AFC East Standings

Results from Week 4 are in, and chaos is mildly spinning in the AFC East. Ever since Tom Brady’s injury left the fate of his team up in the air, speculation has been going round and round about which team will dominate the division this season. Although the numbers suggest the Bills (4-0) are on top of the division, with the Patriots next at 2-1, then the Jets at 2-2 and finally the Dolphins rounding out the pack at 1-2, the stats don’t reveal everything. Teams played need to be taken into account, and in that case the Bills don’t seem so mighty, after all.

Sure, no one can argue their immaculate 4-0 start on the season, but Buffalo’s season has been somewhat of a cakewalk so far, having played four mediocre teams with a combined average of 4-11. On top of that, the Bills haven’t played a divisional game yet, and won’t until Week 8. The other three teams in the AFC East have already faced one another, each of them going 1-1 in the division (the Patriots beat the Jets, who beat the Dolphins, who beat the Patriots.) Where will the Bills stand once they start playing these games? Stay tuned to find out.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on September 30, 2008 - Post a comment

Bye Week Fix-ups

For the Patriots, bye week typically means a stronger-than-ever return to the league in the next week of play. While last week’s bye for New England came slightly prematurely (the team’s earliest bye since the 2004 season,) perhaps the Patriots needed to regroup after their horrifying game against Miami. Patterns have shown that the week of rest ensuing with bye week is often very valuable to the Patriots, who have a 6-2 record following regular-season bye week under the leadership of Bill Belichick.

This year, Belichick had the team practicing in full pads last Wednesday and Thursday before giving his team three days off, working to tackle the Patriots’ to-do list to improve their season. Some of these areas of concentration for New England are as follows:
• Rushing game: What can LaMont Jordan do early in games?
• Run defense: Covering up what the Dolphins revealed.
• Passing game: Cassel needs to improve.
• Zone coverage: There are just too many holes in the defense.
• Third down defense: The Pats are currently ranked 31 out of 32 teams in the category.
• Red-zone offense: Finish the drives the Patriots start.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on September 29, 2008 - Post a comment

Troy Brown Retires

After 15 seasons of blood and sweat poured into that classic navy blue jersey boasting the number 80, Patriots wide receiver Troy Brown is finally calling it quits. The legendary Brown announced his retirement yesterday in Foxboro, finally deciding he can’t keep up with younger players anymore. As much as Brown has taken from the Patriots, so also he will leave a legacy of memories and records, including a team record for career catches (with 557.)

Troy Brown was an active party in five Super Bowl performances, drafted to New England out of Marshall in 1993. In his first three seasons playing for the Patriots, Brown was mainly a kickoff and punt returner, never starting a game. In 1997 Brown started six games and ended the season with 41 receptions, which quickly led up to 83 passes in 2000, then a single-season team record in 2001 when Brown had 101 catches (Wes Welker broke that record last year with 112.)

New England is sure to miss this monumental figure in Patriots history, and they will honor Brown on Nov. 13 when the Jets visit New England. As for Brown’s future, Comcast SportsNet has already announced that he will be an NFL analyst on its weeknight evening New England sports show.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on September 26, 2008 - Post a comment

Pats Find Hope in Hobbs

In recounting the Patriots/Dolphins game from last week, it seems as if a few things were overlooked. New England went down in their worst home defeat in 10 years, but at least one Patriot stood up to the challenge: cornerback Ellis Hobbs. Hobbs saw a decent amount of action in Sunday’s game (more than the Patriots hoped he would,) making return kickoffs the one bright spot for last week’s fumbling Patriots team. In total, Hobbs ran back with six return kickoffs, going for a single-game team record of 237 yards. The former Iowa State player is also leading the NFL with an average of 36 yards per kickoff return (of 10.)

The New England cornerback has been known for his kickoff returns ever since his debut into the NFL in 2005, and he recorded his first touchdown in the league in 2006 when he returned a kickoff 93 yards to score against Houston. In the Patriots’ 2007 season opener against the Jets, Hobbs went down in NFL history for having the longest kickoff return, bringing back the opening kickoff of the second half of the game for 108 yards for a touchdown. As long as New England’s got this guy on his team, there’s at least someone to turn to when things go wrong.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on September 25, 2008 - Post a comment

Former Patriot Johnson Lends His Brain to Study

Once upon a time, linebacker Ted Johnson was a Super Bowl champion and New England fan favorite. The NFL veteran was on top of the world – until he suffered enough concussions to turn his glorious career and life upside down. Johnson left the Patriots after learning he’d be inactive for a season starter, and he has since been plagued by post-concussion syndrome, which has been linked to cognitive impairment and severe depression.

Johnson’s neurologist has said that between 2002 and 2005, the linebacker suffered multiple concussions that have resulted in permanent problems dealing with memory and depression, yet the long-term effects of concussions are still largely undetermined, especially as the condition stands with the NFL. In order to further explore the consequences of concussions, Johnson has lent a hand (or rather, brain) to a study being conducted by Boston University’s School of Medicine concerning long-term effects of concussions. A total of 12 athletes, including six NFL players, have agreed to donate their brains to the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy after their deaths. 35-year-old Johnson is one of those six, and he hopes the study will clarify some of the results of concussions he has suffered since his glory days in the NFL.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on September 24, 2008 - Post a comment

Football Fans Share Opinions

It wasn’t a pretty sight at Gillette Stadium on Sunday when the Patriots suffered a devastating 38-13 loss on their home field. In fact, it might take a couple days to get over the resounding echo of boos that followed the New England team out of their field after last week’s game, but when the Boston Globe asked football fans to vote on how the Patriots stack up without Tom Brady, the paper found a surprising amount of hope behind the crowd (Patriots fans or not.)
When it comes to a starting quarterback that isn’t Tom Brady, more than 73% of people surveyed said they’d like to see Matt Cassel throwing the ball over anyone else.

Putting their faith in Cassel, football fans have given the inexperienced veteran overwhelming confidence. As far as what division of the Patriots needs to step it up in the wake of Brady’s absence, the majority of people surveyed (35.3%) said Cassel needs to work harder to fill Brady’s shoes; 34.8% said the Pats defense needs to work a little harder. Most importantly, however, football fans (62.2%) believe Bill Belichick is the most important factor in New England’s success – now there’s something to have a little faith in.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on September 23, 2008 - Post a comment

Tempers Flare as Dolphins Surpass Patriots

Yesterday was an emotional day as the Patriots went down swinging to a much-improved and driven Miami team. Led by running back Ronnie Brown and his team-record four touchdowns, the Dolphins ended the Patriots’ 21 consecutive regular-season wins. Miami and New England are two teams that have seen significant changes since last year – while New England has seen a new face as quarterback in the last few weeks, the Dolphins have seen 27 new players wearing their teal-and-orange getup since last season. While some of what went down on the football field yesterday was fair game, other parts may have been foul play.

Take Dolphins running back Ricky Williams, for example. During a 62-yard touchdown made by Ronnie Brown, the Miami hotshot Williams threw an open-field cut block on Patriots linebacker Mike Vrabel, yet the unnecessary block was overshadowed by a call on Vrabel for unnecessary roughness, as the Patriots linebacker pounced on Williams after the play. Ultimately, Brown’s touchdown stood, and it was at this 35-13 turning point that the Dolphins infinitely furthered their lead against the New England team. Plays like this cost the Patriots, and while there’s no use trying to get a redo on the game, plays like should be considered when looking at the Patriots’ devastating loss yesterday.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on September 22, 2008 - Post a comment

Pats-Dolphins Preview

It was ugly last year. Not just ugly; horrendous. Tom Brady and the Patriots swept a winless Miami team 49-28 en route to their perfect season in the Patriots-Dolphins matchup in last year’s regular season, the most memorable part of the game being Tom Brady’s record-breaking six touchdown passes while Miami just watched in wonder. Will it be different this year?

Aside from the obvious missing from Sunday’s lineup, it seems as if the same undefeated Patriots are going against the exact same team they slaughtered last year – a winless Miami group. If last week’s Miami-Arizona game was anything of a forecast, the statistics showed the Dolphins gaining just 236 yards while allowing 445 in a 31-10 loss. Compare that to the Patriots’ decisive victory over the Jets and it doesn’t seem like much of a matchup.

Add to this formula the need for the revenge, and the Patriots seem golden. Amid speculation for Sunday’s game, Matt Cassel has one more reason to perform; Miami linebacker Joey Porter labeled Cassel a “backup” quarterback to reporters this week, saying it “shouldn’t be that hard” to beat the Patriots now that Brady is gone. Well, Porter, let’s hope your money’s where your mouth is. For your sake.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on September 19, 2008 - Post a comment

Patriots’ Offense Rises to Challenge

Have the Patriots resorted to becoming the antithesis of what they’re usually known for when it comes to offensive strategies? It’s hard to match Tom Brady’s laser passes and stretch-the-field plays, but Sunday’s game against the Jets showed new QB Matt Cassel taking baby steps from Brady’s, making just 23 pass attempts and, of those, only four that were 10 yards or longer. This small ball game the Pats’ offense partook in was incredibly successful, however, and Cassel went 7 for 10 in passes 0 to 5 yards. This fact makes fans question the fate of the New England offense: have the Patriots changed their offensive strategy for good?

While it’s yet unclear, one thing is for certain: the Pats’ offense is ready to go. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels says the Patriots are well past the offensive standard they set last year, as heavyweights Randy Moss, Wes Welker and Sammy Morris are already experienced and up-to-date on the team’s playbook. A few changes in the lineup (including the huge switch from Brady to Cassel) will continue to be a challenge for the still-dominating New England team this season, but Cassel just has to keep doing what he’s been doing and, perhaps, it will lead up to the kind of aerial attack we’re used to with Brady.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on September 18, 2008 - Post a comment

Coach Brady

It was seven years ago when New England quarterback Drew Bledsoe got injured in a game, forcing the rookie Tom Brady into the NFL, and now Brady gets to experience life on the other side of the tracks. Sitting out the rest of the season while the inexperienced Matt Cassel takes the field, Brady has assumed the role Bledsoe was to him during his first season of playtime in the big leagues: the role of coach.

Brady’s knee injury may put him out of play for the next year, but his time on the sidelines so far has been invaluable for Cassel. Brady has been seen at practices and at quarterback meetings since his injury, easing Cassel into a role as his replacement. Cassel said Brady’s main advice to him was to be smart with the football, relying on experienced veterans to handle the rest. In Cassel’s first game starting for New England last Sunday, his game plan was definitely different from Brady’s – he stuck almost completely to short passes and safe plays – but the strategy paid off for the Patriots as they continued their winning streak, coming in at 2-0 on the season so far.

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Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on September 17, 2008 - Post a comment


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