Game films

Tom Brady is banged up again. Shoulder this time. When you watch the hits he takes week after week it's amazing he hasn't missed more time. It's also amazing some question his toughness. I watched a montage of Brady getting knocked around and it reminded me of the opening scene of one of -- if not the greatest -- football movies of all time. "North Dallas Forty" from 1979. The '70s were great for football in the movies.

One of the greatest football films starts off with one of the greatest opening scenes of any genre. Nick Nolte, veteran wide receiver, struggles to get out of bed the morning after a game. With each step he takes he is reminded of every big hit he took the night before. No dialogue needed.

But the movie has lots of great dialogue. My favorite line is when the coach is telling his players that the key to winning is consistency. Game in and game out. He tells them that a computer has spit out info on each of them that they need to follow religiously to improve consistency, adding "No one of you is as good as that computer."

That's a scene -- and a line -- that speaks to a lot more than the football world these days.

Reading Material - Jets' Edition

MT. RYAN: Have another doughnut.

There was a lot of good reading after this holiday weekend of football. Drew Brees broke the record for passing yards in a season. The Lions clinched a playoff spot for the first time in decades. The Giants and Cowboys set themselves up for a winner-take-all NFC East battle next Sunday. God let Tim Tebow lose on Christmas Eve. Lots of great stories.

But none more entertaining than all the stories about the New York Jets after their loss to the Giants. Gotham is all a twitter about their men in green. For good reason. The Jets are plummeting. Their coach Rex Ryan has become Nero. The team that he guaranteed would be playing in their third straight Super Bowl still hasn't made it there yet. And unless the seas part perfectly for them next weekend they won't even be making the playoffs this time around.

The whole Rex Ryan shtick is wearing thin. He can talk a good game. But it's becoming less clear if he can coach a good game.

• Mark Sanchez passed 59 times in a game that was close most of the way. The Foot Doctor is not getting a lot of love for that. 
• Ryan spent the week before the game challenging the Giants. A pretty good football team. A team that one might not want to give extra motivation too. Ryan just can't help himself. 
• The Sanchize -- a.k.a. quarterback Mark Sanchez -- is suddenly not looking like he has a long Pro Bowl career ahead of him in the Meadowlands. I've been a Sanchez fan -- four road playoff wins in his first two seasons will do that -- but his star is definitely starting to dim. Next year will be a key one for him -- and his coach.

Of course it's the coach that all the talk is about. It always is when it comes to Rex Ryan. He is always credited with taking the pressure off his team and putting it all on him. That's media B.S. Pressure is created by poor play. Bad coaching. Throwing games away. Pressure is created on Sunday. Not on Tuesday at a press conference. The media doesn't create pressure -- although Felger sure wants to think it does. The opposing offense or defense creates pressure. All Ryan's act does is put more pressure on his team to live up to his ridiculous predictions and guarantees. And when they don't... trouble. Ryan gets praised for showing confidence in his team. Every coach is confident in his team. Belichick sure is. Talking about it is not as important as coaching it. Ryan talks. Belichick coaches.

The Boston media started this season with predictions of the Jets taking over the AFC East. Many said Gang Green had already surpassed the Pats with last year's playoff upset at Gillette. It was a huge moment for Mt. Ryan. The biggest in his career. Look what he's done since. Not much. Meanwhile, Belichick and the Pats are working on another #1 AFC seed. Some day the Jets will beat up on the Pats again. It's inevitable. It might even happen with Ryan as coach. But I doubt it.

I love the big guy. He's brash. He's entertaining. He's larger than life. He's also a great football guy. But he's not a great football coach. At least not at NFL level. Not yet anyways.

I watched the replay of the Jets-Giants game on Game Rewind on NFL.com. The replay starts with the coin toss. All the Giants captains are out there. But Plaxico Burress (former Giant) is the only Jet captain to come to midfield. A mind-game move by Mt. Ryan. The announcer says "Rex Ryan is unbelievable. He's always got something to get that other team thinking at the beginning of the game." Next shot is Giants coach Tom Coughlin getting ready for the kickoff. He doesn't seem too concerned with how many Jet captains show up for the coin toss.

That's the thing about Ryan. Trash talking all week. Professing your team is the best in the league even in the face of embarrassing loss after embarrassing loss. Trying to psych the other team out at the coin toss. That's not coaching. That's not leadership. That's just grandstanding. And that works just fine when the team is winning. But when things go bad, a grandstander has nothing else to fall back on. You can't go from being boastful and obnoxious to humble and reasonable. It just looks like weakness when you do.

Rex Ryan is looking pretty weak right now.

The season of giving - and taking

WEEK 16
'Twas the night before Christmas, and all through Gillette, not a creature was stirring, not even the Pats offense.

OK. That's not exactly the making of a holiday classic. But yesterday's game will be remembered as a classic comeback if the Pats can nail down the top seed next week and take advantage of that home-field advantage in the playoffs like they did in the good old days. (7 or so years ago).

I had the holiday evening shift at the newspaper so Shep, two of his sons, and his dad took in the atmosphere in section P2. Handicapped parking (Shep's dad gets that sweet spot). He texted me a photo from the chilly pre-game tailgate. I was a little bummed to be missing out. Then the Pats fell behind 17-0 and I was feeling a little less bummed.

Was Tony Mazz right? Were the Dolphins the perfect team to expose the Pats weaknesses? As Stephen Gostkowski's field goal attempt flew woefully left as time expired in the first half it was sure looking that way. The Pats D was playing its usual up and down game, bending and sometimes breaking. The offense was getting harassed by a good defense. In just the first quarter, Brady was sacked twice, hurried four times, and knocked down three other times. It looked a lot like the last three playoff games in which the Pats are 0-3. The difference was that Brady -- while constantly under pressure -- didn't make any mistakes. That will be the key come playoff time. The Pats will face some tough defenses and the yards will not be so easy to come by. Brady and the offense has to protect the ball till they can weather the storm and start making some plays.

That's what they did against Miami.

The Pats offense started making plays and scoring points while the defense held Miami at 17. Brady ran the QB sneak for two TDs and threw for a third... a classic Brady scramble inside the 10 that ended with him finding Branch at the back of the end zone. The Pats scored 27 unanswered points, but not with lightning quick strikes. An 11-play drive. A 7-play drive. Another 7-play drive. A 10-play drive. An 11-play drive. The Pats, down 17-0, methodically worked their way back into the game. The Pats, down 17-0, ran for 119 yards. That's patience. That's good play-calling.

If the Pats find themselves down early in the playoffs in the face of a ferocious pass rush, it's the formula they will need to use to survive. Hopefully they will get off to a fast start. Slow starts have been a problem this season. But the 12-3 Pats have overcome most of them. Just like the Christmas Eve win over Miami. It wasn't pretty, but it was a W.

I got a text from Shep after the game.

"Whew!'

Whew indeed.

Happy Holidays

White Christmas? No thank you. I'm quite enjoying this snowless (so far) winter. But I still love snow. Especially during football games. Here's a great video from one of the best snow games I've ever been to.

Game films

Football and movies. My two favorite forms of entertainment. When they are combined into one ... well, it doesn't get much better. As another public service, along with the Reading Material posts, I will post a clip of some of the best football scenes from the movies. Seemed like a good way to get in the mood for the playoff season just ahead. I have already requested Saturday the 14th off from work just in case the first playoff game falls on that day.

The first clip is from 1970's M*A*S*H. The classic Vietnam-era movie about the war in Korea. Football in Korea? As the general says when he's setting up the game with Col. Blake "My unit plays other units and we often put a  little wager on the game. Like $5,000. The military feels it's one of the main gimmicks we have to keep the American way of life going here in Asia." To which Col. Blake responds "Betting?"

It's a 10-minute clip but worth every second. Especially the part where Hot Lips and the other "cheerleaders" start yelling when the other team's best player goes down... "He's hurt! He's hurt! He's leaving the game, he's hurt!"

Maybe I'll get to yell that if Pittsburgh comes to Gillette and Big Ben tweaks that ankle again.

Faith no more

WEEK 15
My fantasy football team made the playoffs for the first time since 2005. I was playing my nephew Pete. He had Drew Brees. I had Tim Tebow.

He killed me.

The Patriots went to Denver for a huge game between playoff contenders. The Pats had Tom Brady. The Broncos had Tim Tebow.

The Pats killed 'em.

Tebow had a pretty good game. But Brady had a much better one. (As did Drew Brees, thus ending my fantasy football season).

The Pats are now 11-3 and won their (are you listening, Rex?) ninth AFC East title in 11 years. They lost defensive MVP Andre Carter for the rest of the year and what's left of that defense will be seriously tested come playoff time. But they are 11-3 a year after going 14-2. Just enjoy it. They seem to be.

The 41-23 victory over the sainted Broncos was as big a statement game as you can get in the regular season. No. The Broncos aren't the Ravens. Steelers, Packers, or Saints. But they were on one of those magical rolls that teams get on sometimes. Remember Morgan Magic? It's never easy to beat a team on a roll like that. On the road. Especially when that team comes out of the gate at full speed. Denver had 167 yards rushing in the first quarter ... the first quarter alone. Tebow broke a Ninko tackle and trotted for a nine yard score on the opening drive. Everyone knew the Broncos were going to run it, but the Pats D was showing no signs of being able to stop it.

The Pats answered back in a most unexpected way... a touchdown by Ochocinco. (Ocho reverted to his useless self the rest of the game). The Denver running game then easily gashed its way to another touchdown and the red-hot Broncos were up 13-7. The Pats were being challenged on the road. Pressure -- as Borges would say -- was being put on the offense. How did the respond?

Brady and the offense would outscore the Broncos 34-10 the rest of the way, notably without touchdowns by either Gronk or Welker. Aaron Hernandez had a big game as did the running game that put up 141 yards. By the time Danny Woodhead lunged over the goal line near the end of the third quarter the Pats had locked up a convincing road win and the AFC East.

As Tedy Bruschi would say, hats and T-shirts for everyone.

The Patriots finish the regular season with home games on Christmas Eve against Miami and on New Year's Day against Buffalo. "Tis the season for some holiday tailgating.

'Send the National Guard ...'

TALES FROM THE TAILGATE
Broncos 34, Patriots 8 (11/17/'96): The Patriots head to Denver yet again for a huge regular season game. It very rarely goes well out there. Actually, it doesn't go too well wherever the Pats play the Broncos. Denver is 25-16 all-time against the Pats. Tom Brady is 1-6 against the team from Colorado. There have been some ugly losses in those games for the Pats. Ugly.

I've been to a lot of great games over the past 20-plus years. They are the games that all Pats fans remember fondly. But I've seen some heartbreaking losses and been to some blowouts that had me daydreaming of the post-game hamburgers by halftime.

There was the game in '98 against Atlanta when the line getting into the old concrete toilet bowl was so long we missed the first ten minutes. By the time we got to our seats the score was already 21-3 Falcons. It was one of the rare games that our co-worker Ken came with us. Sorry Ken. There was the '95 game against the Saints that ended with me slouched up against my car in the parking lot after the Pats surrendered two touchdowns (69-yard pass, 66-yard run) late in the game for a 31-17 loss and an official end to that season's playoff hopes.

The Super Bowl Patriots had their moments too. In '05 the defending champs were in a great battle with the Chargers on a beautiful October day. The score was tied 17-17 at the half and Paul and I said something like "This team is just so much fun to watch." ... The Chargers outscored the Pats 24-0 in the second half. The lasting memory of the day -- other than the post-game burgers -- is Antonio Gates making catch after catch as he brushed of would be tacklers like flies at a tailgate. It was ugly.

But not as ugly as the ugliest game I have ever had the bad luck of witnessing. And of course, it was against the Denver Broncos.

The Broncos came into Foxborough with a 9-1 record against the Parcells' Pats and their 7-3 record. It was a statement game. The Broncos made the statement. By the end of the first half it was 24-0. Denver out rushed the Pats 198 yards to 17. The Denver D stuffed Drew Bledsoe, holding him to just over 200 yards passing and a pick. It was one of those games where the loudest sound of the day -- other than Denver running backs smashing into and over Pats defenders -- was the groans from the stands after almost every play.

We sat on the visitors side in the old stadium. Though we were pretty far up we could see that the Denver players -- especially Shannon Sharpe -- were mocking Pats fans as the score got higher and higher. The stadium emptied out after the score hit 34-8. At one point Sharpe picked up one of the sideline phones and got into an animated conversation. We thought maybe he was ordering pizza since the game was all but over.

It wasn't till I got home and turned on SportsCenter that I saw what Sharpe was saying on the phone. "Mr. President! Call the National Guard... Send help! ... We are killing the Patriots!"

There'll be no Shannon Sharpe making calls to the president today. But there will be Tebow making calls to God. I like the Pats chances this time around.

Tebow-mania

Just when you think you've seen the last craze in pop culture... along comes another that's bigger and better than all the others. Tim Tebow. As John Lennon would say ... "He's more popular than Jesus now." Wait. He is Jesus.

The Globe's Dan Shaughnessy captures the excitement surrounding Tebow and tomorrow's Pats-Broncos game as only Dan Shaughnessy can. Another great Patriots game to look forward to. Happy Holidays.

Romeo. Oh, Romeo.

ROMEO: Telling it like it is.

Romeo Crennel -- defensive coordinator for the Pats Super Bowl teams -- has another shot at a head coaching job. He left the Pats after the '04 title and ran the Browns for four long seasons. He was let go after a four win 2008. Romeo just didn't catch too many breaks during those four years in Cleveland. Injuries. A tough division. Bad drafting. Angry fans in dog masks. Just not much luck.

Now he has the controls of the Chiefs for the final three games of the season to show what he can do. He starts this weekend against ... the undefeated Packers. His bad luck continues.

Romeo doesn't really seem to be cut out to be NFL head coaching material. He's just too nice. But he's a great defensive coordinator and his players seem to love him. But he's just too nice. And just too honest. Take his press conference today as a good example.

Romeo announced that he was benching Tyler Palko in favor of veteran Kyle Orton. Not exactly a shocker. Palko has been awful. But most coaches don't announce a QB change until the last second. You know, keep the opponent guessing. Keep the media clueless. It's the Belichick way. It's the NFL way. But it's not the Romeo way.

When asked why he decided to announce the QB change, Romeo answered honestly. Nicely.

"I thought about Green Bay not knowing but then I said, "Hey, they don't care who our quarterback is.' When they look at the quarterbacks on our roster, they don't care who plays. They look at Tyler and what he's done the past couple of weeks and they look at Orton and know he's got a finger injury (uh, they do now) and they look at a rookie (whatever his name is). I don't think they are shaking in their boots."

An NFL coach saying "All our QBs suck, so who cares who starts."

Love that Romeo.

Reading material

The firing squad for coaches usually begins lining up right after the New Year's Eve hangover begins to wear off. While the playoff teams start preparing for the tournament, the also-rans start "charting a new course," "heading in a new direction," "making a fresh start."

Seems they were anxious for a fresh start in Kansas City and Miami. The Chiefs axed head coach Todd Haley on Monday, followed a few hours later by the Dolphins saying see ya to Tony Sparano. (Not Soprano). It was pretty clear both coaches were not going to be around next season so I guess the teams decided why not beat the New Year's rush.

• In KC, the focus is now squarely on GM Scott Pioli. The former Patriot exec came to the Chiefs with three Super Bowl rings and a promise to return KC to its glory days. Things looked promising with a surprising division win last season but it's been more gory than glory in 2011. Now Pioli is looking for a new coach. Word is he's leaning towards another former Pat,  Josh McDaniels. Good luck with that.
• In Miami, the Phins looked like they might save their coach's job when they ran off four wins in five weeks but then they got pounded by Philly at home Sunday. Time to take Sparano for a ride. Sparano is a good guy and pretty good coach. But he had a lousy team. So he had to go. 
• That's the way it goes with coaching. Not just in the NFL but in all sports. As they say, you can't fire the players. So the coach has to go. As your teenager might say ... life's not fair.

Haley's and Sparano's firing makes three for the season so far. Jacksonville axed long-time coach Jack Del Rio a few weeks ago. That will probably be it till the season ends. Who will be next? Norv? Yes. Has to be Norv's time.

Show of emotion

Highlights of yesterday's very entertaining victory in D.C.:

• Gronk catches two more TDs to set the record for tight ends.
• Brady throws for 357 yards and three touchdowns.
• McCourty and Ihedigbo play the entire game with basically one arm and still come up with some big plays.
• Andre Carter is once again a force on the D line. And Big Vince wasn't too shabby.
• Wes Welker continues his amazing season.
• The defense adds to its turnover total.

The thing that dismissed Globe writer Ron Borges decides to write his column about? Well if you read Borges you know he wrote about the epic Brady-O'Brien shouting match. What else?

Borges offers that the fight is a result of the fact that the Pats keep playing in tight games and that has increased the pressure-cooker level on the offense. Classic Borges.

He ignores the fact that Brady was the same way in '07 when the team was winning games 45-10. He ignores the fact the Charlie Weis did a lot of yelling at his quarterback when the team was winning Super Bowls. He ignores the fact that if Brady hits an open Welker for a TD on the play before the pick the game is over and everyone can relax. He ignores the fact that any win on the road in the NFL is a good win. Instead he compares the moment with the old Bronx Zoo of the Yanks. Classic Borges.

In Borges's thinking the Pats should win every game 20-3 so that there's no stress on the offense. That way Brady can put up a few touchdowns then sit back on the bench and relax with a cup of Gatorade in the second half as the defense stuffs the other team. Anything other than that is a team that isn't good enough. Problem is that the other teams have offensive players who can make plays. Like the Redskins. Even the soon-to-be-perfect Packers have played in a lot of close games (till yesterday). That's the NFL. The Saints barely won yesterday. The Niners were upset by Arizona. The Ravens -- with their great D -- lost to Seattle. What the Pats did in '07 was a freak of football nature. Even the best of teams spend most of their times winning close games. That's what makes them the best teams. They can handle the pressure and win those games.

There's a moment in one of the "America's Game" video highlights from one of the Super Bowl years where offensive coordinator Weis is ripping the offensive players for sloppy play. He goes on a profanity-laced rant for about 15 seconds and then at the end looks at Brady who is standing off to the side and barks "You included!" It's a great moment. (You can watch it in the video below. Start around the 22:30 mark). As someone who has had a great view of the team's bench for many years I can say that's one of the best parts about watching the Patriots. The intensity. Doesn't matter if the score is 30-0 or 30-30. Belichick, his coaches, and his players are all focused on the next play. There's not a lot of celebrating and relaxing going on like you see, say, on the Cowboys bench.

Bill O'Brien fits right into that approach. It's great to see that a young offensive coordinator isn't afraid to get in the Hall of Fame QBs face. O'Brien -- like Weis and McDaniels before him -- knows that Brady can take it. In fact he thrives on it. And he will give it right back. The Pats don't always win (two home playoff loses proves that) but they are always prepared and focused. Too much pressure? On Brady and the hated Patriots? Please.

Borges says everyone will just brush the incident off as "it happens all the time" but don't you be fooled. Borges knows better. He always has. Belichick was a bad hire. Seymour was a wasted first-round pick. Cutting Lawyer would destroy the team. Moss was washed up. Oh, and of course Bledsoe was better than Brady.

Borges always knows better.

 

A Capital victory

WEEK 14
Bring it on Sports Blab Radio. Bring it on Borges. Bring it on Felger. Bring it on.

There'll be lots of talk about the defense giving up another tanker full of yards. There'll be lots of talk about how the Pats had to battle to the final play to beat the lowly Redskins. There'll be lots of talk -- LOTS OF TALK -- about the heated argument between Brady and offensive coach Bill O'Brien on the sideline.

GRONK: Feeding the beast.

The Pats' exciting, entertaining 34-27 victory against Washington -- their first ever in the nation's capital -- was exactly what I expected. I was saying all week (right, Rich?) that the Skins are much better than their record. They lead the league in sacks and have hit on a great, young rusher in Roy Helu (126 yards). Those two things combined with the fact that Rex Grossman is capable enough to move the ball against the Pats' bruised and bad -- uh, I mean battered -- secondary and I figured it would be a hard-fought game. It was. The Pats just won a few more of the battles. That's what it takes to steal a road win in the NFL.

It also takes having a monster on offense named Gronk. The second-year tight end set the record for most touchdown catches in a season. The good-hands man had 160 yards receiving and two touchdowns. The old record was 13. Gronk now has 15. He's not done.

Neither is the Pats D. Sure they gave up another 400-plus yards of offense. Sure they had trouble covering the AARP receiving corp of Santa Moss, Stallworth, and old friend Jabar Gaffney. Sure they gave up a lot of big plays. But... the D had another strong game in the red zone.

The game would have been over if Brady doesn't throw a little behind Welker as he cut across the goal line wide open with just a few minutes left in the game. The next play Brady threw a pick in the end zone giving Washington one last shot to tie the game. The Skins drove inside the Pats' 10-yard line with just seconds to play when Tracy White and Jerod Mayo stepped up and combined for a game-ending play. Grossman hit Santana Moss but White hit Moss at the same time popping the ball loose and into the hands of a diving Mayo. When the play was over defensive backs McCourty and Ihedigbo -- who were playing injured the whole game -- couldn't even raise their arms in celebration. That's guts.

The Pats are 10-3 but you might not know that when you pick up the paper (please pick one up) or turn on the radio or TV this week. You'll read and hear lots of "The Pats have some serious problems ..."; "They won't be able to get away with that in the playoffs ..."; "They were lucky..."; "Brady and O'Brien's fight is a sign this team is cracking ..." This game will provide a week's full of pointless chatter in the Sports Blabosphere. Lots of pointless chatter.

Where's my iPod?

'We want to play them'

Rex Ryan seems to be rounding into playoff form. After a few weeks of looking despondent as his team lost to the Pats (for the second time) and then got Tebow-ned in Denver, the big guy is feeling feisty again. I guess a couple of very shaky wins over a couple of very shaky teams will do that.

In an interview with Mike Lupica of the NY Daily News, Ryan ignored the fact that the 7-5 Jets have no room for error to get back into the playoffs and ignored the fact that they haven't played a sound football game in weeks. He also ignored the fact that his quarterback is regressing at an alarming pace and that his "run it down their throats" style doesn't work if you can't actually run the ball.

Lupica asked Mt. Ryan about all those issues. Finally, as it always does with Ryan and the Jets, the topic came around to the Patriots. That's the 9-3 about to win another AFC East title Patriots.

Ryan had this to say...

"I feel like we're gonna play them again and I'm excited about that. We WANT to play them. No question we want to play them."

The only way the Jets can play the Pats again is to win their last four games, go on the road and win a playoff game (maybe two), and then get on the Fung Wah and head to Boston.

See you in January Big Fella. Maybe.

Final quarter

There are four games left in the NFL regular season. One quarter of football to go. Some teams have firmly established themselves as the top contenders once the tournament starts. Some are still battling to find their spot. Several of the divisions are pretty much settled (like the AFC East) but the fight for the wild-card spots among some good teams should make for an entertaining stretch run.

1. Green Bay (12-0): I'm rooting for the Pack to go 16-0. I'm hoping if they are the second team to accomplish that feat then Mr. Kraft will finally take down the perfect regular season banner hanging in the North end zone. Please take it down! As for the Packers... They look like a team ready to defend their title come playoff time. Rodgers is having an MVP season. And the defense is good enough.

2. San Francisco (10-2): The Niners have already clinched the NFC West. Not much of an accomplishment. But they are also in position to take the #2 seed behind Green Bay. That is an accomplishment for a team that self destructed time and time again last year. Jim Harbaugh is going to be coach of the year. His true coaching ability will be tested in about a month.

3. Baltimore Ravens (9-3): The question to ask in ranking the 9-3 teams is who can beat who. The Ravens have beaten the Steelers twice and if they were playing the Pats, Saints, or Texans in a playoff game they would be the pick of most people. They have lost a few games against bad teams (the Jags and the Seahawks) but when they are playing in a game with playoff intensity they have just that -- playoff intensity. Their pounding running game and pounding defense will make them very hard to beat.

4. New England Patriots (9-3): The mood of the Blabosphere seems to be that the Patriots are a paper contender. True, the only people the defense scares are the fans. But a team that has Brady, Welker, Gronk, Wilfork, Carter, Mankins, Hernandez, Mayo, Branch, BenJarvus, Ninko (just to name a few) is one tough team. And dangerous. The defense took a lot of heat in the one-and-done playoff losses the last two years. But it was the offense not clicking on all cylinders that really hurt. If the offense can get on a roll come January it's going to be a fun ride.

5. Pittsburgh Steelers (9-3): I know. The Steelers beat the Pats just a month ago. But in the playoffs the Pats have owned the Steelers time and time again. I don't think that will change if they should meet again. Even at Heinz. It still amazes me that a QB as Big as Ben can avoid pass rushers like he does. The two-time Super Bowl champ is great. And he has a great group of young receivers. All I want for Christmas is a Steelers-Pats AFC title game at Gillette.

6. New Orleans Saints (9-3): NFL analysts ask the same question week after week. Who can stop the Pack? The Saints. That's who. Drew Brees often gets left out of the Brady-Rodgers MVP debates but he shouldn't. The Saints stumbled as defending champs. Much like the Pats did in '02. We know what the Pats did the next two years. The Saints may be that team.

7. Houston Texans (9-3): Houston had the playoff door opened for them when Peyton Manning went down for the season. But then All Pro receiver Andre Johnson got hurt. Then RB Arian Foster went down. Just when they came back starting QB Matt Schaub was lost for the year. Then his backup Matt Leinert followed him to the IR. And yet the Texans keep winning. It's like the Texans know they will never get this good a shot to win their division again.

8. Detroit Lions (7-5): The talk of the early season is now the talk of the late season. But for very different reasons. The Lions started off 5-0, more than living up to preseason expectations. Those expectations were based on an aggressive defense but it was the Stafford-to-Johnson connection (two TDs per game) that was key to the fast start. The offense has cooled off and the defense has taken aggressiveness to the level of stupidity. Now all the talk is how out of control the Lions are.

9. New York Jets (7-5): There they sit. Gang Green. Mt. Ryan's boys. Once again battling just to make the playoffs after an off-season of predictions of how they were going to dominate the league. Once again dealing with inconsistencies from their quarterback and their coaching staff. Once again having me hoping that they don't make the playoffs for fear that once they get in they will do some damage -- in Foxborough.

10. Denver Broncos (7-5): What the hell are they doing on this list? Oops. Sorry Tim Tebow. I mean what the heck are they doing on this list? The Denver Tebows are the story of 2011. The team started off 1-4 with  Kyle Orton as their QB. He is no longer their QB. Rookie Tim Tebow took his place and has ran (and sometimes passed) his way into the hearts of Denver fans.

11. Dallas Cowboys (7-5): The 'Boys have had one of the craziest regular seasons I have seen in a long time. The have blown games that they should have won to the Jets, the Lions, the Pats, and most painfully, the Cards last week. Dallas could easily be 9-3. But they're not. That must be driving Jerry Jones crazy. The Cowboys will be tough to beat in the playoffs if they can stop beating themselves.

12. Atlanta Falcons (7-5): There are a total of eight teams with a 7-5 record. They are all good teams. Not great. The best five are listed here. (The other three -- Oakland, Tennessee, Chicago -- are not far behind when healthy.) I give Atlanta the nod over them because they have a good balance of offense and defense. And they went 14-2 last year.

Dishonorable mention: I could put the 0-12 Colts here again. But I'm going to take it easy on Indy fans. This quarter the honor goes to the New York Football Giants. I know, they are 6-6 and a pretty good team. And they have had a brutal schedule. But since they pulled off another last second comeback to beat the Pats at Gillette a month ago to go to 6-2 they have lost every game. They might not even make the playoffs. They were talking like champs when they left Foxborough. Way to build on that momentum.

Reading material

As I've written before. The NFL is a coaches' league. You can have a great QB. A great defense. But it doesn't matter if your coach can't handle the pressure or keep his players focused. That was the theme of many stories in out-of-town newspapers after Week 13.

• First and foremost there's Dallas. The Cowboys thought they were done with this kind of mess when they dumped Wade Phillips. Wrong. Jason Garrett's bungling of the last 30 seconds of yesterday's game was beyond anything I've seen Wade do. There is no defending not calling a timeout with 26 seconds left. No defending it. I would link to a column from the Dallas Morning News but my free online subscription does not give me access to columnists. I have to get the newspaper delivered for that. But I don't live in Dallas. Gee. I wonder why newspapers (and their websites) are struggling.
• A little further east in the NFC division of the same name finds the Eagles falling to new lows. In Seattle. Andy Reid has lost his team and after 13 years looks well on his way to losing his job.
• Another sign that a coach doesn't have control of his team is penalties. The Raiders have been famous for this for years. The Detroit Lions have taken their place as the most undisciplined team in the NFL. Coach Jim Schwartz has a cocky attitude for a guy who hasn't won anything yet. When they were 5-0 he was strutting around the sidelines. He hasn't been strutting lately.

So Pats fans. As you are reading about the state of coaching in other NFL cities, take a moment to be thankful that Mr. Kraft agreed to give up that first round pick to the Jets just a little more than a decade ago. Greatest first-round pick in the history of the league.

Gronk

Gronk is just one grab with his giant hands away from breaking the NFL record for most TD catches in a season by a tight end.

Gonzalez. Casper. Coates. Ditka. Francis. Clark (Dwight and Dallas). Gates. All legends at the position. None of them ever caught 14 touchdowns in one year. Gronk's about to do it in his second season. I wasn't too excited when the Pats drafted him.

Once again, Belichick was right and I was wrong. Brady to Gronk has become the best combo in the league today. Almost unstoppable. Gronk has even changed my opinion about the tight end position. I never thought anyone could do that.

Beating a dead horse

WEEK 13
Patriots 31, Colts 24 (12/4/'11): Entering the fourth quarter at Gillette yesterday, the Pats had a very comfortable 31-3 lead. It was about halfway to what I thought would be a 42-6 final. The crowd was enjoying the glow from a beautiful late fall day. A look down at the Pats bench showed the players were mostly doing the same.

A check of the final score shows that the Colts scored three unanswered touchdowns in the final quarter. I can't say I really noticed. The game was -- of course -- never in doubt. The final score came with about 30 seconds left to play. It was more annoying than anything else. Like the last two weeks (KC, Philly), the goal was to beat an inferior team, get the W, and move on. It will be the same next week in Washington.

If the Pats can get a road win next Sunday and get to 10-3 they can lose one of their last three and still have a good shot at a bye. The final three will not be easy. A trip to Denver to play the fifth Beatle Tim Tebow. A home game Christmas Eve against a rejuvenated Miami team and then a New Year's Day home against always tough Buffalo. That's why the stretch of KC, Philly, Indy, Washington was so important. Run the table there and you have room for error. They are one win away from that.

Yesterday's win against the Colts was not supposed to be among the win-and-move-on games. But the Manning-less Colts are closing in on a perfect season. 0-16. I wonder if they will hang a banner for that next to the one they have for losing in the divisional round? (They really do have such a banner). The anticipation in the parking lot at 9 a.m. was for the spicy wings warming up, not so much for the game. The reason we were in a good mood was not because we were excited to watch Dan Orlovsky play quarterback. We were in a good mood because of the partly sunny, 50 degree day. We were in a good mood because of beer for breakfast.

The game was another slow start for the offense. (Insert "that has to stop" comment here). But once Brady, Welker, Gronk, and company got going it was game time. Gronk scored three more touchdowns. He is one shy from setting the record for TDs in a season by a tight end. Whenever I get annoyed that the Pats can't seem to find a young NFL-caliber wide receiver (Bethel, Tate, Price) I remember that they have drafted Gronk and Hernandez. Two of the best pass-catchers to enter the league in years. Welker had another great game and the defense -- at least while people were paying attention -- continued to improve. Most importantly the D is getting healthy. Mayo looks to have his speed back and Chung and Spikes should return soon.

It wasn't a perfect day. The fourth quarter was full of mistakes. And some in the crowd decided to boo Adam Vinatieri. It certainly wasn't loud enough to warrant all the talk on the Blabosphere today (or maybe I just wasn't paying attention again), but it was still surprising. If people want to boo #4 because he went to the enemy Colts and helped them win a Super Bowl that's up to them. But they are wrong. Vinatieri delivered the greatest moment in New England sports history. I can close my eyes right now and see the ball sailing right down the middle of the Superdome. I hope the few hundred who were booing don't plan on coming to #4's induction ceremony into the Pats hall of fame. There should only be cheers for him.

The Pats held on for the victory in front of a nearly empty stadium. Brian Hoyer even played. It just wasn't a playoff intensity kind of day. Even at the tailgate.

Mark boarded the Amtrak at Penn Station in New York at 2 in the morning. In tow he had a bottle of wine, newspapers -- and two large tin trays of wings that he had marinated and a tin tray of celery, carrots, and ranch dressing for dipping. Bergs gathered him in Providence and after a stop for breakfast they arrived at the Enchanted Forest. Shep set up the new portable oven and Mark put one of the trays of wings in to warm up. We toasted another day of great weather, turned on some Allman Brothers, and enjoyed the glow.

Twenty minutes later the tin tray of wings was set on the table and the eight of us gathered around with plates at the ready. Mark pulled off the foil cover. The next second we were all bent over laughing at the sight of a steaming tray of celery, carrots, and two plastic containers of ranch dressing. Seems that in the glow of the morning Mark hadn't checked to see if it was actually the tray of wings he was putting in the oven. Clearly, our tailgate is not quite in playoff form either.

"i'll be ready come January," Mark said.

When we all finally stopped laughing I took a closer look at the steaming tray of raw veggies and dip.

"I don't think it's quite done yet."

Early to rise

The Pats host the Colts Sunday at 1 p.m. It was originally scheduled to be the Sunday night game and it was originally circled on my calendar as the home game of the year. Pats-Colts. Brady-Manning. Battle for AFC supremacy. Cold beer on a cold December night. Billy dressed as Santa.

Then Peyton Manning's fused neck put him out for the year. And the Colts proceeded to lose every game since. Every game. They come into Gillette at 0-11. Indy's run of consecutive years in the playoffs is over. So the television execs decided Pats-Colts was no longer worthy of prime-time viewing and moved the start time to 1 p.m. I can't blame them, but it begs the question why Eagles-Seahawks was deemed still worthy of being on last night. That game was a dog (sorry Vick) before the season even started.

The time change means that this is now the first 1 p.m. game of the year. 1 p.m. games make for the best tailgating. Why? Well, how often do you get to stand outside and drink at 9 in the morning? (If you answered "All the time" then you might have a problem.) For me, it's a few Sundays every winter. 1 p.m. games mean getting up around 7 in the morning, packing the car, grabbing a large coffee at Dunkins' while filling up the thermos, and getting into the lot when it opens at 9. The first beer cap is popped shortly after that.

The forecast is for temps in the mid 50s and mostly sunny. Perfect tailgating weather. That will make up a bit for the fact that this game probably won't add much to the greatest sports rivalry of the past decade. The Pats and Colts have staged some great battles, with each taking their share of huge wins. I've been lucky enough to be at most of them. The best one is captured in the video at the top of the post. What a game that was.