The Patriots

[beachcomber]

still think they're the Cheatriots.... why is Tom so much more ineffective on the road ??

the officiating crew for our game had never lost a playoff game for the Pats, of which their streak continued, in part due to some ever so timely third down flags against us.

and of course my greatest fear came true in the draft, w/them drafting Stidham.... perfect fit for them, and....

they took Cajuste, we took Pipkins.... ??

I think it's on the League/NFL (and the PTB).... as eye think they do most everything in their power to keep the "Patriots" in the public's eye and of a most high esteem.

[KYBoltsFan]

Win the division, then worry about those bean town pieces of shit in the playoffs.

[Xenos]

Gotta admit...they killed the draft. They are getting Gordon back. They have Gordon, Harry and Edelman in that WR core. They always are solid in the trenches. The run game will continue to get better. They are probably going to miss Gronk. Saferian Jenkins is a solid red zone presence.

Charger fans keep talking about the Chiefs....but the Pats are still looking like the Elephant in the living room to me.

The defense is their weakness. They have good players sprinkled in. Some of the best coaching around. They get by on defense. I dont think the addition of Bennett makes them that much better.

I hate them. But i think they are worth discussing,

How much of their dominance against us was fear? Were the coaches scared? Were the players scared? We looked like a deer in the headlights against them last year.

Anyways for years i have said teams are drafting to beat the Patriots. Colts did quite a bit of it. And to some degree i though we went to the Polian tree to do just that. Telseco is from that tree.

Thoughts on how we match up now after the draft and getting injured players back.

I don't think we played scared. I just thought we had a bad gameplan especially on offense. Should have dinked and dunked like Brady did instead of trying to go deep so much. I don't know if it's Whiz thing or a Rivers' thing but that need to go vertical so much killed us in that game. While Bradley is sometimes stubborn to a fault with his scheme, the defense was just too short handed to stop a team like the Patriots.

In fact, one of the guys I follow, Ted Nguyen mentioned this himself. I personally disagreed with him at the time but it turned out pretty accurate what the Patriots were going to do to us.
https://theathletic.com/754506/2019/...game-patriots/

As for the Chargers, they're heading to Foxborough for a possible snowy game against the New England Patriots, who are an entirely different team than the Ravens. Though the Patriots offense lost their deep threat when Josh Gordon was suspended, they still boast one of the most intellectually challenging offenses in the league. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Tom Brady aren't going to be giving away much pre-snap information like the Ravens did.

The Patriots have developed a physical and diverse run game. They finished the regular season fifth in rushing yards (2,037 yards). In their last two games of the regular season, without Gordon, they ran for 404 yards. Unlike the Ravens, they run their offense from under center so there are less "tells".

The Chargers' usage of dime and quarters should offset some of the match up problems that the Patriots' running backs cause. The Patriots will likely counter with a run game that can attack outside and inside without giving away tells in the pre-snap. Also, an advantage of playing under center is a more believable play-action game. The Chargers safeties don't have as much experience reading play action as linebackers, who have been trained to do so for their entire careers -- the Chargers safeties' aggression could get them in trouble this week. The Chargers have the personnel and pass rushers to make life difficult on Tom Brady if they are able to stop the run, but it won't be as easy as last week.

The weather could affect Philip Rivers' ability to throw deep, which could severely deter the Chargers' offense. Brady isn't throwing a lot of deep passes anyway and the weather could actually help the Patriots run game by slowing down the Chargers' defensive speed. I think the Patriots hold off the Chargers at home.
Prediction: Patriots 27, Chargers 21

[beachcomber]

nice find Xenos.... thanx for sharing,

recall that was my sense going into the Pats game.... that we would need to stop their running the ball,

[Topcat]

I don't think we played scared. I just thought we had a bad gameplan especially on offense. Should have dinked and dunked like Brady did instead of trying to go deep so much. I don't know if it's Whiz thing or a Rivers' thing but that need to go vertical so much killed us in that game. While Bradley is sometimes stubborn to a fault with his scheme, the defense was just too short handed to stop a team like the Patriots.

In fact, one of the guys I follow, Ted Nguyen mentioned this himself. I personally disagreed with him at the time but it turned out pretty accurate what the Patriots were going to do to us.
https://theathletic.com/754506/2019/...game-patriots/

Great point. Brady, Montana, Elway, ALL lived off the short to medium completions, ball control, TOP. I really think the deep ball is overblown in value. It takes time for a deep play to develop, and that's time when the opposing D is pressuring, sacking, etc. Rivers and Whiz can learn a lesson from this.

[Boltnut]

Patriots lost to: Jaguars, Lions, Titans, Dolphins, and Steelers. None of those teams made it to the playoffs. Were they bad games for the Patriots or did those other teams just matchup better...?

[Budsman]

Patriots lost to: Jaguars, Lions, Titans, Dolphins, and Steelers. None of those teams made it to the playoffs. Were they bad games for the Patriots or did those other teams just matchup better...?

IMO the playoff, home field, week to rest, Patriots are the patriots to worry about. The regular season patriots sleep walk their way to division titles. The afc east is pretty much trash and has been for a while.

[Budsman]

True but it doesn't matter who is in their division because they keep winning when they get to the playoffs and going to SBs.

That's half true, a weak division gives you an advantage in seeding. Being a 1 or 2 seed is extremely advantageous to winning a super bowl. They do still have to execute and they do that but their challenge is much easier.

On a side note I was annoyed that the pats had a worse record than us and ended up the two seed. I get divisions leading to playoff births but seeding should be done by record.

[NoMoreChillies]

Great point. Brady, Montana, Elway, ALL lived off the short to medium completions, ball control, TOP. I really think the deep ball is overblown in value. It takes time for a deep play to develop, and that's time when the opposing D is pressuring, sacking, etc. Rivers and Whiz can learn a lesson from this.

Will they tho?

Its not their first rodeo, this deep ball is a staple from Rivers / Wiz. I'd much prefer quick snaps and slant routes to eat up clock, keep defense off balance vs the late snaps (1 sec left on play clock) and deep balls. I doubt it will change this season so I hope the O-line gives Rivers 3+ sec to throw. There will be MVP talk if so

[richpjr]

Since Mike Williams isn't as fast as Tyrell Williams was, and Keenan has never been a burner, it will be interesting to see if we still try and go deep as much with those two as our primary receivers.

[Critty]

I think its just a few things.

FG Kicking.
They have had better clutch FG kicking in postseason. A number of teams playoff run ends with a missed kick. Almost every year it happens.
Not to them. Chargers missed postseason in Lynn 1st season because of horrible FG kicking.
It matters a lot. Games are often decided by one score or missed opportunity to score.

Home Field.
They have only won Superbowl when they had a bye. One less game to play and 1st game at home with 2 weeks to get prepared & healthy. Also being at home allows offense to operate without crowd noise while the opposing offense has to deal with the noise. And your facing a team that just played and has to travel with 1 week to prepare and get healthy.

The GOAT.
Brady is just so good at taking what defense gives him. Extremely quick decisions that negates a great pass rush. He will nickel & dime a team to death better than any QB ever. And he is usually at his best in big games.


The answers to the above.
Beat them at their own game.

1. Have great FG so you can win close games.

2. Get home field advantage so Patriots have to travel and your team has 2 weeks to prepare.

3. Rivers can nickel & dime the Pats to death and keep Brady off the field and the Chargers defense fresh. Stay patient & make Tom impatient because he is on the sideline.

Much easier said than done.
But I believe that is how to do it.

[bartman83642]

Got to agree with you on this analysis, especially points 1 & 2. I thought much the same while watching the game.