I'll be honest, as Patriots fans, we're spoiled. Winning the division is a huge accomplishment in the NFL, but now, it seems to be a yearly occurance for the Patriots. The 16-3 win over the Broncos yesterday gave the Pats their 8th straight AFC East title, the longest such streak in NFL history, topping the Rams' stretch from 1973-79. It is also the 14th in the Belichick/Brady era. The reign over the East may never end considering Brady wants to play until he's 45, and with the way he looks right now, he very well could.
Teams across the league would do anything to have the type of success the Patriots do, and that's part of the reason everyone loves to hate them, because they're good. Why did everyone hate the Yankees? Because they were good. The Lakers? Because they were good. Heck, people even hated on the Celtics in the 80's because of their dominance. New England's dominance has just been incredible, and frankly, the streak could stand at 14 straight seasons if it wasn't for 2008, a year in which Tom Brady tore his ACL and MCL in the first game of the year, courtesy of Bernard Pollard who has since taken out Wes Welker in 2011 and Rob Gronkowski in 2012. Thanks, Bernard. Happy Holidays to you too. The Patriots could get home field advatage one of two ways. If they win against the Jets and Dolphins to close the season, they get it ouright, regardless of what the Raiders or Chiefs do. However, if they lose on of those two, and Oakland wins out, Oakland would get home field based off strength of schedule. However, the Patriots shouldn't worry about those scenarios, they just need to focus on beating their next two opponents, ones they are clearly better than. The Patriots next game is at home against the Jets on Christmas Eve at 1 p.m ET on CBS.
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ICYMI: The Patriots defeated the Baltimore Ravens by a score of 30-23 last night at Gillette Stadium on Monday Night Football. A game in which the Patriots' special teams almost cost them the game but then, a guy by the name of Tom Brady stepped in, and played by far his best game of the season, with the exception of one bad decision.
Brady threw for 406 yards and 3 touchdowns, and one interception on a ball he was trying to throw away before beig hit from behind, causing the ball to flutter and be picked off in the endzone. That one mistake aside, Brady was masterful once again, this time, against the league's best defense. That's definitely a good sign. The Patriots almost lost the game without having Brady even step on the field however. The Ravens were forced to punt on their second drive of the second half but, they would get the ball right back off a Cyrus Jones turnover, his fourth of the year on special teams. Then, the Patriot defense forced Baltimore to punt yet again, this time it was Matthew Slater coughing up the football, and just like that it was a 6 point game. The score remained the same until 12:55 in the fourth quarter, when the Ravens got Justin Tucker into field goal range, who made it a 23-20 game. It wouldn't take the Patriots long to retaliate, just one play actually. On the firat play of the drive, Chris Hogan freed himself of his man, and Tom Brady launched a beutiful throw right into the arms of Hogan, in stride. Touchdown. It was a 79 yard bomb, the Patriots longest play of the season to this point. That made it a 30-20 game, and the Ravens would get another field goal to make it 30-23, but the Patriots would extinguish any last hopes for Baltimore by recovering the onside kick, then running out the clock to improe to 11-2 and tied for the NFL's best record. Now, despite Brady's incredible stat line, many of yu are probably asking how did Brady prove he should win MVP with this one game? I'll tell you why. How many QB's would have the poise to not panic after your special teams hands your opponent 14 free points? Not many. It's that poise that has served Brady so well over his 17 year career. Brady this season is 8-1, with a 68.5 comp. %, 2,876 yards, 22 TD and 2 INT (best ratio in NFL). So, MVP anyone? Don't foget, he's doing all this in a shortened season thanks to some genius in NFL headquarters who apparently didn't pay attention in tenth grade science class. Of course, there will be those people who say, "No, he can't win MVP because he was suspended and missed those 4 games." Yes, I'm talking about you Mr. Kellerman. The award goes to the person who meant the most to their team, not the person who played the most games during the year. If that were the case, then explain to me why Joe Montana won it in 1989 while missing 3 games? Brady deserves the MVP, plain and simple. Whether he'll win or not, that's another question. But, something tells me Brady doesn't really care about the MVP. The only thing he cares about winning is his fifth ring. Because you know which ring is his favorite? The next one. Heading into week 14 of the NFL season, the 10-2 Patriots sit in a surprisngly tight race for the top spot in the AFC with the Raiders (10-2) and the Chiefs (9-3). Fortunately, one of those teams are guaranteed to lose (barring a tie) as they will square off in a crucial Thursday Night game.
The Patriots will be taking on the Ravens, who at 7-5, are fighting for their own playoff spot and an NFC North crown. Baltimore showcases the #1 defense in the NFL, and when Tom Brady was asked about his thoughts about them he simply said this, "Nobody has done a better job than them." He's definitely right. The Ravens are tops in the NFL in run defense, as well as total defense. They allow just 296 yards a game on average, and have only given up 207 points in 12 games, a 17 point average per game. The Ravens defense may be great but, Tom Brady is also great, and he's had the Ravens' number his whole career. He has a 5-1 record over Baltimore in the regular season, throwing for 1,486 yards and 6 TD. However, it's no secret that the Patriots will be in for a tough game on Monday night, as it seems like the Ravens are one of the teams that always plays New England tough. As it stands, the Patriots are still 7 point favorites at home. My prediction: Patriots: 27 (OT) Ravens:21 Tom Brady. Legend. GOAT. What can I say in this article that hasn't already said about the man? He's the greatest of all time, hands down. Anyone who disagrees, well, you probably don't watch football. Or are just a flat out Patriots hater. You know the saying, they hate us cause they ain't us.
Tom Brady led the Patriots out onto the field Sunday afternoon and although he may not have been thinking about it, it was on the minds of every fan in attendance, and everyone watching at home: Tom Brady could set the record for most wins ever today. He did just that, posting marvelous stats once again, completing 33 of his 46 pass attempts for 269 yards and a touchdown. The man is a machine, even at 39 years of age, Brady is still producing numbers like he's in the prime of his career. Even battling a knee injury that he suffered a couple of weeks back. Brady is now the NFL's all-time winningest QB with 201, topping formal rival Peyton Manning who held the previous record of 200 on the dot. And what better way to break the record than against the team he defeated in his first Super Bowl, the Los Angeles Rams (St. Louis Rams at the time). The Rams are nowhere near as dominant as they were back in 2001, when they were the self proclaimed "Greatest Show on Turf". The Patriots were severe underdogs heading into that game, to the point where fans said thy shouldn't even play the game. The official spread had the Rams as 14 point favorites, however, it would be the Patriots coming out on top 20-17 and starting the greatest dynasty the NFL has ever seen. To honor that special team on their 15th anniversary season, the Patriots held a ceremony at halftime where the entire team returned to speak to the Foxboro Faithful. The group was introduced as a team, just like they chose to do on February 3, 2002. The Patriots were the first to be addressed as a team in introductions in Super Bowl history. The captains from the team, Troy Brown, Lawyer Milloy and Drew Bledsoe, all spoke at the ceremony, thanking the fans for their support of the Patriots. Troy Brown was next to step up to the podium, delivering a line that got a big cheer out of the Gillette crowd. "The best fans, we got them. The best coach, we got him. The best owner, we got him. The most rings, we're working on it." Ower Robert Kraft ended the festivities by reciting the same line that captivated Patriots football. "We are all Patriots, and tonight, the Patriots are World Champions!" So, to end this article I was simply leave you with this, and a quote from former Patriots LB Tedy Bruschi. "Is Tom Brady the GOAT and going to bring a fifth ring to New England?" OHHHHHH YEAHHHHHHH!!! The Patriots announced yeterday that All-Pro TE Rob Gronkowski will need back surgery on Friday and that his season is likely over. But now, the question that remains is, is his New England career over as well?
Gronkowski suffered an injury as a result of this Earl Thomas hit (above) on Sunday Night Football, a game in which the Patriots lost 31-24. Gronk was then cleared by medical staff to return to the field on November 27th against the Jets, another game in which he left due to back discomfort. We now know that Gronkowski will likely be out for the remainder of the year, and now, the Patriots coaching staff could be looking at their trade options. Under NFL rules, you can not trade a player that is injured or on IR. However, they could look to trade him in the off-season. Now, I know what you're all thinking, I'm crazy right? Hear me out. Yes, he's the best TE football has ever seen. Yes, he's a dominant force on the field. Yes, he's a Hall of Famer. Yes, he's a goof. And yes, I love the guy. But, all good things must come to an end. I'm not saying the Patriots should trade Gronk, I'm just simply saying they might. We've already seen Belichick pull the trigger on two major deals this season alone. Now I'll expalin my thought process. The Patriots have a defense that's been struggling as of late, without the help of Jamie Collins and Chandler Jones. Free agency will be a big decision making time for the Patriots as well because Malcolm Butler, Alan Branch, Chris Long, Dont'a Hightower, Logan Ryan and Duron Harmon are all free agents. So, if they trade Gronk for a very good OLB that can cover, or a great CB or S, then they will solidify their defense and help clog up their secondary holes once again. Plus, they will still have a top 5 TE, in Martellus Bennett (assuming they re-sign him which is almost guaranteed to happen). Furthermore, if you look at this season, in the first four games when Jimmy Garoppolo was at QB during Brady's suspension, Bennett had a great showing, with basically no Gronk to be found. If Bennett can catch passes from Garoppolo, imagine what he'll be able to do with Brady. This isn't Jay Cutler, guys. Gronkowski's problem is that he lays everything on the line, each and every play. He's got to be able to control that. I understand that football is a competitive game and you want to go all out but, there are times when you can just go down after the first down marker. Don't try and fight for those extra two yards, only to get popped from behind by a defender and risk another injury. It's just not worth it. Gronkowski has only played 2 full seasons out of the seven he's been in the NFL, those coming in the first two years of his career. Since then, he averages just 11 games a year. We're looking a guy who misses, on average, over a quarter of the season every year. He's only getting older, and as the injuries pile up, there's no telling how much longer he has left. Yes, he's the best TE in NFL history, but the Pariots may look to move on from Gronk. Yo Soy Fiesta. |