SB Nation - Derrick Burgess

A Bad Week For Patriots Nation Just Got Worse...This Time It Involves Mascots and Prostitutes.

PSTIM1 — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 08:59:33 -0000

More photos » by LEFTERIS PITARAKIS - AP

I'll just go ahead and leave this one alone - feel free to submit your own caption in the comments.

First Bill Belichick causes an unnecessary media frenzy by sending home four of his player's for being late to meetings due to a snow storm, then it is disclosed that Tom Brady has suffered injuries to his ribs and finger and now...well now the Patriot's mascot has been busted in a prostitution sting! Hahahahaha - I guess when it rains it pours. Sucks to be you Pat's fans! I just pray that Sunday's game is uneventful and someone from the New England media has the balls to ask Belichick about the mascot, that would be priceless!

Poll

If You Heard That A Mascot Was Arrested What Would You Immediately Assume The Charge Was?

Send 'em packing - why Belichick was right

MaPatsFan — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 13:29:07 -0000

More photos » by Steven Senne - AP

15 days ago: New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick takes questions from reporters during a news conference at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2009. Belichick praised the Carolina Panthers as the Patriots look for a way out of their slump. The Patriots are to play the Panthers in Foxborough on Sunday, Dec. 13. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

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Not unlike Bill Belichick, I manage people for a living. Well, it's not a pro football franchise and I don't have a boat and millions... you get the point. Like Bill, I deal with performance issues, family problems, strange requests, and motivational stuff. Sometimes it's a lot of work to keep the ship sailing smoothly and sometimes it's not. When you have key people on your team who are mature and lead by example, it makes a manager's job that much easier. And sometimes you have problems.

I've seen it time and time again. Many managers are not professional managers. That is, they didn't STUDY to be a manager. In the environment I work in, a large Fortune 50 company, people rise to the top in a technical ladder and are then "promoted" to manager; the thinking is if they can build widgets really well, they can manage people to build widgets. If the newly minted manager doesn't take some sort of management training, the percentages are rather high that they will fail miserably. Why? Because managing people is less about keeping track of all the tasks they're doing and more about leading them.

One of the hardest skills to learn is delivering negative feedback. Very few people thrive on confrontation; most times we shy away from it, but if you don't do it in a timely manner, it can fester. Such is the case with the Adalius Thomas, Randy Moss, Gary Guyton, and Derrick Burgess. The transgression was slight - missing an 8am meeting on Wednesday morning by minutes. Some have stated a fine would be more appropriate, that taking 4 key players out of practice for a day is actually punishing the remaining players. Those "some" are wrong, IMO.

As I mentioned above, things have a way of festering, of spreading like a bad cold. A manager needs to nip these things in the bud quickly. Why? Because others notice. You may not think they do, but they most definitely notice. First, they feel like they're commitment matters, that showing up early for a meeting is recognized as a good behavior. People will respond to that and continue that behavior. Second, and most importantly, it sets a tone. It sets a tone of what is tolerated and what is not allowed. By publicly flogging a few, the many quickly realize what's acceptable. Most of the time, they will elevate their performance as a response.

Hunger, fire, whatever you want to call it, is a carefully cultivated asset; it's an intangible that is so important to an organization. Like a campfire, it takes work to keep the embers glowing and the fire roaring. Sometimes you need to discard that "green" piece of wood that's dulling the fire, robbing the nice, seasoned pieces. Sometimes you need to send a message. Sometimes you need to raise the bar.

Bill was right. Let something like that go and it festers, spreading to the rest. Set a tone and those that are smart enough to hear it will learn. Others will not. And they'll be gone.

Bill Belichick - Smart Move There Guy

PSTIM1 — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 01:59:28 -0000

More photos » by Stew Milne - AP

Bill Belichick would probably be more interested in having a voluntary colonoscopy than speaking with the media.

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The Patriots are in the heart of a playoff push, they need to be totally focused on making the post-season. At this point the last thing they need is distractions. That's why Bill Belichick's decision to send home Randy Moss and Adalius Thomas (and two other dudes) for being late to a team meeting is all the more dumbfounding. First of all he's pissed off two of his best player's, undoubtedly created tension in the locker room, and created a national story that the media will be all over. Seeing is Bill looks about as comfortable as a priest who accidentally brought his kids to a 2 Live Crew concert during press conferences you would think he'd do anything to avoid anything that brought on any type of media attention. We at Project Franchise think Bill is a great x's and o's guy but we now think that he might be one of those Rain Main type of retarded genius' who just knows football and doesn't really have the ability to grasp concepts that aren't related to the field of play - he surely has no clue how to dress. We can say that if our star player's were late because they were trapped in a snow storm we would dispatch our personnel to greet them at their car's with hot chocolate and blankets...Do you agree with Bill? Are we being too lax? Are you a "rule's are the rule's" person or are you a "best interest of the team" person?

Poll

Bill Belichick Sending His Stud Player's Home Was...?

An Act Of A True Leader

23 votes

As Stupid As His Cutoff Sweatshirt

33 votes

56 votes | Poll has closed

Oakland Raider Quick Hits: He's Baaaack...Randy Hanson Is Back On Board

saint — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:03:20 -0000

More photos » by Anonymous - AP

In this undated file photo provided by the NFL, Oakland Raiders coach Tom Cable, left, and defensive assistant Randy Hanson are shown. Hanson, who accused Cable of assault after a training camp scuffle, has returned to work in the team's personnel department. Says Cable, "Put em Up Put em UP!!!"(AP Photos/NFL, file)

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- That's right, Raider Nation, Randy Hanson has rejoined the team without Tom Cable's knowledge. Yes, the same Randy Hanson that claimed to be punched in the face by The Big Teddy Bear is back in the Alameda Complex.

Hanson will be working in personnel and is sure to cross paths with Tom Cable. Which, by the way, I would love to see. I wonder if Tom will pull off the old flinch move when he sees him. You know the one where you stick your hand out toward someone who is walking past you and then run your fingers through your hair. If they flinch, why wouldn't Hanson, then you get to give them two shots in the arm for flinching.

On a more serious nate. Why? I know that Al loves this guy, but, why after the biggest win in 7 seasons would you bring in a distraction? We all know that Al hates wasting money, but I don't think that the team needs this right now. Maybe IF he is the film rat that we've heard about, he could have been eased back into the fold in the off-season. Just Not now!

- It looks like losing three of the last four games has gotten to Randy Moss and Derrick Burgess. They showed up late for an 8AM meeting and were sent home by the Patriots. Wow, I never saw that coming, they were BOTH such model citizens around here!

I am so glad that Derrick isn't here anymore. He was a terrible distraction to the young guys. He was a two time Pro-Bowler who wanted more money and wasn't happy with not winning so he sat out "Injured" most of his final two seasons here. Good Riddance!

Game Recap: Dolphins defeat Patriots, 22-21

MaPatsFan — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 21:50:26 -0000

More photos » by Lynne Sladky - AP

18 days ago: New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) sits on the bench in the closing minutes of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins in Miami on Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009. The Dolphins won 22-21. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

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Let's see... failure to convert in the RedZone...check. Failure to finish (ie: consistently score in the 2nd half)...check. Defensive backfield getting burned by what was to be considered an average passing offense...check. HoF QB throwing critical interceptions...check.

First, credit where credit is due. Miami did a good job of exploiting the mistakes made by this Patriots team and turning them around to their advantage. Behind most of the game, the Dolphins made big plays when they needed to and turned this game around for Miami. However, I am here to focus on the myriad of "fails" plaguing this New England Patriots team.

I normally can't stand columnist Ron Borges. He's cut from the same cloth as Dan Shaughnessy, which is to say they both hammer away at the team they're covering, claiming "the point everyone is missing...", in order to sound like the smartest guy in the room. I normally can't stand Borges, but in this column, I think he's right:

Years ago, Chuck Fairbanks said it best. "It’s not about X’s and O’s. It’s about Jimmys and Joes." For half a decade with the Pats people believed otherwise. In Bill We Trust became the motto, but does anyone honestly believe Bill Belichick forgot how to coach? A guy who has been watching game film since he was 6 now can’t break down film and discover a team’s weaknesses?

Bill Belichick didn't suddenly become stupid. He didn't wake up one morning with an IQ 50 points lower than what it was the day before. No, as Ron Borges claims, it's not about Belichick (at least, not all of it) but about the onfield talent. I haven't brought this up before, but it's been on my mind for the past few weeks or so: there's just not as many playmakers as there used to be. The players are simply not executing. Is the coaching staff showing them what to do? I would assume so; it's relatively the same staff as in previous years with the obvious exceptions of Scott Pioli and Josh McDaniels.

But if coaching were to be blamed, it would be in the Belichick player acquisition strategy. For years, Belichick has been known as a guy at the top of his game in finding "value" players, at piecing together a team with a sprinkle of seasoned vets as well as using later rounds in the draft to shore up the ranks for the future. But has this turned out to be the best approach for this team? Sure, Randy Moss and Wes Welker were brilliant moves, no question. Fred Taylor? The jury's still out as we need to see more playing time from him. But along with the brilliance have been some big whiffs, ones that have cost us dearly. Joey Galloway, Shawn Springs, Greg Lewis, Derrick Burgess, Adalius Thomas... all were relatively big money acquisitions that left this team digging into the young up-and-comers to fill the gaps.

Look in the past, at the years on the banners hanging at Gillette Stadium. You could name scores of big playmakers. Troy Brown, Corey Dillon, Deion Branch, Tedy Bruschi, Mike Vrabel, Rodney Harrison...all of them ready to step up when it was needed. Who do we have now? Wes Welker, Sebastian Vollmer (when he's playing), Julian Edelman (when he's playing). Who else?

Ok, enough of that. Let's get back to the debacle known as Patriots @ Dolphins. The whole is usually the sum of its parts. There's rarely one part that is the cause of a catastrophic failure. But, like a car, enough blown gaskets can seriously derail the vehicle.

4^th and 1 on Miami 6 - We could argue all day about whether or not to go for it on this 4^th and 1. I get the whole "play to win vs. play not to lose" argument. But I'm conservative. Unless you're about to lose the game if you don't score a touchdown, go for the field goal. But that's not what I consider to be the biggest gaff of that series. Brady hands the ball to Sammy Morris who encounters, guess what, a stacked Miami line. Why Brady didn't hand it off to Laurence Maroney, who was right behind Morris, is beyond. He had more room and could've a) built up a bigger head of steam or b) had a chance to choose another hole. And how about being creative? Maybe fake handoffs to the backs and slip it to Wes on a reverse? Welker can dodge cruise missiles never mind defensive backs.
2^nd and 5 on Miami 5 - With a running game that appears to be doing fairly well, what does Brady do? He tosses a floater to the right-hand corner of the endzone, forcing it to a blanketed Randy Moss. Miami's Vontae Davis makes a great play on a guy who has 5 inches on him and comes down with the pick. What does Randy do? He watches. How about, you know, KNOCKING THE BALL AWAY!!! Put in some effort, Randy.
Chad Henne's 51 yard march - After a failed NE series culminating in a desperate 4^th and 11, Chad Henne marched down the field to put Miami kicker Dan Carpenter in range; Carpenter nailed a 41 yarder to go up by 1. As mentioned above, where were the playmakers? Where were the guys coming up with big stops on defense? Henne did a great job of connecting with is receivers, something our defense couldn't prevent and our own offense couldn't do.
Final Brady interception - This may have aggravated me the most. Chances are it wouldn't have made a difference, but EAT THE BALL!!! Instead, Tom Terrific decides to, I don't know what, and Channing Crowder intercepts. That was not the Tom Brady I've come to "know". That was a desperate, rookie move. I hate to say it, but he looked like Mark Sanchez on that one.

Now that you're all depressed, let me leave you with some good cheer. In 2007, there was this 10-6 team who squeaked into the playoffs as a wildcard, won out in the playoffs by the hair on their chinny chin chin, and defeated an 18-0 juggernaut by 3 points to win the Super Bowl. Well, maybe that didn't cheer you up that much, but think about it this way: if they can do it, why can't we?

Dolphins vs Patriots: Five Good Questions

Matty I — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 05:15:10 -0000

by Dave Martin - AP

Randy Moss sits on the sidelines following their loss to the Saints on Monday night. For the Dolphins to win on Sunday, their young corners will have to frustrate Randy and company like the Saints did.

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As we've talked about all week, the Dolphins face quite the challenge on Sunday when they welcome the Patriots to Land Shark Stadium. So to talk about the Pats and the game on Sunday, let's welcome in "MaPatsFan" from Pats Pulpit. His responses to my questions are below. Be sure to head over to his blog to see my responses to his questions at some point on Friday.

Matty I: We all saw that game on Monday night. But the one thing that stuck out to me isn't how poorly New England's defense performed. It's how effective the Saints were at containing Wes Welker and Randy Moss. What were the Saints doing to hold them to a combined 99 yards receiving?

MaPatsFan: You noticed that too, huh? ;-) There's a few reasons, but let me start with pressure. There were only 2 sacks for 12 yards, but sacks alone aren't a good indication of pressure. Our offensive line has been dinged up of late and this past Monday we witnessed a serious gashing of the 300 pounders by a defense that wasn't supposed to do that. They were pressuring Brady with only 3 and 4 men; that's a serious knock on Matt Light and crew.

But the most important reason for limiting Wes Welker and Randy Moss had to do with the officiating crew. This crew has been known to "let the players play", to not call a whole lot of penalties. In fact, there was only 4 for 36 yards called against the Saints and none for New England. The "light" penalty calling resulted in our receivers getting banged up off the line, throwing timing off. Actually, banged up is kind - they were abused. No harm no foul if that's the way it was going to be called. I just wish Belichick would've returned the favor.

Matty I: It's to that point in the season where I begin to ask fellow bloggers about how their team's rookies are progressing. So I'll do the same here. In particular, how have Darius Butler and Ron Brace been coming along?

MaPatsFan: Darius Butler is coming along, but at a snail's pace, in my opinion. It could be that he's buried behind a fairly well stocked cornerback stable or he's just not giving Belichick a reason to put him in. Ron Brace is a slight disappointment; drafted 9th in the 2nd round, he's been losing snaps to fellow rookie, Myron Pryor who was drafted 9th in the 6th round.

The biggest surprises of all, however, have been Sebastian Vollmer and Julian Edelman. Vollmer filled in for Matt Light for some games (including Indy) and did an incredible job. In fact, some were calling for Light to move to right tackle and Vollmer to be installed as the starting left tackle. I don't see that happening this season, but Vollmer's excellent showing will give Light something to think about come contract time. Julian Edelman, a college quarterback, has done an incredible job at wide receiver, so well that he's been nicknamed "Welker Jr." (Edelman is about the same size and is mostly in the slot).

Matty I: Even though the Patriots are sitting at "just 7-4" - and I say that because of how good the Pats have been over the past several seasons - their remaining schedule isn't exactly difficult and I'm willing to bet the house that this team makes the playoffs. So with that said, what aspect of the team worries you the most as you prepare to head into the crapshoot that is the NFL Playoffs?

MaPatsFan: Well, if I had to pick one area that worries me the most it would be the lack of a consistent pass rush. Adalius Thomas was supposed to be a good weapon for us, but he hasn't performed like we'd hoped. Derrick Burgess, pulled in specifically to perform that duty, has been a bust for all intents and purposes.

I would also add the lack of depth at wide receiver. Once defenses figure out how to contain Moss and Welker, we simply don't have that many weapons; if you look at the Saints, Brees' 5 TD passes were to 5 different players. That's depth.

Another area of concern is Tom Brady's lack of consistency against quality teams. He's struggled against the likes of Indy and NO. This leads me to believe that he's really not "back" and still has a way to go.

Matty I: In their first meeting, the Patriots did an excellent job to contain Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. But Chad Henne was surprisingly effective because of all the attention being paid to the running backs. Do you expect a similar game plan this week even with Miami being without Ronnie or do you think New England's defense will not sell out as much against the run?

MaPatsFan: At #3 in yards per game, teams have to respect Miami's run game, no question. That may have dulled a bit without Brown, but Williams is still a threat that needs to be dealt with. That being said, I'm not sure I'd call 19/34 and 219 yards surprisingly effective unless you were expecting a lot less. Would I like that contained a bit more? Sure, but I didn't see any long bombs in that game (longest was a 23 yarder to Camarillo) so I'm not sure it's a part of the game Belichick will be too worried about.

Matty I: When all is said and done on Sunday in Miami, what will the final score be and why?

MaPatsFan: Believe it or not, I think this will be fairly close. It's hard to factor out the home field advantage, so I'm thinking 28-21, Patriots. Brady, throwing to Moss and Welker, is 3-0 (2007: 2-0, 2009: 1-0), so I'm inclined to think he's fairly successful against Miami.

Keys to winning: Patriots @ Dolphins

MaPatsFan — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 01:31:55 -0000

More photos » by Bill Feig - AP

Tony, when they line up Welker and Moss on the left side...

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Tony Sparano is no dummy. If he could call Sean Payton and ask him for the keys to victory against our Patriots, I'm sure he'd try (I have no idea if head coach etiquette would allow such a thing, though). Barring the phone call, it's all right there on film. Now, I have grown tired of the term "blueprint". It's been overused ever since we lost Super Bowl XLII against the Giants. Yes, they pressured the daylights out of Tom Brady, but one lucky catch from Tyree and BANG! There goes 19-0.

Anyway, teams would be stark, raving mad not to watch Sean Payton's dismantling of New England and glean whatever magic they could from it. The pressure schemes he was using on Tom Brady freed up his defensive backs to essentially blanket Tom Terrific's two favorite targets, Wes Welker and Randy Moss, and leave him with very few choices. Sam Aiken being one of those alternate choices, was overthrown at least twice by Mr. Bundchen. But I digress; this is more about Miami than it is about crying over spilled milk.

One of the keys to winning will be shoring up some gaping holes made painfully obvious this past Monday:

New England has zero pass rush. Maybe more accurate, a very spotty pass rush. Tully Banta-Cain and Derrick Burgess need to get off of their keisters and make Chad Henne's life miserable. Henne needs to be dodging a Flying Elvis or, at the very least, thinking one of those guys is right around the corner.
Fix the offensive line. They are banged up beyond belief and seem incapable of giving Tom Brady the kind of time he needs and he needs more time than most. Get Sebastian Vollmer back in there, if his "head injury" has been rectified that is.
Tom Brady likes his pocket and sits in it too long. If you look at the 2 most successful teams of this season, the Colts and the Saints, both of their quarterbacks have insanely fast releases. Drop back...BANG! The ball's out of their hands. Brady's targets should be running routes that allow for quick release.
Speaking of Brady's targets, Hoodie should assume Randy Moss and Wes Welker will forever be blanketed with DB's. That's why NE should always have more targets on the field. Send 3 to one side of the field and confuse the crap out of a defensive backfield. Remember that 75 yard bomb to Henderson? The Saints drew all of our defenders to one side and there was noone within 20 yards of Henderson. It doesn't have to be Moss.
Pound that rock. Laurence Maroney is playing like a man possessed, possessed to prove himself to his boss. Well, let him. By the way, where's Freddy? Get him back there.
Defensive backs are playing too dang soft. They need to pop receivers in the first 5 yards and make them think about stepping out. Own the field. Don't play like you're trying to prevent something from happening. MAKE something happen.

Ya think Tony was watching? I do.

The Ten from the last Ten - Honorable Mentions, 10, and 9

The Ghost of Jay Cutler — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:53:26 -0000

In a few weeks, 2009 will give way to 2010 and, with that, awesomely tacky New Years Eve glasses and a relatively successful decade of Rebel football will become things of the past. With this, we at the Cup feel it appropriate to recap these last ten years with who we feel are the ten greatest football Rebels of this time span.

After a hearty round of email debate, the top four were more or less decided upon unanimously. But there was significant contention amongst the remaining selections. You're welcome, if not encouraged, to contend with our selections as well.

Today we'll have the honorable mentions along with numbers 10 and 9. We'll have 8-5 tomorrow and 4-1 either Friday evening or Saturday morning, we hope.

HONORABLE MENTIONS (no particular order)

Terrence Metcalf - OT - Left in 2002 - Metcalf was, along with Romaro Miller, part of one of the best Ole Miss signing classes ever. Coming off of probation, Ole Miss was able to ink both Metcalf and Miller--a par of Mississippians on the Parade All-American list--stealing them away from an aggressively recruiting Alabama Crimson Tide program. Metcalf anchored the Rebel line for many years, earning a reputation as an aggressive, strong blocker. He protected Eli's blind side during his record-setting sophomore year before going on to a good career with the Chicago Bears.

Romaro Miller - QB - 2000 - Romaro Miller is, statistically speaking, the best Rebel quarterback not named Manning. Sure, Kent Austin, John Darnell, Stewart Patridge, and even Jevan Snead have done great things in a Rebel uniform, but none were as exciting to watch as Miller.

Johnathan Nichols - K - 2003 - I know you won the Lou Groza award, but we still can't forgive you.

Derrick Burgess - DE - 2001 - A former first team All-SEC defensive end, Derrick Burgess is now in the throes of a successful NFL career which has seen him make two trips to the Pro Bowl.

Greg Hardy - DE - Still on roster - If it weren't for injuries, gr3gxxz could easily be in this list's top five. He will undoubtedly go down as one of the most entertaining Ole Miss Rebels ever, both on and off the field.

Chris Spencer - C - 2005 - An all-around good guy and a solid blocker, Spencer was picked up in the first round by the Seattle Seahawks where he is still starting at the offensive center position.

Chris Collins - WR - 2003 - Eli Manning's go-to guy, Collins was the record holder for receiving yards in a season up until just a few weeks ago when Shay Hodge overtook him.

Now, onto the real deal.

NUMBER TEN

BenJarvus Green-Ellis - RB - 2008
While he will be a relatively unsung hero in the lore of Ole Miss Rebel football, his place as one of our programs greatest runners will not be overlooked by the Cup. Green-Ellis is only the second Rebel to ever post back-to-back 1,000 yard rushing seasons. He was a workhorse back who favored lowering his shoulder and driving forward to juking or spinning in order to get an extra few yards. BJGE was named to the All-SEC first team by the Associated Press after his successful senior season. As it stands today, he is an oft-used reserve for the New England Patriots.

NUMBER NINE

Mike Wallace - WR - 2009 - As one of the fastest Ole Miss players ever, Mike Wallace was Jevan Snead's deep target during the last half of the 2008-9 season. Perhaps no Rebel has ever been able to stretch the field quite like Wallace, who is now arguably the best rookie wide receiver in the NFL as the third wideout for the Pittsburgh Steelers. During his final two years in Oxford, he was able to make the secondaries of Florida, LSU, Mississippi State, and Texas Tech look downright slow. He also performed well in kick return duties.

That's all for now.

A tip of the hat goes to Dr. Saturday for the inspiration and Thile via Twitter for the nudge.

Recap: The Big Easy...wasn't. Patriots fall to the Saints

MaPatsFan — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 02:15:47 -0000

More photos » by Patrick Semansky - AP

24 days ago: New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, left, hugs New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton after their NFL football game, Monday, Nov. 30, 2009, in New Orleans. The Saints defeated the Patriots 38-17 to remain undefeated at 11-0. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

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New Orleans Saints Head Coach Sean Payton has talked about the respect he has for Bill Belichick. In particular, he mentions the '06 Pro Bowl when the 2 had a chance to spend time "kicking it old skool" on a fishing trip:

"Anytime you get to spend a week and really just try to get someone else’s thoughts and opinions, someone who has been as successful as Bill has been…" Payton said. "For me, as a young coach after my first year, there might just be three or four different scheduling questions or things that you might want to get a better grasp on. He’s a guy that I have a ton of respect for and I really enjoyed the time we had a chance to spend just that week."

Seems like Bill may have giving up a little too much info to the up and coming coach.

Let me get this out of the way: the New Orleans Saints are, more than likely, the best all around team in the NFL right now. They are not great at any one thing. However, and even more damaging to opponents, they are very good at everything. As Belichick is fond of saying, "all three phases of the game". I have no doubt that barring an epic failure during the NFCCG, the Saints will destroy whoever the AFCCG winner is.

I've been thinking about our 2 toughest road games, the Colts and the Saints (both in domes, btw. Coincedence? Hmm...). We were dominating the Colts for 2 quarters (nothing happened in the third quarter) and simply couldn't do anything against an Indy team who got super hot in the fourth quarter. We nearly pulled that game out. Against the Saints, there was no nearly pulling out anything. They put the pedal to the floor and never let up. If not for the fact that it was against my team, it was some darn good football to watch.

I will not take away anything from the talent of that team, but there were some serious "Fails" on the Patriots that need to be talked about:

Offensive Line - Sean Payton decided to give us the run; he knew it wasn't that damaging so he figured let's hand them whatever meager ground game they can muster and watch out for the aerial assault. 3 and 4 man rushes were hammering away at the O line which meant Payton didn't have to put any safeties in the box. Keeping the DB's in the backfield helped to neutralize the passing attack.
Tom Brady - Brady is not back. His accuracy, to put it mildly, sucked. Overthrowing receivers and 2 critical picks are not championship caliber quarterbacking. Tom, I'm your biggest fan but when you're tanking, I gotta read you the riot act. He looked confused at times and out of rhythm with his 2 biggest targets, which leads me to the next topic...
Receivers - Not enough of them. The Saints effectively neutralized Wes Welker (6 for 32) and Randy Moss (3 for 67) while number 3 guy, Sam Aiken amassed the most with 7 for 90. There's not enough guys to make defenses nervous; neutralize the first 2 and it makes Brady jumpy. More weapons.
Defensive Backfield - Defensive Coordinator Dean Pees may claim that youth wasn't the problem, but could you picture Rodney Harrison falling for the pump fakes and misdirection looks Drew Brees threw at our current backfield? They got torched on a number of occasions because they fell for Brees' trickery. The second issue is not realizing something Sean Payton did: the officiating crew was "letting the teams play" and were allowing all kinds of crap on receivers. Consequently, New Orleans' DB's beat the daylights out of our receivers and got away with it. Why didn't we do that? Instead, we played them too soft with too much of a cushion.

Structurally, we have a few glaring issues to resolve:

The absolute gaffs on Joey Galloway and Greg Lewis really put us in a world of hurt. We didn't realize it at the time, but not having more targets for Brady has turned what could've been an F35 aerial assault into a strafing run by a glider. You can't expect Wes Welker and Randy Moss to do it all. Shut those 2 guys down and trouble is a brewin'.
I've been complaining about this since the draft: we DO NOT have an effective pass rush. OLB Adalius Thomas is not the guy. Derrick Burgess, crowned as the guy, is not the guy. Generating consistent pressure on a quarterback is a key element in a strong and effective defense. Pressure a quarterback, ANY quarterback, and they have less time to do what they need to do.

I overestimated the Patriots' ability to win a big road game against an opponent they knew little about and underestimated an undefeated opponent based on their statistics. Sean Payton has said he modeled his team after the championship Patriots teams. Maybe we could learn a thing or 2 by peeking into the history books.

New York Jets Pass Offense vs. New England Patriots Pass Defense

John B — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 13:55:39 -0000

More photos » by Peter Morgan - AP

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The Patriots have offered a number of different defensive looks the past few weeks. Watching the game against the Dolphins two weeks ago, I noticed a subtle move. Vince Wilfork lined up at right end in the 3-4 trying to create a mismatch against the left side of Miami's line. Last week against the Colts New England operated a lot out of the 4-3 with Ty Warren out of the lineup and Derrick Burgess and Tully Banta-Cain at end. Warren is fighting an ankle injury. He's questionable. Whether he starts or not, I think we'll see a few wrinkles from Bill Belichick, changing up the looks on Mark Sanchez.

I would guess we could see Wilfork at end a few times trying to use his power against D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Alan Faneca, who may struggle to contain him. If the left side gets tied up, it will free up edge rushers, such as New England's best, Tully-Banta Cain (3 sacks). Banta-Cain is questionable with a rib injury. I could see Belichick utilizing a look like this to use Rex Ryan's overload blitzes against him. With Warren banged up and Jarvis Green also nursing an injury, we'll see a lot of Mike Wright on the line. Wright has been effective as a pass rusher.

I think the Jets should max protect to keep Sanchez standing. The Pats are probably going to attack him. They've seen on film the rookie mistakes he's made and will try to force more. I'm also expecting eight in the box. Belichick teams try to take away what you do best. For the Jets, owners of the league's top rushing attack, that's run the football. Patrick Chung has also been an effective blitzer from the safety spot.

If the Jets can keep Sanchez standing, they have some decent matchups. Braylon Edwards is a tough matchup for Leigh Bodden. He might need help in the form of Brandon Merriweather and other safeties, which will leave Jerricho Cotchery against an aging Shawn Springs, returning to the lineup from a knee injury and a mix of rookie Darrius Butler and Jason Wilhite. Cotchery always seems to play well against New England. He'll have a good chance to do so again. Dustin Keller should remain Sanchez's primary read, though. It's important not to make mistakes. Keller's a safety valve, and aside from Merriweather and Jerrod Mayo, New England's linebackers and safeties aren't great in coverage.

The Jets did a lot to exploit New England's pass defense in the second half of the first game. This was without Braylon Edwards. As long as they can keep Sanchez upright, they'll have some favorable matchups again. I do not expect this platform to affect Sanchez. Less than a year ago, Mark lit up the Rose Bowl. Obviously, this is a tougher defense, but the pressure of the game won't get to him. Aside from Banta-Cain and Wright, the Pats don't really have any great pass rushers in their front seven. Adalius Thomas and Derrick Burgess have ability but haven't really lit the world on fire this year. The Jets just need to do what it takes to keep Sanchez standing.