NFL 2011 Season

[Jbat81]

Bodhi, I was at the November game. In that one he threw 2 picks and a fumble i believe.  Of course he wasnt " shutout". But, imo, he doesnt react to pressure as well as others. For example, Rodgers kept running for first down on the Giants. Even Smith did in NFC game... Brady is great, so of course hes not shut down. Might be a stupid question but, are u a Pats fan?

[pilferk]

I know Brady is great. I guess i "look for stuff" because I live in New Englad(RI) and Im a Giants fan... But I've always felt, specially after the Super Bowl XXII, that Brady is one of the worst QB to react to pressure. Kinda like that SB. To me, he has, or has had, one the best OL for a long time. With that said, he's Def in the TOP 5 all-time... IMO, Marino is the Greatest...

I agree, actually.

Part of it is his mobility (or relatively lack thereof).

Part of it is just that...watching the guy...he's not usually a guy who will sit there, knowing he's going to get hit, and wait that split second "too long" to get the pass off.  I'm not saying he NEVER does it...he has.  But it's less frequent.

Others around here disagree..but that's what I see.

It doesn't make him a bad QB, but it makes him particularly susceptible to pressure.  If you look at the games he has had that are "un-Brady-like"...most of them have one thing in common....he's rushed to get rid of the ball.  And again...I know that's how you take ANY QB out of their game...but it seems to me it effects him more.  He's more wary of it.  Again, part of that may be his relative lack of mobility in and out of the pocket.

And as for the 2008 SB and his potential game winning drive: They make a fair point.  But...keep in mind, that was a team that steamrolled the rest of the league, and put up MONSTER points.  They managed 14 that day.  He had a good, clutch drive...sure.  But he didn't light it up that day, by any stretch.

None of that means he's not a great quarterback...it just means he's not a PERFECT QB.  That's his weakness....

[Jbat81]

Pilferk, I agree.  I remember Plax said the Pats were gonna score 17 points at best. Some reporter told Brady and he was kinda cocky and laughing like "yea right". lol. They scored 14...
To me Eli is better at taking hits or not worrying about it. He was getting killed by SAN FRAN... Alot of times he would throw knowing that .000004 seconds later. Again, Brady is one of the greatest EVER, but thats a "problem" I see with him...

[D]

Peyton has had a slightly above avg team his entire career.

Brady benefited from monster Defenses and a great FG Kicker and a bullshit tuck rule.


Brady is great don't get me wrong but people big time over look "TEAM"

Like Rapelisberger.. put him on Cleveland and he don't win shit.

[LongGoneDay]

Peyton has had a slightly above avg team his entire career.

Brady benefited from monster Defenses and a great FG Kicker and a bullshit tuck rule.


Brady is great don't get me wrong but people big time over look "TEAM"

Like Rapelisberger.. put him on Cleveland and he don't win shit.

Peyton wasn't exactly playing with scrubs.
Monster defenses is probably an exaggeration.
Peyton had/has that same FG kicker.
Tuck rule was 1 game, and most of his accolade have come after it.
No one is overlooking team. Tough to argue he makes his team better, and puts his team in the best situation to win more times than not.
Put anyone on Cleveland and they don't win shit.

[faldor]

Keep this in mind guys. 22 guys will take the field on either side, not counting special teams. It won't just come down to who is the better all-time QB or even the better postseason QB.

I think people are really giving Pats too much credit based on past achievements. These guys squeaked by a less than great Ravens team, their only win against a team with a winning record all season.

I could turn that right around and say that people are overrating the Giants.  They ranked 27th in the league in yards allowed this year and GAVE UP MORE POINTS THAN THEY SCORED.  Yet all anyone talks about is how they have this dominant defense.  Don't get me wrong, I think they're good.  I realize they had injuries during the season and they're playing their best football right now.  So I'm not suggesting they have the 5th worst defense in the league.  I  just don't know if it's as great as people are making it out to be.

The Giants were handed a win in San Fran, if you want to play that game.  They beat a Jets team that was free falling, and a Cowboy team that is a perennial underachiever with no defense.  Then they beat a Falcon team who can't win on the road and a Packer team who was trending downward, and who had a bad case of the "drops" that day.

It's all how you look at things.  You can twist and turn things any which way you want.  None of it really matters.  The game on Sunday is irrelevant to everything that has taken place prior.  So you can bring up the fact that the Patriots haven't beaten anyone all you want.  Once again, last year the Patriots finished the regular season 14-2 and en route beat the Jets, Chargers, Colts, Ravens, Steelers, Bears, and Packers.  That didn't do them any good when they lost to the Jets in the divisional round.  Nobody cares who you have or haven't beaten in the past.  All that matters is how you perform that day.

[pilferk]

Keep this in mind guys. 22 guys will take the field on either side, not counting special teams. It won't just come down to who is the better all-time QB or even the better postseason QB.

I think people are really giving Pats too much credit based on past achievements. These guys squeaked by a less than great Ravens team, their only win against a team with a winning record all season.

I could turn that right around and say that people are overrating the Giants.  They ranked 27th in the league in yards allowed this year and GAVE UP MORE POINTS THAN THEY SCORED.  Yet all anyone talks about is how they have this dominant defense.  Don't get me wrong, I think they're good.  I realize they had injuries during the season and they're playing their best football right now.  So I'm not suggesting they have the 5th worst defense in the league.  I  just don't know if it's as great as people are making it out to be.

The Giants were handed a win in San Fran, if you want to play that game.  They beat a Jets team that was free falling, and a Cowboy team that is a perennial underachiever with no defense.  Then they beat a Falcon team who can't win on the road and a Packer team who was trending downward, and who had a bad case of the "drops" that day.

It's all how you look at things.  You can twist and turn things any which way you want.  None of it really matters.  The game on Sunday is irrelevant to everything that has taken place prior.  So you can bring up the fact that the Patriots haven't beaten anyone all you want.  Once again, last year the Patriots finished the regular season 14-2 and en route beat the Jets, Chargers, Colts, Ravens, Steelers, Bears, and Packers.  That didn't do them any good when they lost to the Jets in the divisional round.  Nobody cares who you have or haven't beaten in the past.  All that matters is how you perform that day.

I agree it doesn't matter....in that it will have no effect on the OUTCOME of the game.

I'm not sure I agree that it's completely irrelevant, though.  You know the cliche: "Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it".  You look at history (both recent and not so recent) to give context, and possibly be a predictor. 

Now, it's not 100%.  Guys who've had nothing years (*cough*OchoCinco*cough*) could have the games of their lives.  Guys who've been unreal this year could have terrible games.  That's why you play the games...which I think is what you're insinuating.

But that doesn't mean that the stuff being discussed here doesn't give insight.  It certainly does.

[faldor]

I'd be much more surprised if Ochocinco had a catch in the Super Bowl than if he didn't play at all.  He was inactive against the Ravens and played ONE snap against the Broncos.  I don't see him all of a sudden breaking out in this game, which for some reason people are still holding onto that hope.  He doesn't have a grasp on the no huddle offense, which presumably they'll be doing a lot of on Sunday, so he probably doesn't fit into the gameplan all that much, if at all.

Word is that the Patriots are going to try and run the ball in the game, at least enough to give them balance.  Which I have been preaching since their last Super Bowl.  And apparently the plan WAS to run the ball a lot more in that game, but they ditched that idea very early.  I know they weren't all that effective running the ball in that game, but I thought they should have stuck with it longer.  It's not like they were having great success passing the ball up and down the field.  They might as well have tried to change the pace a bit.  Same thing here.  This Giant defense can be run on, so you might as well try to take advantage of that.  Try to tire out the defensive line, and keep their LB's honest, having to at least respect the possibility of the run.  Stevan Ridley is supposedly going to be active for the game too, after missing the last 2 playoff games due to ball security issues.  He is a more dynamic and explosive runner than Benjarvus Green-Ellis, but unlike Benny (who has never fumbled in his NFL career), he's known to put the ball on the turf.  Hopefully he'll be more careful with the ball this week and give them an added dimension in the running game.

3 days away

[GeorgeSteele]

I was completely disoriented reading this Deadspin blog post... http://deadspin.com/5881623/gisele-bundchen-sends-email. 

Apparently, it's about an email from Giselle Bundchen but it felt as though I were reading one of Faldor's posts.   

    "My sweet friends and family," the e-mail began. "This sunday will be a really important day in my husband's life. He and his team worked so hard to get to this point and now they need us more than ever to send them positive energy so they can fulfill their dream of winning this super bowl . . .

    "So I kindly ask all of you to join me on this positive chain and pray for him, so he can feel confident, healthy and strong. Envision him happy and fulfilled experiencing with his team a victory this sunday.

    "Thank you for your love and support. Love, G "

[pilferk]

I'd be much more surprised if Ochocinco had a catch in the Super Bowl than if he didn't play at all.  He was inactive against the Ravens and played ONE snap against the Broncos.  I don't see him all of a sudden breaking out in this game, which for some reason people are still holding onto that hope.  He doesn't have a grasp on the no huddle offense, which presumably they'll be doing a lot of on Sunday, so he probably doesn't fit into the gameplan all that much, if at all.

I don't see it either.

But if Gronk is hurt....they have exactly 2 TE's on their roster (including him).  ONE way they could try to counteract that is to line up an extra receiver in certain packages.  That MIGHT meen you actually see Chad...and he might get some looks.

I'm not saying it's going to happen...it was just an example of the "things you don't expect can have huge effects on the outcome" kinds of things.

Word is that the Patriots are going to try and run the ball in the game, at least enough to give them balance.  Which I have been preaching since their last Super Bowl.  And apparently the plan WAS to run the ball a lot more in that game, but they ditched that idea very early.  I know they weren't all that effective running the ball in that game, but I thought they should have stuck with it longer.  It's not like they were having great success passing the ball up and down the field.  They might as well have tried to change the pace a bit.  Same thing here.  This Giant defense can be run on, so you might as well try to take advantage of that.  Try to tire out the defensive line, and keep their LB's honest, having to at least respect the possibility of the run.  Stevan Ridley is supposedly going to be active for the game too, after missing the last 2 playoff games due to ball security issues.  He is a more dynamic and explosive runner than Benjarvus Green-Ellis, but unlike Benny (who has never fumbled in his NFL career), he's known to put the ball on the turf.  Hopefully he'll be more careful with the ball this week and give them an added dimension in the running game.

3 days away

If the Giants go with their NASCAR package (all 4 of their pass rushers) running becomes effective because the Pats would be able to open up gaps for the RB.

The thing is...you'd think if they decide to run, they're going to put 6 or 7 on the line...the Giants are going to see it, and will put some size in to counteract.

That part is all going to be a chess match....it'll be interesting to see.

[pilferk]

I was completely disoriented reading this Deadspin blog post... http://deadspin.com/5881623/gisele-bundchen-sends-email. 

Apparently, it's about an email from Giselle Bundchen but it felt as though I were reading one of Faldor's posts.   

    "My sweet friends and family," the e-mail began. "This sunday will be a really important day in my husband's life. He and his team worked so hard to get to this point and now they need us more than ever to send them positive energy so they can fulfill their dream of winning this super bowl . . .

    "So I kindly ask all of you to join me on this positive chain and pray for him, so he can feel confident, healthy and strong. Envision him happy and fulfilled experiencing with his team a victory this sunday.

    "Thank you for your love and support. Love, G "

I agee that it makes Brady look bad (just like Eli's "hug from mom" quote didn't do his rep any favors..and those words came out of HIS mouth)....but this was a PRIVATE email sent to friends and family by the guys significant other.  Whoever leaked it to the papers is a scum bucket, IMHO.  That kind of stuff, no matter what is it, should remain private....

[GeorgeSteele]

^ As much of a tool I think he is, I didn't think it made him look bad, just kind of embarrassing, but in a very relatable way (what, we don't all date Brazilian models?).  Also, I'm not very surprised there might be less than scrupulous individuals in that circle of 'friends'.  Anyway, I got a laugh out of it, so that trumps everything.   

[pilferk]

^ As much of a tool I think he is, I didn't think it made him look bad, just kind of embarrassing, but in a very relatable way (what, we don't all date Brazilian models?).  Also, I'm not very surprised there might be less than scrupulous individuals in that circle of 'friends'.  Anyway, I got a laugh out of it, so that trumps everything.   

That's what I meant by "bad"....just sort of embarassing.  Like the Eli comment during media day.

[faldor]

^ As much of a tool I think he is, I didn't think it made him look bad, just kind of embarrassing, but in a very relatable way (what, we don't all date Brazilian models?).  Also, I'm not very surprised there might be less than scrupulous individuals in that circle of 'friends'.  Anyway, I got a laugh out of it, so that trumps everything.   

A friend of mine, who believe it or not is a bigger Brady fan than I am, sent me that last night saying Gisele should just shut up.  I didn't see a problem with it though.  I've been praying for Brady and the Pats for near 2 weeks now and will continue up until gametime.  Gisele didn't need to tell me the importance of the game, I figured that out on my own.  But since she did, now I feel some extra pressure.

[GeorgeSteele]

As much as it pains me to say, I don't think the Pats will have a problem putting up 20+ on the Giants.  So long as they don't out-think themselves, they'll be fine.  The offense needs to stick with their strengths -- 3-step drops and quick strikes underneath and to the short sideline.  Those plays take only 2-3 seconds to execute and should help negate the Giants pass rush.  The game will come down to whether the Pats' defense gets runs over by the Giant offense.  

[Bodhi]

Am I crazy or something? I don't really see anything bad or embarrassing about this...this is a woman who loves her husband is very supportive of him.  It shows she actually gives a shit.

[faldor]

I'd be much more surprised if Ochocinco had a catch in the Super Bowl than if he didn't play at all.  He was inactive against the Ravens and played ONE snap against the Broncos.  I don't see him all of a sudden breaking out in this game, which for some reason people are still holding onto that hope.  He doesn't have a grasp on the no huddle offense, which presumably they'll be doing a lot of on Sunday, so he probably doesn't fit into the gameplan all that much, if at all.

I don't see it either.

But if Gronk is hurt....they have exactly 2 TE's on their roster (including him).  ONE way they could try to counteract that is to line up an extra receiver in certain packages.  That MIGHT meen you actually see Chad...and he might get some looks.

I'm not saying it's going to happen...it was just an example of the "things you don't expect can have huge effects on the outcome" kinds of things.

Word is that the Patriots are going to try and run the ball in the game, at least enough to give them balance.  Which I have been preaching since their last Super Bowl.  And apparently the plan WAS to run the ball a lot more in that game, but they ditched that idea very early.  I know they weren't all that effective running the ball in that game, but I thought they should have stuck with it longer.  It's not like they were having great success passing the ball up and down the field.  They might as well have tried to change the pace a bit.  Same thing here.  This Giant defense can be run on, so you might as well try to take advantage of that.  Try to tire out the defensive line, and keep their LB's honest, having to at least respect the possibility of the run.  Stevan Ridley is supposedly going to be active for the game too, after missing the last 2 playoff games due to ball security issues.  He is a more dynamic and explosive runner than Benjarvus Green-Ellis, but unlike Benny (who has never fumbled in his NFL career), he's known to put the ball on the turf.  Hopefully he'll be more careful with the ball this week and give them an added dimension in the running game.

3 days away

If the Giants go with their NASCAR package (all 4 of their pass rushers) running becomes effective because the Pats would be able to open up gaps for the RB.

The thing is...you'd think if they decide to run, they're going to put 6 or 7 on the line...the Giants are going to see it, and will put some size in to counteract.

That part is all going to be a chess match....it'll be interesting to see.

The only way I see Chad being a part of the gameplan is if they try to use him to stretch the field on occasions.  Not that he is great at that, but it's probably his biggest strength at this point.  But again, I don't see him being much of a factor regardless of Gronk's health.  Now, he probably will be active and will play more than in the previous 2 games due to the Gronkowski situation, but I just don't see him coming up big.  It would be great if he had a JD Drew like moment and he can wipe away all the bad, but I'm not holding out hope.

The Pats do only carry 2 TE's.  They'll probably slide an offensive lineman (Solder) to the TE slot for blocking purposes on occasion.  They could also run out of the 5 wide set to try and catch the Giants off guard.  It will be interesting for sure.  2 great teams, coaches, QB's going at it.  It has all the makings of a classic matchup.  We'll see if it plays out that way.

[faldor]

Am I crazy or something? I don't really see anything bad or embarrassing about this...this is a woman who loves her husband is very supportive of him.  It shows she actually gives a shit.

Yeah I didn't really get it either, but then again I'm a Brady/Patriot fan, so I am a little biased.  Apparently deadspin thought it was embarrassing enough to share.

[Bodhi]

Am I crazy or something? I don't really see anything bad or embarrassing about this...this is a woman who loves her husband is very supportive of him.  It shows she actually gives a shit.

Yeah I didn't really get it either, but then again I'm a Brady/Patriot fan, so I am a little biased.  Apparently deadspin thought it was embarrassing enough to share.

I really can't find one embarrassing thing about it.  I mean it's not like she sent out an email saying "Tommy is really scared of Pierre Paul and the Giants brutal pass rush"  I mean come on, a wife showing support for her husband, whats the big deal?

[faldor]

As much as it pains me to say, I don't think the Pats will have a problem putting up 20+ on the Giants.  So long as they don't out-think themselves, they'll be fine.  The offense needs to stick with their strengths -- 3-step drops and quick strikes underneath and to the short sideline.  Those plays take only 2-3 seconds to execute and should help negate the Giants pass rush.  The game will come down to whether the Pats' defense gets runs over by the Giant offense.  

I agree that the pass rush should be negated due to the 3 step drops, as opposed to the 7 step drops Brady used to take with Moss on the field.  That's why the pass rush was such a huge factor that year.  The plays just took too long to develop.  This offense is much better suited to go against such a dominant defensive line.  

However, guys still have to get open.  Just because the plan is to release the ball quickly, doesn't mean you do so if everyone is covered.  The Giants will probably not respect the deep ball and rely on their D-line to get pressure on Brady and not send extra guys too often.  Therefore, they'll have 7 guys covering that 5-15 yard area, sort of like the Ravens did.  

It'll be interesting to see how the Pats defense stacks up against the Giants offense.  The Giants have been running the ball better of late, and I think that makes them much tougher to stop.  But the Pats shut down Ray Rice last week and put the ball in Flacco's hands.  Now Flacco did throw for over 300 yards, but overall I thought the Patriots D played a great game.  Vince Wilfork was a beast, and is obviously a key to stopping the run game.  That is their strength, as their secondary is still not good.  It's not quite as embarrassingly bad as it was earlier in the season, but it's far from ideal.  I'd expect Eli to have very good numbers.  I'd be surprised if he didn't pass for over 250 yards.  The question is, can they make them more of a one dimensional offense?  If that's the case, you can live with Eli having a big game.  But if Bradshaw/Jacobs have big games too, then you might be in some trouble.