The New England Patriots are the gold standard in the NFL. They have been for the past 18 years, to be exact. Ironically, that's when Tom Brady came to the Patriots. Since that time, the beanpole of a kid that walked into the NFL combine and many expected to go un-drafted, has turned himself into an All-Pro quarterback, a multiple time NFL MVP, one of the most clutch playoff performers the game has ever seen, and most importantly, a Super Bowl champion.
A FIVE time Super Bowl champion, might I add. But, to Bill Belichick and his team, the past doesn't matter. It never has, and it never will. All that matters is what's out on the field in front on them right now, and this Sunday, it will be the Philadelphia Eagles. A franchise still in search of it's first taste of glory, something the Patriots have tasted multiple times over the last three years. Ironically, the last time the Patriots faced the Eagles on the game's biggest stage in 2005, they clinched their third title in four years, cementing themselves as the NFL's next dynasty. Now, fat forward to 2018, and the same coach, quarterback and owner, are looking to accomplish that same feat again. Here's why on Sunday night, we'll all see Tom Brady hoisting his sixth Lombardi trophy. The Eagles current roster is filled with young up and coming stars, but to put it into perspective, let me offer this stat: Nick Foles is in search of only his third playoff win ever on Sunday, while Brady is in search of his sixth ring and 28th playoff win. If someone says that experience doesn't matter in games like this, they either don't watch football or they're lying. Coaching experience matters as well, and it doesn't bode well for Doug Peterson and his staff that are going up against the best coach to ever live, Bill Belichick. Not to mention, his staff that is extra motivated to win not only for the franchise, but for themselves as well. Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia are both expected to head off in different directions in pursuit of a head coaching job. To most people, the coach and quarterback are the two single most important aspects of a football team, and Tom Brady and Bill Belichick have been doing better than everybody, and for longer than everybody. Experience alone will serve the Patriots well on Sunday, heck, basically the whole team was in this exact spot last season against the Falcons. Now, let's get into the stats and really break this game down. No quarterback in NFL history has ever won the passing title or the MVP and the Super Bowl in the same season before. Brady will be looking to break that trend, and he has a very good chance. The Eagles defense only intercepted opposing quarterbacks 9 times while their quarterbacks turned it over 19 times. New England also has the number 2 offense in the league when it comes to scoring points (458 regular season), and Brady takes care of the ball as well as anyone, so, New England's plan going into this game should be the exact same as it was for Blake Bortles: Make Foles throw it to bet you. If he can sling it across the field all night long and do it well, then hats off to him, he earned it. But, what the Patriots can not do, is let Foles beat you with his feet, and trick plays that Pederson is famous for. If they can contain Files, New England wins easily. Because there's no way, Brady doesn't go down without a fight. My final score prediction: Patriots 31 Eagles 21
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The first article I viewed was a piece from the Associated Press, on ABC News. The story regarded the Celtics defeating the Los Angeles Clippers 113-102. I really enjoyed this article as it was incredibly well flowing, with a nice structure and was easy to follow. The writer started off by introducing some stats from the game and why it was such a big win for Boston, who was coming off a four-game losing streak. Then, went into more detail and implemented some quotes from Celtics coach Brad Stevens and players like Clippers forward Blake Griffin. The writer did a very nice job of clearly laying out the article and presenting the information with quotes to back it up in a logical manner, while still keeping the reader intrigued. Overall I thought this was a very good piece of writing.
The second piece of writing that I looked at was from SECcountry.com, regarding the Duke Blue Devils losing to Virginia in a game in which both teams were ranked top 5 in the nation. The writer, Connor Riley, did not do a good job at making the article very interesting. He used a video of Duke F Grayson Allen flopping instead of using hi writing, which is what people come to the site for. The article was also incredibly short, with very limited stats as well. There was more focus put on Allen in the piece than anything else, and that's what made this piece not good for me. The third and final piece that I viewed was one recapping the 2018 AFC Championship between the Patriots and Jaguars. The piece was from the Bleacher Report written Maurice Moton. I thoroughly enjoyed this piece. Moton did a fantastic job in my opinion breaking down the game and the key points in it, then using Twitter videos to actually show the viewer the play and how it unfolded in real time. I thought that was a great idea used by Moton, instead of just straight words, give the reader something to actually interact with so they won't become bored.Another thing Moton did a nice job with was not just giving the facts and stats about the game, but diving deeper into the game and saying what the strategies of the coaches and coordinators were in certain situations. Like for instance, he mentions Josh McDaniels' view of the game was on the trick play in the fourth quarter, that unfortunately resulted in a strip fumble, but, nonetheless a nice addition by Moton. I liked this piece a lot. My favorite sports journalist in the Boston market is without question, Christopher Price. Chris covers the New England Patriots primarily, but he's also covered multiple New England teams since the early 90's. The reason why I like Price is for multiple reasons, but, the reason that I consider above all others is the language he uses that allows the reader to not feel lost in his work. He uses language that the everyday person can understand, from the casual fan that just wants to catch up on part of the game that they missed, to the diehards that want to know the ins-and-outs of the team and what goes on behind the scenes. I think Price's writing style and his ability to incorporate comedic relief into his work that connects the audience is what makes him stand out from his competitors.
On the other hand, my least favorite sports journalism is Gary Tanguay. Gary is host of multiple shows on NBC Sports Boston, formerly Comcast SportsNet. The reason I'm not fond of him is because of the constant negativity he brings to the show. He never believes in any of the teams when they go up against a good team. He constantly brings down the players and coaches as well as his other colleagues' opinions that are on the set with him. In my opinion, his constant negative takes could affect the ratings for his shows, because that negativity isn't wanted by most fans here, nor anywhere for that matter. |
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December 2018
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