No football team across the reaches of the sport itself makes it through a 60 minute match-up without making sacrifices.
Guys fight for open space, set picks against 300 pound linebackers while small but mighty wide-outs endure bone crushing hits on their way to fulfilling a relentless pursuit of that next score that could decide a game and in such a short season, your chances of making the playoffs. When every play counts, the frequency with which those sacrifices must be made is increased with exorbitance.
Over the past few weeks, such has been the case with the Patriots and their opponents as they fight for a playoff spot that has been at least put under question as a result of recent events. Devoid of top defensive players such as Vince Wilfork (Achilles injury) and Jerod Mayo (Pictorial injury), the Patriots deference that was stellar at the beginning of the season while the offence struggled has faltered of late allowing 112 points in the last four weeks. To compare that to the near 13 point per game average Patriots opponents held during the first 4 weeks of the season it is clear that these 112 points are gargantuan compared to the 57 points allowed during that stretch.
It seems that the biggest difference between these 2 strings of games has been big Vince Wilfork simply not being there to stuff those runs up the middle. Wilfork who suffered a freak Achilles injury back in week four against the Falcons was just over a month into his 10th season with New England where he had made 5 pro bowls and many fans via his willingness to simply park his 325 pound frame right up against the center and make it impossible for anyone to come within a 5 foot radius of him with the ball in their hand. When you subtract him from the mix it becomes clear that New England has nobody to fill that void and so, the last few games have been punctuated by the far to constant sight of a rusher breaking free from a crowd of Patriots completely untouched.
New England has dropped to rank bottom third in the league in run stopping as a result of Wilfork's absence.
However, defense is not the only facet of the Patriots roster that has been bitten by the injury bug in 2013. For the 2nd straight year, the New England Patriots will go into the playoffs lacking of their star tight end: Rob Gronkowski and yet this time around the situation is even worse. 1 year removed from a 2012 season in which New England reigned supreme in the points scoring statistic, the offence has struggled scoring nearly 10 fewer points per game while struggling to gain big yardage through the air as a result of a banged up Danny Amendola and an at times inept young receiving core in Kenbrell Thompkins, Josh Boyce and Aaron Dobson. Tom Brady has thrown for fewer touchdowns in 2013 than he has since 2003 and while he still has 2 games to go is watching as he receivers limit him to one of his worst statistical seasons in almost 10 years.
With that in mind, the terrible concoction of a lacking defense and a sometimes powerless offence has made it so that the New England Patriots are in trouble. After Denver lost last Thursday, the Patriots came into their Sunday afternoon game with the Dolphins with their fate in their own hands. A win would vault them into first place in the AFC while also clenching the division and eliminating the Dolphins from the playoffs. All they had to do was win and yet, despite their moving the ball to the 18 yard line with 42 seconds left on the clock, they failed to convert on several late game throws to the end-zone losing the game and all the bonuses that would make their lives easy in the coming weeks with it.
With that in mind, the terrible concoction of a lacking defense and a sometimes powerless offence has made it so that the New England Patriots are in trouble. After Denver lost last Thursday, the Patriots came into their Sunday afternoon game with the Dolphins with their fate in their own hands. A win would vault them into first place in the AFC while also clenching the division and eliminating the Dolphins from the playoffs. All they had to do was win and yet, despite their moving the ball to the 18 yard line with 42 seconds left on the clock, they failed to convert on several late game throws to the end-zone losing the game and all the bonuses that would make their lives easy in the coming weeks with it.
Nearly 1 week later we now focus on a game that might tell us many things about this Patriots season. Frankly, it is true that if the Patriots loose this next game against Baltimore they will likely still get into the postseason tournament via a probable win in Week 17 against Buffalo. However that will likely not mean anything as if they lose any of their next 2 games that will mean at the very best they will be playing in Wild Card week against a team like the Bengals or Colts who at this point are just about as good as the Patriots are once you factor in recent games as well as injuries plaguing these teams. In fact if New England loses they might not even get to host Wild Card week meaning that they would have to go back to Cincinnati where, earlier this season they lost miserably scoring just 3 points in their first loss of the season in that case it would be safe to say the Patriots might not even win a game this playoff season.
It seems bizarre who just a few weeks ago we were predicting championship for the Patriots who were rolling and now we are second guessing all that they have accomplished this season. It seems weird and yet, alot about this 2013 Patriots season has been weird and with this Ravens game already predicted to come down to its final play the weirdness will likely continue until a Champion is crowned in February.
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