After a 5-yard touchdown reception by Rob Gronkowski (6 catches, 75 yards) cut the lead to 20-18 with 2:06 left, Arizona simply had to run the clock out to close out the victory and escape Foxboro with the upset. However, because they are the Arizona Cardinals, they let the Patriots have one more crack at a comeback.
After moving the chains a few times, Arizona just couldn't turn the ball over but second-year running back Ryan Williams had other plans, coughing it up on a fumble caused by Brandon Spikes (7 tackles, 5 solo, 2 quarterback hits, 1 tackle for loss) and recovered by Vince Wilfork to give the Patriots the ball with just over a minute left in the game.
I was ready to declare it a miracle when Danny Woodhead ripped off a huge touchdown run to take the lead (and win the game) but reverted back to cussing at my television once replays showed Gronk holding onto a Cardinals defender, nullifying the game winning score.
No matter, because the Patriots then found themselves in scoring position once more, lining up for a 42-yard field goal attempt by Steven Gostkowski. Gostkowski, having had hit four other field goals in the game (46, 34, 51, 53) can make that kick in his sleep. Keeping with the team's horrible day on special teams however, Gostkowski wasn't even close, letting Williams and the Cardinals off the hook.
Tom Brady (28 of 46, 316 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) and the Patriots offense didn't look comfortable all day long, as he was sacked three times. He was intercepted on a tipped ball on the first offensive play from scrimmage and lost Aaron Hernandez early in the game to a nasty ankle injury. As I write this, Mike Florio of profootballtalk.com reports that he has a high ankle sprain and will most likely miss up to six weeks. Perfect.
Wes Welker (5 catches, 95 yards) seemed to have a bigger role in Hernandez' absence and his first catch of the afternoon broke Troy Brown's franchise record for career receptions. Still, he spent time as the third receiver and played less snaps than Julian Edelman. I didn't read too much into his lack of production last week, and I don't think he is necessarily being "phased out" of the Patriots' offense, however this is getting weird at this point. I guess we will have to see how he is used next week against Baltimore.
Game Notes
*Stevan Ridley took a little bit of a step back today and although he did rush for 71 yards, there were some key rushes on short yard situations that he simply couldn't convert. Granted, the offensive line looked like absolute dogshit for long stretches of the game but Ridley might not be a 100 yards per game guy like we thought.
*Rough day for the special teams units out there. Whoa. Yes, Gostkowski kicked four field goals but also shanked the most important one. Also, Zoltan Mesko had a punt blocked in the third quarter pretty much giving the ball to Arizona on the goal-line for one of their scores. I believe it was the first blocked punt of his short career. Let's not forget the false start penalty on Danny Aiken the long snapper, who flinched slightly as Mesko was trying to draw Arizona offsides on a fourth and short that would've moved the chains. Belichick is going to work these fools into the ground this week.
*As you can expect with Pats fans these days, everyone took to Twitter to bitch about the false start and the Gronkowski hold, both were clearly penalties by the way. Sure, the replacement referees have been wrong and comical at times, but if you let some Pats fans tell it, it's like they cost the team the game. Relax you weirdos, the Patriots played like shit, get over it and stop looking for scapegoats.
*More from the fraud Patriots fan file: After Ryan Williams gave the Patriots another life with his fumble, Fox cameras cut to a ton of Patriots fans literally running back to their seats just seconds after presumably leaving for the day. Just Gillette being Gillette. God I hate that place.
*John Lynch and Dick Stockton were decent on commentary for Fox, and lord knows it's nice to get a break from Simms and Nance, but they beat the whole "put pressure on Brady" thing into the ground. Hey John Lynch, what quarterback does like pressure? that being said, the O-line does need to do a better job protecting Brady da Gawd. If he is "uncomfortable" and still puts up over 300 yards, imagine what some better protection would do.
*Losing Hernandez is HUGE. No sugarcoating it. I'm not blaming the team's lethargic start on his absence but the entire league knows how versatile he is and how key he is to the New England offense. You know he's important when Wes Welker came in to essentially spell him. It's going to be interesting to see how Josh McDaniels responds to such a huge loss. *coughbringbackDeionBranchcough*
*Next week is a huge Week 3 game at Baltimore (1-1) on Sunday Night Football (8:20 p.m., NBC). Baltimore dropped a close one 24-23 today to Michael Vick and the Eagles and should be pissed come next week. In a game that could have playoff seeding implications come January, the Patriots have got to play better than they did today or else Brady might get murdered.
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