AFC, New England Patriots, NFC, NFL

NFL Week Seven Power Rankings

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It wasn’t the blood bath I was hoping for, but the Colts trying to pull off the Annexation of Puerto Rico made it all worthwhile. Indianapolis showed a little bit of pride and finally dropped their nuts after being shoved into a locker in the previous billion meetings. My boys came away with a victory on the road and sit atop the AFC, per usual. However, a tough game looms at home this weekend when a rejuvenated Jets team comes to town. This matchup places the number one offense in the league against the number one defense in a game that will play much closer than people think. The defensive front of the Jets is arguably the best in the league and let’s not forget about number twenty-four in the secondary. Granted, they still have the Amish King running the show on offense, but Todd Bowles led an Arizona defense into Foxboro a few years back and shocked the Patriots. Not sure if this has crossed anyone else’s mind, but we are almost halfway through the regular season. Winter is coming…

1) New England Patriots – If you don’t think Ernie Adams had something to do with the Colts calling that play, you’re lying to yourself.

2) Green Bay Packers – The Denim King proved he was human throwing a few interceptions two weeks back, and the defense let up a quarter-mile worth of passing yards. Yet, the Pack is still undefeated.

3) Cincinnati Bengals – The Bengals have the deepest roster in the NFL. Fact, not opinion. Can the Ginger keep up his stellar play when the elements come into play?

4) Denver Broncos – Denver’s defense and special teams has outscored the offense. I picked them to win the Super Bowl, but I don’t think they keep this pace up when the weather declines.

5) Carolina Panthers – Cam Newton did something he hasn’t done since he came into the league. He earned my kudos.

6) Arizona Cardinals – The Cardinals lost to Mike Vick and Landry Jones. Plain and simple. I won’t and can’t buy a Carson Palmer led team.

7) New Jersey Jets – Sheldon Richardson is licking his chops for Sunday’s game in New England. Hey Snacks, so is TB12.

8) Atlanta Falcons – The Falcons ran into The Kings of Primetime. Not many people beat the Saints in their own building when the stage is at its biggest.

9) Philadelphia Eagles – When is Chip Kelly going to realize running Demarco Murray laterally out of the pistol is not the best way to use his skillset?

10) Pittsburgh Steelers – Welcome to the NFL Landry Jones. Big Ben should be 100% healthy before he laces up the cleats again, and the organization will be foolish to allow him to do otherwise.

11) New Jersey Giants – I’ve never seen a quarterback make more horrible decisions in my life than Eli Manning. I mean these are the dumbest of dumb throws.

12) Seattle Seahawks – Russell Wilson’s pocket awareness is as sharp as a spork they give to prisoners.

13) Buffalo Bills – The locker room is already starting to unravel halfway through Rex Ryan’s first season.

14) San Diego Chargers– If 502 passing yards isn’t winning you football games, something is wrong on the other side of the ball.

15) Indianapolis Colts– I call it, The Annexation of Puerto Rico.

16) Dallas Cowboys – Bye Week

17) Minnesota Vikings – The Vikings offensive line needs to improve, regardless of the team winning games. AP is the cog that makes that engine go.

18) Miami Dolphins – The Fish seemed to play with a little bit of fire for their new coach. Maybe the Oklahoma drill actually works?

19) Cleveland Browns – Captain Mike must have been sick after that game on Sunday. He had multiple chances to put the Broncos and Manning away, and his team puked on themselves.

20) St. Louis Rams – Bye Week

21) Oakland Raiders – Bye Week

22) Chicago Bears – Alshon Jeffery’s return is going to be huge for the Bears offense. They need more out of the running game from Matt Forte to be competitive though.

23) New Orleans Saints – Brees delivered per usual for the Kings of Primetime.

24) Kansas City Chiefs – The Chiefs may not win more than four games this year. The team is a mess in all three phases of the game.
25) Houston Texans – Deandre Hopkins may be the best receiver in football in only his second year.

26) Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Bye week.

27) Washington Redskins – Gruden making excuses for the weather being too windy for his quarterback is not a good look.

28) Detroit Lions – Fat Face won a game! Fat Face won a game!

29) Jacksonville Jaguars – Not only do the Jaguars stink, they have to make their annual trip across the pond to get beaten by the Bills on Sunday.

30) San Francisco 49ers – I’m happy for Tomasula. We all laughed at his EBS issues in his presser a few weeks back. The Niners put their foot on the gas Sunday against the Ravens, finally. Plenty of pun intended.

31) Baltimore Ravens – Oh Baltimore, you will be 1-6 by this time next week. Life is good.

32) Tennessee Titans – Mariota has a slight MCL sprain. The Selfie King may be taking the snaps for the next few weeks.

AFC, New England Patriots, New York Jets, NFL

The Jets Finally Pose A Threat To The Patriots In The Divison

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After dominating the AFC East division without any competition for four years now, the New England Patriots finally have a legitimate competitor in the New York Jets. Coming into this season, many, including myself, expected the Buffalo Bills to be a serious threat to the Patriots because of Rex Ryan’s defensive mind and the depth they have on the defensive side of the ball. As it turns out, Rex has seemingly lost control after the week two loss to the Patriots, and things are starting to unfold because of his reckless demeanor. The Dolphins simply just spent money carelessly in the offseason, leaving them extremely thin in many parts of their roster. The Jets however, shipped out the rambunctious Rex Ryan and brought in another defensive mind with former Cardinals defensive coordinator Todd Bowles. This time, the head coach is much more soft spoken, but he looks to have a strangle hold on the team and has one thing that Ryan never had in New York, control.

Despite their 4-12 record last season, the Jets still had a very talented defensive front that could get after the quarterback. The front seven consists of elite players such as Muhammad Wilkerson, Sheldon Richardson, David Harris, Calvin Pace, and they also added defensive tackle Leonard Williams out of Southern California in the first round of this year’s draft. Many projected him as the best overall player in the draft. The Jets secondary did a complete 180 in the offseason by going from having one of the league’s worst pass defenses to having potentially the best. When you bring back Darrelle Revis who is arguably the best cornerback of all time and without a doubt the best right now, your defense already changes completely for the better. Then you add a big bodied corner with Antonio Cromartie who can match up with tight ends, and Buster Skrine as a nickel back next to Revis, your secondary becomes lock down.

profootballspot.com
profootballspot.com

On the other side of the ball, the Jets have added fire power as well. They acquired Brandon Marshall from Chicago via trade this offseason to compliment Eric Decker. The combination has been very effective through five games. Marshall already has 37 receptions, for 511 yards, and four touchdowns. In addition, Chris Ivory is a very physical running back who has also gotten off to a great start averaging 5.5 yards per carry. The only glaring issues on the Jets roster is the most important in the game, and that is at quarterback. Ryan Fitzpatrick is one of the most inconsistent quarterbacks we have seen in a long time.

He played so well for a few weeks in Buffalo they rewarded him with a contract extension. After that he played so bad they were forced to release him after one year. He has not been terrible this year, however Bills fans will tell you that a collapse is on the horizon. Jets fans are just crossing their fingers that their defense can carry them to the point where Fitzpatrick can’t lose them the game.

This week, the New England Patriots have to take on the 4-1 New York Jets at the friendly confines of Gillette Stadium. It will without question be their toughest test up to this point, especially if Marcus Cannon and Ryan Wendell are not able to go. As a Patriots fan you should feel very uneasy about rolling out Cameron Fleming at right tackle going up against this Jets front. Not only can the front get to Brady, but Revis and Cromartie can neutralize Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski and force Brady to hold onto the football longer.

NFL.com
NFL.com

Now, one thing that puts both teams at a disadvantage is that both coaches are unfamiliar with each other. The last time Bowles squared off with the Patriots was in week two of the 2012 season when his Cardinals beat the Patriots 20-18, with the defense sacking Brady four times. I have full confidence that Bill Belichick, Josh McDaniels and the Patriots coaching staff will put together a masterful game plan to move the ball against the Jets defense and hold their offense in tact. Nevertheless, Patriots fans need to know that the Jets are a threat in the division, not the laughing stock that we are used to. That could very well help the Patriots come January as they will be battle tested.

New England Patriots, NFL

New England Patriots: Halloween Arrives Early In Indy!

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Let’s be honest, the Sunday night match-up between the New England Patriots and the Indianapolis Colts didn’t go as planned.

  • No, not because the Patriots only won by 7 points, 34-27 (should have been 34-21, but Colts scored a garbage time TD).
  • It wasn’t because LeGarrette Blount “only” ran for 93 yards.
  • It wasn’t even because Julian Edeleman actually dropped three passes, one leading to a pick six by the Colts.

It was because…are you ready?…the Colts thought it was already Halloween and decided it was going to be “trick” not “treat” night at Lucas Oil Stadium.

There were ghosts, goblins, witches and lots of tricks

The ghosts of years past were in the air and on the field as the Colts received the opening kick-off and marched 90 yards with

Julian Edelman scores as he's hit by Colts strong safety Mike Adams (29) and inside linebacker D'Qwell Jackson (52) . (AP Photo/AJ Mast)
Julian Edelman scores as he’s hit by Colts strong safety Mike Adams (29) and inside linebacker D’Qwell Jackson (52) . (AP Photo/AJ Mast)

relative ease to take a quick 7-0 lead.

New England returned the favor with an 80 yard drive of their own, culminating withJulian Edelman scoring his fourth receiving TD of the season, knotting the game at 7-7

Things settled down for a while before the witches stepped in and put a hex on Edelman, causing him to injure his finger and start dropping passes. The most damaging drop occurring in the 2nd quarter, when a Tom Brady pass bounced off #11’s hands into the waiting arms of Mike Adams, who scampered 14 yards down the sidelines to give the Colts a 14-10 lead.

The pass was Brady’s 1st interception of the year, but the blame fell squarely on those damned witches as they made the perfect pass bounce off the usually sure hands of the hexed Edelman.

At this point the Goblins entered the head of Indy Head Chuck Pagano. As visions of sugar plums danced in his head, oh wait a minute…back-up, that’s Christmas. Thinking this was time to spring surprise #1 of the game, the infamous on-side kick, Pagano and his special teams coach went for it.

It was just the 2nd quarter, but surely this would surprise New England Head Coach Bill Belichick. As the ball squirted from hand to hand before falling under the prone body of Patriot Josh Kline it looked like the greased pig contest we’ve all seen at the State Fair. As bodies un-piled the officials took the still inflated ball and loudly proclaimed “New England’s Ball.”

…But wait, there’s more

Pagano was in shock. My God, how could that be, he thought, as his head spun (kinda like in the movie The Exorcist). Knowing exactly what to do, he grabbed the red flag from his sock and hurled it on the field to challenge the play.  “Upon further review their was no clear view of the fumble recovery, therefore the initial call stands” blared through the PA system.

Six plays later Blount rumbled 38 yards “giving” the Patriots back the lead, 17-14.

LeGarrette Blount runs for a 38-yard touchdown after the Colts botch an on-side kick (AP Photo/AJ Mast)
LeGarrette Blount runs for a 38-yard touchdown after the Colts botch an on-side kick (AP Photo/AJ Mast)

The Colts scored another TD and the Patriots a last second field goal as the hectic half ended 21-20 and everyone took a deep breath…and believe me, they would need it.

The Play Of The Game

The Colts kicked off to start the second half and Rob Gronkowski scored his first TD in the last 3 games to put New England up 27-21. With the same score and 1:14 left in the 3rd quarter the Colts went to a play that makes the Seahawks Super Bowl loss pass look a great call. And here it is in all it’s glory:
Possibly The Worst Play In NFL History?

You have to give Pagano credit, per Ian O’Connor, ESPN Senior Writer, after the game he said “I take full responsibility for that,” as if he had any other choice.

As far as the Patriots being unprepared for either that play, or the earlier onside kick, here is Coach Belichick’s post-game response “We expected this to be a gadget game in the kicking game,” The man has his team prepared for almost everything, yet other coaches continue to try to trick plays that look foolish.

Talk About Athleticism – Meet Jamie Collins

After the Colts scored their final TD with 1:26 left in the game the Halloween Theme continued when Patriots LB Jamie Collins had the most athletic play of the game…with a little help from the ghosts of games past. Check it out. If you look real closely, you’ll see them pushing him up and over on this extra point attempt http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-cant-miss-plays/0ap3000000560794/Can-t-Miss-Play-Collins-hurdles-line-and-blocks-PAT

Right about now Colts fans are spouting the line “it was a moral victory”…or “we gave them the game”. No matter what, one thing is obvious…the Baltimore, oops, Indianapolis Colts were running scared even though they held the lead at halftime 21-20. Play calling was in respect for what the Patriots could do and in fear of what the night would bring.

Follow me on Twitter @SnowdonBob

AFC, NFC, NFL

Week 6 NFL Picks

Let’s all celebrate, because I finally picked a Thursday night game correctly last night. Hurray! I had the Saints +3.5, and I’ll be honest, I watched baseball last night instead of the game. Seriously, the quality of play on Thursday nights is horrible. Take out the first game where the Patriots and Steelers both played a relatively good game but obviously it wasn’t a short week. The Chiefs turned it over five times in a sloppy Week 2 game. The Giants couldn’t score touchdowns in the red zone against the Redskins. The Michael Vick-led Steelers blew a game to the Ravens where the Ravens didn’t play very well. There was the Brian Hoyer/Ryan Mallet shit show against the Matt Hasselbeck-led Colts last week. And then last night, the 6-0 Falcons looked sloppy offensively and lost to Drew Brees throwing without a shoulder. So yeah, quality has been bad, and a lot of underdogs have won, so I took the Saints at home playing against a hobbled Julio Jones and a Falcons team coming off of an overtime game against the Redskins. The only good thing from last night’s game? The fantasy phenomenon that is Devonta Freeman. I say this as a proud Freeman owner in two different leagues, especially in my league where I blew my first two picks on DeMarco Murray and Jeremy Hill. So, if you’re reading Devonta, thank you very much for all of the touchdowns, and please keep them coming. On to the picks.

Redskins (+6) over JETS

Do people really think the Jets are six points better than the Redskins? Are we still in the mindset we went into the season with that the Redskins were the worst team in the league? And if the answer is yes, then why have we accepted the Jets as a real team and not the Redskins? Let’s look at this unbelievable 3-1 Jets team. They beat the Browns, the Colts, lost to the Eagles, and beat the Dolphins. Great job on your 3-1 career record Todd Bowles, you don’t get to lay six points against a team that beat the Rams and Eagles and gave the Giants and Falcons tough games.

Cardinals (-3.5) over STEELERS

As a Ben Roethlisberger fantasy owner who has started Derek Carr the last two weeks, I really hope Big Ben plays, but there’s no way he comes back after just two weeks. I know the guy is big, he’s strong, and he’s tough, but he’s not playing, and if he does he won’t be anywhere near 100%, which while it might still be better than Michael Vick at 100%, isn’t going to fair well against an opportunistic Cardinals defense. I think Vick may have gained some confidence with that last drive on Monday night, but the Cardinals are a real team that are very well coached and should give that offense fits.

VIKINGS (-3.5) over Chiefs

Let’s admit it, the Chiefs are not a good team. Their one win is against the Texans, and that might be one of the five worst teams in the league. They’re 1-4, and just blew a game against the Bears. Jamaal Charles is now out, not that he was helping this offense very much, and they can’t drive the ball 80 yards against anybody. The Vikings are a borderline playoff team, I’ll take them at home only giving 3.5.

BILLS (+3) over Bengals

The Bengals proved something last week. When they were down 24-7, it looked like this was the old Bengals that baited you into buying into them only to implode in a big game like they always do, but they came back and won. But this week, they’re due for a letdown. The Bills are banged up offensively, but defensively they gave Mariota problems last week, and I think they keep this game low scoring and I’ll take them getting three at home.

Bears (+3) over LIONS

Seriously, why are the Lions laying three points to anybody? This seems like a similar situation to the Redskins. Detroit was supposed to be a borderline playoff team going into the year, and people haven’t moved past that. They are bad. Their offense looks horrible, and when Jay Cutler’s playing, the Bears are an okay team. The Lions shouldn’t give anyone points, especially when Cutler’s playing.

Broncos (-4) over BROWNS

Don’t get me wrong, the Browns are a tough out, but I think Josh McCown’s run of excellence comes to an end against this Denver defense. The Bronco’s offense is 30th in the league, but they should get a boost against a Browns team that just gave up 30 points to a bad Ravens offensive line. Maybe they can finally run the ball a little bit.

JAGUARS (-1) over Texans

You know who might be good? Blake Bortles. People kind of wrote him off after a shaky rookie season, but this year he’s completing almost 60% of his passes, thrown for close to 1300 yards, and has ten touchdowns to four interceptions. Last year, he threw 11 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. The improvement is there, and the Texans would die for that quarterback situation right now. And by the way, the Texans could have that quarterback situation, but with the number one pick they drafted Clowney, when they already had J.J. Watt, and he’s played a total of nine games so far and has been playing hurt this year. Great move Houston.

Dolphins (+1.5) over TITANS

The Dolphins should start playing better. This is a good team, but they quit on their coach before the season started. That’s over, and they should be playing harder and closer to their capability this week. Coming off of a bye, and playing against a struggling Titans offense, I’ll take Miami getting points.

SEAHAWKS (-7) over Panthers

Everybody loves the 4-0 Panthers, and everyone is skeptical about the 2-3 Seahawks, but allow me to go through the Panthers 4-0 record. They have beaten the Jaguars, Texans, Saints, and Buccaneers. I’d like to say congratulations on your undefeated record against teams with a combined 6-15 record. Now go on the road and beat the Seahawks with no weapons (outside of your tight end who will have to deal with Kam Chancellor) against a pissed off Seattle defense and good luck trying to stop the Seahawk’s offense that put up 24 points on a good Bengals defense last week and has Marshawn Lynch coming back. The Panthers will also have a banged up Luke Kuechly. Prove something to me Cam Newton.

PACKERS (-10.5) over Chargers

Normally the Monday night loser is an automatic the following week, but this year they are just 1-4 against the spread the following week. The one win was the Vikings, who played in a weird double header that started actually ended on Tuesday morning on the east coast, so maybe it wasn’t a Monday night loser. In addition to being 5-0, the Packers are also 5-0 against the spread this year. Coming off of two shaky offensive performances, I expect them to get things under control again this week.

Ravens (-2) over 49ERS

This will be a closer game than you think. The Ravens are 1-4 because they are as good as a 1-4 team, and the 49ers have been decent defensively. The Ravens have no pass rush, and as you saw last week on Sunday night, Colin Kaepernick looks competent when he doesn’t have to make quick decisions. However, San Francisco is still a mess, and the Ravens have a severe advantage at coach and quarterback, so I’ll lay a couple points.

Patriots (-10) over COLTS

You’ve heard the narrative all week. This is the revenge tour for the Patriots. There’s no way they lose to the Colts. They’ll probably score 95 points in this game. I can’t disagree with any of that, but let me pose one question: How is this a revenge game for the Patriots? They steamrolled the Colts last year, in the playoffs and the regular season, they steamrolled them in the playoffs the year before, and they steamrolled them in the regular season the year before that. Do the Colts have any pride? Do they feel embarrassed at all? Do they just walk out onto the field, knowing the Patriots are just going to keep hammering away with big running backs and let them rush for 200 yards and 4 touchdowns? Do they care? Are they professional football players? Don’t they have the best young quarterback since Brady/Manning? I’m calling you out Colts. I want to see something. Prove to me that you are NFL players and that it bugs you at least a little bit that you routinely get embarrassed by the Patriots and everyone expects it to keep happening.

Giants (+5) over EAGLES

The Eagles looked good last week, but this is too many points to give. The Giants are one of the most underrated teams in the NFL. Despite all kinds of injuries on defense, their secondary is still strong and should give Sam Bradford problems. The Eagles will have to run the ball effectively to win this game, and their secondary will have to play to the best of its capabilities, or else Eli should shred them. Look at the weapons at his disposal right now. Even if Odell Beckham is hurt, Larry Donnell is an emerging tight end, Reuben Randle is an effective receiver, Shane Vereen is the best receiving running back in the NFL, and Rashad Jennings and Andre Williams complete a loaded backfield. 5 points is too much in this one.

For college football fans or just degenerate gamblers who will bet on anything, I’m in a weekly college football pick ’em. Here’s my picks for this week: LSU (-9.5), Michigan State (+8), USC (+6.5), TCU (-20.5), Alabama (-4), Oregon, Air Force, and South Florida straight up.

NFL Record Last Week: 6-8-1

NFL Record Overall: 39-39-3

College Football Record Last Week: 4-4-0

College Football Record Overall: 21-19-0

New England Patriots, NFL

New England Patriots: And The Winner Is….

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Sunday night the New England Patriots continued the “2015 Tom Brady Revenge Tour” against the Indianapolis Colts, the team that jump started the worst off-season for a player and team since…since….oh yeah, that other tight end decided that life was too dull to just play football (Hint: He’s in jail for murder).

The Patriots won with relative ease, 34-27, and had opportunities to run the score up, but refrained from doing so. So, let’s take a quick look at who the “Deflategate” winners and losers were after week 6 of the 2015 season.

Surprise Winners

New England Patriots mascot Pat Patriot, and fans cheer during an NFL football send-off rally at City Hall in Boston (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
New England Patriots mascot Pat Patriot, and fans cheer during an NFL football send-off rally at City Hall in Boston (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
  • New England Patriot Fans

We all want to be martyrs because “our” team got beat-up soooooo bad in the off-season. But how can fans be losers when New England is 5-0 and remains as the favorite to win their 5th Super Bowl and second straight.  It is easy to feel everyone hates us, but c’mon, it’s not everyone.  The Patriots are now getting the respect they deserve with no one (except Pittsburgh Head Coach Mike Tomlin) thinking they would be dumb enough to be cheating this year.

Should they go all-the-way even the biggest, most avid haters will be forced to admit it is legit. Just think, the silence will be deafening from all those losers who want to blame the Patriots for all their team’s ills.

  • The NFL

The NFL may be losers and buffoons in court, but all the off-season publicity, more bad than good, kept them in front of the media and the sport on the front page year-long. No other sport came close to the coverage Roger Goodell and his band of pirates got. Ratings up, attendance remains outstanding and the $$$$$ keeps rolling in.

Are you ready for this?????

  • Tom Brady

All right, wait a minute. Don’t bring in the guys with the strait-jackets…think about it. Tom Brady is probably the most self-motivated player in the NFL, but really, after winning his 4th ring do you legitimately think he would have had the fire-in-the-eyes he has this year .? He had nothing more to prove until the NFL lit his fire (cue up the late Jim Morrison and the Doors. If you don’t get the musical reference, ask someone over 40).

Hell, at this time last year many were calling him old and feeble. This year he’s been rejuvenated. Is it his guru? His diet? Or, could it be, he wants to make Commissioner Roger Goodell look like the pompous ass he is as he hands Brady the MVP and Super Bowl Trophies again…while the greatest QB in the NFL smirks and walks away?

Big Losers

  • Indianapolis Colts (3-3)
Andrew Luck's offensive line has been bad again (Photo: Getty Images)
Andrew Luck’s offensive line has been bad again (Photo: Getty Images)

Instead of Super Bowl contenders, as predicted by NFL experts, the Colts have become a shell of what they were in 2014. Injuries to Andrew Luck, ILB Jarrell Freeman, RB Tyler Varga. DT Arthur Jones & on & on have lowered expectations. Luck played Sunday, but it didn’t help. Prior to Sundays performance, he had been hexed with a poor offensive line, a 56% completion rate, more interceptions (7) than TDs (5) and a QBR of 65.1 Yes, they are 3-3, but their three wins are by a total of 12 points against Tennessee, Jacksonville and Houston. They played the Patriots tougher than expected, but other than their final drive they were shut out in the second half after leading at halftime (sound familiar).

  • Baltimore Ravens (1-5)

This time its Queen’s turn as “Another One Bites The Dust.” Baltimore was also among the Super Bowl contenders that has fallen apart early in the season. What goes around, comes around. Most football fans in New England believe the Ravens urged the Colts to “check their balls” in last years playoffs. That was after Head Coach John Harbaugh complained the Patriots used an illegal formation (not true), confusing the poor Raven players and coaches in their loss the week before the Colts went down. Despite confirmation by officials that the Patriots formation was within the rules, the Ravens whined so much the rules committee tweaked the rule for 2015.

Bottom line: The Ravens Head Coach did not know the rules and Bill Belichick did. Oh, by the way, Baltimore used a similar formation this year!

  • Robert Kraft/ New England Patriots

In a naïve move Mr. Kraft felt that Commissioner Goodell would see the error of his ways and drop the persecution/prosecution of his adopted son, Tom Brady and, without a fight, gave-up draft picks and $1M dollars to “make Deflategate go away.” ‘Nuff said!.

It will take the full year before a complete evaluation of “Deflategate” winners and losers can be analyzed, but so far the results sure are promising.

Follow me on Twitter @SnowdonBob

AFC, Indianapolis Colts, New England Patriots, NFL

The 2015 Indianapolis Massacre

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of the 2015 AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium on January 18, 2015 in Foxboro, Massachusetts.
Revenge; It’s an emotion that everybody has felt in their lives at least once. It’s a yearning or desire to see someone or something receive their comeuppance for the wrong doings that they have thrust upon your life. Is it healthy? Typically, revenge is never a healthy exercise as once your means of extracting your vengeance has played out, your left feeling empty regardless of the outcome. Where you once had this goal of annihilating someone or something, you are now left with anger and nowhere else to disperse it. On Sunday, revenge will in fact take place, but on which side of the field?

The New England Patriots and The Indianapolis Colts have had a heated rivalry since Peyton Manning, then quarterback for the Colts, and Tom Brady first squared off on September 30th, 2001. Sure, both teams had been involved in a number of games prior but this game is typically looked at as the moment when they were considered on an equal playing field. Over the following years the New England Patriots highhandedly defeated the Colts nine times, only losing five games one of which did not involve Tom Brady. During the 2012 season a surgically repaired Peyton Manning “moved on” to the Denver Broncos  as the Indianapolis Colts who had  allegedly tanked the 2011 season, got their future NFL all star quarterback  Andrew Luck with the number one draft pick.

143695675-football-nfl-draft-indianapolis-colts-qb-and-gettyimages

Certainly Andrew Luck would turn the tide for the Colts with his youth and exceptional skills doing what Manning could never do, consistently beat the New England Patriots. Since Luck’s arrival the Patriots have tacked on another four (Dominant) wins over the Colts. Most recently the Patriots won the AFC Championship in 2014, beating the Colts 45-7. 45-7? Certainly the New England Patriots must have cheated to have gained such a lopsided win over a team which had just defeated the Manning led Denver Broncos in the divisional round one week earlier. Enter the three ring circus known as Deflategate where several balls on both sides of the field had lost significant air pressure, but due to the NFL ‘s investigative ineptitude and unsubstantiated reports, everything fell on New England’s shoulders. After all how could The New England Patriots have destroyed the Colts in such a dominant fashion? All anybody needs to see is the three games played prior and the resulting scores. On November 18th, 2012 The Patriots won 59-24, on January 11th 2014 the Patriots won 43-22 and on November 16th, 2014 the Patriots defeated the Colts 42-20. The Patriots scored over 4o points in every one of those games.  No amount of depleted ball pressure can force the idea that the Colts defense is good enough to stop Tom Brady and the Patriot’s offense.

140892850-peyton-manning-listens-as-indianapolis-colts-gettyimages

It’s sad and painfully obvious that the Indianapolis Colts are a desperate team run by meddling Coach and a drug addicted billionaire who promised their fan base the moon when they brought Andrew Luck into the fold. They have managed some epic wins but they always seem to get destroyed by Bill Belichick’s New England Patriots. If you can’t beat them on the field, how else can you defeat them? With the help of the Baltimore Ravens, the Indianapolis Colts seemingly conspired with the NFL to set up a sting operation to take down New England. The Colts brought the air pressure situation to the NFL and got Roger Goodell and company rolling with the Defaltegate scandal. All of this of course led to the findings that the Patriots and most importantly, Tom Brady were more probable than not generally aware of deflated footballs. Indianapolis of course, was never cited for their deflated footballs, as that was quickly dismissed and brushed to the side. The Colts were finally able to do off the field what they could not accomplish on the green, destroy Tom Brady, stomp on the man’s legacy and drag the 2014 Super Bowl champions through the mud. Seemingly Jim Irsay’s organization had finally gotten some measure of revenge against their ever dominant rivals.

via bostonherald.com
via bostonherald.com

What the Indianapolis Colts didn’t realize is that much like on the field, Tom Brady would prevail.  After an off season’s worth of tattling and over punishment sent the Patriots way, finally it all comes down to the one place that the Colts seem to always be at a disadvantage, the football field. This Sunday the New England Patriots will be playing at Lucas Oil Stadium against Andrew Luck and his newest offensive weapons Running Back Frank Gore and Wide Receiver Andre Johnson. Will their new veterans be enough to stop Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski, Dion Lewis and Julian Edelman? Will Indianapolis finally get their revenge where it counts most, on the field? Yes, their new toys, with the help of established wide receiver T.Y. Hilton may cause some trouble for the Patriots but overall the Colts have done little to beef up their defense which, as noted earlier, has given up 40+ points in the last four games against the Patriots.

Even though they will never admit it outwardly, this is a game the New England Patriots want to use in order to epitomize what their 2015 season is all about. They don’t want to just destroy the Colts they want to embarrass them and make an example of them to the entire NFL. Revenge is a strong emotion, one that both the Patriots and their fans carry with them as they enter enemy territory this Sunday. Does revenge in fact leave a vacancy once the act of retribution has been administered? Luckily for New England and all of Patriot nation, football is a sixteen game season and the Indianapolis Colts are merely game five.

Will we see New England pull out all the stops and sacrifice everything to send a message to their opponents this Sunday? More than likely it will be business as usual because recent history indicates that is all it needs to be. The Patriots want revenge, but basing your entire season on a week six game is something akin to the Colts hanging a banner for being a 2014 AFC Championship finalist. Its short sighted and clearly means nothing in the hunt for a Lombardi trophy. That being said, It’s quite possible that the next banner that the Colts will place in their rafters will read: Lucas Oil Stadium home of the 2015 Indianapolis Massacre.

Image: Google image search
Image: Google image search
AFC, Indianapolis Colts, New England Patriots, NFL

Patriots vs. Colts: The matchup we’ve all been waiting for

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The time we’ve all been waiting for is soon upon us, week 6 of the NFL season Patriots vs. Colts. As we all already know the Colts are the team that started the whole “DeflateGate” BS that has been the biggest news story since the news broke after the beat down the Patriots put on the Colts in the AFC Championship game last season.

via mstarz.com
via mstarz.com

This game is going to be a complete embarrassment for the Indianapolis Colts. He Patriots have the biggest edge and chip on their shoulders of all-time and are playing with a vengeance right now, and will even more against the Colts this Sunday. Tom Brady has been playing at an unreal level, he’s pissed and has been pissed the past 9 months and has taken it out his anger so far this year on the Patriots opponents. Brady is going to be even more fired up this Sunday against the Colts, they started everything that went on this offseason and tried to ruin Brady’s name and reputation that he has worked so hard for over his career. The Colts should be scared; though Brady and the Patriots will say this is just another game we all know it isn’t. The past few games New England has played against the Colts they have buried the Colts, mostly running it down their throats with the Colts having no answer to stop the Patriots. This week I think it’s going to be all Brady. He’s going to come out and throw all over this Colts defense and show them that he is the greatest of all-time and is playing at maybe the best level he has throughout his career at age 38. The Colts should be worried because this is going to be a complete and utter embarrassment for the Colts and I cant wait to watch it.

via bleacherreport.com
via bleacherreport.com

The Patriots as a team are playing phenomenal football right now, while the Colts are not. The Patriots are 4-0 and it hasn’t been close at all. The Colts are 3-2 coming off wins where they barely beat the Jaguars and Texans and their star quarterback Andrew Luck has mightily underperformed this season and have looked better with backup Matt Hasslebeck under center. The Patriots have Brady’s back and there all fired up and playing at a whole different intensity level this year and will especially this game. The defense is going to get at whoever is under center for the Colts and give them a hard day, while the offense is just going to continue to dominate like they have all year.

The Colts haven’t been saying the Patriots name in interviews this week; this just proves even more that there scared. They want to make it seem like it doesn’t matter who there playing this week, it does and they should be worried. The Patriots are just going to keep playing better and better. The Patriots are going to come out and completely dominate this week and I can’t wait to see the beat down we put on Indy. After this game the Colts may want to take down their embarrassing “AFC Finalists” banner because the patriots are going to make that game look like a challenge. The point spread could be Patriots by 100 and I would still take the over. Sunday Night cannot come any sooner, this is going to be the most dominating football game that has ever been played.

via patriots.com
via patriots.com

And just one more thing to throw at the Colts and Colts fans; remember when the Colts traded a first round pick for Trent Richardson? Who was the player they cut to make room for Richardson? Dion Lewis. Thank you for that, we’ll make sure he finds the end zone a few times Sunday Night just to rub it in even more.

AFC, New England Patriots

Studs And Duds From Patriots Victory Over Cowboys

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The New England Patriots continued their undefeated season on Sunday when they rolled over the Dallas Cowboys 30-6, lead by a ferocious second half run. Using the NFL Game Pass coaches film application, I was able to re-watch the game and break down the, “All 22” and get a better glimpse of each players performance. Here are three studs and duds from my film evaluations.

Studs:

Jamie Collins: Through the first few games of the season, Jamie Collins was very unimpressive. He was slow to the ball in the run game, and was sucked up by offensive lineman on multiple occasions. This past Sunday, Collins was all over the field. He was constantly in the backfield and all over the check downs that Brandon Weeden was dishing out. On one play in the first half that was called back on a defensive holding call on  Jabaal Sheard, Jamie Collins just barreled through Darren McFaden for the sack in under two seconds. His coverage was also very good as he and Devin McCourty blanketed Jason Witten, who had a very quiet afternoon.

Hightower sacks Weeden in Patriots 30-6 blowout of Dallas (Photo: USA/Today)
Hightower sacks Weeden in Patriots 30-6 blowout of Dallas (Photo: USA/Today)
Patriots.com
Patriots.com

Dion Lewis: Without a doubt, the biggest surprise of the Patriots season thus far has been Dion Lewis, and that was never more evident than on Sunday. He finished the game with eight receptions, for fifty-nine yards, and one touchdown. He did have trouble pass blocking in the game which has been his only flaw thus far, but his ability to come out of the backfield and and get yards after the catch, is unreal.

The most obvious example of this was on Sunday, when Lewis made a one handed grab inside the red zone and proceeded to make five defenders miss on his way to the end zone. Also, the biggest play of the game came late in the second quarter on third and one, with the game tied at three. Lewis was wrapped up by his leg in the backfield, broke off the tackle and scurried down to the one-yard line.

Malcolm Butler: On Sunday, Malcolm Butler shadowed his side of the field giving up very little yardage. On many different occasions, Butler got his hand on passes intended for Terrence Williams. Also, he is continuing to come up on run plays and show his physicality. By far, Sunday was his best performance, even though it was against a very sub par quarterback with average wide receivers. This week will be more of a test.

Duds:

LeGarrette Blount: Without a doubt, Dion Lewis has taken over the number one running back role. It has much to do with Blount’s ineptitude and Lewis’s performance. On Sunday LeGarrette Blount had a solid game on paper, but from just watching the game it was obvious that he did not perform all that well. On two separate plays, Blount had the chance to convert a first down on short yardage situations. He failed on both. For such a big back, he should be able to use his size to power through, however he tries to run like a Dion Lewis type of back.

David Andrews: After a hot start, David Andrews has slowed down over the past couple of weeks. On Sunday there was not many bad performances, but Andrews had a less than stellar day. The Patriots were virtually never able to run the ball through the interior. Even though Blount is much to blame for not converting on short yardage situations, Andrews played a big part as well. Again, not an awful day for Andrews, but he could use some improvement.

Patriots Offensive Tackles: The worst group on the Patriots by far came from the offensive tackles. Particularly, Nate Solder who left with injury, Marcus Cannon, and Sebastian Vollmer. Throughout the week heading into the game, everyone talked about how can Dallas get to Brady. The general consensus was that they would have to go through the interior. Wrong, all of the pressure the Cowboys created came from the edges.

Greg Hardy absolutely destroyed and overpowered Nate Solder early on sacking Brady, and also getting hits on him after he got rid of the ball. Vollmer and Cannon were also just overpowered on different plays and it lead to Brady being sacked five times. It was their worst performance of the year, and they can’t expect to play like that against teams such as the Jets and the Broncos and expect to win and keep Tom Brady healthy.

New England Patriots, NFL

New England Patriots: Top Excuses For Losing To The Patriots

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Let’s face it, no team likes to lose (breaking news – how’s that for a major announcement)…but most teams seem to hate it more when they lose to the despised New England Patriots. It seems every time someone loses to the Pats, and it happens pretty often, there is an excuse other than they just got beat by a better team.

Hightower sacks Weeden in Patriots 30-6 blowout of Dallas (Photo: USA/Today)
Hightower sacks Weeden in Patriots 30-6 blowout of Dallas (Photo: USA/Today)

After Sunday’s blowout in Dallas (yeah, I know, everyone in Texas is hurt or the Cowboys would have won) I got to wondering about the top excuses teams have used, and, some that we may hear before the season ends. So here goes:

Top Excuses For Losing To The Patriots

  1. Number one is obvious (Used by the Colts/Ravens) – The Patriots played with their balls. By now we know this to be a fact because, hell, the NFL said so and they wouldn’t lie…it must be true if Commissioner Roger Goodell says it is. The only reason Tom Brady keeps winning is because of this. After all, he’s an “old” man now, so he just can’t be this good without some help. Oh yeah, almost forgot this one, they don’t fumble enough because of this.
  2. They didn’t give us time to adjust to a formation that, although legal, shouldn’t be (This one belongs to the Steelers/Ravens). The league needs to revise the rules (and has) so we are playing on a level playing field.
  3. The officials picked on us by calling too many penalties against our players just because we weren’t intimidated by Bill Belichick’s team. (Welcome aboard Rex Ryan and the Bills). To quote Rex, the Patriots are no Saints ya know (Thank God, the Saints are really bad this year).
  4. The Patriots knew what we were going to call before the plays were run. Their coaching and preparation just couldn’t be that good, (Rams/Eagles) – therefore they MUST have cheated.
  5. New England’s defense was too physical (I love this one) and our poor receivers were being beat up so they couldn’t get open (St. Louis again). After all, we were (Rams) the greatest show on turf and it just isn’t right. Result: Rules change.

    Ty Law with his
    Ty Law with his “too physical” play against the Rams (Photo: WEEI)
  6. They picked on us because we had so many players injured…but we showed them by keeping it close for a quarter (Dallas). It was a moral victory for us, not a true win by that team from back east.
  7. They didn’t win, we played better and “gave” them the game (too many teams to list).

Still To Come

  • Pat Patriot took our mascot out drinking the night before the game and got some “insider” information. This will be reported to the league for further investigation. Heck, they even went to the bathroom together…and you know that’s suspicious.
    Who, me????
    Who, me????
  • The 3rd string offensive guard went to high school with the Head Linesman’s wife’s 3rd cousin and therefore wasn’t called for holding when New England scored their 6th touchdown in the 4th quarter, costing us the game.
  • Our fans weren’t loud enough, so our players were not motivated. On top of that the media had them favored to win despite the fact we were playing at home…so it just wasn’t fair.

So, there you have it – 10 excuses to start you thinking. I’ll bet you can come up with more, so let’s hear them in the comments section. Odds are we’ll hear one of the above or something unique thought up by the Colts ownership after Sunday’s revenge game in Indy.

Remember, the game is supposed to be fun…so enjoy it, no matter what excuse the opposing team gives for losing. Hey, the Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots are your team, and it has been a great ride.

Follow me on Twitter @SnowdonBob

AFC, New England Patriots, NFC, NFL

NFL: Week Six Power Rankings

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Any fan in the New England region circled this this Sunday on the calendar, the second the schedule was released. The drug addict owner, the scumbag general manager, and a fan base whom is planning on flying a blimp over the stadium (which has a closed roof might I add), have to face their demons in a just a few days. Will Mr. Kraft be giving some sort of motivational speech during the pregame? I wouldn’t doubt it. Is Brady going to be playing with the fire of a thousand suns in Lucas Oil Stadium? That isn’t even a legitimate question. Will the Patriots punch the Colts in the mouth and take their lunch money again? I sure hope so. We’ve beaten them by a million the last four times we’ve played, so history is on the Patriots side. I don’t want to get too caught up in this and start flying the homer flag too much, so I’m going right into the rankings.

1) New England Patriots – The champs are still undefeated and are about to commit murder in Indianapolis on Sunday night.

2) Green Bay Packers – The Packers defense won them a game on Sunday. The Denim King threw her first two interceptions of the season, but they came out on top.

3) Cincinnati Bengals – OK Cincy, you have my interest now. You beat a solid team at home.

#PrayForIndy via gillettesgallerygods.wordpress.com
#PrayForIndy
via gillettesgallerygods.wordpress.com

4) Denver Broncos – Manning’s arm still looks dead, but the defense in Denver is very much alive.

5) Atlanta Falcons – Devonta Freeman has been an absolute monster, and picked up the slack for an ailing Julio Jones.

6) Arizona Cardinals – Arizona is getting far too much hype. They are feasting on TERRIBLE quarterbacks and offenses. However, they are still 4-1.

7) Carolina Panthers – Coming off bye week.

8) New Jersey Jets – Coming off bye week.

9) New Jersey Giants – The Giants could very well be 5-0 right now.

10) Buffalo Bills – This Bills team reminds me a lot of the 2010 team that went to the AFC Championship. However, their secondary is 100 times worse.

11) Seattle Seahawks – Seattle blew it and I’m still wondering why they can’t get the ball to Jimmy Graham.

12) Pittsburgh Steelers – Steeler fans can’t wait for Big Ben to come back. However, knowing him he may rush back too quickly and do further damage. It was a big win for the Steelers on the west coast in primetime though.

13) San Diego Chargers – San Diego lost to a team led by Mike Vick. Plain and simple.

14) Indianapolis Colts – The day of reckoning is upon you Indianapolis.

Neck Beard may get a Stone Cold Stunner from multiple Patriots defenders
Neck Beard may get a Stone Cold Stunner from multiple Patriots defenders

15) Philadelphia Eagles – Sam Bradford better learn to protect the football in the red zone, regardless of how much Philly won by.

16) Dallas Cowboys – The Cowboys need a quarterback, and quickly.

17) Chicago Bears – I’m happy for John Fox. The guy has been to hell and back and has his team playing hard again.

18) Kansas City Chiefs – Jamaal Charles’ injury ended his season and most likely the Chiefs as well.

19) Cleveland Browns – McCown threw for a billion yards and the Browns won a game in a tough place to play. They get Denver this coming Sunday at home.

20) St. Louis Rams – Nick Foles had one of the worst games I’ve seen a quarterback play in quite some time.

21) Oakland Raiders – The Raiders continue to make Raiders type plays in crunch time.

22) Minnesota Vikings – Coming off bye week.

23) Jacksonville Jaguars – The Jaguars need to improve in the secondary before they can become somewhat relevant.

24) Baltimore Ravens – Nothing brings me more joy than seeing Baltimore 1-4.

25) New Orleans Saints – It is a short week for the Saints, but the game is in primetime and at home. Typically Drew Brees plays out of his mind in games like this.

26) Miami Dolphins – Coming off bye week. *Editors note: at least they didn’t lose, however they can’t blame losses on Philbin anymore.

27) Washington Redskins – Just like the Skins found a way to win a game last week, they found a way to lose one this week.

28) Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Winston didn’t turn the ball over for the first time in his short professional career.

29) Houston Texans – Houston may not win another game the rest of the season.

Hoyer SHOULD be the starter, but Billy may overthink this for the 3,494th time
Hoyer SHOULD be the starter, but Billy may overthink this for the 3,494th time

30) Tennessee Titans – Tennessee did all in their power to let Buffalo win that game on Sunday.

31) San Francisco 49ers – Too little, too late for the Niners. They can build off of that loss, but still have a long way to go.

32) Detroit Lions – Fat Face got benched for Dan Orlovsky. Enough said…

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