Patriots Planet Forums and Message Board

Thanks to everyone who checked out my first one, and to UT for featuring it on the front page. Hopefully ya'll like the sequel: Mac Jones Can't Beat The Titans.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCPzRcjKB0g

Couldn't wait for this thread because this game is a huge opportunity. In order for the Patriots to get #1 seed in the AFC, and to win their division, they've got to beat the Bills at least once. They can lose this game and win the rematch and still end up the top overall seed (especially with how inconsistent the Bills have been and with the Titans missing Henry), but if they get the win on the road the path becomes much easier. Both teams are coming off of good wins, and both teams are likely to give their very best effort. This game will be hyped up like no tomorrow. Bills are opening as 3 point favorites which means the assessment is that of two even teams with the Bills having homefield advantage. Here's hoping the Bills show up like they did against the Colts, but even if they do not, this is a winnable game. Cmon guys let's get into the Bye with a win over a key divisional opponent fresh in our minds instead of letting the bitter taste of defeat linger for a couple of...

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RubuOsmmFA

By Yours Truly

Okay, so football is a matchup sport. Personnel groupings the offense uses have to be appropriately matched or countered by the personnel of the defense. Fairly often, you'll hear talk of the defense getting caught with the wrong personnel, and/or running someone on/off the field, getting caught with too many men, etc.

The hurry up offense was designed, in part, to force the defense to not be able to easily substitute.

I had a brainstorm. Next gen chess.

As far as I know, there are rules that say you can't have more than 11 on the field when the ball is snapped. But what about before that?

Scenario 1: I put, say, 16 guys into the huddle - QB, 6 OL, 3 TE, RB, FB, 4 WR. The defense is on the field, and based on their personnel the OC calls the personnel and play into the QBs headset. The QB calls the personnel grouping, then the play, in the huddle. They break the huddle, and 11 line up while the 5 not needed run off the field. As soon as they're off the field, the ball...

The past two Bills games, I’ve seen terrible officiating. Last week was just atrocious. Jags Josh Allen taunting our Josh Allen after the sack; Cole Beasley giving himself up, laying prone on the ground and a defensive back jumping on top of him; the Jaguars’ right tackle having countless false starts, holding, blocking in the back on passing situations when facing Jerry Hughes. None of these were called.

How can a defensive lineman be called for holding on a running play? Star Lotulelei getting called for a defensive holding penalty on a Jacksonville run play might be the first time I’ve ever seen that flag.

It's league-wide. I hear the same thing here from Bears fans and I see it in other games. Phantom Roughing the Passer calls, like the one Thuresday night

View: https://twitter.com/SharpFootball/status/1459014410421350420?s=20

Is it...

Can it be done? It doesn't look good.

The Pegulas have said they'll pay for a portion of the $1.4B stadium costs but haven't committed an amount.
How will anyone - the state or the Pegulas - justify paying for it when it's only bringing in $27M/year in revenue?

View: https://twitter.com/NateMendelson/status/1455627167329656834

Here's the cost analysis: https://t.co/8gmDBeMBgS?amp=1

I've been a big Jon Jones fan since 2017 when it became clear he was going to replace Malcolm Butler as our "star" CB in the middle. I have no idea how he wasn't drafted running the fastest 40 time and even at 5'8, I don't care, as his vertical leap was good enough to offset that fact that he is a bit small. All I know is, I am thankful BB had Jones's agent on speed dial once the draft ended because he's been a big part of the 2nd dynasty and any defensive successes this team has had in recent years. It's nice to know you can go into a game and just see the other team's slot WR or fastest WR can be contained or taken out completely because of his elite plat at the position. It's very rare he gave up a big play or a TD, or if he did give up a reception, the player was tackled immediately. The very definition of a top flight nickel.

Anyway, this is a big loss for the team because I had him as the best nickel in the conference the last 5 years, if not the whole league.

This led me...

I'm reading some bad reports from fans who went to the Jags-Finns game in London. Many had to leave as a lot of drunkards were throwing full beer cups at other fans, hitting small kids etc. Kids crying, asking their folks can they leave etc.

Many said the atmosphere was horrible. Seems for a chunk of people going, it was an excuse to so on a major drinking session. The main UK NFL anchor on SkySports, Neil Reynolds, said his young family had to leave and many were laughing at them as they left. He's disgusted.

I don't want to appear like I'm having a go at the English here, Gomezcat might get offended but the English are the worst drinkers in the world. They always go OTT and get aggressive and just can't handle it. The European Championship Final in Wembley this past summer was disgraceful. Drunken yobs broke in without tickets and made life hell for everyone with fighting and other fans having to leave. Disabled kids were knocked out of wheelchairs, you name it.

This needs...

...that team that is going no where, but no one will want to play. 2-4, could very easily be 5-1.

They're not quite out of it yet - Jets next week, 2 winnable games following that, and their key divisional games ahead of them.

But they'll need to get to no worse than 5-5 after 10.

Thought this deserved a separate thread for the board's X's and Os types. This is well done, if a little overhomery.

View: https://youtu.be/rjgd721IbpQ

Get ready. Some early excerpts here. This is going to dominate the airwaves for a while I’m afraid.

CHRIS SIMMS UNBUTTONED Josh Allen, Bills rapidly gaining momentum

Chris Simms explains why he thinks Josh Allen and the Bills "are going to be unstoppable" after Buffalo breezed past Washington, 43-21, in Week 3.
Video on link

I know, such a sexy topic...

So I've basically worked under the assumption that STs under BB have been outstanding. After all, we dedicate multiple roster spots beyond P/K/LS to Teams every year, and we consistently hear how much focus the Patriots place on Teams. I was thinking of how uncharacteristically bad Teams have been so far this year.

But I was looking at the expected points stats on profootballreference and (with the caveat that I don't know how that is measured) I was pretty taken aback to find that it you go back through 2015, the Patriots only have a positive value for Teams about half the time. And considering that during that time the Patriots have generally had excellent punters, kickers, and returners, wouldn't that mean that it's all the subtle, little things that are bringing down their score on that metric? This seems to run counter to what we've generally held out yo be true.

So...bad metric? Something I'm missing? Just a case of a runaway narrative...

Welp I figure let's get this out of the way. Both teams coming off of a loss, Vegas is going to heavily favor the Bucs on this one. However I think we have a real shot here, because I think Brady will want to get the "has beaten all 32 teams" chip which Brees and Manning both got, and knows this is his only shot. As such I expect him to force the issue a bit, and as we know he's not immune to throwing a bad pick when trying to force the issue against former coaches and teammates (see the Titans game in 2019 for details). For him, this is a "legacy game", whereas for the Patriots, it's a chance to get back to .500. I expect Belichick to get in his head and to force a pick or two, and we know their defense can't stop anything fiercer than a soft breeze, so I think we have a real shot at the upset. Obviously we'll need significantly better play, at every phase of the game. If the team plays like it did last week, they'll lose and lose badly. But this isn't the karma...

Because he deserves his own thread.

There are players who have been on this team over the last 20 years who embody the Patriot Way more than most. These aren't the superstars, but they are the soldiers you want next to you in battle.

Troy Brown was the original, Kevin Faulk stepped in, and then came Jules (James White is the dude now).

Jules didn't drop the catch in crunch time, he made the catch we'll be talking about for the next generation, His playoff stats alone tell the story, he was CLUTCH.

He wasn't the biggest, strongest of the fastest guy, but if you could find 22 players with his attitude, you'd win the Super Bowl every damn year.

Oh when the Saints
Come marching in...

Just because it needs to be done.

Non political version (just saying it to be safe).

I was in my first year of college for broadcasting. I had no television in my room (another story) and I happened ot peak into the next dorm room over either in time for a replay of the second plane or the second plane. My classes met for only a few minutes. I heard that gas was going to go up and while I had almost a full tank, I waiting in line 30 minutes to top off. Probably my biggest memory I remember is Letterman. There has been constant 24/7 news coverage for days. The night he went on air, it was right after the local news. No musical open, no announcer, nothing. Just a graphic of the show title and silence to this.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZeEdye0h9A

Letterman was the first on air after the attack.