Time Out for Sports Talk: If You Can’t Beat ‘Em, Join ‘Em
Todd: Coming off the crazy summer we endured as Patriots fans, I absolutely knew there was a good chance we would continue to read and hear opinions portraying New England’s NFL team as a bunch of sneaky, underhanded con artists. After all, there is no way an organization with a competent owner, an intelligent head coach and a HOF-caliber quarterback could win four Super Bowls without perpetrating a sham on the football-viewing public for the last fifteen years.
The start of the NFL regular season came as a relief to me, if for no other reason than we could finally turn our focus back to the games on the field. Following a great pregame ceremony and banner unveiling last Thursday night, the games resumed…off the field.
Yes, the Pats beat the Steelers 28-21, and in the process proved that Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman don’t need preseason games to get into regular season form. The defense still needs some work, but at least they made enough stops in the second half to win comfortably (garbage-time and bet-crashing touchdown notwithstanding).
But most of what I heard right after the game and in the days following were communication malfunctions and illegal shifting from the Pats’ goal-line defense. The biggest takeaways I got from Pats-Steelers was that Mike Tomlin is a not big fan of Scott Zolak’s analysis during Pats’ radio broadcasts and that Ben Roethlisberger was convinced the Patriots defensive line was doing something wrong.
We would all later find out that the league itself is in charge of in-game headset communications, not the home team, and that there is no rule anywhere stating the Patriots D-line illegally slid prior to the ball being snapped.
But the damage has largely been done, and this only seems to be the beginning of Pats-versus-The-World. Further proof came when an extremely well-timed ESPN Magazine story referenced many conveniently unnamed sources who want to expose the Patriots as nothing more than an unscrupulous lot. And apparently there is a follow-up article coming because there are many more unnamed sources ready to accuse this organization of more wrongdoing.
Buckle yourself in, Pats fans—this ride through the 2015 season looks to only get bumpier, and I’m not talking about any actual games.
But if I was, I was impressed with the offense. In particular, Dion Lewis did some nice work out of the backfield (120 total rushing and receiving yards) and effectively provided pass protection for Brady. Even the rookies on the offensive line did a little better than the group trying to block at the beginning of last season.
Defensively, have to be a little concerned that the aging D’Angelo Williams (127 yards rushing) was so successful against the Pats’ front seven, who also didn’t provide the kind of pressure on Roethlisberger that I was hoping for. If this continues to be an issue, it’s only going to put more pressure on the secondary, which had its own challenges in Week 1.
Looking ahead, this week’s trip to Buffalo suddenly looks more difficult than it did a week ago. Anyone wondering what Rex Ryan could do with more talent on defense saw the answer on full display last week against the Colts last week, as Andrew Luck looked like a very ordinary quarterback during most of that game. The Pats O-line will face a stiff challenge this week, as Rex and his coaches will surely implement a wide variety of defensive alignments. Brady’s best bet to combat that might come with the spread offense and lots of quick passes if he hopes to continue his domination of the Bills (23-3 career record, 58 TD, 19 INT).
On the other side of the ball, the Bills rushed for 147 yards against a Colts defense that looked much like the one that got pounded on the ground by the Pats twice last season. I’m some combination of hopeful and confident that the Pats’ defense can do a better job slowing down the Bills’ ground game. Whether LeSean McCoy can play or not this Sunday, rookie Karlos Williams is in reality the running back to Pats need to slow down. I’m also guessing that Pats will try to keep QB Tyrod Taylor contained in the pocket.
Realized we never posted our Pats scores last week, so we’ll make sure not to forget this time around. Sure hope this week’s postgame focuses on the X’s and O’s in what should be a tough battle in Buffalo: Patriots 21, Bills 19.
Week 2 Picks (3-0 last week): Steelers over 49ers, Panthers over Texans and Packers over Seahawks.
Mike: Just when we thought we were done with controversy, here comes the crap with the headphones. I really would like for the Pats to have just one game where they aren't accused of everything under the sun up to and including Bill Belichick being on the grassy knoll in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963 (Google the reference if you don't get it and then put shame on your history teacher!).
But since the headphone thing seems to have passed by, there was a lot to be encouraged by in the opener against the Steelers. The team was fired up and showed a great attack that made me feel much better about making New England my Super Bowl pick for the 12th year in a row!
And now we have Rexy and the Bills! There is a great temptation to look past this game as an automatic win, but this isn't the same pathetic Buffalo team that we are used to. For all of his bombast, Ryan is a coach that can come up with a plan that will give the Patriots problems.
But all that being said, the NFL is a quarterback league, and the Bills have an unproven one back there, so I think that will make all the difference here. Pats win 28-17.
Week 2 Picks (1-2 last week): Looks like I need to have a better week this week! Rams over Redskins, Dolphins over Jaguars and Eagles over Cowboys.
Our next LIVE show is coming up on Wednesday, September 23 from 8-9pm (note the new night). You can post your questions via Twitter using the hashtag #TOSTsep23 or call in at (617) 484-2443.
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