Let's get physical

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.