatest Ever" debates, as the game has changed drastically though the different eras)...some will put him just ahead of or just behind Peyton Manning.  The Pats have enjoyed an incredible run of success (some will say it's tainted, so be it).  Sure, on the surface, it's easy (and even right) to say "Can't win them all, look at what you've gotten to see compared to other teams' fanbases, just kick back and enjoy it", and I understand that viewpoint entirely.  It's one that I've taken in other situations, especially with the Devils.

 

Despite the success, despite the many wins, despite it all, it's still very frustrating to see them lose that way...big play, another big play, and then another one.  This was a measuring stick game (the league is clearly not strong this season, which I why I never made that big of a deal out of the Pats going 10-0 to start this season), and I can see the Pats finishing the season 14-2 or 13-3 and still getting the #1 seed...and losing at home the same way.  Yes, they just won a Super Bowl, so it maybe it shouldn't hurt if they don't get there.  But it will.  And I've pointed this out before, but as we all know, generational QBs are very hard to come by...just ask the post-Marino Dolphins.  Brady is clearly a health nut and isn't beat up like Peyton, but that can change overnight.  It's been a great run and even if the Pats don't win another SB while Brady's still their QB, having gotten to six of them and winning four was as awesome as it can realistically get for a fan...it wasn't so long ago that the Pats were known more for Zeke Mowatt waving his ding-aling-aling at Lisa Olson and having been Super Bowl fodder for the '85 Bears. 

 

And re:  some of the past D successes...MD2020 and Beez have touched on something in the past, and they're right...teams do have a way of self-destructing against the Patriots.  Flacco was moving his team down the field last season and for some inexplicable reason decided to swing for the fences when he was doing just fine hitting singles. 

Edited by Colorado Rockies 1976
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Anyone that saw last night's game knows: The Pats lost to the refs, not Denver. The Chung PI was phantom.. the Gronk OPI was phantom.. the holding call against Fleming was phantom.. the holding call against Tre' Jackson was phantom. All this within the last 10 minutes of the game. I'm not sure if Denver wins had just ONE of those flags not been thrown, let alone 4. --and this is coming from a die-hard Jets fan-- It was as though the ref\league said to the Pats: "You're not ruining this feel good story for the Osweiler kid" One of the few times (if not, only time) I sympathized with Brady carrying on during his temper tantrum.

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Refs didn't help, and neither did the kid's fumble on the punt (that was the real momentum-changer).  But officiating in the NFL has become so comically bad that I expect some sh!tty calls these days (every team is affected by them).  The product has really taken a hit this season.  And Gronk has clearly become an OPI guy in the eyes of the refs...he's not getting the benefit of the doubt at all in those situations.    

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Gronk is week-to-week with a knee bruise...no tears or structural damage:

 

https://twitter.com/SportsCenter?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

 

Pats were screwed without him...my guess is that he doesn't play this Sunday (even if he could) and that the Pats hope they can beat a struggling Eagles team (that's given up 45 points in each of their past two games) while not taking any chances with making Gronk's knee worse.  Doesn't matter if it's a fugly win as long as it's a win. 

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Speaking of QB's it's funny how when some big name guy struggles out of nowhere it turns out it was injury related...Brees early in the year, Luck for most of the season and now Rodgers.

 

I think alot of backup QB's proved their worth this season. Andrew Luck, Joe Flacco, Ben Roethlisberger and Peyton Manning are some big shoes to fill. Yet, their replacements (Vick, Osweiler, Schaub, and Hasselbeck) have gone 10-1 combined! Then you've got other feel good stories like Fitzpatrick and Palmer.. it makes you wonder, maybe the draft isn't the ONLY way to band-aid a situation for a quality team.

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And then there's the other side of the coin (Dallas). 

 

The next five games are huge for Fitzpatrick's career as a starter...if he plays well in them, then he's probably the Jet QB to start the season next year...he won't be a lock to keep the job if he struggles early, but it's still a big deal for a guy like him to come into a season with a job to lose, as opposed to how he came into this season. 

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