2013 Patriots Football

[BleedGreen1989]

After watching Tebow last night, there is no way he should be an NFL quarterback, never mind being a Patriot QB. His release and decision making appear to be getting worse. He appears slower on foot. And his accuracy is just not better.

I really hope this isn't a case of Kraft putting his nose back into the football decision making end of the business and insisting this upstanding young man be a part of the Patriots team. Tebow just does not have the skills to be an NFL QB.

Agreed.

You love the guy just as a human being and he's everything you'd want in a football player personality wise but just does not belong in the NFL.

Mallet on the other hand was throwing some darts..

[Cman]

Surprised that the Pats cut DT Forston and DE Francis.

Pats need to find more help on the defensive line, IMHO. Biggest need right now.

[Cman]

That was a close win for the Pats today.

Some sloppy fumbles, especially Ridley. I wonder if he's done?

On the plus side, loving Amendola and Vereen.

[Eja117]

Nice to see a Pats slot receiver hold onto the ball in a clutch situation for once.

[Neurotic Guy]

Scary game today.  Things didn't look right early.  No pass rush -- though game plan may have been to contain Manuel.   D played a good 4th and Amendola was great (but now injured?).  Buffalo pressure on Brady all day. 

Ridley loses ball twice -- once called down by contact and then the brutal fumble loss for touchdown.  9 carries for Ridley -- essentially, he carried the ball 10 times and fumbles twice. Yikes.

[Cman]

Ridley loses ball twice -- once called down by contact and then the brutal fumble loss for touchdown.  9 carries for Ridley -- essentially, he carried the ball 10 times and fumbles twice. Yikes.

Agreed on Ridley. Though I over reacted in an earlier post. He's not done. He'll still carry the ball plenty for the Pats. Even the best of them fumble (e.g.: A. Peterson). Its just that Ridley fumbled twice in a half including that fumble that led to a TD.

[Cman]

Vereen needs surgery on a bone in his wrist.
Zach Sudfeld pulled his hamstring.

Yikes. Injuries already gonna hurt the Pats this year.

[Bahku]

Wow ... hope Gronk is back next week ... the pass receiving corp is horrendous right now ... easy passes dropped over-and-over ... haven't seen Brady that angry in a long time, and he gets angry a lot. Tough night for Ridley, too ... jeez.pats have been underwhelming, to say the least, but two-and-zero anyway.

[Atzar]

I think Dobson will end up being fine.  He doesn't have any trouble getting open.  He dropped some balls he needs to catch and he's clearly not on the same page with Brady yet, but as long as he's willing to put in the work I think he can be very good.  His flaws look to be inexperience and a lack of familiarity with Brady and the rest of the offense, and those are both solved with time and work. 

[Bahku]

I think Dobson will end up being fine.  He doesn't have any trouble getting open.  He dropped some balls he needs to catch and he's clearly not on the same page with Brady yet, but as long as he's willing to put in the work I think he can be very good.  His flaws look to be inexperience and a lack of familiarity with Brady and the rest of the offense, and those are both solved with time and work.

Yeah, I agree with that ... I think Dobson may even become a marquis player, depending on how he deals with this pressure early-on.

He's got a great teacher, but Tom can be pretty harsh, and expects the best from everybody.

Thing is Brady works harder than anyone, so it's not like he expects more from others than he does of himself.

I think getting Gronk back will help Dobson as well ... take a bit of the hard focus off him, relax him a bit.

[kozlodoev]

I'm way less concerned about the passing game (Gronkowski, Amendola and Vereen are all due to return at some point) than I am about Ridley. Two and change yards per rush, and seemed to hit a brick wall every time we needed him to make a play. Sure, he didn't fumble, but he had too many no-gain/negative yardage plays; we need him to play better.

[Roy H.]

I'm way less concerned about the passing game (Gronkowski, Amendola and Vereen are all due to return at some point) than I am about Ridley. Two and change yards per rush, and seemed to hit a brick wall every time we needed him to make a play. Sure, he didn't fumble, but he had too many no-gain/negative yardage plays; we need him to play better.

Does the blame lie with Ridley, or with the offensive line that seemingly didn't open any holes this week?

[Fafnir]

I'm way less concerned about the passing game (Gronkowski, Amendola and Vereen are all due to return at some point) than I am about Ridley. Two and change yards per rush, and seemed to hit a brick wall every time we needed him to make a play. Sure, he didn't fumble, but he had too many no-gain/negative yardage plays; we need him to play better.

Does the blame lie with Ridley, or with the offensive line that seemingly didn't open any holes this week?

The Jets have a really good and young front 7. Furthermore they were giving the Pats the deep ball and daring them to beat them deep.

The WRs weren't up to the task.

[kozlodoev]

I'm way less concerned about the passing game (Gronkowski, Amendola and Vereen are all due to return at some point) than I am about Ridley. Two and change yards per rush, and seemed to hit a brick wall every time we needed him to make a play. Sure, he didn't fumble, but he had too many no-gain/negative yardage plays; we need him to play better.

Does the blame lie with Ridley, or with the offensive line that seemingly didn't open any holes this week?

I don't know, does the blame never lie with the DB when unless he fumbles?

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

Wow ... hope Gronk is back next week ... the pass receiving corp is horrendous right now ... easy passes dropped over-and-over ... haven't seen Brady that angry in a long time, and he gets angry a lot. Tough night for Ridley, too ... jeez.pats have been underwhelming, to say the least, but two-and-zero anyway.

This might the least impressive 2-0 football team I've ever seen. You're right: the receiving corp is pretty bad at this point; Gronk can't get back soon enough, and Amendola got hurt in record time, even for him. This might be the shakiest offensive squad the Brady-era Pats have had. I know that Gronk, Amendola, and Vereen are due back in the near future, and hopefully those guys stay healthy upon return; and thankfully the Pats pulled out these first two games despite sloppy play; but right now I see this team not going far—certainly not a Super Bowl contender.