By: Scott Jackson, YawkeyTalkies Staff Writer
The Patriots made the Jets look like turkeys Sunday with a 31-14 win at home. And afterwords I heard Rex Ryan will be crying on Oprah’s show sometime soon.
Quarterbacks:
Tom Brady tied a franchise record with his fifth straight 300 yard game. Looked comfortable in the pocket all game, even against heavy blitzes in the second half. Drove the dagger into the Jets early with three straight scores after New England jumped to a 7-0 lead courtesy of Leigh Bodden. My Grade: A
Runningbacks:
Did you know Laurence Maroney has scored six touchdowns in the last five games? He also coughed up the ball for the second game in the row. Kevin Faulk was reliable as usual in passing situations. My Grade: C+
Receivers/Tight Ends:
If ever a wide-out were considered an MVP candidate, it would have to be Wes Welker, wouldn’t it? The Pats struggled earlier this year against without #83. But Sunday he caught 15 passes for 192 yards. Randy Moss was again nearly shutdown by Daryle Revis, but this time he came up with key touchdown grab. Converted QBs Isaiah Stanback and Julian Edelman continue to show development at the receiver spot. The tight ends weren’t targets [...]
This World Series was supposed to have it all, but baseball is going to have to wait another year for that dramatic game seven.
It had the names: Rodriguez, Rollins, Jeter, Howard, Utley, Teixeira – oh, it certainly had the stars. It had the storylines: Cliff Lee vs. the Bombers, A-Rod vs. The Playoffs, Pedro vs. the Yankees, a potential dynasty vs. the definition of the word. Believe me, it was nothing short of Shakespearian.
But in the end, the Yankees were just too good, and the Phillies were just too Chase Utley, and not much else. And even then, if you take away the two games Cliff Lee won for the Phillies, you have a 4-0 sweep and yet another throw away ‘World Series,’ if you can even call it that.
The problem was, for all the big named stars that were hyped, only the ones on the Yankee side actually showed up for the World Series. Aside from Chase Utley and Cliff Lee for one of his two starts, the Phillies were completely strapped of their firepower.
Jimmy Rollins, the Phillies’ vaunted leadoff man and 2007 MVP, posted a meager .217 average through the six game series, with only three stolen bases [...]
Sometimes late at night I wonder what celebrities would sing to each other at karaoke. I bet the Broncos would serenade Tom Brady with “Brady We’ve Got Your Number,” a parody of Tommy Tuone’s 1982 hit “867-5309/Jenny.” After Sunday’s mile-high quagmire, Brady is just 1-5 against Denver.
Quarterbacks:
Going 5-for-14 in the second half doesn’t cut it. Especially if you’re a two-time Super Bowl MVP. Included in that second half was a throw that fell at the feet of a wide-open Wes Welker with less than four minutes to play. Welker wasn’t the only one he missed as Brady sent passes sailing over Randy Moss’ head three times on the day. On the other hand, he did throw for two touchdowns, so it’s not all bad.
My Grade: D+
Running Backs:
Sammy Morris averaged four yards per carry. Solid. He also had a key 35-yard catch on the Pats’ first scoring drive. Kevin Faulk caught three passes. Laurence Maroney was good at blitz-pickup. Not a dazzling performance from the group, but its what they’re asked to do.
My Grade: B-
Receivers/Tight Ends:
Its not their fault Brady couldn’t get him them the ball. Moss’ stats would’ve been better had Tommy hit him on [...]
What a game! BC wins 27-24 in overtime. Man, I wish I had kept a running journal while I was at the game to cherish the memories. Oh wait, I did! Sit back and enjoy the first-ever Massar BC football journal entry. (You can read it sitting up if you want.)
Saturday September 26, 2009
9:00 am: I wake up feeling pretty good. It’s early but I have to get up because we don’t have tickets yet for the game. Get a call from my friend Merc, says he missed his shuttle bus from Bentley to the city. We’ll now have to take 10 am bus. Not a big deal, I can get a little extra sleep. [...]
Most Patriots fans couldn’t believe their eyes when they looked at the score going into the fourth quarter of Monday night’s game against the Buffalo Bills. For just the fourth time in their last 54 games, the Patriots were losing going into the final fifteen minutes of play. Their high-octane offense had been put on choke mode by a seemingly inspired Buffalo defense and now they were losing to the Bills. Let me repeat that so it sinks in: The Bills.
The same team that fired it’s offensive coordinator just over a week ago, signed the high-flying and high-maintenance receiver Terrell Owens and has had only two winning seasons in its last six. For the first three quarters, the Buffalo Bills showed little signs of their dysfunctional past as they made all the necessary plays to take a one touchdown lead over the heavily favored Patriots going into the fourth quarter.
But when the stars align over Gillette stadium and a player like Tom Brady goes from frustrated to motivated to determined, incredible things can happen. The last three minutes of Monday’s game reminded the entire Patriot nation what we love about our team. After an 18-yard touchdown [...]
By Evan MacDonald, Yawkeytalkies correspondent.
When the regular season begins Sept. 14 against Buffalo, many members of the New England Patriots will be entering critical seasons in their careers.
Tom Brady, of course, will be scrutinized heavily as he makes his comeback from a knee injury that ended his season back in week one last year. Vince Wilfork will be playing for a new contract, and rookies such as Patrick Chung will be working their tails off to produce in Coach Bill Belichick’s system.
But of all the players on the roster, perhaps no one will be under more pressure than Laurence Maroney.
The fourth-year running back has been inconsistent throughout his career. He showed flashes of greatness during his 2006 rookie season, but since then has been mediocre at best. Furthermore, he has struggled with injuries – having played in only 30 of a possible 48 regular season games since joining the Patriots.
It’s safe to say, heading into the season, that 2009 could be a put-up-or-shut-up campaign for Maroney.
The Patriots selected the former University of Minnesota star with the 21st pick in the 2006 draft, hoping he would grow into the team’s feature back. Splitting time with veteran Corey Dillon, he had a [...]
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