I've been tailgating at New England Patriots games from 1987 to present day. What a difference a couple of decades make! These tales from the tailgate include everything from the soul-sucking feeling of a 1-15 season to the unexpected thrills of Super Bowl titles. I often hear people say that Pats fans are spoiled and arrogant. Not all of us. Some, like me, still can't believe Vinatieri's kick was good.
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP Ravens 28, Patriots 13 (1/20/'13): Well, I didn't see that coming. I don't mean the Ravens winning and moving on to the Super Bowl. The Ravens are a very good team. I knew they could win. But I didn't think the Patriots would score just one touchdown. And no points in the second half. Zero. None. Zip.
Did anyone see that coming?
I have not turned on ESPN or
the NFL Network since the game. And I won't for a while. Staying strictly with the NHL Network (thank you, league-run networks) and the Bruins. Perfect timing for the return of hockey. I'm also staying far away from Sportsblab Radio. I don't need to hear the post mortem and T-Sizzle gloating. Watching it in person was bad enough.
But I did see a few headlines online while trying to catch up on non-football news (Obama is president again! Cool.) saying
the Patriots lost because they weren't tough enough. Really? That's it?
Welker's not tough? Spikes? Hernandez? Solder and Vollmer? Brady? Vince?
Jones? Mayo? Not tough enough? Come on. They lost because the offense picked a bad time -- yet again -- to have a bad game. At least that's how it looked to
me. They carried the play in the first half but just couldn't get
rolling. It was a weird game. Like their loss to the Jets in 2010. Those games happen to even the best teams. You just hope they don't happen in the playoffs.
The Pats -- without Gronk -- weren't good enough on Sunday. But not tough enough? I don't remember the
Ravens looking that tough when they were losing four out of their last
five games of the season. In fact, they didn't even look like a playoff team. But they do now. And they could very well win that Super Bowl that many (including me) have been expecting them to win for about five years. The Ravens have gone to Denver and New England and won tough playoff games on the road. They have earned it.
The Patriots? They have lost a home playoff game for the third time in four years. That's a discouraging way to end what have been some great seasons. But let's not forget that there are almost no players left on this team
from 2007, the greatest team ever. It's only been five years and the
Pats have already rebuilt the team and been to a Super Bowl and hosted
back-to-back AFC title games. They are
really entering the final stage of the rebuilding now that they have
very good running backs who should only get better and an improving
(slowly) defense. These last two years the Pats should have been
battling for a wild card spot. Instead they were battling for another
title. No matter how disappointing the ending, the last few years have provided a lot of fun.
And that's really what it's all about. Fun. That feeling on a Wednesday in September. Or November. Or January. That feeling when the week is dragging when you look ahead to Sunday and the Pats. And that feeling on Monday after they win another big game. The Pats delivered more than their share of fun -- again -- this season. And it doesn't look like it's going to end any time soon.
The Patriots destroyed the Tim Tebow-led Broncos last year to earn the right to host the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship game. The momentum from that romp did not carry over to the title game as Brady struggled all day and the Pats escaped with a three-point victory. This year the Pats roll into the AFC title rematch after beating the Texans 41-28. Will the offense sputter again and cough the ball up or will it click (even without Gronk) the way it is capable of and put the Ravens away? The defense is neither awful nor great. It will do the best it can. It's the offense that will decide if the Pats get another shot at their fourth Lombardi.
GOOD
Shane Vereen (and Stevan Ridley): Vereen was actually drafted before Ridley. He was taken in the second round, followed by Ridley in the third round. With the need for a pass rusher and any kind of defensive back I was puzzled that Belichick took two running backs. I wasn't sure what his plan was. I guess I know now. Two very good backs (like tight ends) are better than one. Vereen had Kevin Faulk type game, making big plays on the ground and in the air. Ridley, who has seen a little less playing time since having some fumble issues, wasn't on the field at the start of the game but finished with 82 yards on 15 carries. Good luck stopping both these guys.
Aaron Hernandez (and Wes Welker): That goes for these two guys, too. Losing Gronk is huge, but it's not as huge when you still have Hernandez. This was supposed to be his year, but he hurt his ankle in Week 2 and it took him a while to get back up to speed. He looks like he's back. He had some big catches against Houston. And when the defense shifts to stop Hernandez, that opens things up for Welker. Brady has plenty of weapons, but none bigger than these two. Good luck keeping them out of the end zone.
Zoltan Mesko (and Stephen Gostkowski): The guys who sit behind us at Gillette say the darndest things. One of them last week said "Mesko is the worst punter in the league. He never kicks any long ones." Hmmmm. Wonder why that is? Could be that the Pats offense rarely gets stuffed deep in its own territory so he doesn't get too many chances. What he does get a lot of chances to do is drop the ball inside the other team's 20, and he was one of the best in the league at that. Zoltan got the chance to make some long kicks against Houston and he showed what he can do. 61 yards. 57 yards. 50 yards. 64 yards. And Gosty was solid again with some deep kickoffs and two field goals.
BAD
Gronk (and Woody): There are injuries and then there are injuries. The loss of Gronk is a bummer. Not just because he's one of the most unstoppable offensive forces in the game but because if the Pats were to win the Super Bowl how fun would it be to see Gronk celebrating? Pretty fun. Woody hurt his hand on the first play of the Houston game and never came back. But the word is he will be ready for the Ravens. Hopefully the Pats have had their share of injuries for the season.
Kick coverage (and pass coverage): What's up with the kick coverage? It's been shaky too often this season. Against the Texans it was almost fatal. The Pats better tighten it up and fast. The Raven's Jacoby Jones is one of the league's best kick returners. The pass coverage needs to tighten up, too. (Is that even possible?). The Ravens' offense is getting lot of hype. More than it deserves. Especially Flacco. But one thing they are doing well is hit the big play. Which is the one thing the Pats' D can't stop. Tighten up.
The Ravens wanted this rematch. But their plan was to hold it in Baltimore. After they pulled out a come-from-behind win in Week 3 and raced out to a 9-2 record it looked like they would. But a late-season collapse allowed the Pats to easily pass them in the playoff seedings. The rematch is on. And it's back at Gillette. It's going to be frigid. I can't wait.
So it seems the Baltimore Ravens wanted to play the New England Patriots instead of the Houston Texans in the AFC Championship game. That's interesting. I get the whole revenge/rematch thing. The wanting to beat the team they hate. But don't tell me that's what the Ravens really want. They really want to play the quarterback who dived head-first for this huge touchdown late in last year's game? The quarterback who dived head-first as Ray Lewis zeroed in on him and smacked him right in the middle of the back? The quarterback who took that hit and then got up and slammed the ball to the turf and got the crowed roaring? And that quarterback didn't even play a good game last year. Wait till Sunday.
DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF GAME Patriots 41, Texans 28 (1/13/'13): OK. Shaughnessy was right. The Texans are no match for the Patriots. But I was right too. Mac and cheese is an excellent tailgate food. Especially homemade mac and cheese on a 50 degree January playoff day.
I can't remember the last time I was as nervous about a Patriots' game as I was about the rematch with the Texans ... and about the tailgate food. I was running late (a two-week old baby can do that) and didn't have time to fully cook the mac and cheese. Fortunately Shep bought a portable oven a few years ago so both trays were able to cook another 30 minutes at 375. They came out great. Just like the game.
My stomach was full but still nervous as me and my two Don Julios settled into section 109. A few seconds later my stomach was more than nervous. The Texans' Danieal Manning took the opening kickoff 94 yards to the Pats' 12-yard line and would have scored easily if it wasn't for some championship hustle by Devin McCourty. I was barely in my seat and the Texans were on the verge of going up 7-0. But they didn't. Their second tight end dropped a sure touchdown and Matt Schaub missed an wide open Andre Johnson. The Texans settled for a field goal and you knew they had just missed a great opportunity to set the tone. Neither team could set the tone and with just more than four minutes left in the first quarter my stomach was not doing any better. Woody was standing on the sideline hurt and Gronk had already headed for the locker room holding his arm. I needed another margarita. It's good I had laid that base of mac and cheese.
And then Brady and the offense clicked. A lightning fast 65-yard touchdown drive was capped when in quick succession Vereen caught a short pass and took it 25 yards, Hernandez took it another 14 down to the goal line, and then Vereen ran in untouched before the Houston D could get set. The tone had been set. And fast. The touchdown and the next round of drinks had settled my stomach. The rest of the game built my appetite for the post-game tailgate.
It may not seem like it, but the game was actually close at the half. Houston scored 10 points in about three minutes to cut a 17-3 lead to 17-13. It was no repeat of the disaster the Texans played a month ago. This was one of the best teams in the conference showing why they were one of the best. By the time the third quarter was over the Patriots had showed the Texans who was better. Brady, Welker, and Hernandez (the key to the rest of the playoffs) combined for another big drive to open the second half. Ninko then picked off Schaub as the Texans were driving to get back in the game and the offense made it 31-13 with a 63-yard drive near the end of the quarter. The key series in the fourth quarter was classic Josh McDaniels's offense. The Pats' D stopped the Texans on a fourth-and-1 at the Houston 33. On the very next play Brady lofted a perfect pass down the left sideline and Vereen (three touchdowns) made a great catch for a touchdown. It was the killer instinct of a playoff-tested team.
The defense gave up two fourth quarter touchdowns but the game was never close. A game in which I was fearing the worst had turned out just great. It just kept getting better and better. Kind of like the post-game serving of mac and cheese.
The Ravens' victory in double overtime against the Broncos in Denver was one of the best playoff games I've ever seen. And one of the biggest upsets. I gave Baltimore no chance to win that game. No chance. And I thought there was no chance I would see the Manning face. But I got to see quite a bit of it. It looks good with a stocking cap.
The Ravens' shocker means the Pats and Texans play for the chance to host the AFC title game instead of having to go to Denver. As if tomorrow's game wasn't big enough. If the Pats take care of business against Houston we get a rematch of last year's epic conference title game... at Gillette.
Pats-Ravens II. One more tailgate. The thought of that brings a happy face.
OK, that was not a very entertaining Wild Card weekend. Sure, the Bengals-Texans game was close most of the way and Seattle's comeback against the Skins had some drama but the four games were not that exciting. Unless you are a Packers, Texans, Ravens, or Seahawks fan. Then they were great games. I thought they would be more competitive but each game had a team that clearly wasn't ready for the playoffs. That should change this weekend. All four matchups should be bruising battles. Even the Patriots rematch with Houston. Despite what most in the Blabosphere are saying, this will not be an easy game for the Pats. The Texans will leave their letterman jackets behind this time. They will be ready.
AFC
Ravens (11-6) at Broncos (13-3): The Ray Lewis retirement party begins immediately after this game. I just don't see Peyton Manning losing at home after putting together the season he has in Denver. I know it's supposed to be cold and the elder Manning never wins in the cold. But you're talking about the fifth best passing attack in the league against a very average defense. Andrew Luck is no Peyton Manning. And the Colts don't have wide receivers like Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas. Add to that a healthy Willis McGahee and I don't see the Ravens D holding Manning to under 23 points. And it's very unlikely that Joe Flacco can score more than 20 points against the Denver defense. All the focus is on Manning and Lewis but the Bronco defense was third in the league against the pass and third in the league against the run. The Denver D is very very good. The Broncos are no 13-3 fluke. And they are at home. They will be hosting the AFC title game. Broncos 27, Ravens 16.
Texans (13-4) at Patriots (12-4): No one is giving Houston a chance to win this one. Including me. But that doesn't mean it will be an easy game or that the Texans can't win. They can. I just don't think they will. But I didn't think the Jets could come into Gillette in the Divisional Round two years ago and win. They did. And this Texans team is much better than that Jets team. Much better. I watched Alabama destroy unbeaten Notre Dame in the college championship game and thought if Brady and the Patriots can play at the level that the Tide played at for three more games then they will finally get that fourth Lombardi. The Texans will play a better game than they did in the Monday night thrashing a month ago. They have to play better. But better won't be good enough if the Pats play at their peak. And that is where the questions come in. Can Talib be the shutdown corner I've heard tell of? Can the secondary not give up the big plays? Can Ridley hold on to the ball? Can rookies Jones and Hightower rise up under the playoff pressure? Can Brady stop throwing the bad pick in a playoff game? Can Gosty make a clutch playoff kick? I think the answers to most of those questions, at least for this week, are yes. Patriots 34, Texans 20.
NFC
Packers (12-5) at 49ers (11-4-1): The classic battle of the wide-open offense against the smash-mouth defense. I'm really looking forward to this game. The numbers favor the Niners in almost every category. They are the fourth ranked D in the league while the Pack is in the middle of the pack. The Niners also have one of the best rushing attacks in the game. If Frank Gore dominates the Green Bay D and keeps Aaron Rodgers off the field then the Pack is in trouble. But that's where San Fran quarterback Colin Kaepernick comes in. Coach Jim Harbaugh with his rather large ego wants to show that he made the right choice by benching Alex Smith in favor of his guy. So he will have Kaepernick throwing. Since Kaepernick took over the starting job Gore has not had a 100-yard rushing game. He had three before that. I think the Niners throw the ball more than they should and that opens the door for Rodgers and his array of receiving weapons. The Packers are a veteran team that will not be afraid to win on the road. Packers 27, Niners 23.
Seahawks (12-5) at Falcons (13-3): The Seahawks are the surprise team in the NFL's elite eight. And they just might be the most dangerous. If Pete Carroll wins a Super Bowl ... What was I saying? Right. Seahawks vs. the Falcons. Seattle is a team that plays to its strengths. They have the best runner in the game right now, Marshawn Lynch. And they run him right down their opponent's throat. And then they have rookie QB Russell Wilson make some plays. On defense they are just nasty everywhere. They play like the old Miami Hurricanes defense. Like criminals. They are intimidating. And if there's one team in the NFL the past few years that can be intimidated it's Matt Ryan's Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons have the sixth best passing attack in the league with Roddy White, Julio Jones, and future hall of famer Tony Gonzalez catching Ryan's passes. But Seattle has the best pass defense in the game. What else do the Falcons have? They are 29th in the league in rushing and 23rd against the pass and 21st against the run. That's not good. The Falcons will be one and done again. Seahawks 30, Falcons 21.
If you are a fan of the NFL the next two weekends are as good as it gets. Sure, championship weekend is a lot of fun with the best of the AFC and NFC squaring off and of course Super Bowl Sunday is a national holiday. But Wild Card weekend and the Divisional Round are the two best weekends of football. Two games Saturday. Two games Sunday. Grab a beer, some snacks, and your spot on the couch.
AFC Cincinnati (10-6) at Houston (12-4): The Texans were the team to beat in the AFC for the first three months of the season. In December, they just turned into a beaten team. They lost three of their last four games and looked bad doing it. They were stomped by playoff team New England, Minnesota, and Indy. Can they pull it together for the playoffs? I think so, but the Bengals will certainly make it difficult for them. The Texans are 8th in the league in rushing yards and seventh in the league against the run. And they are solid in the passing game. All the talk is about Matt Schaub but he is not the key. Schaub will be lucky to get out of this game alive against the Cincy pass rush led by Geno Atkins and Michael Johnson. The key is Arian Foster. He is the best player on the field for either team (slight edge over A.J. Green). If Foster can dominate on the ground and make life easy for Schaub then Houston, with the home field, should be able to get the win. Cincy's best chance rests with Green. He's one of the top playmakers in the game. The Bengals need QB Andy Dalton and Green to have a huge game. That's going to be tough to do with J.J. Watt getting in the way. Texans 27, Bengals 24. Indianapolis (11-5) at Baltimore (10-6): You couldn't write a script better than this. Colts coach Chuck Pagano, who missed most of the season being treated for leukemia, has returned to the sideline just in time for the playoffs. Playoffs? Playoffs? Yes, last year's worst team won a very surprising eleven games and is in the playoffs. And they are playing the Ravens in Baltimore. The team that Pagano was a defensive coach with for four years. And the Ravens' Ray Lewis, who is very close with Pagano, has announced that he will retire when the Ravens season ends. Talk about your story lines. The Ravens are like the Texans, they have stumbled towards the playoffs, losing four of their last five games. And their defense is no longer elite. Old and injured, but not elite. So the question is can the Colts led by rookie QB Andrew Luck and a young group of players go on the road and beat the veteran, this-might-be-our-last-chance Ravens? I don't think so. Ray Lewis won't be winning a title in his last game, but he won't be losing at home either. Ravens 23, Colts 17.
NFC
Minnesota (10-6) at Green Bay (11-5): This is the one man vs. the team game. Vikings running back Adrian Peterson came back from major knee surgery to post one of the greatest seasons in NFL history, coming up just nine yards short of the single-season record for yards rushing. He is the Vikings. Just like Aaron Rodgers is the Packers. It's a great running game vs. a great passing game. The difference is that Rodgers has a lot more help around him than Peterson. Jennings, Cobb, Jones, Nelson, Finley. And the Green Bay defense is better than the Minnesota defense. And the game is being played at Lambeau Field. The Pack won the title two years ago. They are still a serious contender. Packers 30, Vikings 20.
Seattle (11-5) at Washington (10-6): Two of the most exciting and surprising teams in the league meet up in the first round. It should be a great game. It's a rare thing when two rookie quarterbacks play each other in the playoffs. RG3 and Russell Wilson are rookies in name only. They are the "new breed" of quarterback that can run and throw on a dime. Of course there have always been quarterbacks like that (ever hear of Randall Cunningham) but that's OK. It makes for a good headline. All the attention will be on the quarterbacks but it's the running backs that will decide the game. The two runners that I had on my fantasy team -- Seattle's beast Marshawn Lynch vs. Washington's beast Alfred Morris -- will set the tone early and often. It's a tough decision as to which back will prevail. I'll go with the home team again. Redskins 21, Seahawks 20.
The Ravens' Ray Lewis announced yesterday that he is retiring after the playoffs. Lewis is a first-ballot hall of famer. Maybe the greatest linebacker ever. When he's playing the Patriots and trying to kill Tom Brady I can't stand him. The rest of the time you gotta love the guy. Except for that little murder that he may or may not have been involved in, Lewis is an inspiring person. He talks about God like a preacher. He's a mentor to young players and a force for good in society. And he hits like nobody's business. He's an original.
He even makes an intro for a video game awesome ...
The Patriots' main rival during their Super Bowl years was the Indianapolis Colts. Sure, the Jets were the hated division enemy from New York. The Steelers were the greatest franchise in NFL history that couldn't beat the Pats when it counted. The Chargers were the Norv-led contenders who could never quite stop beating themselves. But year after year it was Peyton Manning and the Colts that stood between the Patriots and the Super Bowl.
That era has long passed, coming to a conclusion in the Arizona desert in the winter of '08. The Patriots are still Super Bowl contenders but the Colts have tumbled to the AFC depths while Manning is throwing passes in the mile-high air of Denver. Many would say that Skinny Rex and the dysfunctional Jets have taken over the Colts' role as the Pats' arch enemy. Not so. The Jets aren't good enough (yet) or nasty enough to fill that role.
But Ray Lewis and the Baltimore Ravens are.
The two best teams in the AFC (sorry Steelers) square off again tonight in the biggest game of the week and one of the biggest games of the year. It's not just a chance for both teams to get back on track after disappointing losses last week. It's a game that could -- and probably will -- decide where the two teams will play when they meet again in January. It was the same with the Pats and the Colts. The Pats would win the regular season match-up, thus making Manning and the Colts come to frigid Gillette to lose in the playoffs. It wasn't until the Colts starting winning in the regular season that they were able to make the Pats come to the comforts of the Dome where they were finally able to slay their enemy.
Every champion needs a rival. Every hero needs a villain. Now it's the Ravens' turn. They have been preparing for this role for years.
Most football fans had a bias against the Ravens from the moment their hideous Edgar Allan Poe logo was created in 1996. The recently deceased Art Modell moved the beloved Cleveland Browns right out from under the pug noses of the Dog Pound and took them to Baltimore back in the day when NFL owners were treating their teams like fast-food franchises. Load up the truck in the middle of the night, move to a new city, slap a new logo on it ... instant franchise! Modell may have been one of the key builders of the NFL, but in the eyes of many fans he was scum for moving the Browns to Baltimore. His crime paid off a few years later with a Super Bowl title, lead by loudmouths (and hall of famers to be) Ray Lewis and Shannon Sharpe. The brash-talking Ravens were born.
The Patriots and the Ravens have played each other just eight times in the nearly 20 years the purple and black have been in existence. And the Pats have won seven of those eight. Each time the Ravens have come into the game thinking they were the better team and each time (but once) the Pats crushed them one way or another. Their first meeting was back in '96, with the Pats winning a wild one. I barely remember the game other than it was a Drew Bledsoe-Vinnie Testaverde gunslinger battle. The Pats would go on to an unexpected trip to the Super Bowl that year while the Ravens won just four games in their inaugural season.
The next meeting was at the end of the 1999 season. The end of the Pete Carroll disaster. The Patriots thrashed the Ravens 20-3 in the regular season finale to finish at 8-8. Fortunately it did not save Pete Carroll's job. The Ravens also finished 8-8. The next year they would win the Super Bowl ... and the Pats would begin the Belichick era. The next time the two teams would meet -- in 2004 -- both franchises were sporting Super Bowl rings and cocky attitudes. The Ravens and Ray Lewis came into Gillette on a cold, rainy Thanksgiving weekend and the 9-1 Patriots dominated them 24-3. Corey Dillon carried the ball 30 times in the mud for 123 yards, a preview of what he would do in the playoffs.
The Pats-Ravens rivalry really started to reach a boil in 2007. The Patriots came into Baltimore at 11-0 and the talk of an unbeaten season was everywhere. Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, and the Ravens were determined to put a stop to all the talk. And they almost did. It was a true heavyweight battle, with each team exchanging hay makers. The score was 10-10 at the half. 17-17 after three. The Ravens held a 24-20 lead with just more than three minutes left to play when Brady led one of his greatest -- and luckiest -- game-winning drives. The Ravens D stopped Brady on a fourth-down play but the officials said one of the Baltimore coaches had called a timeout before the ball had been snapped. Brady got a new life and took advantage of it, connecting with Jabbar Gaffney a few plays later for the winning touchdown. I still pop the tape of that game into the old VCR everyone now and then. It's a classic.
As was the next meeting in 2009. The Patriots prevailed 27-21 in a game of hard hits and cheap shots. It's the game where Belichick tells Raven receiver Derrick Mason to shut the eff up and the game where Terrell Suggs (T-Sizzle. Now that's the nickname of a villain) was called for roughing Brady and whined about the "Brady rule." Once again the loudmouth Ravens left the field steaming and vowing revenge.
They would finally get it a few months later at Gillette in the playoffs. A game I would prefer to forget. Ray Rice burst through the Pats D line for an 83-yard touchdown before I even had my first drink and it just got worse from there. Ravens 33, Patriots 14. It was a drubbing. A beating. A whuppin'. The Pats had it coming and the Ravens were anxious to deliver it.
The two met again the following October with a lot of experts questioning if the Pats had what it took to ever beat the Ravens again. They did. It was another close game and Gosty won it with a clutch field goal with more than a minute to play for the 23-20 final. The same score for the last game the two teams played ... the AFC title game at Gillette last January that the Ravens still can't believe they lost. Another classic battle that came down to a kicker, this time Baltimore's Billy Cundiff and this time the kick was missed.
Other than the drubbing in the playoffs the Patriots have always come out on top. How can it be a rivalry if one team keeps winning? It's like the Sox and the Yankees. But even a one-sided rivalry can be a heated one. The hatred and resentment of the team that always loses (and their fans) keeps building and building. The Patriots (as they were for the Colts) are the Ravens' white whale. Tonight gives them another chance to lunge a harpoon into the chest of Brady and Belichick.
Dan Shaughnessy says Pats' fans don't hate the Ravens, once again reminding us why sportswriters should never speak for the fans. He says Baltimore is too likable a city. Which I found out when I went to a Ravens game last year. But it's not New England vs. Baltimore. It's Patriots vs. Ravens. It's never a regional thing. New York's a great city. I love going there. It's not that the Yankees are from New York. It's that they win all the time. You think people hate the Celts because they are from Boston? Not really. It's that they are sick of them. Just like football fans across the country are sick of Brady and the Pats. They could be the Minnesota Patriots and people would hate them.
Dan says there's no hate like there is for the Jets. Well, maybe he should have sat in the stands of the AFC title game last January to see how Pats' fans feel about the Ravens. Or maybe he should come sit with me and my nephew Pete on my couch tonight.
The Ravens? They are a great team with great players. But they talk too much. They whine a lot. We hate 'em. They're the new villain. And they are perfect for the role.
It's the Ravens vs. the Patriots in the AFC title game next Sunday at Gillette. Not time just yet to pack away the tailgating supplies. Not just yet.
These two teams have been on a collision course for this moment since 2007 when the Pats stayed perfect (momentarily) by stealing a game in Baltimore. The Ravens still hold a grudge even though they got revenge in the playoffs two years ago. That's just the way it is when it comes to the Ravens. Ray Lewis believes they are the dominant team of the last decade. They've been very good -- no doubt. But every time they have their mirror-mirror moment it's Tom Brady and his three rings that reflects back at them. Terrell Suggs likes to say things like "I hate Tom Brady." The Patriots are kind of an obsession for the team in purple and black.
As epic as those Pats-Colts games were in '03 and '04. This one is bigger. This is smash-mouth vs. high-octane. I was hoping I wouldn't see Suggs walking into Gillette. I'm pretty sure Tom Brady was hoping the same thing.
The NFL Network has been counting down it's Top 100 current NFL players as chosen by the only people that count when it comes to these things... the NFL players. It hasn't been quite the outstanding sports television that the list of all-time 100 Greatest Players was. I guess it's just not as interesting to see where Mike Vick is ranked as opposed to NFL legends like Joe Theisman or Gayle Sayers.
But the list of best players of 2011 accomplished one thing... righting a wrong. The ranking of one Tom Brady. The all-time list that was unveiled last year placed the Pats future hall-of-famer at #21. That's right. Not even in the Top 20. That's what happens when you let fans and the media start voting.
Brady was in the middle of his greatest season yet when the rankings came out. He finished the year without his fourth Lombardi Trophy, but did become the first player ever unanimously awarded the league's MVP trophy. There really is no reason to debate his place in NFL history. He is one of the five greatest quarterbacks to ever throw a pass and certainly in the Top 10 of all players.
And at the moment, he is certainly the best player in the game.
As Ray Lewis says (first Derek Jeter as Brady spokesman, now Ray Lewis? Wasn't anyone from Boston available?) in the video below... "I'll tell my kids I played against one of the great ones... I mean the greatest of the greats."
Ravens 33, Patriots 14 (1/9/10): All the questions about the Patriots in this up-and-down season were answered very early yesterday. Can they play a complete 60-minute game? Can they overcome injuries? Can their coaching staff bring forth a game plan that throws the other team off balance? Can their best players (mostly Brady) step it up when it really counted? No. No. No. And no.
The official end-of-dynasty proclamations will be issued and reissued all week on the radio and TV. I'll take a pass on listening to all that. The "dynasty" has been over since '04. Is that news? Each year in the NFL has nothing to do with the previous one or the next one. Sometimes two great seasons come back-to-back. Sometimes they don't come for decades. '03 had very little to do with '04 which had very little to do with '07 which had very little to do with this year. Sure, some players and coaches are the same. But things change quickly from year-to-year. Look at the Steelers this decade. So the Pats are out and the season ended in an embarrassing loss. They made the Ravens look a heck of lot better than they really are. Does that mean the Pats can't get back to the top next year? Once again the answer is, no.
But there are many things they need to improve on if they want to go deeper into the playoffs. And all of those things were on display from the first play of yesterday's game. The Ravens are a great running team. Their plan was to pound the ball right at the Pats D all day. The Ravens knew it. The Patriots knew it. Everyone in the stadium knew it. The Pats knew it, but they weren't ready for it. RB Ray Rice took the hand-off on the first play at his own 17-yard line, hit the hole up the middle, cut left, and went -- untouched -- for an 83-yard touchdown. On the first play of the game. I had skipped my pre-kickoff Don Julio margarita run in order to be in my seat for the national anthem. No sooner had Rice crossed the goal line, than I bolted up the stairs for a little liquid relief. You know, something to change the momentum.
I got to the front of the line at the Don Julio stand and said "Two margaritas please." The woman serving the drinks seemed annoyed with my order. "No margaritas today," she answered. No margaritas? The Ravens just scored on an 83-yard run on the first play of the game AND there are no margaritas? "This game is not starting out so well," I thought. "Why no margaritas?" I asked. "No hard liquor on playoff games. You want two Coronas?" "Coronas?" I repeated back to her. "It's January. Why would I want a summer beer?" "You wanted a margarita," she said. "That's a summer drink too." Good point. But one has tequila, the other doesn't. It's 15 degrees out. Which one would you prefer?
I drifted away from the margarita line, excuse me, the Corona line, and wandered dazed across the concourse. I looked up at the small TV hanging on the wall. (Hey, Mr. Kraft. Can we get some TVs that I can see please? Put the $400 I spent on parking this year towards it.) The Pats had the ball. Brady dropped back to pass, and from what I could make out on the screen, he fumbled the ball and the Ravens recovered. No, this game was not starting out so well at all.
It just got worse from there. The Ravens had a third down inside the Pats 10. Hold them to a field goal attempt there and maybe -- maybe -- the Pats could turn things around. Rice took the ball and hit the hole on the left but James Sanders came up from his safety spot and had a clear shot on Rice that would have stopped him short of the first. A tackle that had to be made. Sanders didn't make it. He completely whiffed and Rice bulled ahead for a first and goal. Two plays later, touchdown. 14-0. The Sanders missed tackle was emblematic of the season. A Patriot had a chance to make a play and he just didn't get the job done.
This would normally have been the point in the game where I texted my nephews and sister with messages like "Lots of time left." "This is ugly." "We just need a big play." Something like that. Or they would have texted me. But there was radio silence. Clearly we were all too stunned to try to offer each other hope. And for good reason.
Brady threw a horrible pick on the Pats' third possession. The Ravens scored again. Then he threw another pick on the next possession. The Ravens scored again. As the clock ticked down on the first quarter the Gillette scoreboard read Ravens 24, Patriots 0. The boos started to rain down. I prefer silence over booing my team but when you screw everything up for an entire quarter in the playoffs you have earned some boos. And they really weren't that loud. I believe me exact words were "You can't spot a team like the Ravens 24 points. We are done." How's that for analysis? Mark refused to die, knowing that teams can come back and believing that Brady could still summon up some magic. But there was no magic to be had. That Pats scored after a muffed Ravens punt to make it 24-7 and had chances to cut the lead to 10 before the half but just couldn't make the plays. Time and time again.
The second half started with the Pats going three-and-out. There were too many three-and-outs this year for an offense that averaged the sixth most points per game. They scored a lot. But they rarely scored when they had to. Red zone issues. No consistent production from their tight ends. Lots of problems for Belichick and the staff to address. The rest of the game consisted of the Ravens grinding down the clock and the Pats desperately trying to do something to climb back in the game. But the Pats couldn't get anything going. It was their worst game of the season and one of their worst in years. As the sun went down behind the south side of the stadium and the temperature began to go down with it, we left with just over three minutes to go so Mark could catch an earlier train out of Providence. It was one of just a handful of times we left before the final gun during our 16 years as ticket holders. But we had seen enough.
That's the only good thing -- as a fan -- about your team getting blown out and blown out early. You go through the stages of grief before the game is even over. By the start of the fourth quarter acceptance had settled in around most of the stadium. The season was over. Their unbeaten home playoff record under Brady and Belichick was over. The shot at a fourth Lombardi this decade was over.
The day after the season ends is always a gray one when your team comes up short. You kick away the snow in front of the shed and put away the grill, tables, chairs, tent, and all the tailgating supplies. (It's important to make sure you throw out any leftover meat or else it will not be pretty come spring when you open the door again). As I was carrying stuff across the yard something felt different. I realized this was the first time in a long time that I was storing things away after a season-ending loss at home. That was a strange feeling. It's been a great decade. A decade of great games and even better memories. The Pats had never ended a season by losing at home during that time. As I put the last items into the shed I thought about next season's outstanding home schedule and started to look forward to setting up in the Gillette lot some sunny September day with my friends. I can't wait.
WEEK 4 I didn't make it to this week's home game against the Ravens due to a trip out to Oregon. But Mark texted me as he headed into the stadium that "There will be blood on the carpet today." And he was right.
There are a lot of things to like about the Pats 27-21 victory over previously unbeaten Baltimore. The thing to like the most? The Pats beat the Ravens at their own game. Punishment. The Ravens' last play was the most talked about after the game. WR Mark Clayton dropped a pass that would have set up Baltimore with a first-and-goal inside the 10-yard line with just under a minute to go. "Lucky" was the word most used to describe the Pats victory. But after watching the game on tape (another great one to pop in the VCR when I'm an old guy), I would say the drop was as much a result of the pounding the Pats D handed out all game as it was Clayton's hands.
From the opening kickoff when a mob of Patriots nailed the returner and forced a fumble, the Pats were flying all over the field and hitting everything in sight. Just like the Ravens do as well as any team in the league. The most noticeable thing about the Patriots through four games is how quick and agressive the defense looks. Sure, they have lost a ton of experience with the departures of Bruschi, Harrison, Vrabel, and Seymour. That may catch up to them when the stakes get bigger later in the year. But the time had come to get younger and faster. It's too early too tell how many of the new players will make a long-term impact, but at least for the moment they are all around the ball. And that's a good sign.
Time and time again players like Meriweather, Boden, McGowan, Guyton, and Burgess stepped up and made plays. And when the Ravens did complete a pass the Pats D punished them. It looked a lot like the defenses from the '03-'04 teams. They would give up yards but rarely the big play. They were the classic "bend don't break" style of defense. With McGinest, Bruschi, Law, Harrison, and Vrabel they had a group of playmakers. Mayo had already become the face of the next generation of playmakers. Now it's looking like the potential for a few more to emerge. Add them to Wilfork and Warren (they could both go to the Pro Bowl this year) and you have something to build on. You have to figure that played into Belichick's thinking in the Seymour trade. And when Mayo comes back this D could really gel.
Look at the final stats of the Baltimore game. The Pats didn't have any player with 12 tackles or anything like that (although if Mayo was playing they would have). Instead they had nine guys with four or more tackles, led by Meriweather with 9. That's the sign of a complete team effort. Take away the touchdown on the Brady fumble and the Pats held the Baltimore offense to two scores. A Baltimore offense that was averaging about 30 points a game.
The Ravens, led by Ray "Screaming Mimi" Lewis, like to come in and punch the other team in the mouth till they back down. The Pats threw the first punch and kept swinging. When Clayton dropped the ball in the last minute of the game, he had McGowan and Butler bearing down on him. As the ball fell to the ground they both unloaded on Clayton. It's doubtful he would have been able to hold onto the ball. It looked like he knew they were coming and was trying to get out of the way of the hit. That's what a game of punishing the other team can do. A game of flying around the field and making plays. I couldn't help but think it was a game Bruschi would have loved to play in.
