21-17, we fell a few points short.

It’s a close one but I think that this loss hurt a little more than the first time around. No matter what you tried to tell yourself before the game, losing the way the Patriots did is still difficult to take in.

There were so many chances for them to win. Heck, we managed to have a miserable first half but still be up by one point going into halftime. Wide receiver Chad Ochocinco (who had a pretty non-existent season) made one of the longest catches of the game with 21 yards. It seemed like things finally starting to fall into place, even with a first half that started with a rookie mistake, Patriots fans were hopeful that this is where the real Patriots would come out.

The Patriots looked to have found their rhythm. Tom Brady constructed an impressive 96 yard drive that ended in a four yard touchdown catch by running back Danny Woodhead. 

In the first drive of the second half, Aaron Hernandez made a 12 yard catch into the end zone and made it rain on the big stage. Things were looking up.

Following the touchdown, everything seemed to go downhill. From an inability to recover fumbles to team’s most reliable receivers struggling to make catches.  The entire team just seemed off. The defense, surprisingly, wasn’t the biggest disappointment of the game though.

It turned out the be the receivers who struggled the most.

Deion Branch, the one-time Super Bowl MVP, was no stranger to the pressures of this game. But he dropped a crucial pass.

Wes Welker, Tom Brady’s favorite receiver who had 122 catches this season, dropped a catch that he’s “…Made a thousand times.” This catch, more than the others could have sealed the victory for the Patriots.

It would be easy to place blame on number 83 but honestly, I think it’s both on him and on Brady’s pass (the pass looked to be behind Welker and a tad high).

I don’t think the blaming game will help the hardcore Patriots fan in me.

My good friend Joe Gill asked me about why I thought this loss hurt more than the first defeat,

Because I think the reasons they had to play well, to finish this season as champions were so much deeper than in 2007. Back then, it was about the perfect season. This time around, nothing was really perfect and that made it so much more exciting and worth fighting for…

Yeah, I think that pretty much sums up how I feel.

In a season that was dedicated to Myra H. Kraft’s extraordinary life, Robert Kraft took time after their return to Gillette Stadium to address the media and fans for their support all season.

Also to the fans, when we dedicated this season to my sweetheart, I met with the players and coaches and asked them to do everything they could do to make this season special in her honor.

Thank you Mr. Kraft and the New England Patriots for an exciting season. Although a Super Bowl win would’ve made things perfect, nothing could take away how special this season was.

Here’s to next year and a new season.

Go Pats. 

Like, “I threw a terrible pass and I want to yell at my random wide receiver that looks like a member of Bel Biv Devoe (Tiquan Underwood) and put the blame on him” kind of brat.

If you have no idea what I’m talking about, check out the video below.

The story is that Tom Brady was originally yelling at Bel (or Biv or Devoe, I’m not sure who is who)  and offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien was just not having it. I’ve never really seen Tom Brady react like that and it kinda rubbed me in the worst way possible. In a situation that the absolute worst thing that Tom Brady could’ve done was throw an interception…and that’s exactly what he did. If that happened to me, I’d be pretty ticked off too but I would be irritated with myself, not poor little Tiquan Underwood and Coach O’Brien.

Not cool, Brady. I still love you though. Just don’t let it happen again…unless it’s because Tiquan missed a Super Bowl-winning catch, then I guess that would be acceptable.

Let’s get back to the rest of this game, the Patriots won the game but in the most unconvincing way possible.

The Patriots got the win over the Washington Redskins with a score of 34-27.
Yeah, not too impressive right? This is also the same Patriots team that gave the Indianapolis Colts some belief that they actually had a shot at winning not too long ago.

Am I confident in this Patriots team? Nope. I think that the Houston Texans are more balanced as a team and they don’t even have their first and second string quarterbacks. But does that mean that they won’t fight their way deep into the playoffs.

The Pats won’t impress anyone with their defense but it is this unimpressive defense that will make enough plays to keep their opponents at bay…that is, until they meet Aaron Rodgers, that is. I’m actually worried about those games when a scattered defense will not cut it.  Speaking of the Packers, is it just me or does it seem like more people are ok with the Packers going undefeated than when the Patriots were trying to do the same thing?

As Fitzy once said, “…because everyone hates the Pats.”

The Patriots are headed to Denver this weekend to face the golden child that is Tim Tebow. As someone mentioned on twitter, Bill Belichick has examined and scouted Tebow. What’s happening in Denver is not going to be a surprise. From what I saw of the Broncos against the Bears, it was a case of a team that got overly confident with 10 points on the board.

The Patriots won’t do this.

They’ll keep scoring until the end of the game and even if they’re up by 40, they’ll still play like they’re down by 40. We all know that it is the defense that is the Patriots point of weakness and if they let the magic that is surrounding Tim Tebow get the best of them, there won’t be a score over 20.

The weakest link, according to Mike Reiss’ report card, it’s the Pass Defense specifically that they’re so close to failing at with D+. 

If Tim Tebow hones in on the other side of his option quarterback self (the passing one), their chances at winning will slightly increase.

I’ll say it here, this weekend’s game is not going to be an easy one but it will be an interesting one. I think the Patriots can pull it off and if they finally stop the Tebow train then we’ll have something to really be excited for in the playoffs.

Until Sunday, I leave with the most courteous bear you’ll ever meet.

I usually have my thoughts and ideas all mapped out on a list. You know, what I liked, what I didn’t like, what blew my mind..etc.

This past Sunday’s New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills game as a whole, blew my mind.

Not because of the fact that both the Bills and Patriots were both UNDEFEATED going into the game but just how straight up ugly the game got.

Look, I’m as big of a Patriots fan as anyone but I’l be the first to admit that our defense sucks. And the fact that Tom Brady has less than a stellar showing exposed it rather quickly.

Brady was 30 for 45 passes for 387 yards. Impressive. Four touchdowns? Also impressive. Four interceptions?! Not so impressive. Brady through the same amount of interceptions in one game as he did in the entirety of the 2010-2011 season.

Not only did Brady look “squirrely” as my good friend @MellyHocking called it, but the defense looked so lost. Other than Kyle Arrington’s two picks, everything else seemed blah.

Second year corner back Devin McCourty seems to be going through the sophomore slump. He looked sluggish and what he considered “coverage” was giving receivers about 10 yards to play around with.

Let’s play, “Where’s the coverage?” -_-

Devin McCourty, a cornerback mind you, is leading the teams in tackles. He’s ranked above Jerod Mayo. Does that seem right to you? Vince Wilfork has more interceptions than McCouty. You see what I’m getting at here?

I’m not trying to take away from how the Bills played. I’m a massive Fred Jackson fan and I think he is going to have one hell of a season with the Bills. But he has something that I’ve yet to see from the Patriots this season: An explosive rushing attack.

The most exciting run I’ve seen this season has  been from the rookie running back Stevan Ridley.  The Patriots have 102.7 total yards in the first three games. I love me some Law Firm and Woody (hehee) but c’mom man! Let’s focus on getting the run established before we have Danny Woodhead playing wide receiver (an overthrown pass caused one of Brady’s INT).

And here I’ll say it, Chad Ochocinco is irrelevant. Dropping catches and misreading routes is not acceptable. The guy is barely getting any passes thrown to him and the ones that matter and the ones that do go his way, he can’t seem to hold on to.

I’m done with him.

I don’t think it’s fair to expect the Patriots offense to be flawless but the have the defense be nothing more than 32nd in the league. (Thanks @ErikFrenz for that little tidbit).

It’s a new week and the Patriots are facing the Raiders. I’ve voiced my concerns and I know many people share them..so here’s to a better week in Oakland.

To help you get through the week, I present to you: Panda Dogs!

Hell, Vince Wilfork got his first ever interception AND ran it back for 20 some yards…How could you not be wicked psyched?! Here’s the video of the interception

Gotta thank @PatriotsHaven for the video!

I was actually at Ryan’s parents’ house for a Sunday dinner during the game..but the ever-so-dedicated blogger in me decided to type out my thoughts of the game on my Blackberry AND THEN email it to myself.

So here it goes, The Rough Cut: Patriots vs Charger 9|18|11

- Tom Brady looks crisp and relaxed behind the line and even outside the pocket

- Chad Ochocinco finally finding his niche: the deep middle passes. this wasn’t a major option for Brady since the prime days of Moss..

- Antonio Gates has been less than relevant. Hasn’t been targeted nearly as much as everyone expected. I’d give the credit to Pat Chung for doing an excellent job on coverage and blocking.

- A questionable call made on DE Andre Carter with a strong hit on Philip Rivers. Looked clean but the fact that he held on for an extra second made it a personal foul.

- Vince Wilfork gets his first career interception AND ran it back. Great form and ball protection. (This might have been my favorite play of the entire game) Did anyone else notice Vince’s impeccable ball protection technique? Cradled it and all. 

- A close hit on Brady gives me the chills and flashbacks of Brady’s knee injury. Yeah, let’s not do that again.

- Leigh Bodden gets called twice for holding. This brings light to an area where the Patriots may have some issues: Unneeded penalties. Clean it up.

- Considering that Steven Jackson of was the only offensive weapon for Rivers, it still says something that they were able to cut the Patriots’ to a single touchdown at one point of the game says that there is still some improvement for the Patriots’ Defense. I’m not saying it’s terrible because they did cause FOUR turnovers.

- Patriots running game contuinues to be stable and explosive when necessary. Nothing fancy but effective. We also got a Stevan Ridley appearance..even if it was just 2 carries for 9 yards.

- Brady is the first player in NFL history to follow a 500+ yard game with a 400+ yard game.

- I also can’t end this wrap without mentioning that awesomeness of our two tight ends: Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski. Other than a blown block by Gronk, the rest of the game for these two guys were pretty much highlight reel material.

The final score of the game 35-21 Patriots. 

My prediction was 27-21 Patriots. Eh, I was only off by a touchdown..not too shabby.

That’s really all I can come up with after watching part one of A Football Life: Bill Belichick.  For the entire 2009 season, Bill Belichick, head coach of the New England Patriots was wired for an entire season.

Every emotion (which is rare to see from BB), to every smirk and every curse word of 2009, the NFL Network got it and it is probably one of the best and most fascinating things you’ll ever watch about one of football’s greatest minds.

The best part about watching this season? This was my second year as the employee check in supervisor at Gillette Stadium. I worked every home game, concert and event that season.

Seeing that Tennessee game with the impromptu snow storm brought back some great memories of working 14 hour days. The days were long  but being in the heart of the excitement and passion for the Patriots made it all worth it.

One of my favorite parts of the part one of A Football Life was seeing Bill Belichick’s sheer brilliance and understanding of the game. You watch in awe how everything he predicted a team would do to beat  New England actually happened. It all seemed to be a natural thing for Belichick and it’s hard not to be amazed at how someone can understand the game so well.

You can’t help but hope that one day you can be as dedicated and passionate about something in the way that Bill Belichick is about the game of football.

Part two of A Patriots Life aire next Thursday on the NFL Network at 10 pm. I’m already counting down the days…

An ankle injury with a full recovery time that could take 6-10 weeks. What this really means is that Tom Brady will have to make a new friend in the center position.

Koppen, who was drafted by the Patriots in 2003 from Boston College. Koppen has been with the Patriots his entire career and he’s really been with Brady from the beginning. Brady recently stated,

“On losing Dan Koppen:

“That’s tough. He’s the best and there’s no one like him. I think he and I have a great chemistry between the two of us. We always have and he’s one of my great friends. Hopefully he’s back at some point. We’re certainly going to miss him but at the same time other guys have to step in and do the job. I think that’s part of what this game’s all about, other guys stepping in when they’re called upon and executing just as if he was in there. Hopefully we get him back at some point.”

We are best fwends

You’re going to see an immediate impact with Koppen’s absence and it’s going to take some adjusting and players like Dan Connolly have no choice but to step up to make sure that the offense we saw against the Dolphins can be there for the rest of the season.

I recently read an article by Cindy Boren of the Washington Post about the amount of injuries in week one of the season (Dan Koppen joins a lengthy NFL Week 1 injury list that includes Willie Colon, Luis Castillo and 4 Denver Broncos). It’s staggering not only the amount of injuries but also the extent of those injuries. Luis Castillo of the Chargers suffered a broken tibia and the Steelers’ Willie Colon is recovering from torn triceps.

Those are not just ankle sprains or sore muscles, those are serious injuries. As Boren states, “The MVP so far in the NFL? The MRI machine.”

Regardless of the unfortunate injury of Koppen, it’s still tough to really count out this Patriots offensive line. Brady managed 500+ yards and he made it look easy. Brady also managed to tire out the entire Dolphins so much that they went into desperate mode early…like before halftime. It as sad to see actually, to see this defense have no answer for the Patriots except a full on blitz every single time.
It’s seriously like when I play Madden…pretty sure I’d use Smoke Blitz, which by the way is also a spell in the game RuneScape. Awesome, I know.

I’m interested to see how long the Patriots can keep up this offensive rhythm and when the defensive will finally be at the same level. Bring on the Chargers!

Random tidbit:

You need to check out the new Star Wars website. It’s completely redesigned and they even link to sites like Wookiepedia to source some of the character bios. There’s old videos, previews and awesome sound effects from all the films. One of my favorite things? The soundboard with each character and their notable phrases…

Can you guess which is my favorite soundboard? Check it out!

Yup, this happened.

 

Holy crap, it feels good to have some football back…especially Patriots football. After making a delicious and healthy dinner of Chicken Marsala and mock mashed potatoes (made with Cauliflower instead of potatoes..weird but with butter and cream, it is a tasties) I was ready to watch the Patriots.My first ever Patriots game was when they faced the Dolphins in 2005…and it was one of the few times that the Patriots were shut out.

Womp. Womp.

Tonight’s game was not the case.

I present to you, The Rough Cut: Patriots at Dolphins 9|12|11

- Tom Brady and the offense is something to be really be amazed with. I mean, Brady has so many toys to play with it that defenses are struggling heavily to find any sort of weakness. Tom Brady has over 500 passing yards…this is a real game people, not Madden.

- Matthew Slater is not only one hell of a tackler but for someone that’s relatively small, he made one amazing catch. Slater is also named this year’s Special Teams captain.

- Like I’ve said before, Aaron Hernandez will get you the yardage and Rob Gronkowski will get you the touchdowns. Not a bad problem to have on offense in the tight end position.

- Dan Koppen’s possible ankle injury is a massive blow to the offensive line and looks to put more pressure on Dan Connelly at center.

- Nate Solder is proving to be quite the first round pick at tackle. Although he was called for holding, the kid held Miami’s Cameron Wake at every snap.

- Deion Branch, one of the quieter players in the preseason had a blanced game against the Dolphins. Best play in my opinion, was Branch running after Jared Odrick a la Ben Watson style preventing the touchdown…even though Hartline eventually caught it for a TD, the effort was admirable. Branch has been open down the middle, on the sidelines and everywhere else.

- The Patriots running package with BenJarvus Green and Danny Woodhead is efficient and sturdy. For the first time in long time, I’m pretty secure with the Patriots’ running game.

- All these defensive backs for the Patriots need to learn how to catch. I know, I know..”that’s why they’re corners and not wide receivers”..but deflecting and intercepting a pass can do two very different things to a defense.

- Ras-I Dowling and Devin McCourty at the cornerback positions is scary, especially in the red zone.. Great coverage when it matters most but could tighten in the deep ball coverage.

The Patriots and Lions game. Yeah, that game.

I was there for their first preseason game against the Jaguars and it was impressive. Like, walking out of Gillette Stadium fist pumping and high-fiving anyone who was willing to high-five. How could you not?

The final score was 47-12. It was the most points ever scored against the Jaguars in the preseason since 1977.

BOTH of our back up quarterbacks looked immaculate. Most impressive was rookie Ryan Mallett, who I specifically said in a pre-draft article that the Patriots WOULD NOT draft (dumb, I know but does anyone remember Zac Robinson? Exactly.)

It was just so beautiful to see them play, to see that the majority of our draft picks (and some undrafted ones) were pretty darn good.

And then they kicked the Buccaneers butts in Tampa pretty efficiently as well.

Honestly, the Bucs game was a little more impressive since Tampa’s quarterback Josh Freeman was starting AND was damn impressive last year. He was #1 on everyone’s “Really? THAT GUY is doing well?” and “Holy crap, I wonder if my auto draft picked him..” lists.

…And then the Patriots ventured off to Detroit to not only escape the terrors of Hurricane Irene (which I survived, thanks for asking.) but to supposedly show off a bit against the up-and-coming Lions. I say up-and-coming because it seems like every time this team got a break, something terrible would happen. And for awhile, the Detroit Lions were that team that everyone just loved to pick on…well them and the Bills. I’d say the Bucs too but they have a sweet Pirate ship in their endzone. You can’t hate on a pirate ship.

The game itself was a hot mess. Tom Brady was playing like a n00b. The offensive line was a solid as pudding and the best person on the team was Zoltan Mesko – the punter and Julian Edelman as a returner (I still think this kid’s nickname should be All Purpose Edelman). It was the Special Teams that held up..for the most part.

As for the final score? 34-10 and the Patriots were left with a lot of questions of answer.

Silly, Lions don’t hike the ball…

The roster is only going to get smaller and I know for a fact that players like Brandon Tate and Brandon Spikes are pretty much on the outs.

Cuts are going to be made and some of these bubble player will have a final shot at the game against the Giants at Gillette this coming Thursday as the Patriots host their final preseason game.

Don’t blow it kids. I’d love to keep you all but someone’s gotta go.

——————————————————————————————————————

By the way, do you follow me on twitter?

What's better than Tom Brady? An excited, fist-pumping Tom Brady.

It really is an odd predicament that I find myself:

1. I’ve randomly been a Patriots fans ever since, well, they sucked

2. Covering the team for Patriots Insider has not only deepened my love for the team but also opened my eyes to the facts (why they win because of specific players/plays/schemes..and not because the they are the greatest team ever.)

3. Working at the stadium, there isn’t a more exciting time then the playoffs

I’m seriously trying to figure out how I’m able to contain all the excitement. I’ll let you know that when I first starting writing for PI, my love for the team was rather obvious. I used words like ‘great’ and ‘really awesome’ . You know, the words you  aren’t supposed to use unless its during an angry Facebook chat, AIM (if people still use that) or on a blog such as this.

If there’s anything I learned about covering a team like the Patriots is to not get too excited about anything, EVER.

It’s the best way to work in regards to gushing about an amazing  record that Brady has broken for the fifth time or when a second year utility player makes a hell of a play for touchdown after not being much of an offense factor for most of the season.

As Bill Belichick rarely shows any emotion after a win, I have learned to adapt in the Belichick way.

No matter how great a win is, there is always room for improvement, the next team has a great coach, lots of talent, well-coached..

If you’ve watched any BB presser, they all start the exact same way. Its pretty incredible actually, as I’m sure he is the only coach to do that. Snaps for consistency.

The New England Patriots have had quite the ride this season. I’ll admit it, in the start of the season, I was nervous/excited about all the rookies expected to fill in the shoes of some of the best and most experienced.  I saw it all firsthand when I was asked to cover training camp for the first time EVER. As it went on, I became more familiar with the players and the team. I saw big things coming from the duo rookie tight ends Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski. Cornerback Devin McCourty was still a raw talent but got substantially better with every practice session.

The wide receivers were overflowing with talent and the status of Wes Welker being able to get back to 100% was still filling the headlines.

My, how things have changed.

Overall the Patriots have finished the regular season with the best record (14-2). Quarterback Tom Brady is having one of the best seasons of his career and hasn’t thrown an interception in over 300 passing attempts. And well, there is just so much good to gush about.

What exactly is in store for the team in the playoffs?

They’ve secured home field advantage for both the AFC Divisional and AFC Championship games (which they’ll make of course), which in January and in the cold is a pretty scary place to play the Patriots.  It’ll be cold, loud and wicked cold.

First down?

Some have brought up that the Patriots’ playoff appearance last season was nothing less of flat and uninspired. Just to refresh your memory, the Patriots got everything handed to them by the Baltimore Ravens at home with a final score of 33-14 and ended their short-lived playoff run.

Here’s my article from Patriots Insider about one of the saddest games I’ve ever worked.

Click to read the rest of the sad, sad tale..

So many times last season, the Patriots got lucky. There were glimpses of a team that was good enough to get the wins but there was always something missing. That drive and passion to work hard for every single win. Almost that they had something to prove.

That missing piece from last season came in the form of the rookie class, an effective running game and surprisingly efficient defense. Oh, and special teams too considering the ‘veteran’ of the squad is rookie punter Zoltan Mesko.

From what it seems, it will be a rematch on January 16th of the Patriots and the Ravens.  Unless of course the Jets upset the Colts in which case we’ll get a bunch of new material for Manning face.

I am hoping with all my biased heart that the Jets do not advance in the playoffs. With Rex Ryan facing a depleted but still more experienced Colts in the postseason, Mark Sanchez’s luck is not going to cut it.

You may ask, “Kisha, what about the Chiefs?”

Oh right, the Chiefs. Look, its pretty heartwarming that the Patriots lite have made it to the playoffs. Hell, I have soft-spot for them too but let’s be logical here. Unless quarterback Matt Cassel can get in touch with his inner Tom Brady in the playoffs, Dwayne Bowe plays like he did earlier in the season and most importantly if both Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones obliterate the Ravens run defense.

Think of the Chiefs as the new kid in school, lots of mystery surrounds them, rumors have been spread and from your run-ins, they seem like pretty cool dudes.

Let’s see what this weekend brings, I’ll be chomping on some Carolina style pulled pork and some other delicious goodies.

Cheers everyone and remember: Every time you cheer for the Jets, baby unicorns cry

Don't do it.