The Patriots are playing the Jets for first place in the AFC East, and I feel like doing another live diary to go along with the game.
Pregame:
Did not play poker today. I usually don't play poker on Sunday. Watched football. Also, in the middle of editing the book my roommate is writing. He has been seriously let down by his "editor" and anyone who read his book for grammar, punctuation, and writing style. Wanted to finish today, but I need a break from that.
I am many years removed from an English degree. Editing schoolwork, resumes, technical manuals, work product, etc. is mostly a thing of the past. My grammar isn't perfect. I don't try very hard in this blog. I write to be understood. The shorter the sentence, the better. Use punctuation.
In case I wasn't clear in my earlier post, Tim Tebow should not be a starting quarterback in the NFL.
Expert commentary on the Denver Broncos from Rodney Harrison "Two passes. Are you kidding me?"
As if our defense isn't bad enough, we're starting a couple guys off the street / practice quad this week. Was in the middle of going to the Boston Globe to get the inactives, when NBC introduced Jeff Tarpinian and Sterling Moore. No Patrick Chung hurts.
The Cardinals hired Mike Matheny as their new manager. I remember he was a catcher, but son't know much more. Matheny was with the organization, and it makes sense to make an internal hire, since they are coming off a championship season and had qualified candidates.
Globe has a column on Allen Iverson as a possible target for the Celtics (if there is a season). One word - NO!
Globe website not loading, and slowing down my computer. Want to smash laptop into 1,000 little pieces. Plan B: Boston Herald.
1st Quarter:
15:00 - Patriots won toss, deferred. Kickoff.
12:31 - Well, the shitpile of a defense is picking up right where they left off last week. The inexperience in the defensive backfield should be exploited by the Jets.
11:42 - 3rd and goal; incomplete. 3-0 is more appealing than 7-0 early.
11:34 - NOONAN! Still 0-0.
11:34 - Back to the inactives. From The Globe. LB Dane Fletcher (thumb), LB Brandon Spikes (knee), QB Ryan Mallett, WR Taylor Price (hamstring), S Patrick Chung (foot), RB Shane Vereen, OL Donald Thomas.
10:42 - Intrroductions of Patriots offense. I was going to write about Brian Waters and how well he has played, but...he's down on the field injured. Fuck!
10:33 - Gronkowski.
9:30 - Ocho Cinco catches one. Chris Collinsworth immediately gushes about how hard he has worked and how he had a good week in practice. "They're getting close." I hope so. We could use some production.
8:20 - One of those penalties that should never happen, 12 men in the huddle. A mix up with Ocho and Ben Jarvis.
8:15 - Should have been picked.
8:10 - Gostkowski from 50. 3-0 Patriots.
PUBLISH AND REOPEN.
Some opinions on the Jets. I like Rex Ryan and believe the team is pretty well coached. Their wide receivers are good. Don't really like Shonn Greene, Tomlinson is playing well, but near the end. Solid offensive line. Defense and DB's are good. Not a Sanchise fan. Think he is the weakest link.
6:06 - On cue, Sanchise sails one that should have been picked.
6:00 - Sack by Andre Carter. Lucky Carter didn't get the ball. Punt.
5:34 - What, no fair catch inside the 10 yard line this week?
Commercial: need a flip station. Will get to see some of the FOX cartoons, but may end up missing The Simpsons. Bummer.
5:28 - Waters is back. Phew!
4:09 - Ocho. Al Michaels "...Ocho Cinco is ready to become a factor". Actually, that big play looked like a busted coverage.
2:42 - Brady to Gronkowski, tipped, almost intercepted, could have been interference.
2:34 - Gostkowski from 36 yards out. 6-0 Patriots.
Flip station is Tommy Boy on Comedy Central.
2:27 - Patriots have stopped Joe McKnight on three kick-offs. So far, no big return.
0:22 - Blitz. Sanchise does the old "duck and cover" and escapes with his head intact.
Albert Haynesworth started for Tampa today, and appeared to match his stats from the whole season in New England. The Bucs also got thumped by Houston. Haynesworth was a risk worth taking because if it worked out, he could have been very good in the Patriots scheme.
6-0 Patriots.
2nd Quarter:
14:53 - Offensive pass interference on Burress costs the Jets a first down.
Jets Timeout.
The Patriots defense played well in the first half of the Giants game. The second half, not so good. Not sure
if it was halftime adjustments, team got tired, or what, but they were pretty bad by the 4th quarter.
13:16 - Nice blitz pick-up by Ben Jarvis on an incomplete pass.
13:06 - Brady has all day and throws into triple coverage in the end zone. Could have been picked. Punt.
Someone (might have been in Peter King's column) made the joke that Herman Cain should live on Revis Island. That way he could touch, grab, and hold all he wants with immunity.
Chris Collinsworth is a good analyst. Does a good job explaining the action and highlighting keys in the replays.
9:55 - Receiver in the area? Nope. That's grounding. Good call. Andre Carter is getting after the Sanchise tonight.
9:12 - Jets punt again. The defense has looked good after the opening drive. A touchdown by the offense would give them some margin for error. Still 6-0 Patriots.
8:23 - Hold on the Patriots, no first down. Shouldn't have been Mankins, so I'm not sure who they penalized. Neither is Chris Collinsworth.
6:55 - Three and out. Patriots punt, block in the back by the Jets pushes them back a little. Would have had good field position.
6:51 - Sanchise to Burress. Incomplete. Personal foul on Sterling Moore (for a hit on his teammate). WTF? Moore did launch himself at the receiver, so I guess that's the call. Hope McCourty is not injured badly.
6:04 - Down goes Sanchise. Love it. The blitzes are working and when they do, the coverage is holding up.
5:22 - There's the fair catch inside the 10.
5:11 - Bad snap. Patriots got it back. Need to see replay. Brady not ready for the snap. Wilkinson was the only Jet with a chance at the recovery, and he didn't get it.
4:44 - That's a safety. Woodhead got run over after Vollmer didn't pick up the lineman. 6-2 Patriots. 2nd inning.
Ref's bloodied up, probably from the scrum following the bad snap.
4:25 - Update on McCourty. Injured shoulder, questionable. Not good.
2:51 - LaToeInjury up the middle. I'm getting a bad feeling about this game. At least Patriots get the ball to begin 2nd half.
2:00 - After a pass to Patrick Turner, down to around the 10, it's the two minute warning.
Who wants a Subway sandwich at 9am. Oh wait, I'm in Vegas. I don't eat Subway because they gave me food poisoning a year and a half ago.
Bruins play on Thanksgiving. They're putting a hockey game up against the NFL? Questionable decision by lousy league management.
1:20 - Sanchise runs it in on 3rd and goal. Tebow-esque. 9-6 Jets. Personal foul on Big Vince.
Patriots have time to score some points before halftime.
1:05 - Welker's first catch to the Patriots 45.
0:38 - Gronkowski catch, looks like he was down before the fumble. It's being reviewed. Should still be Patriots ball around the Jets 30 yard line.
0:42 - Good explanation by the ref. Still Patriots ball on the reversal. Patriots use timeout and clock is set to 0:42.
0:38 - Personal foul on Jets. Holding facemask of Woodhead in coverage. Big penalty on incompletion.
0:09 - Touchdown Gronkowski. Offsides on Jets, so the TD stands. 13-9 Patriots.
I don't play fantasy football, but I can say with certainty, my strategy would have been to wait on tight end and get Gronkowski late.
NBC is flashing stats about Gronknandez. Pretty impressive beginning to their careers. I'll enjoy it while they're both on the team.
Halftime. 13-9 Patriots.
I was in the kitchen for much of halftime, but caught the end of Bob Costas endorsing Devin Hester for the Hall of Fame. I have seen a few arguments like this recently. Best return man ever, etc. I agree with the statement that he is the best returner ever. I disagree with him becoming a Hall of Famer. Hester would only get consideration for special teams contributions. He has not made a difference as an offensive or defensive player. Hester has made big plays and changed games, but the body of work does not stand up to great football players who have had trouble getting into the Hall, and others that will never come close. I could write a lot more, but halftime is over. Hester should not be a Hall of Famer.
3rd Quarter:
13:30 - Three and out for the Patriots.
13:06 - Three and out for the Jets.
11:45 - Three and out for the Patriots.
11:25 - Joe McKnight misses the punt. Patriots recover. Replay, he took his eye off the ball.
10:35 - Brady to Gronkowski, touchdown. Illegal contact downfield by the Jets, so it stands. Nice protection by the O-line and a good job by Brady to keep the play alive and find the receiver.
Play is reversed because Gronkowski stepped out of bounds. Looks like it's 3rd and 16. Good call. No illegal contact. No TD.
9:55 - Gostkowski field goal. 16-9 Patriots.
A thought about instant replay: If instant replay can be used in any sport to definitively make the correct ruling on a play (either to conform or overrule a referee's decision) then it should be used to the fullest. It should have consistent guidelines for when and how it is used, and should not cause excessive delay in the game. If it is inconclusive, the ruling on the field stands. Referees want to get every call right, but there will be human errors. Professional and big time college sports owe it to the players, referees, and fans to have plays end up as they should, and video replay is key in that pursuit. Too bad replay couldn't have been used to rule the Detroit Tigers completed a perfect game a season ago.
7:37 - Tip, tip, interception. That's Shonn Greene's fault.
7:29 - Brady to Hernandez over the middle for about 12. I'm feeling a little better about this game. Let's get some more points.
4:44 - Brady to Gronkowski, touchdown. Nice catch. Not sure if he meant to spike the ball at the defender, but it is a penalty. 23-9 Patriots.
3:57 - Jets ball. No McCourty.
Patriots have not lost three games in a row in over nine years. We've been lucky to have a run of sustained excellence. I have enjoyed all these years and don't feel like I've take it for granted as a fan. When I was a child, I thought the Celtics would be on top forever. I was wrong.
1:09 - Jets are going to be 3rd and 2 on the Patriots 10 yard line.
0:29 - First and goal from the 7. They would have gone for it on 4th down anyways. James Ihedigbo injured on the play. Must be running out of DB's.
4th Quarter:
15:00 - 2nd and goal for the Jets.
14:57 - Easy touchdown pass on the fade route from Sanchise to Burress. 23-16 Patriots.
All things considered, the defense has been ok, but we may still need more points.
14:51 - Note to Danny Woodhead: It's ok to take a knee 5 yards deep in the end zone, instead of returning the ball to the 16 yard line.
12:43 - Woodhead is moving the ball on the ground. Haven't seen Ocho in a while. Nice drive, killing some clock.
11:06 - Brady to Gronkowski. 1st down. Finally added "Gronkowski" to dictionary.
9:10 - Timeout Patriots.
No flip station because I am missing The Simpsons. Just remembered; the NFL moved the Patriots - Colts game from whenever it was originally scheduled to 1pm ET. Not sure if that was supposed to be a Sunday Night game too. Winless Colts without Manning do not merit a premier game time.
8:04 - Brady to Branch, spins, touchdown. Excellent drive. Close to seven minutes, kept the defense off the field, and scored points. 30-16 Patriots.
Wish I had a .gif of the Jets fan with the plane on his head and the finger gun in his mouth. KSK, I'm counting on you...
Brady: 25-38 312 yards, 3 TD 0 INT. [Deleted Tim Tebow comment here].
7:52 - Ihedigbo is back.
7:45 - Ninkovich pick-six. Nice play. 37-16 Patriots.
7:30 - Nice pass play by the Jets. Looking at BCS standings.
6:19 - Four sacks for Andre Carter (UPDATE 4 1/2 sacks). Nice performance by the Patriots defensive ends. Jets turn the ball over on downs on the next play.
5:09 - Brady to Gronkowski. First down. 8 for 113 with 2 TD's.
2:27 - Killing clock. Chiefs next Monday night.
2:00 - Two minute warning.
This one is just about over, so let's wrap this up with some takeaway's.
The Patriots are in 1st place. They own the tie breaker, having beaten the Jets twice. Julian Edelman is in on defense, playing the "Troy Brown" position. I'm wondering if we'll see this again someday.
Nice execution by the offense, nice effort by the defense.
Hope Devin McCourty is ok. That would be a very significant loss.
Brady and Belichick set the record for wins by a QB - Coach combination. 117 wins. It has been a great decade.
5 stars: Carter, Brady, Gronkowski, Ihedigbo, Ninkovich.
Final: 37-16 Patriots.
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