Patriot run game carries team past Colts to 8th Super Bowl

(Photo by Matt Stone/Boston Herald)

by Dakota Antelman

The New England Patriots were dominant in their dispatching the Colts from the AFC Championship Game.

After jumping out to an early lead which they held onto until halftime, the Patriots scored 21 points on Andrew Luck’s Indianapolis Colts in just the 3rd quarter alone. They fought through a heavy rainstorm with sometimes debilitating wind gusts to finish the night nearly perfect in their numerous redzone drives.

Tom Brady was crucial in ensuring that perfection, completing 23 of 35 attempted passes for 220 passing yards and three touchdown passes. His success in his record ninth AFC Championship game moved him into sole possession of the postseason touchdown passes record.

Though the game, like the season was not a perfect one for Brady, it was enough to get the Patriots to Glendale in convincing fashion.

"I know we've had some ups and downs this year," Brady said, "but right now we're up, baby, and we're going to try to stay up for one more game."

Brady had plenty of help in getting past the Colts though. As the Indianapolis secondary seemed to negate the efforts of Rob Gronkowski for much of the game, and a hip injury took wide receiver Julien Edelman off the field for some time, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDanials repeatedly called upon seasoned running back LeGarette Blount.

Blount, who ran for 166 yards and four touchdowns in last year’s Divisional Playoff game against the Colts, put up three touchdowns and 148 rushing yards Sunday.

“He ran his [butt] off, ran hard for four quarters” teammate, Shane Vereen said of Blount. "Coming into the game, we didn't know what the game plan was going to be, because we didn't know really what to expect from the Colts' defense. We were expecting some wrinkles but we were able to run the ball."

According to ESPN Stats & Information, Blount had 68 rushing yards AFTER contact. On one notable play midway through the third quarter, Blount earned a first down by continuing to push forward after the Colts defenders assumed he was down and let go of him.

"He made some great cuts in not good conditions," Belichick said of Blount, citing still other carries where Blount simply shook defenders off him without any need for his power running game. "He's a tough guy to tackle."

The Patriots made themselves hard to tackle both in a literal and metaphorical sense in the AFC Title Game. Through Blount’s dominant day, Julien Edelman’s nine catch effort as well as a shutdown showing by the Patriots secondary, the Patriots gained separation from the Colts early and never relented in their scoring assault.

As they revel in their AFC Title Game blowout, New England keenly turns its collective head towards Glendale Arizona where in two weeks, the Patriots will face the Seahawks in hot pursuit of their fourth Super Bowl title.

As Bill Belichick said with a smug hint of a smile following Sunday’s win, “Were on to Seattle.”

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New England Patriots vs. New York Jets Preview: Pesky Jets look to rain on Patriot parade

(Photo courtesy of Charles Krupa/AP)

by Dakota Antelman

The Patriots roll into the Meadowlands for their Sunday game vs. the Jets riding high following their 41-13 win over the Dolphins that wrapped up the division for them. Furthermore, they enter their second to last game of the season aware of the fact that wins in these two games will guarantee them the number one seed in the AFC.

On paper, their next two opponents, the Jets and Bills, are not the most imposing of foes. However against each of them, especially the Jets, the Patriots have a long history of struggles that beg to make these next two contests more intense than they might seem.

Despite the Jets 3-11 record, the team is a threat to New England.

"I know the records are what they are, but we don't look at it like that," Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said. "We lost going into the Meadowlands last year."

The Jets have a way of keeping themselves in games that they could easily have been blown out in. Four of the last five Patriots/Jets games have been decided by three or fewer points. This season alone, which featured 10 New York losses by Week 13, has also featured four games decided by five or fewer points.

The Patriots attribute the Jets ability to keep pace to their defense.

“They've got a real good defense," Brady said. "We're anticipating their best game."

That Jets defense, made up of guys like Muhammad Wilkerson at the line and Marcas Williams in the secondary, like the rest of the team, has a history of elevating its game whenever the Patriots are on the schedule. In the five games since the beginning of the 2012 season, New England has scored 30 points just once.

At the same time however, New England comes to the Meadowlands with a kind of diverse attack comparable only to Patriots teams of the early 2000’s. They have three receivers (Brandon LaFell, Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski) who are within striking distance of 1,000 yard seasons while they also boast a running back core that has them converting on 3^rddowns at one of the highest rates in the NFL.

If the roll over the Jets, which they might very well convincingly do, the result, though expected could lead to an immense turnover within the Jets system next offseason. Of the biggest of those potential changes stands at the coaching position. 

An eccentric Jets coach, Rex Ryan, appears to be on his last legs coaching a team that has averaged 16 points per game this year.

As has been pointed out all week, this game could in turn be his last as part of the Jets/Patriots rivalry. He insists however that he is focused on just this week’s matchup.

"It's not hard for me to do," Ryan said. "I'm a confident person, and I think I'm a decent football coach and I think people who know the game realize that. So, I don't worry about it."

If Ryan was watching the Patriots news feed this week he might have even been given some news to celebrate when a stream of announcements were made Saturday afternoon that neither Julian Edelman, LeGarette Blount or Kyle Arrington had made the trip with the Patriots to New York.

Each with mild to somewhat severe injuries, those three Patriots core players were the subjects of trending topics and worried analysis this week as they were all limited in team practices. The Jets could have predicted that at least one or two of them would have stayed back but to see Arrington, Blount and Edelman all as no shows ought to be somewhat of a surprise.

In their absence, the rest of the Patriots team will need to pick up the slack. Lucky for them, a stacked depth chart gives them the options and freedom to do that. 

Speculations dictate that RB’s who have seen decreased snaps since the signing of Blount could be thrust back into starting roles this week. Guys like Jonas Gray or Shane Vereen have their eyes set on big days.

Danny Ammendola could step in to compensate for the loss of Edelman at wide receiver, while the Patriots could also institute a more varied target distribution over the entire receiving unit including LaFell, Gronkowski and possibly even Aaron Dobson.

In terms of the secondary, where Arrington normally plays, New England will still be able to designate Darelle Revis to a full time coverage of Jets pass catchers Percy Harvin and Eric Decker while CBs, Brandon Browner and Logan Ryan could also see inflated snap counts.

All and all though, New England enters the game aware of their weaknesses but eager to exploit the Jets’. The Jets will try to rain on the Patriot parade but if the past is any indication, a close win could be in the near future for the Patriots as long as they do not get complacent.

"We have to play our best football to win," New England defensive end Chandler Jones said, "and I truly believe that."

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Patriots at Dolphins Week One Preview: With predictions daring, the Patriots kick things off in a must win

Alas the summer has ended. As our thermometers that show the searing temperatures of August are beginning to warn of opposite weather signifying that summer has finally, blissfully ended giving way to the seasons known not as fall and winter but rather as a one football season. After drafts completed and training camps ground through, the NFL season began Thursday with the Seahawks defeating the Packers 36 to 16 and most other teams logging their final practices before their respective openers. 

The Patriots, who are set to play the Dolphins at one o'clock on Sunday, were no different this week, fielding their vast array of new talent for their practices as they hope to live up to the high expectations fans have of them this year. Their first step in proving that will be staying on the field. For the past few years, this team that has been fully capable of winning a Super Bowl has only been hindered in doing so by a variety of torn ligaments, bruised brains and more. When we look at these last few years the loss of Rob Gronkowski for various periods of time has been glaring. Additionally, the sudden injuries to Aquib Talib in back to back AFC Championships could also be pointed to as reasons for early exits by this team. Basically each year since their Super Bowl loss in 2011, the Patriots have fielded an opening day roster that could easily win the NFL title. Their only problem has been depth. Finally Bill Belichick addressed that problem in blowing things up this off-season.  

Going into week one, the Patriots will have a suddenly ferocious running back squad that includes the likes of an underrated Shane Vereen, rookie James White and a finally demoted but still skilled Stephan Ridley. This wonderful improvement to the Patriots rushing game will allow Tom Brady to work in some new read option plays as well as keep the offence moving even if a receiver like Rob Gronkowski goes down again. Furthermore, it will allow the Patriots coaches to put fumble prone Ridley on a much shorter leash as even without him, the team would still have its power rusher in White and its flashy RB in Vereen. 

In an interview with Sirius XM back in August, Bill Belichick spoke on the subject of White. "He's a very interesting and versatile player," he said. "He does a good job in the passing game and in the running game -- both inside and outside. Blitz pickup -- we have a pretty extensive offense for him to learn, but he's working hard at it. We'll just let him go and see how it goes, but I think he has the ability to compete on all three downs, in both the running game and the passing game." 

Keeping with the theme of depth, the Patriots will also be rolling out a new look defense in week one with headline CB, Darrelle Revis serving as the centerpiece to their pass defense that now  also includes league veteran Brandon Browner. This week one game that features Miami wide receiver Mike Wallace will actually be a perfect showcase of the capabilities of this revamped Pats defense. Wallace who will begin his second season in Miami against the Patriots is a man who despite his up and down stats has always boasted incendiary speed off the line. Revis, the Patriot who will be tasked with matching those explosive sprints up the sideline said to ESPN's Mike Reiss earlier this week that Wallace is "probably the fastest in the league." 

All we can say about that is that Revis is a smart man to acknowledge and prepare for Wallace to the fullest extent. At the NFL Combine in 2009, Mike ran a 4.33 second 40 meter dash blowing scouts away and serving as his calling card going into the draft. 

Revis, who ran 4.38 in his 40 yard dash back in 2007 of all people is nonetheless capable of catching Wallace. Such turns out to be a theme with the Patriots as they match up against the Dolphins. 

Each season since their 6-10 2011 failure, the Dolphins have been getting consistently better as they have begun conditioning their decided starter Ryan Tannehill while grooming a vast array of linemen and tight ends through the draft and their practice squad. Though Miami in the present is not a squad that could possibly contend with the Patriots for the AFC East title which the team has sat upon for the better part of 15 years, they have given the Patriots their fair share of scares of late, actually defeating New England last season and regularly keeping even their losses close well into the 4th quarter. But as said earlier, the Patriots are still incomprehensibly better than their South Beach foes. It is almost like those Bruins vs Providence Bruins games each year where, though sometimes the affiliate wins, no one ever calls the squads equal. 

At 1 in the afternoon Sunday, the Patriots will step onto the steamy field in Miami while we all watch from home in pleasant New England. Patriots fans will watch that game from afar, hoping that by afternoon's end they will be celebrating. Furthermore, they will also be distantly fantasizing about a much grander celebration that might involve duck boats and a shiny trophy specked with confetti a little over 5 months from now. As it stands, we might have reason to believe that both those hopes and wishes will be granted.

*all statistics from ESPN.com

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One by one: A precise breakdown of the recent additions made to the Patriots via free agancy

After a week that included the resigning of Julian Edelman, the loss of Aqib Talib and eventual replacing of him with Darrelle Revis, the request for release made by Vince Wilfork, the signing of Brandon Browner, and finally the deal that brought former Panther Brandon LeFell to the Patriots, one big question has rang through Foxborugh almost without cease. That question being, amidst all this, are the Patriots better?

By alot.

Looking back to last season, a season ended by the firepower of Peyton Manning and his legion of dexterous receivers but also an incurable slew of injures to the Patriots, it was those injuries that evidently held this team out of actual Super Bowl contention. Right out of the gate, New England's most promising young running back - nimble Shane Vereen - was knocked out of his Week 1 match-up with Buffalo as a result of a broken hand. He did not return until Week 11 against Carolina. Also felled in Week One however was wide receiver Danny Ammendola who fell victim to a hip strain that between several flare ups amounted to 4 missed games and a diminished trust on the part of Tom Brady in the man who was supposed to be the replacement to Wes Welker. Averaging just 6.9 targets and 4.5 receptions per game, Ammendola was possible the biggest disappointment of the 2013 regular season for the Patriots largely because of his inability to stay healthy and therefore develop a connection with the passer. Keeping on the topic of injures, it would only be about a month before things got even worse for New England as in Week 4 against the Falcons, middle defensive lineman - Vince Wilfork - went down with a freak achilles injury. That knock took him out for the entire season. From there, the theme of injury susceptibility had been set for these 2013 Pats. By mid-season, their line backing core had been decimated and their offensive line had been compromised by a nearly constant turnover as a result of injuries to various starters.

When the one rock left on that unit - Nate Solder - suffered concussions in back to back weeks towards the end, many Patriots fans partially expected it solely because when it came to injury, everything that could possibly go wrong last season did. But Solder was not even the best example of that. After missing the first 6 games of the season as a result of a slew of off-season surgeries, star tight end - Rob Gronkowski - returned in Week 7 against the Jets only to be taken out at the knees 6 games later. As a result of the low blow, Gronkowski tore both his ACL and his MCL and did not return to action before the season was over.

If one were to try to pinpoint the cause for the Patriots short comings last season, injuries would be a viable pick. You see, the Patriots had enough skill under contract to win the Super Bowl only when it came to the sideline, many of those talents were simply not there. Knowing that success in 2014 would be gotten by health, the Patriots went into free agency looking to replace those who are prone to injury with those who are not. That theme was evident right from the first sequence of transactions we saw this week.

Though he was one of the best corner backs in years for the Patriots, the 5 interceptions in 19 regular season games, Aqib Talib made were overshadowed by the back to back injuries in AFC Championship games to Talib as well as the 3 regular season games he missed in 2013. After 23 games in New England, the Aqib Talib experiment was concluded when the team allowed him to walk and sign a 57 million dollar contract with Denver. But the importance of having a shutdown corner in New England did not leave with Talib.

Less than a 24 hours after the Talib contract was signed, the Patriots inked a 1 year 12 million dollar contract with former Jet and Buccaneer Darrelle Revis effectively replacing Talib with someone even better. Through 7 seasons, Revis has missed games due to injury in just 2 seasons. During the 95 games he has played, Revis has defended 108 passes, made 21 interceptions and 284 total tackles. Solely on the basis of playing time, Revis has made the team better than they were with Talib.

Also coming into the system is 4th year, hulk of a human corner back, Brandon Browner. Standing at 6 foot 4 inches and 221 pounds, Browner was a key name within the Seattle Seahawks' Legion of Boom that won them the Super Bowl this season. He defended and average of 1.25 passes in the 8 games he started this season keeping true with a theme of consistency he has built himself in Seattle. He defended 23 passes and picked off 6 more in his rookie year and dispite suffering a bit of a drop off 1 year later piled in 35 tackles with 3 more interceptions and 3 powerful fourced fumbles.

It seems that the only drawback about Browner is the big black mark next to his name that cost him the last 8 games of the regular season, the 3 playoff games the Seahawks won en route to the Super Bowl and the first 4 games of this coming season. Midway through December is was announced that Browner was facing a drug suspension as a result of failed tests from earlier in his career and on December 18th, he was suspended indefinitely from the league. During the offseason however, he was told he would be allowed to return in Week 5 of this coming season.

Now I know what you are thinking. You are thinking 'hey, haven't we already had our fair share of bad character signings in Boston?'. The answer to that is yes but here me out. While Browner was dealt a pretty sizable deal when it comes to the cap, not much of the deal is guaranteed. In fact just 4.8 million of the 17 million dollars Browner is eligible to receive will come guaranteed. The remaining 12 million plus will only be earned if Browner can meet a wide array of statistical milestones, namely 250,000 dollar paydays if he can appear in 75% and then 85% of the team's plays in years 2 and 3 of the contract.

Fact is with the Browner deal, if he works out, the Patriots will have a booming, ball hawking hulk covering an opponent’s secondary targets on the large majority of plays. And yet if things go badly and Browner does not reform himself, than the Patriots will get out without much financial lament.

Finally, we cannot help but recognize the work of Julian Edelman and how much he absolutely deserves the contract he was dealt. But nevertheless, even after the Patriots locked down Edelman with a 4 year 17 million dollar contract, they looked to add one more target for Tom  Brady. Late Saturday night, they signed, former Panther, Brandon LaFell to a 3 year 9 million dollar contract therefore locking down a durable target of healthy Amendola skill for the reminder of Brady's productive career. In 5 years with Carolina, LaFell has made just 167 receptions but has miraculously averaged almost 14 and a half yards per reception. Additionally, in each of his 5 seasons, LaFell has improved upon his yardage totals from the year before. In each of his last 3 seasons, he has logged 600+ receiving yards. 

Fact is every team will have its weaknesses only the good ones are better at makeing up for those weaknesses elsewhere. In 2014, the Patriots will likely be a team with weak linebackers and safety but that will not matter because their corner backs and downfield receivers will be without refute.

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Fumbling Around: A look at how we stand on the situation of ball control with Stephan Ridley

As is true throughout the sports world, football fans have short memories. 

They do not remember what happened last year, they remember what is happening THIS year and on a more distinct note, they do not remember what happened in week one, they remember what happened LAST week. That truth is rather unfortunate for 24 year old Patriots running back, Stephan Ridley who has fumbled 3 times in the last 3 weeks and has been benched following each turnover.   

Following his most recent fumble, the 4th of his 2013 season, any sliver of fan respect for Ridley's successful 2012 was lost only to be replaced by a constant calling for the 3rd year back to simply get out of town. 

“For me, it’s almost disgusting, man,” he said in the locker room after the fumble that caused him to leave the game and then violently spike his helmet on the sideline. “Consecutive weeks. Personally, as a player, my team deserves better. I come in, I work, bust my a-- every day. To come in and have the same mistakes happen, there’s something I gotta do different, I gotta do better. As a competitor all I can do is come in here and keep working. ... I just gotta be there for the team when they call me.” 

By comparison, Ridely's 4 fumbles lost in 2013 are twice those accumulated by Minnesota Vikings star Adrian Peterson and 3 more than league rushing leader: LeSean McCoy. It is no doubt about the fact that when he can lock the ball tight against his chest and run around with it, Ridley's proficiency in bouncing off of outside tackles sure makes him top back material. He rushed for 1,147 yards on 249 carries during his final year at LSU and then hit the 1,000 yard mark 2 years later in the NFL when in 2012, he stormed past defenders to rush for 1,263 yards and 12 touchdowns on 290 carries.   

He has potential but the fumbles are tough. He has been benched following each fumble this season and although his most recent mistake was the first one that pulled him from the entire game, he was benched for a full half in Week 1, and then pulled out for the better part of a quarter in Weeks 8 and 9. Furthermore, in games like these in addition to ones following those in which Ridely has fumbled, he has seen the number of chances he gets deccrese even when he is on the field.  

He is getting benched as well as losing his teammates trust. Double trouble. 

“When I put the ball on the ground, they have no option but they take me out. It’s sickening, man,” Ridley said. “I’m frustrated, but it’s part of the game. I think that as a player, you’re going to have your ups and your downs, but the main thing is you have to stay focused and keep your eye on the prize at the end of the day. I’m not going to get too far down. I’m going to put more pressure on myself to go out there and practice and change up some things. I can't keep doing this.” 

But as was said earlier, he may be running out of time. Last season Stephan Ridely averaged just over 18 carries per game while just 1 season later, his benchings and decreeing trustworthiness has dropped his average down to 13.5. That does not seem like much but when you factor it in, guys like Ridely often average close to 5 yards per carry tacking away 5 such runs drops their game rushing totals by close to 25 yards. This has been evident this season and even more so in the past few weeks as his snap totals have gone down steadily from 26 in Week 8, to 13 in Week 9 and then an abysmal 4 back on Sunday against the Broncos.  

However what seems to be the worst aspect of this all for Ridley is the fact that his absence from the field has not been missed especially with the recent re addition of Shane Vereen to the rushing core. He in collaboration with Brandon Boulden took over the entire rushing attack last week combining for 21 attempted ground plays and 9 additional targets through the air.  

Since the middle of last year, he has really emerged and developed into that role,” Tom Brady said of his budding new rusher Vereen following Week 9's Monday Night Game with the Panthers. “I think the best part is he really understands the importance and magnitude of that role and takes a lot of pride in it. It’s a hugely important part of our offense.” 

Now more than ever, it seems that it is Vereen's turn to take over. Stephan Ridley is a great running back, and a powerful athlete but  when you look at the stats the big 4 spot in the fumbles column makes you cringe and makes Bill Belichick angry. Ridely says he thinks it is disgusting and will continue to work as hard as he can to stop the fumbling  but as it stands he might not get that opportunity. 

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New England running backs stand tall in preseason opener: Patriots beat Eagles 31-22...recap and statistics

Note: to see player by player statistics and notes, scroll to the bottom of this post

Alright, it’s the preseason and frankly, nothing matters.  But nevertheless, that sense of meaning still had a weak presence in last night's dominant win over Philadelphia. 

For guys like Tim Tebow (yeah Tebow) and LeGarret Blount, odds are they won’t be seeing any pro snaps come September. But nevertheless they were here and fighting for their preseason lives....long story short, it was a fun game.  

After winning the coin toss, the Patriots started the game at their own 20 yard line following a decent touch back kick by the Eagles special teams unit. Almost immediately the starters picked up where they left off last season as star Patriot: Stephan Ridley snagged his first touch after leaving the AFC championship with a concussion back in January. But even for Ridley, what he did next all with the ball in his hands was still eye opening. On literally the first play, Ridley went straight up the middle of the Eagles defense running step for step for nearly 62 yards before he was tackled. Just a few plays later, he capped off the drive via an easy 1 yard touchdown run to put New England up 7-0 after the Gostkowski extra point. 

But for the Patriots, Ridley was not the only star facet of the running game that dominated last night. Fact is, for almost every second of the game the trio of Stephan Ridley, Shane Vereen, and a newcomer: LeGarret Blount dominated combining for a total of 4 touchdowns and close to 200 yards.  

Blount in particular smacked up an artistic 51 yard touchdown run dodging and weaving out of nearly the entire Eagles defense. He finished the night as New England's leading rusher with 101 yards and 2 touchdowns. 

"It's critical to run the ball" QB Tom Brady said "and they know you're going to run it. We had big runs, we had short yardage runs where we needed to get the ball, we ran in on the goal line so I mean that establishes the identity of the team how well you run, how well you stop the run and all those guys did a great job, they are big strong powerful runners that want the ball in their hands and when they get in the rhythm, they make a bunch of plays and Stephan Ridley has done it since he got here.. Shane (Vereen) is doing it. Brandon (Bolden) made some runs." 

Brady then elaborated speaking specifically about his 13 yard touchdown pass to Vereen.

"I was trying to figure out what to do, I saw what we wanted. I was looking and trying to figure out well what's the best thing to do because I knew the coverage and then Shane (Vereen) and I had a little connection and it was good. It was a great catch, I mean to get his feet down, a tight area, Shane (Vereen) has been doing that but I mean he's really come on. He's really continued to improve so it was great to see him make that play."

But still there was even more to look at last night than simply the offensive ground game.

After he was signed by New England back on June 11th, there were some slight inclinings that Tim Tebow might possibly threaten to oust Ryan Mallet as the Patriots back up. Well, after both Mallet AND Tebow saw playing time last night...I will let you decide who deserves the 2 spot in the QB depth chart. 

Amidst his near 2 quarters of play, Tebow could not seem to get the ball out of his hands as he managed just 4 completions on 12 attempts while running for 35 yards on 4 carries. Now frankly, Mallet was not much better but seeing as over the past few years HE has been the backup, odds are that we are not in for much controversy this year. 

"It's all about the same for everyone," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said when asked about Tebow. "It was good, it was far from perfect. We all made mistakes out there and there are plenty of things to work on for all of us. Not singling anyone out. We haven't played a game in six months, so we saw decent things, but also things we need to work on."

New England won 31-22 last night and while this only was a single preseason game, the sights and bright spots delivered by the starters in this game begin to remind you that even without Hernandez or Welker this ensuing season still has the possibility of becoming a great one.

Player by player notes

Tom Brady finished the night 7 for 8 with 65 yards and 1 touchdown pass on 2 drives.

LeGarret Blount racked up 101 yards with 2 touchdown runs and 11 carries. 

Stephan Ridley hit up 92 yards and scored a touchdown 

Tim Tebow went 4 for 12 with no touchdowns and 35 yards rushing. Tebow was sacked once.

Ryan Mallet played less than 1 quarter, missing a wide open shot at touchdown pass to Vereen. He left the game with a head injury after he was sacked late in the 2nd quarter of the game. 

Stephan Gostkowski kicked at 33% with 1 field goal and 2 misses  

New England Defense allowed 3 touchdowns one of which was followed up with a 2 point conversion

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