Mark and I had a saying back in the pre-Lombardi days that went something like ... "Once a year your team is going to just get whipped. Happens to even good teams." In the past decade there have been very few whippings for Pats fans to witness. As they might say down in the Bayou, last night was a whuppin'.
Saints 38, Patriots 17 on the Monday night stage. The Pats have had several chances to win the big regular season game that proves they are playoff ready. They haven't done it yet. And last night they didn't even come close. The defense looked lost. The offense looked average. The record looks like 7-4.
But all is not lost. You don't have to go 16-0 to get to the Super Bowl. Or 15-1. Or 14-2. You can go 12-4, 11-5, even 10-6 and still w
alk in the red-and-blue confetti shower at the end of the season. Ask that Giants team from a few years ago. That said, if the Pats play that bad when they get to the playoffs then they won't go very far whatever their record turns out to be.
As is often the case when a team gets blown out in the second half, what was actually a very competitive first half gets forgotten. The Patriots started this game looking very much like a team ready to win the big one. The Saints moved the ball on their opening drive but the Pats D held to force a field goal. Then Brady and the offense put together an impressive 14-play, 80-yard drive that lasted almost eight minutes and had me calling Mark on the phone saying "Give me the #2 seed and this team will win it all!" The Pats D then forced the Saints to punt and at that point I don't think there was anyone who could foresee the tidal wave of touchdowns that the Saints were about to unleash. Welker returned the punt 41 yards to the New Orleans side of the field and the momentum was completely with the Pats.
Up 7-3, Brady had the chance to move in for another score that could have put the Saints on their heels. Instead he made a very uncharacteristically bad throw on the first play and put it right in Mike McKenzie's veteran arms and the Saints took the ball and drove for a touchdown to take the lead. Those are the kind of swings that kill teams. New Orleans then cashed in on an uncharacteristic blunder by the defense, Drew Brees hitting Deverey Henderson for 75-yards on the worst blown coverage I've seen in at least 15 years.
And yet the Pats responded with a tough 11-play drive that ended in a field goal. It should have ended in a touchdown because Brady had Welker wide open but the Saints DB blatantly grabbed Welker's arm and there was no call. The NFL really has to address the pass interference calls. The refs are missing obvious ones and throwing flags on plays where the DB never touches the receiver. The Patriots are not the only team in the league on the short-end of these calls. It's happening in almost every game I watch. Pass interference has to be changed to a 15-yard penalty because some of these 50 plus-yard calls -- especially the ones where it's clearly a bad one -- are completely changing the momentum of games and penalties shouldn't play that big a role. Interference has always been a tough call to make and long a controversial one, but the refs just seem to be getting more of them wrong. And it played a big role in last night's game just as it did in the loss to the Colts. A touchdown on the Brady to Welker play last night and it could have been a different game.
So just for the record: With 4 minutes to go in the half the Pats were down 17-10 and going toe-to-toe in a battle of two very good teams. Both had made a lot of big plays, the Saints had just made a few bigger ones. Then New Orleans made some more big plays in the second half and a good battle snowballed into a blowout. Happens a lot in the NFL (See Patriots '07). The fact that the Pats were actually playing a very solid and competitive game for more than a half doesn't change the final score or lessen the number of ridiculous big plays the D gave up. But it does say that the Pats are still one of the top five teams in the league. Just not top three. You don't have to be top three to get to the Super Bowl. They have five more games to play to build some momentum and tighten up the defense. They are not as far off as the final score last night showed.
The young defense will take the brunt of the heat for all the big -- no huge -- plays they allowed. That was the definition of "shaky." But don't blame it on their youth. They may not have the veteran presence of guys such as Harrison, Bruschi, Vrabel, Seymour, or even Law and McGinnest. But I seem to remember defenses with some of those wily vets blowing a late lead in the AFC title game three years ago and again in the Super Bowl. It wasn't lack of experience that cost the defense last night, it was lack of execution. They just got lost. It really is the first time it has happened all year. They gave up almost a season's worth of big plays in one game. I'd be surprised to see that again.
They go to Miami for a divisional match with the Wildcats. Fortunately the Pats have shown they have short memories when it comes to tough loses. They will be tested again. Win this game and the Pats all but lock up the AFC East. Lose and they will have a tough fight on their hands. They missed chances against Indy and New Orleans to prove to themselves that they can beat the best. But a win in Miami is actually much more important than any "statement" game. They'll be time for statement games later. The goal is still to win the division first.
Saints 38, Patriots 17 on the Monday night stage. The Pats have had several chances to win the big regular season game that proves they are playoff ready. They haven't done it yet. And last night they didn't even come close. The defense looked lost. The offense looked average. The record looks like 7-4.
But all is not lost. You don't have to go 16-0 to get to the Super Bowl. Or 15-1. Or 14-2. You can go 12-4, 11-5, even 10-6 and still w
alk in the red-and-blue confetti shower at the end of the season. Ask that Giants team from a few years ago. That said, if the Pats play that bad when they get to the playoffs then they won't go very far whatever their record turns out to be.As is often the case when a team gets blown out in the second half, what was actually a very competitive first half gets forgotten. The Patriots started this game looking very much like a team ready to win the big one. The Saints moved the ball on their opening drive but the Pats D held to force a field goal. Then Brady and the offense put together an impressive 14-play, 80-yard drive that lasted almost eight minutes and had me calling Mark on the phone saying "Give me the #2 seed and this team will win it all!" The Pats D then forced the Saints to punt and at that point I don't think there was anyone who could foresee the tidal wave of touchdowns that the Saints were about to unleash. Welker returned the punt 41 yards to the New Orleans side of the field and the momentum was completely with the Pats.
Up 7-3, Brady had the chance to move in for another score that could have put the Saints on their heels. Instead he made a very uncharacteristically bad throw on the first play and put it right in Mike McKenzie's veteran arms and the Saints took the ball and drove for a touchdown to take the lead. Those are the kind of swings that kill teams. New Orleans then cashed in on an uncharacteristic blunder by the defense, Drew Brees hitting Deverey Henderson for 75-yards on the worst blown coverage I've seen in at least 15 years.
And yet the Pats responded with a tough 11-play drive that ended in a field goal. It should have ended in a touchdown because Brady had Welker wide open but the Saints DB blatantly grabbed Welker's arm and there was no call. The NFL really has to address the pass interference calls. The refs are missing obvious ones and throwing flags on plays where the DB never touches the receiver. The Patriots are not the only team in the league on the short-end of these calls. It's happening in almost every game I watch. Pass interference has to be changed to a 15-yard penalty because some of these 50 plus-yard calls -- especially the ones where it's clearly a bad one -- are completely changing the momentum of games and penalties shouldn't play that big a role. Interference has always been a tough call to make and long a controversial one, but the refs just seem to be getting more of them wrong. And it played a big role in last night's game just as it did in the loss to the Colts. A touchdown on the Brady to Welker play last night and it could have been a different game.
So just for the record: With 4 minutes to go in the half the Pats were down 17-10 and going toe-to-toe in a battle of two very good teams. Both had made a lot of big plays, the Saints had just made a few bigger ones. Then New Orleans made some more big plays in the second half and a good battle snowballed into a blowout. Happens a lot in the NFL (See Patriots '07). The fact that the Pats were actually playing a very solid and competitive game for more than a half doesn't change the final score or lessen the number of ridiculous big plays the D gave up. But it does say that the Pats are still one of the top five teams in the league. Just not top three. You don't have to be top three to get to the Super Bowl. They have five more games to play to build some momentum and tighten up the defense. They are not as far off as the final score last night showed.
The young defense will take the brunt of the heat for all the big -- no huge -- plays they allowed. That was the definition of "shaky." But don't blame it on their youth. They may not have the veteran presence of guys such as Harrison, Bruschi, Vrabel, Seymour, or even Law and McGinnest. But I seem to remember defenses with some of those wily vets blowing a late lead in the AFC title game three years ago and again in the Super Bowl. It wasn't lack of experience that cost the defense last night, it was lack of execution. They just got lost. It really is the first time it has happened all year. They gave up almost a season's worth of big plays in one game. I'd be surprised to see that again.
They go to Miami for a divisional match with the Wildcats. Fortunately the Pats have shown they have short memories when it comes to tough loses. They will be tested again. Win this game and the Pats all but lock up the AFC East. Lose and they will have a tough fight on their hands. They missed chances against Indy and New Orleans to prove to themselves that they can beat the best. But a win in Miami is actually much more important than any "statement" game. They'll be time for statement games later. The goal is still to win the division first.
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