Indefinite New England Patriots Thread (3 Viewers)

[BassNBrew]

Can someone who follows the Patriots very closely please help provide a critique of Danny Amendola (aside from his injury issues)?

I ask, because I assumed that he would be a factor on this offense if healthy. He looks like an afterthought at this point. Is Julian Edelman really THAT much better than him, if at all?

It's pretty straight forward. Brady has more trust, chemistry, and a comfort level with Edelman that he does not have at the moment with Amendola. I don't th ink Edelman is that much more talented, but Brady has more laser vision on Edelman as Amendola is not at could at hot reads and running the routes as Brady wants them. Things could change if coverage changes though and Edelman has more bodies covering him.

Brady needs to talk to Bradford or whoever the guy off the street was replacing Bradford during his injuries.

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

Brady has morphed into Bledsoe

 

[ROCKET]

This is the first time in the Brady era that I seriously think the run is over. I would be shocked if this team does anything in the playoffs assuming they get there. BB and his crappy drafting and Kraft's nickel and diming has finally taken it's toll. I'll give BB credit as he has done more with less over the last 5 years or so but the cupboard is bare and both lines are pathetic. Brady is in decline as well but how can you blame him given the talent he's surrounded with.

It was a great run and we knew it wouldn't last forever.

well, I'm pretty down about the game, but then I realized I'm rooting for a team that produces this ^^ reaction to losing one game and I feel a little better.

I'm trying to not overreact but looking at this team we have two of the weakest lines in the NFL. I think it is as much a talent issue as a coaching/scheme issue. I'm of the belief that games are won in the trenches and from what I've seen so far that is a major issue given the cast of characters we are fielding. The good news is we have 13 mil in cap space left to go out and sign all those impact players out there.

yeah, I think that's your imagination

Ok, so I imagined that Chris Jones, Silver Siliga and a very old looking Big Vince were thrown around like rag dolls in the second half. I don't even know where to start on the offensive line, just pick anyone. Do you honestly see either line being a strength for this team? If so, how do you see that based on the talent we presently have and the way they are playing? What we have done in years past doesn't mean anything this year as we have never fielded such a bunch of stiffs and has been's on the lines as we have now. Well at least not under BB.

I totally get why you'd feel that way after this game. But, at some point, until they prove otherwise, don't you need to give them the benefit of the doubt that they'll improve?

I think they will improve as they can't play any worse than they did in the second half. My point is it's sickening to look at the talent on the roster @ O-line and D-line. Like I said I feel BB has performed a minor miracle last year to get this group to the AFC title game. He will get the most out of this group but the cupboard is bare aside from Chandler , Solder and maybe a couple others. Unfortunately as good a coach BB is he's that bad a GM at this point.

WTF are we relying on Vellano, Devey etc. ? I know we have some prospects like Stork and Easley but if they don't come in and contribute sooner than later we are no better than a 10 win team at best ( and that is optimistic) with a quick playoff exit. I am fully expecting to start 0-2 as a team like Minny on the road is exactly the worst case scenario for us at this point IMO. I hope I'm wrong.

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

This is the first time in the Brady era that I seriously think the run is over. I would be shocked if this team does anything in the playoffs assuming they get there. BB and his crappy drafting and Kraft's nickel and diming has finally taken it's toll. I'll give BB credit as he has done more with less over the last 5 years or so but the cupboard is bare and both lines are pathetic. Brady is in decline as well but how can you blame him given the talent he's surrounded with.

It was a great run and we knew it wouldn't last forever.

well, I'm pretty down about the game, but then I realized I'm rooting for a team that produces this ^^ reaction to losing one game and I feel a little better.

I'm trying to not overreact but looking at this team we have two of the weakest lines in the NFL. I think it is as much a talent issue as a coaching/scheme issue. I'm of the belief that games are won in the trenches and from what I've seen so far that is a major issue given the cast of characters we are fielding. The good news is we have 13 mil in cap space left to go out and sign all those impact players out there.

yeah, I think that's your imagination

Ok, so I imagined that Chris Jones, Silver Siliga and a very old looking Big Vince were thrown around like rag dolls in the second half. I don't even know where to start on the offensive line, just pick anyone. Do you honestly see either line being a strength for this team? If so, how do you see that based on the talent we presently have and the way they are playing? What we have done in years past doesn't mean anything this year as we have never fielded such a bunch of stiffs and has been's on the lines as we have now. Well at least not under BB.

I totally get why you'd feel that way after this game. But, at some point, until they prove otherwise, don't you need to give them the benefit of the doubt that they'll improve?

I think they will improve as they can't play any worse than they did in the second half. My point is it's sickening to look at the talent on the roster @ O-line and D-line. Like I said I feel BB has performed a minor miracle last year to get this group to the AFC title game. He will get the most out of this group but the cupboard is bare aside from Chandler , Solder and maybe a couple others. Unfortunately as good a coach BB is he's that bad a GM at this point.

WTF are we relying on Vellano, Devey etc. ? I know we have some prospects like Stork and Easley but if they don't come in and contribute sooner than later we are no better than a 10 win team at best ( and that is optimistic) with a quick playoff exit. I am fully expecting to start 0-2 as a team like Minny on the road is exactly the worst case scenario for us at this point IMO. I hope I'm wrong.

I understand I'm talking about many different people here, so all you guys won't have your complaints coordinated and on the same page, but when I was loving this draft I was kind of surprised to hear all the whining about it -- it wasn't 'sexy', they should've drafted receivers, bb the gm is terrible, the cupboard is bare, it's a disgrace they left brady without weapons, etc.

now, we have the people who, I guess, are whining because they don't have all first round linemen.

look, you ####ers, it is physically ####### impossible to draft every position in the first round, and even if you did you'd have to be ####### jesus to avoid busts.

every ####### team in the league has their share of 7th rounders and udfa's starting, along with the inevitable busts that they end up cutting or trading for some conditional 7th.

I'd say ninkovich is a pretty ####### good player --- are you saying the guy is a talentless waste of roster space?

I 100% guarantee you that as soon as they get this thing turned around and start winning games, and they will, that everybody will pop out of their closet like a ####### jack in the box to tell us what a great line brady gets to play behind, and how the patriots d is terrorizing teams.

MARK IT DOWN!!!!!!!!!

edit ps

that's assuming it wasn't all dante's magic in the first place

 

[Run It Up]

I'm not worried about the season. Just trying to make sense of personnel decisions Sunday, I think the pats d still finishes top 3 in fantasy and I think the pats at the least make it back to the afc championship.

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

here's a little write up a guy did on the offensive line play

not that I really want to revisit that game...

edit: lol forgot the link

posted this earlier, but thought I'd add a few various blurbs

If you take Brady out of it, the Pats are the third youngest team in the league

This morning, Gresh & Zolak [blahblah]. They said that Wendell was injured on the play and could not return and that Devey was overmatched at RG for the remainder of the afternoon.

All totaled 11 of the “record” 16 deep passes that he missed on were either him throwing into the end zone at the end of the second half or him trying to bring a team back from down 2 scores with around 3 minutes remaining.

Since it was such a discussed play to pointing the inefficiencies of Brady on the deep ball, I will pass along what Zolak said on 98.5. He said his sources with the team the overthrow of Edelman deep was "100% on Edelman" and that Edelman ran the wrong route.

also, here's a pretty awesome rundown of where everybody lined up on defense

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

http://vikingsterritory.com/2014/analysis/2014-minnesota-vikings-scouting-the-new-england-patriots

cool scouting breakdown of the pats from some minny dude

The bigger problem is Jordan Devey, who may be the worst starting guard in the league, and borderline unrosterable. Devey had a terrible preseason and was slated to start this game for no discernible reason. He predictably had a terrible game. Not only did he give up hurry after hurry, he was not a particularly adept run blocker

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

The Patriots have downgraded DE Michael Buchanan, LB Jamie Collins and C Ryan Wendell to out for Sunday's game.

 

[Run It Up]

The Patriots have downgraded LB Jamie Collins to out for Sunday's game.

<_<

 

[captain_amazing]

The Patriots have downgraded LB Jamie Collins to out for Sunday's game.

<_<

If they go back to a 4-3 today, I'm guessing we'll see this Skinner kid with Mayo and Hightower at LB. Anyone know anything about him?

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

thx mike reiss!

It comes down to this: If you don’t block, and establish a presence at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, nothing else really matters.

The Patriots didn’t do that in the second half of their season-opening loss to the Dolphins, so how did they fix that problem in Week 2?

The answer, in part on offense, lies with 6-foot-6, 325-pound rookie Cameron Fleming.

It wasn’t necessarily Fleming’s individual performance that got the Patriots back on track, but it was what his presence represented. A bulldozing backup offensive tackle by trade, he was utilized as a blocking tight end on 28 of 67 snaps (including penalties) against the Vikings, which included seven of the first 10 plays of the game.

If ever there was a shining example of how determined the coaching staff was on trying to recapture the line of scrimmage, this was it. They essentially sacrificed a capable pass-catcher in exchange for a sixth offensive lineman.

Just as the Patriots restored order at the line of scrimmage on offense, the same was true on defense, and it was also a simple-minded approach that got it done. While it surely helped that running back Adrian Peterson wasn’t on the field, and the Vikings aren’t an upper-echelon foe, here’s how they did it from a matchup perspective:

• When the Vikings had two backs and two tight ends on the field, they went heavy with what was essentially a 5-2 alignment with three defensive tackles.
• When the Vikings had one back, two tight ends and two receivers, they lightened the box slightly by subbing out a defensive tackle and adding a linebacker (rookie Deontae Skinner).
• And when the Vikings had one back, one tight end three receivers, it was mostly a 4-2-5 nickel.

Within those groupings, a few keys were matching cornerback Darrelle Revis against receiver Greg Jennings, returning Chandler Jones to his more natural end-of-the-line position and upgrading Rob Ninkovich from a part-time to full-time role. The fits in the running game were much improved and the Patriots, playing without starting linebacker Jamie Collins, were rewarded with four interceptions and six sacks.

Afterwards, coach Bill Belichick talked about how the team’s two biggest points of emphasis leading into the game were blocking and tackling.

Penalties an issue: The Patriots had 15 accepted penalties for 163 yards in the game, which left tackle Nate Solder pinpointed as a problem area. "I think I had two in one play, so that was a first for me," he said of being flagged for an illegal block above the waist and holding in the third quarter. "It's not really a joke. I have to keep working on that."

“We are going to try and make improvements, so that’s why we get back to work tomorrow and see what we can do better,” Brady said. “Similar to after last week, try to make some improvements and hopefully we can go out there and do a better job.”

Benjamin Volin - Boston Globe, NFL Reporter
Stat of the Day: #Patriots are 38-1 under Belichick when they have an individual 100-yard rusher

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

fleming probably felt right at home today

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/pac12/2014/09/02/college-football-stanford-cardinal-offensive-line/14979515/

STANFORD, Calif. — At some point during a run of sustained excellence in which Stanford has won 47 of its last 55 games, its offensive line took on mythic proportions.

Much of that stems from its willingness to use sets most other teams reserve for goal-line situations. The Cardinal regularly uses seven or eight lineman – occasionally nine – in unique formations, such as its signature Jumbo package, and unique positions, like the Ogre. The Cardinal offensive line's effectiveness has endeared it to college football enthusiasts, particularly among those who prefer a methodical bludgeoning attack to the spread offense.

Josh Garnett remembers that as a sophomore last season, after Stanford beat an undefeated Oregon 26-20 by maintaining possession for more than 42 minutes, he scrolled through Twitter and saw two pictures that made him laugh.

"It had our Jumbo formation and said 'What Stanford lines up in,' then a picture with 50 of us and 'What Oregon saw,' " Garnett says, smiling Being so versatile, however, does require a great deal of familiarity with the playbook. Garnett compares studying Stanford's playbook – which is "not impossible, but it is difficult, a lot more difficult than I think a lot of other places across the country" – to the amount of work required to take another class at Stanford. "You've got to study at night, put things together; it's like school," he says. "School is challenging here, but we're all smart guys. They expect more of us."
Says Garnett: "That's stuff you don't see anywhere else. That shows the trust Coach Shaw and Coach Bloom have in us. They're trying to revolutionize the game and it take it to new levels."

Not just in the college game, either. Stanford's coaches have met the past two offseasons with some of the NFL's brightest minds, bouncing ideas back and forth. Bloomgren says he spent a lot of time with the Atlanta Falcons two years ago, and that last spring, eight different NFL offensive line coaches came to Stanford's campus to chat. Two offensive coordinators came though, as did longtime former New England Patriots line coach Dante Scarnecchia.

http://www.si.com/college-football/2013/12/31/stanford-cardinal-offensive-line

The most fascinating part of Stanford's offense over the past four seasons has been its new-age twists on old-school philosophies. Without the tweaks, Stanford already has one of the country's most dominating offensive lines. Prototype left tackle Andrus Peat (6-foot-7, 312 pounds), unanimous All-America left guard David Yankey (6-5, 313) and second-team All-Pac-12 right tackle Cam Fleming (6-6, 318), [an aeronautics and astronautics major], all project to have lengthy NFL careers

Bloomgren brought the Jumbo concept with him from the New York Jets, who used offensive lineman Wayne Hunter in that role. Hunter, who is 6-5 and 315 pounds, could dominate a defensive end or Sam linebacker a Jets tight end might normally struggle to block.

"We tuned the mismatch completely around," Bloomgren said. "Instead of a disadvantage, it became a true advantage. It just made sense."

Before Bloomgren arrived at Stanford in 2011, the Cardinal had begun tinkering with the so-called Ogre position that Garnett typically plays. Garnett, who is 6-5 and 318 pounds, lines up as a wing behind the traditional inline tight end as a wrinkle in the double tight end (Y-Y or Double-Y) sets.

Garnett, who came to Stanford as a coveted guard prospect, plays more than 20 snaps at game at the Ogre. He'll often run in motion, creating comical mismatches of more than 100 pounds when he reaches the second level. "In the Oregon game," said Murphy, "it was really cool to see him block a small corner and just flatback a guy."

Garnett wears No. 98 for the Ogre spot. (Both he and Murphy also have conventional offensive line numbers they can wear if they're going to play a traditional line spot.)

The Ogre position at Stanford took hold in 2010, when then-run-game coordinator Greg Roman and staff studied film of John Harbaugh's Baltimore Ravens

 

[Run It Up]

The defense looked great pretty much everywhere. Chandler Jones, Mayo and Revis played lights out. The pressure was great, Cassel looked comfortable never, it took a minute, but Ninkovich finished out the game strong with a big sack.

Looking forward to another soft game next week with the Raiders, hopefully by week 4 we'll be in 5th gear.

I think this Pats D will get even better when Collins returns and Easley comes into his own.

 

[SeniorVBDStudent]

So when do we get the real Gronk back?

 

[Run It Up]

So when do we get the real Gronk back?

The offense isn't 100% yet, things are still settling. Theres a year long competition for the WR2 job still ongoing. I was pretty confident Thompkins was gonna take it, but he was inactive for seemingly no reason. Lafell has looked absolutely terrible. Dobson has looked like Dobson, he didn't have an actual opportunity against the Vikings to show that he had improved at all, catching 1 of 2. Dola had a pretty great play on Sunday that got negated by penalty.

But don't worry about Gronk, Brady trusts him more than everyone save for maybe Edelman. Gronk playing on a snap count still getting more targets than everyone else. The numbers weren't impressive, but Gronk looked good against the Vikings.

Gronk will return to form, or close enough and someone else will emerge, hard to say who, Dola is incredibly talented, Thompkins has looked good and Dobson has a lot of raw talent, honestly I think Tim Wright is gonna have a big role before this seasons over.

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

Logan Mankins, LG: -3.5

Breakdown: After missing all but 10 snaps in his Buccaneer debut last week, Mankins returned for a troubling outing. Issues in both the run game and as a pass blocker defined his day as Michael Brockers, Robert Quinn and Aaron Donald each got the better of him at different points. Lowest grade for the former Patriot since his Super Bowl XLVI performance (-3.8).

Signature Play: 3Q 1:50, Mankins whiffs on Donald and gives up the inside, opening the door for a tackle that netted a 3-yard loss.

https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2014/09/15/refo-rams-buccaneers-week-1/

 

[JetMaxx]

How did Devey rate?

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

How did Devey rate?

Not too good

Stork made his first appearance

 

[Run It Up]

Devey looked the worst if you ignore Vollmers talent for drawing penalties. Sometimes twice in the same play.

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

Turnover differential remains strength: The Patriots have a league-high seven takeaways through two games and own a plus-5 differential. This has been part of their identity since Brady became their starting quarterback, while the Raiders are an NFL-worst minus-83 over that span:

• Patriots -- plus-150
• Packers -- plus-60
• Colts -- plus-44
• Seahawks -- plus-44

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/new-england-patriots/post/_/id/4768392/patriots-raiders-through-a-stats-based-lens

Regular-season home winning streak vs. conference foes: The Patriots have won 30 straight regular-season home games against conference opponents, the longest streak since the merger:

• Patriots -- 30
• Bengals -- 8
• Panthers -- 6
• Saints - 6

 

[ROCKET]

Maybe at some point this season we can go back to a conventional O-line with 5 instead of 6 .Pathetic. If I was Brady I would be beyond p o.d with the crap he has been surrounded with. Cincy will be our next legit test.

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

Brady is his own worst enemy at this point of his career. He was once known as a QB that just found the open receiver regardless of the number on the jersey. Now, he force feeds the ball to Edleman and Gronk while ignoring guys he doesn't "trust".

 

[SeniorVBDStudent]

Thats baloney.

 

[PatsWillWin]

Brady is his own worst enemy at this point of his career. He was once known as a QB that just found the open receiver regardless of the number on the jersey. Now, he force feeds the ball to Edleman and Gronk while ignoring guys he doesn't "trust".

/bostonsportsradiothisweek

 

[AngryPatriot]

Yeah, I hear that argument to and there's some validity, he has forced the ball at times, or been inaccurate. But the fact remains they really haven't surrounded him by quality and depth behind that quality. Yes, Gronk is good, Edelman is good but it's not enough... I've said this for years and have gotten lambasted (even on here, lol) but now it's one of the main points for all the local talking heads. Brady can't "trust" that one of htese guys will just wake up and be a better player then they really are. Thompkins inactive last week, Gronk invisible, Amendola??? LaFell??? LOL Dobson, one catch. WTF is going on? They're not very good, GM Bellichick dropped the ball awhile back.

Get to the playoffs? Sure, but pretty disastrous when you look over and over for 5'9" Edelman, against tighter and better coverage= fail. There's still a lot of hope with a better D and ...AND hopefully the emergence of one or 2 of these guys but it's frustrating. DeMArius Thomas, Greg Jennings, Dez Bryant, last year Cordarelle Patterson... all and many others have been there at Pats draft spots. We'll see if this gamble on mediocre guys like LaFell and Amendola, no TE depth, pays off. But a lot of us are wondering why you would play your hand like this, not surrounding your best player, in the sunset of his career when he could use it most, with a couple real stud WR's. They should beat the Raiders though, lol. And with this D they may not need 40 points.

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

Thats baloney.

Have you watched a Pats game at any point in the last couple of years? I'm not sure how you could argue any differently if so although I guess the general talking points for the Brady fluffers is that it is Belichick's fault for not having the weapons, or (insert a dozen WRs names here) fault because they couldn't pick up the "system" or the offensive line has let him down or the play calling has been really bad. A whole lot of fingers pointed in different directions yet never at the only guy that has the ball in his hands on every offensive play.

Listen, Brady is one of my all-time favorite players but the reality is the Pats were better poised to win Super Bowls when his mindset was to manage the game as opposed to win the game. Granted, his defenses have been sub-par for the last several years but the guy used to elevate his play in the post-season and now his play his gone down hill in the playoffs relative to his regular season play. 9-8 in his last 17 playoff games with 19 INTs.

 

[Anarchy99]

People can come up with whatever explanation, argument, or excuse for how Brady has been doing lately. But the numbers are the numbers. Since Welker left, Brady has played in 18 regular season games and 2 post season games. In that time, he's averaged (with ranking based on 2013 results if he actually posted those numbers):

22.5 completions (11th)

38.4 passing attempts (5th)

58.6% completion percentage (29th)

6.79 YPA (25th)

1.4 passing TD per game (20th)

0.55 INT per game (5th)

260.8 passing yards per game (10th)

85.4 QB rating (18th)

 

[Run It Up]

How about a combination of everything?

Although, I think not having Gronk and having one of the worst receiving corps in the game will have a pretty significant negative impact.

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

http://www.patriots.com/media-center/videos/Belichick-Breakdown-Key-plays-from-Patriots-win/aae8f01d-b026-4c2c-b9a0-43ac23ae5f84

One of our favorite weekly segments is when New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick breaks down plays after a victory, as it sheds light on things that he deemed critical to a favorable result.

His first breakdown of the 2014 season is posted on Patriots.com, and the play that stands out is Chandler Jones' fourth-quarter sack in which defensive tackle Vince Wilfork drops off the line.

"We actually go to a three-man rush here, where Vince pulls out into coverage," Belichick explained. "They are trying to run a clear-out route with the crosser underneath. We have good coverage from [Darrelle] Revis, ready to pick up [Kyle] Rudolph on the crosser. Vince drops out here and you see [Matt] Cassel come off the crosser and come back to the check-down, and probably didn't expect to see Vince to be standing there in front of the check-down. ... Can't find that receiver."

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

As he often does on Fridays, Belichick gave a bit of a history lesson, discussing just how far technology has come in his profession. We present to you … the ice pick method.

“What I did with the Colts was I wrote every play on a card. I drew the play. And then every category that the play fit into, I’d check off along the outside edge of the card: first-and-10, plus territory, gain of over 4 yards, screen pass, halfback was the receiver, defense ran a blitz … whatever categories it fell into, I’d check those off. I’d take the hole puncher, and I’d punch out the holes that I checked off,” Belichick said. “So then, you’ve got a whole stack of cards here, slide the ice pick in there for third down, and boom, all the third-down cards drop out. Then you take all those cards, look at them, put them all back, put the whole deck of cards back together, stick the ice pick in there, and all the screens fall out, or whatever you’re looking at.

“We would do like 200 of those. Screens, third down, red area, goal line, short yardage, what they ran against blitzes, what they ran from slot, what they ran from motion, all that.”

“That’s about as archaic as you can get, the ice pick method. But it worked.”

 

[JetMaxx]

As he often does on Fridays, Belichick gave a bit of a history lesson, discussing just how far technology has come in his profession. We present to you … the ice pick method.

“What I did with the Colts was I wrote every play on a card. I drew the play. And then every category that the play fit into, I’d check off along the outside edge of the card: first-and-10, plus territory, gain of over 4 yards, screen pass, halfback was the receiver, defense ran a blitz … whatever categories it fell into, I’d check those off. I’d take the hole puncher, and I’d punch out the holes that I checked off,” Belichick said. “So then, you’ve got a whole stack of cards here, slide the ice pick in there for third down, and boom, all the third-down cards drop out. Then you take all those cards, look at them, put them all back, put the whole deck of cards back together, stick the ice pick in there, and all the screens fall out, or whatever you’re looking at.

“We would do like 200 of those. Screens, third down, red area, goal line, short yardage, what they ran against blitzes, what they ran from slot, what they ran from motion, all that.”

“That’s about as archaic as you can get, the ice pick method. But it worked.”

Awesome stuff.

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

Brandon LaFell said he's "frustrated as hell" with his role in the Patriots' offense.
"I’m frustrated as hell, man," LaFell said. "I want to catch passes like every other guy in here, like every receiver around the league. But the game plan is not for me to catch, it’s to block. So that’s what I’ve got to do." LaFell didn't reel in any of his six targets in Week 1, and wasn't targeted at all last week. He's been called on to block on 37-of-77 snaps.

 

[Mingooch]

Maybe if LaFell caught any of the 6 week one, he wouldn't have blocking duty week 2.

 

[Run It Up]

Maybe if LaFell caught any of the 6 week one, he wouldn't have blocking duty week 2.

Or wasn't responsible for 100 penalty yards.

 

[captain_amazing]

Dobson inactive and Thompson active...

 

[Run It Up]

Dobson inactive and Thompson active...

Lafell active, unfortunately.

 

[Boston]

Brandon LaFell said he's "frustrated as hell" with his role in the Patriots' offense.
"I’m frustrated as hell, man," LaFell said. "I want to catch passes like every other guy in here, like every receiver around the league. But the game plan is not for me to catch, it’s to block. So that’s what I’ve got to do." LaFell didn't reel in any of his six targets in Week 1, and wasn't targeted at all last week. He's been called on to block on 37-of-77 snaps.

Talking to the press like that in Foxboro is a quick way to get yourself on another team...

 

[ponchsox]

Brandon LaFell said he's "frustrated as hell" with his role in the Patriots' offense.

"I’m frustrated as hell, man," LaFell said. "I want to catch passes like every other guy in here, like every receiver around the league. But the game plan is not for me to catch, it’s to block. So that’s what I’ve got to do." LaFell didn't reel in any of his six targets in Week 1, and wasn't targeted at all last week. He's been called on to block on 37-of-77 snaps.

Talking to the press like that in Foxboro is a quick way to get yourself on another team...

LaFell contributed today with a offensive pass interference call. Thanks Brandon.

 

[Run It Up]

What an ugly win.

Edelman and Gronk looked great. Ridley looked pedestrian most of the time but had some decent runs, how much of this is the oline's fault I can't tell. Vereen looked great in the pass game, pretty mediocre on the ground. Thompkins had one catch that I saw, was a great route and catch. Lafell looked like complete garbage, responsible for yet another huge penalty. Revis was getting thrown at all day, with a lot of success - very disappointing considering how well he played against the Vikings last week. The Oline allowed a TON of pressure.

Everyone needs to do their job, and everyone needs to improve. Very ugly.

 

[ponchsox]

The good news is they are 2-1 and have a lot of room for improvement. They better improve before they face the a Bengals in two weeks.

 

[ROCKET]

If this team gets to double digit wins it will be a minor miracle. I'm calling it right now, 9-7. Anyone who thinks this team has big upside this year is a blind homer. This is the worst Pats team of the BB/TB era by far.

 

[Run It Up]

If this team gets to double digit wins it will be a minor miracle. I'm calling it right now, 9-7. Anyone who thinks this team has big upside this year is a blind homer. This is the worst Pats team of the BB/TB era by far.

They looked much worse last year lmfao...

 

[ponchsox]

If this team gets to double digit wins it will be a minor miracle. I'm calling it right now, 9-7. Anyone who thinks this team has big upside this year is a blind homer. This is the worst Pats team of the BB/TB era by far.

I guess you missed last year? They gave up the most yards in the league, had key injuries on both sides, yet still made it to the AFC championship game. I'm not saying they're great, but they're in better shape this year.

 

[Gandalf]

Guys. All will be fine. It's week 3 and the team will gel. Eom.

 

[SengerCJ]

Guys. All will be fine. It's week 3 and the team will gel. Eom.

Yepp, same way they started the season last year. I'm not all that worried.

 

[ponchsox]

Anyone know why Dobson was deactivated again? Seems like they could really use him. LaFell is worthless.

 

[Boston]

The O line is a major issue...if that does not get corrected they will be limited offensively all year...without Dante Scarneccia on the staff every Patriot fan has to be concerned...the Pats O line has been one of the most underrated areas of the Brady/BB era (and I feel Matt Light was the most underrated player of the era)...year in and year out they have had a high quality line and there are a ton of examples where Scar turned a nobody into a solid performer...whether it is Stork, Devey or Kline the Pats need some guys to step up and stabilize the line...if that doesn't happen they will not be a serious title contender...

 

[Kool-Aid Larry]

If this team gets to double digit wins it will be a minor miracle. I'm calling it right now, 9-7. Anyone who thinks this team has big upside this year is a blind homer. This is the worst Pats team of the BB/TB era by far.

Do you actually see any pats games?

 

[AngryPatriot]

Well, at least it was a W.... the D is playing pretty well. The rest needs to get better, tough schedule.

 

[ROCKET]

If this team gets to double digit wins it will be a minor miracle. I'm calling it right now, 9-7. Anyone who thinks this team has big upside this year is a blind homer. This is the worst Pats team of the BB/TB era by far.

Do you actually see any pats games?

If our O-line and D-line don't somehow do a complete 180 then last year will look great compared to this season. Brady looks like crap even the few times he isn't getting mauled when he drops back. Gronk looks like he's running in quicksand, Revis looks far from the best CB in the league he once was, the wr group sans Edelman is complete garbage and both our lines get decimated at the point of attack

. Dig your head out of your rear end and tell me objectively what you actually see on the field on Sundays. What we have done in years past has zero bearing on whats going on in 2014.

I'll stay with my 9-7 projection, let me guess you see us winning 12/13 games again?