By: Scott Jackson, YawkeyTalkies Correspondent
The Patriots are riding high as they head into their bye week. They’ve beaten their last two opponents 94-7 after beating the Bucs 35-7 in London.
Quarterbacks:
Yes, he did throw two interceptions. But he also threw for three touchdowns, and finished with a passer rating of 107. He threw for over 300 yards on just 32 attempts. Brady connected on three plays of 30+ yards, and looks like he’s recovered from last year’s knee surgery.
My Grade: B
Runningbacks:
The corps averaged a subpar 3 yards per carry, totaling just 85 (not including rushes by receivers or quarterbacks). This against a Tampa defense that allowed 162 yards per game coming into the contest. The group was nearly non-existent in the passing game; only Kevin Faulk caught the ball. Expect Belichick to work on the ground attack during the team’s bye.
My Grade: C-
Receivers/Tight Ends:
Wes Welker came up big again, catching ten passes for 107 yards. Randy Moss had five grabs of his own. Special teams captain Sam Aiken keeps making strides on offense. His 54 yard catch and go is the Pats longest run of the year. Ben Watson is finally maturing into a legit number one tight end. He made [...]

By Ian Tasso, YawkeyTalkies Correspondent
He read the play. He jumped the route. He looked the ball into his hands. He did everything right.
That’s what made it all the more surprising when the pass clunked off his fingertips and fell to the ground. Meriweather blankly stared at his hands in shock. Meanwhile, the clock still read :51, and while the safety’s world stopped, Super bowl XLII went on.
Two plays later, Eli Manning gently lofted a pass high over Ellis Hobbs and right into the hands of a wide open Plaxico Burress. Giants 17, Patriots 14; a shocking end to greatness. A dagger into the heart of perfection.
It could have never happened that way. It should have never happened that way. And for Brandon Meriweather, it almost didn’t.
But for number 31, it was just another small hurdle on the route to greatness – of which he’s faced many.
The hardships started at an early age for Meriweather, whose mother gave birth to him when she was only 13-years old. She then succumbed to the difficulty of raising a son at such a young age, handing over legal guardianship to his high school assistant principle, Mary Bridgeses, and her husband Tom when Meriweather was just [...]