In the Best Super Bowl That We Will Likely Ever See, the Patriots Beat the Falcons 34-28 in OT

Special nights like the one that we all just experienced this evening make me extremely thankful for two things: 1) that I'm a sports fan and 2) that I happened to have been born in New England not too long before this era of unbelievable professional sports dominance (10 titles in 15 years!) began, the likes of which we'll probably never see again in any city let alone ours. The Patriots (17-2) beat the Falcons (13-6) 34-28 in overtime at Houston's NRG Stadium in Super Bowl 51. We live in a world where everything is dripping in hyperbole-the best or the worst-but is there any logical argument that concludes that wasn't the greatest Super Bowl ever?

After a scoreless first quarter (the Pats somehow haven't scored a single point in their 7 Super Bowls under Bill Belichick and Tom Brady), Atlanta took a 21-3 lead into halftime which expanded into a seemingly insurmountable 28-3 advantage early in the third quarter. Game over, right? Considering that the previous largest Super Bowl comeback was a modest 10 points, who but the most irrational Patriots honk (redundant, I know) could possibly believe that they could make it competitive again? Well there is a reason that Belichick (5-2 as a head coach) and Brady (a Super Bowl record 466 yards with 2 TDs) both further cemented their place as the best head coach and quarterback respectively with their fifth Super Bowl title (a record) for New England.

The Patriots reeled off 31 straight points to tie it at 28 with 57 seconds left in regulation (on James White's 1-yard TD run and 2-point conversion catch by Danny Amendola) then ended it in the extra session (the 1st time ever that a Super Bowl has gone to OT) on White's 2-yard TD run. New England won the coin toss in overtime, because of course, and Brady (named Super Bowl MVP for a record 4th time) marched them down the field (8 plays, 75 yards, 3:58) for the game-winning score. The Falcons never saw the ball since a touchdown was in essence a walk-off score, no big deal right?

In epic sporting events like this (not that it has truthfully has many peers), it's always tough to deduce which was a bigger factor: the winning team overcoming almost impossible odds or the losing team choking in unfathomable fashion. When you look at the final stats, the only thing you can objectively say is that the Patriots wore down the Falcons. That makes zero sense when you consider that Atlanta was up 28-3 and had a win probability over 99% (seriously), but New England ran more than twice as many plays as them (93-46). The Pats had 20 more first downs (37-17) and more than 200 more total yards (546-344). Atlanta had way more penalties (9-4) for nearly three times as many yards (65-23) and finally, New England had the ball for over 17 more minutes than them (40:31-23:27).

Everyone knows that the Falcons have an amazing offense but conversely, their defense was the question mark and despite a flawless first half, they fell apart (as probably every defense would) when they were stuck on the field for so long. It also helped that the Patriots forced Atlanta's first turnover of the postseason (a Matt Ryan fumble that was recovered by Dont'a Hightower) at a key moment-midway through the 4th quarter with the Pats trailing 28-12. Literally nothing went right for New England for the first 2.5 quarters and even their first touchdown (a 5-yard TD pass from Brady to White) was tempered by Stephen Gostkowski missing the point-after.

There are a million plays and moments to remember from this instant classic but looking back on it this soon, you have to marvel at how the Patriots appeared to never get rattled. Atlanta looked like world-beaters in the second quarter as Devonta Freeman (11 carries, 75 yards) ran for a 5-yard touchdown then Ryan (17-for-23, 284 yards, 2 TD) hit Austin Hooper for a 19-yard touchdown. When Brady threw an 82-yard pick-6 to Robert Alford with 2:21 left in the first half and the Falcons suddenly led 21-0, you couldn't help but sit in stunned silence (maybe punctuated by a few choice swear words). Gostkowski's 41-yard field goal with two seconds left in the second quarter was devoid of meaning other than for your Super Bowl squares.

We'll never know how much of a factor the extra long Super Bowl halftime played (it's 30 minutes and by the way, Lady Gaga was fantastic) but you have to think that the Falcons were just a bit too overconfident (keep in mind this is a team that's never won a Super Bowl and only played in 1 other, in 1999) while the Patriots likely used the time to calm down and regroup. New England's defense forced Atlanta to go three-and-out to start the third quarter but then they did the same thing and that was magnified by the Falcons going 85 yards in eight plays on the ensuing drive which ended with Tevin Coleman catching a six-yard touchdown pass. Who could have guessed that would be their final points of the entire game?

How fitting that this impossible comeback by the Pats was fueled by unsung players like White (Super Bowl record 14 catches, 110 yards; 6 catches, 29 yards; record-tying 3 TDs), Danny Amendola (8 catches, 78 yards), rookie Malcolm Mitchell (6 catches, 70 yards), Martellus Bennett (5 catches, 62 yards) who has reportedly played through bone chips in his ankle for weeks and Trey Flowers (4 tackles, 2 assists and 2.5 sacks). Julio Jones (4 catches, 87 yards) even made one of the most insane catches you'll ever see (shades of Giants wide receivers David Tyree and Mario Manningham in their 2 Super Bowl wins vs. Patriots) but it was quickly overshadowed by Julian Edelman's (5 catches, 87 yards) juggling catch that had to be seen to be believed.

Rob Gronkowski, arguably the greatest tight end of all-time, was lost to another season-ending injury (back) in Week 13 and all the Patriots did was readjust their offensive gameplan (kudos to offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels) and they never lost again. Think about that (Tony Mazz voice). Similar to the fourth quarter vs. Seattle two years ago in Super Bowl 49 when Brady was simply brilliant (with a major assist to Malcolm Butler), he went to work in winning time yet again. Gostkowski kicked a 33-yard field goal to cut it to a two-score lead for Atlanta then Amendola caught a six-yard touchdown pass from Brady and White ran in the two-point conversion (the old Kevin Faulk direct snap run up the middle!) with 5:56 left.

Without consulting what I wrote in this exact space two years ago, I'm sure it went something along the lines of "enjoy this while it lasts, because it won't be forever." As we all know, Brady missed the first four games of the 2016 regular season due to Deflategate yet ultimately it didn't matter one bit and if anything, it just might have galvanized the team an extra amount. In a depressing reality where Donald Trump is President of the United States (pardon me while I puke myself to sleep), I can't pretend that it's a perfect world by any means. The older you get, the more you realize that some things in life truly suck like relatives and friends passing away (especially when it's premature) and unfortunately there is nothing that you can do about it.

That's what makes victories like this so special: what else can bring together so many different groups of people better than sports? I'll pretend to wait for an answer that truthfully doesn't exist in the universe. There are countless other enjoyable facets of our lives but these are some of the moments that young or old, rich or poor, we will never forget for as long as we live. You can't put a price on that and it's one of the million reasons (what up Gaga?) that we watch all these games and invest so much time in a particular team in hopes that every once in a while we are treated to an event remotely resembling like this.

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Super Bowl XLIX Instant Classic: Patriots Hang On For Crazy 28-24 Win vs. Seahawks

David Tyree. Mario Manningham. These names of Giants wide receivers that made miraculous catches have haunted the Patriots ever since New York knocked off New England in both the 2008 Super Bowl and 2012 Super Bowl. Seahawks wide receiver Jermaine Kearse appeared ready to add his name to that cringe-inducing list as he made an absurd juggling 33-yard grab in the dying moments of Super Bowl XLIX tonight in Glendale, Arizona at University of Phoenix Stadium. Fortunately for the Pats and their fans around the world suffering PTSD, they got a major break this time around as Seattle made one of the worst calls in Super Bowl history: to throw the ball at the New England 1-yard line instead of running it in.

Patriots rookie cornerback Malcolm Butler made his first career interception count as he picked off Russell Wilson (12 for 21, 247 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT; 39 yards rushing) in the end zone to clinch a thrilling 28-24 victory for New England. It is the fourth Super Bowl title for the Patriots and their first since 2005. Tom Brady (37 for 50, 328 yards, 4 TDs, 2 INTs) earned his record tying third Super Bowl MVP in a game that will truly be talked about for as long as we live. Perhaps the best part is that this is one that should leave the many Patriots haters shut up for a quick second. I mean really, what can they possibly say now?

It was a bizarre game to say the least that felt like 2012 when Julian Edelman (9 catches, 109 yards) caught a 3-yard touchdown with 2:02 left in the fourth quarter that put the Pats up 28-24. The Seahawks had gone 80 yards in 29 seconds at the end of the first half to score on a gift 11-yard touchdown catch by something named Chris Matthews (4 catches, 109 yards) that tied it at 14 with two seconds left. We worried that Seattle had too much time left on the clock and another heart-breaking loss looked guaranteed after that circus catch by Kearse.

Nobody even scored a point until Brandon LaFell's 11-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter. That opened things up as Marshawn Lynch (24 carries, 102 yards) answered with a 3-yard touchdown run. The Patriots took a 14-7 lead with 31 seconds left in the half when Rob Gronkowski (6 catches, 68 yards) caught a beautiful 22-yard pass from Brady.

Brady was far from perfect, he threw a truly awful red-zone interception to Jeremy Lane (who gruesomely broke his arms on the return) in the first quarter then Bobby Wagner jumped in front of a pass intended for Gronk in the third quarter. It got bleak since the Seahawks outscored the Patriots 10-0 in the third on a 27-yard field goal by Needham's Steven Hauschka and 3-yard touchdown catch by Doug Baldwin (his only target of the game, thanks Darrelle Revis).

That just set the stage for the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history as the Pats rallied from 10 points down with a 14-0 fourth quarter against the defending champs. New England's defense finally stepped up and pitched a shutout. Danny Amendola (5 catches, 48 yards) cut it to 24-21 with 7:55 left thanks to a 4-yard touchdown catch. Shane Vereen also deserves plenty of praise after he caught 11 of 12 targets for 64 yards. The Patriots were forced to basically abandon the run and they eventually found success with some old school dinking and dunking.

This was billed as a legacy game for Brady and New England head coach Bill Belichick (who tied Chuck Noll with his 4th Super Bowl title) so they certainly delivered the goods. Seattle is a fantastic team and it wouldn't be a shock (sorry rest of the NFL) to see them meet again in next season's Super Bowl. At least we know that they are pretty much guaranteed to play each other in regular season, hopefully at Gillette Stadium after the Pats went to Seattle in 2012.

As Boston sports fans, we ran out of things to legitimately complain about since this is our ninth champion since 2002: Patriots (4), Red Sox (3), Celtics (1) and Bruins (1). However, I also realize that the older I get, the more I appreciate these since I understand more and more how difficult it is to do this time and again.

This never gets old; it also doesn't get any better in sports than this to see an unselfish team struggle in the beginning of the season, tune out the critics, listen to their coaches, steadily improve and then peak at the end when it matters most.

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Patriots Outlast Ravens 35-31 in Instant Classic to Reach 4th Straight AFC Championship Game

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How rare is it for a game to not only exceed expectations but immediately vault into the realm of instant classic? Tonight was one of those such gifts as the Patriots erased a pair of 14-point deficits (something they'd never done in franchise history) to beat the Ravens 35-31 at Gillette Stadium. New England advances to next Sunday's (6:40, CBS) AFC Championship Game back at Gillette vs. either the Colts or Broncos who meet tomorrow (4:40, CBS) in Denver.

It was a milestone performance for Tom Brady (33 of 50 for 367 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT) as he set the new all-time mark for playoff TD passes (46) passing Joe Montana. Bill Belichick won his 20th playoff game which tied Tom Landry for the most all-time and Julian Edelman (8 catches, 74 yards) threw the longest touchdown in playoff history by a non-quarterback (51 yards to Danny Amendola). You could make a good case that Amendola had not only his best game as a Patriot (not too tough in his underachieving time here) but he was their player of the game with two clutch touchdowns. Then again, it was a typical Pats playoff win with numerous guys making big plays.

Things couldn't have started out any better for the Ravens as they marched right down the field on their first two drives for an early 14-0 lead. Joe Flacco (28 of 45 for 292 yards, 4 TDs, 2 INTs) was playing like Mr. January once again as he found Kamar Aiken for an easy 19-yard catch and run then the ageless but still batshit insane Steve Smith for a juggling 9-yard catch when Darrelle Revis was trying to cover him.

This was all Brady's game on offense since New England abandoned the run, would you blame them with a total of 14 yards gained on 13 rushing attempts? Jonas Gray was a surprise addition to the inactive list after being probable with an ankle injury. He'll never be Aaron Rodgers or Russell Wilson in terms of scrambling ability but it is still pretty remarkable how much Brady has improved in that area at the ripe old age of 37. He got the Patriots on the board with a 4-yard run.

Amendola tied it at 14 with a sick 15-yard touchdown grab that ended with him flying through the air to the pylon. Somehow, it looked like the Pats would be at least tied or possibly leading at halftime after they were so outplayed. That's when Brady threw his bi-annual brutal interception (to Daryl Smith) and Flacco took advantage by throwing a beautiful 11-yard touchdown to Owen Daniels who was barely open between three defenders with 10 seconds left in the half.

New England's defense was run over in the first half and that continued early in the third quarter as Justin Forsett (24 carries, 129 yards) made it 28-14 Ravens with a simple 16-yard touchdown catch on a swing pass. As is usually the case, Rob Gronkowski (7 catches, 108 yards) was the best receiver on the field/freak of nature and Brady hit him for a five-yard score. The Patriots forced a Ravens punt and that's when Josh McDaniels dialed up probably his best play as New England's offensive coordinator: the double throw from Brady to Edelman to a streaking Amendola. Devin McCourty intercepted Flacco on the following drive but the Pats couldn't cash that in for more points.

Baltimore took a 31-28 lead on Justin Tucker's 25-yard field goal but the Patriots did their job by holding strong in the red zone and forcing the kick. Brady saved his magic for the end: his game-winning 23-yard touchdown pass to Brandon LaFell (5 catches, 62 yards) was perfect. You can't make a better throw and at the same time run a better route than that.

The Ravens are so resilient though and they never gave up. Duron Harmon picked off Flacco in the end zone and on the final play of the game, McCourty knocked the ball away from danger in a hail mary situation. New England improved to 2-2 vs. Baltimore in the playoffs the last few seasons while also avenging that bitter defeat in the 2013 AFC Championship Game at Gillette.

It might seem silly to want to play the Broncos next week since they are clearly better than the Colts (well at least going into tomorrow) but I think it would be so much sweeter to go through Denver than pushover Indy. Plus the storylines are way too juicy to pass up (Brady vs. Manning, Patriots handing out some payback for losing in that game last year not to mention facing Talib and Welker). We all need some rest after today's exhausting game but I'm sure we'll be ready to go for next Sunday.

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Patriots Do Just Enough to Squeak By Jets 17-16, Clinch 1st Round Bye

As usual, today's Patriots-Jets game at MetLife Stadium was ugly. Offense was at a premium and neither team could separate from the other but as is usually the case in this rivalry, New England (12-3 overall, 5-3 away) came out on top 17-16 over New York (3-12 overall, 2-6 home). Vince Wilfork helped to block what would have been the go-ahead field goal by Nick Folk in the fourth quarter and the Pats survived what was surely Rex Ryan's last home game as the Jets head coach.

With no Dan Connolly, New England's shaky offensive line was a mess as Tom Brady (23 of 35 for 182 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) was constantly hurried which resulted in one of his worst games of the season. This is what you expect against Rex, his defense almost always shows up particularly when they play New England. In the right situation (with a good quarterback!), Ryan could be a good NFL head coach. Otherwise, he needs plenty of help since he can't coach offense at all. It doesn't help that New York has one of the worst rosters in the league, largely devoid of talent or any game-breakers.

Julian Edelman and LeGarrette Blount were also out with injuries so New England really struggled to move the ball (231 total yards) against New York's solid defense. Danny Amendola (8 catches, 63 yards; 5 kick returns, 91 yards; 3 punt returns, 63 yards) finally started to earn some of the money from that ridiculous contract. Brandon LaFell (7 catches, 64 yards) was the only other Patriot offensive player that could move the sticks.

After a scoreless first quarter, that we'll agree to never mention again, the Pats got on the board first with a 3-yard touchdown catch by Rob Gronkowski in the second quarter. The Jets responded with a 20-yard touchdown grab by their tight end-Jeff Cumberland from Geno Smith (17 of 27 for 210 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT). With 52 seconds left in the first half, Folk hit a 26-yard field goal to hand New York a 10-7 halftime lead.

New England's defense stood tall again in the red zone as they held Folk to a 23-yard field goal in the third quarter that made it 13-7. The Patriots cut it to 13-10 on Stephen Gostkowski's 24-yard field goal. Jonas Gray put the Patriots back ahead for good with a 1-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter. Of course New York's last points came on Folk's 37-yard kick.

Jamie Collins (11 tackles, 6 solo, pass deflected) had the interception for New England while rookie cornerback Marcus Williams (not the former UConn point guard) can always tell his grandkids about the time he picked off Tom Brady. Dont'a Hightower and Sealver Siliga each had a sack for the Pats. New York combined for four sacks of Brady.

Depending on how Denver does tomorrow night in Monday Night Football at Cincinnati, the Pats would earn the No. 1 seed if the Broncos lose. If Denver wins, New England probably has to beat Buffalo (8-7) next Sunday (1, CBS) at Gillette Stadium in the regular season finale. The Bills pulled off a classic Buffalo sports moment this afternoon as they lost 26-24 at Oakland, thereby crushing their playoff hopes. For our interests, that means I can basically guarantee that Buffalo will have already mailed it in well before they take the field on Sunday.

UPDATE 12/23: Denver lost on Monday Night Football to Cincinnati which handed New England the No. 1 seed and home field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.

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Only the Jets Could Lose A Game That They Dominated So Much With No Turnovers Either

It took seven weeks but we were finally treated to a competitive Thursday Night Football game. Unfortunately it had to involve the Patriots as they held on for a bizarre 27-25 victory over the Jets at Gillette Stadium. New York (1-6 overall, 0-3 road) actually had a chance to win it on the final play but Nick Folk's 58-yard field goal attempt was blocked by Chris Jones. That was ironic since his shady penalty last year cost New England (5-2 overall, 3-0 home) a win at Metlife Stadium.

The Pats won their third straight game while the Jets dropped their sixth in a row, leaving head bobo I mean coach Rex Ryan destined for the unemployment line sometime soon. In a short week, anything can happen-hence why the Thursday Night games are usually trash (plus NFL players can't recover that quickly between contests). The Jets deserved to win this as they amassed 12 more first downs (28-16), 100 more total yards (423-323) including 155 more on the ground (218-63) and over 20 minutes more time of possession (40:54-19:06) than the Patriots. Neither team had a turnover so you can't point to that for the reason that they lost.

The only explanation for why New England came out on top is because New York settled for four field goals (22, 47, 46, 27) by Folk in the first half. If just one of those, particularly the red zone opportunities, had been a touchdown then it would have been a different outcome. Life without Jerod Mayo and Stevan Ridley was rough for the Patriots, especially with so little time to readjust. They made the Jets look like a competent offense, led by Geno Smith (20 of 34 for 226 yards, 1 TD; 37 yards rushing) and Chris Ivory (21 carries, 107 yards, TD), which is pretty hard to do.

All that talk of Tom Brady being washed up that dominated our lives just a few short weeks ago seems silly now. He's played very well the last three weeks since all the Patriots/TB12 haters circled Foxborough. Tonight, he was 20 of 37 for 261 yards and three touchdowns. New England didn't muster much of a running game (63 total yards) but four guys had four or more catches: Shane Vereen (5 catches, 71 yards, 2 TDs), Rob Gronkowski (5 catches, 68 yards), Brandon LaFell (4 catches, 55 yards) and Julian Edelman (4 catches, 44 yards). Stephen Gostkowski made two field goals, a 39-yard kick at the end of the first half and a 36-yarder in the third quarter.

I guess with Chris Jones making the play of the game on defense for the Pats, it was only fitting that another nobody-Danny Amendola-had his biggest contribution in 1.5 years with New England. His one catch was huge-a 19-yard touchdown when Brady was scrambling in the pocket and it put the Patriots up 27-19 with 7:49 left in the fourth quarter. The Jets went right down the field and scored, Jeff Cumberland caught a 10-yard pass across the middle by Smith but they couldn't convert the two-point conversion as his fade intended for Jace Amaro went too far. Sweet play call.

It's been a busy stretch for New England with three primetime games in four weeks: Monday, Sunday night, Sunday afternoon and Thursday night. They earned the extra break and they'll need it since their opponents get way tougher starting with Chicago a week from Sunday (1, Fox) at Gillette. After not playing an above average quarterback in their first seven games, you could make the case that New England gets six elite quarterbacks in a row (Cutler, Peyton, Luck, Stafford, Rodgers and Rivers) sandwiched around a bye in three weeks.

The AFC East is still a dumpster fire and the NFC remains far superior so at least their non-division matchups look like they'll be a challenge. That should only help them as they go into the postseason.

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Patriots Run Over Colts En Route to Their 3rd Straight AFC Championship Game

(30 for 30 voice) What if I told you that the Tom Brady would go 13 of 25 for 198 yards and zero TDs but the Patriots would beat the Colts 43-22 at Gillette Stadium in the AFC Divisional Round? The seemingly impossible actually happened tonight as New England rode a team-record six rushing touchdowns (4 from LeGarrette Blount and 2 from Stevan Ridley) along with four interceptions of Andrew Luck to their third AFC Championship Game in a row and eighth in the past 13 seasons.

The Pats host the Chargers if they upset the Broncos in Denver tomorrow. If the Broncos win, New England heads to Mile High for a super hyped game between Brady and some guy named Peyton Manning. Despite the fact that Indy only trailed 29-22 heading into the fourth quarter, we never really sweated this one out since Luck had too many turnovers and more importantly, the Colts defense is atrocious (in two playoff games this season they allowed a combined 87 points).

Blount (24 carries, team-record 166 yards) showed that the last few weeks of the regular season weren't a fluke. It was also nice to see Ridley (14 carries, 52 yards) chip in. The problem with New England's passing game is that it only really has two legitimate targets: Julian Edelman (6 catches, 84 yards) and Danny Amendola (3 catches, 77 yards). Aaron Dobson (foot) missed the game and Kenbrell Thompkins only had one target and no catches (plus he might have picked up a concussion on that one play). Depending on who they play next Sunday (3, CBS), the Patriots have to find a way to squeeze more out of their receivers cause you have to figure Blount will be their main focus defensively.

On the third play of the game, Luck (20 of 41, 331 yards, 2 TDs, 4 INTs) threw nearly a pick-6 to Alfonzo Dennard who returned it to the 2. The next play was a two-yard TD run by Blount. He did the same thing a little more than six minutes later for a 14-0 Patriots lead. Playing from behind for the second week in a row against a smarter and better coached team was too much for Luck.

Granted, he made some sick throws like the 38-yard pass to LaVon Brazill that put the Colts on the board. Another 2-yard TD run by Blount made it 21-7 Patriots before Indy got a 36-yard field goal by Adam Vinatieri and a safety on a bad snap to punter Ryan Allen (who also hurt his shoulder on the play). New England only led 21-12 at halftime.

A 21-yard field goal by Vinatieri was as close as Indianapolis would get (21-15). Ridley had a 3-yard TD run and 2-point conversion. Brazill's only other catch was a 35-yard touchdown (at least he makes them count). The fourth quarter belonged to the Pats and their offensive line. Blount ran for a 73-yard TD and Ridley capped it off with a 1-yard TD run.

Rookie linebacker Jamie Collins (6 tackles, 3 solo, 1 sack, 1 interception, 2 tackles for loss, pass deflected, 3 quarterback hits) hadn't done anything during the regular season but in his playoff debut, the second-round pick out of Southern Mississippi was the star of New England's resilient defense. Donta' Hightower (8 tackles, 3 solo, 1 pass deflected, 1 interception) had been bashed all season for all his obvious flaws but he was great in this one. To show you how few plays that he's made in two seasons, that pick was the first of his career. Dennard wrapped it up with his second interception.

We know that the Patriots in many ways are lucky to be one of the final four teams left in the NFL but at the same time, you have to marvel at their resilience through all the major injuries. No matter if it's the Broncos or Chargers, New England will have to take its game to another level and improve in many departments. Clearly, we'd prefer San Diego to win tomorrow since that would mean the Pats only need another win at Gillette to get to the Super Bowl. However, Denver is a tougher opponent on paper (keep in mind New England already beat them this season) but there is something to be said for going into Denver and knocking them off.

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Nothing Will Be Easy For The Patriots From Here on Out This Season

It was a very weird day in the AFC: the Patriots had a golden opportunity this afternoon to take control of the No. 1 seed with a win in Miami (after Denver loss to San Diego on Thursday). Unfortunately, the Dolphins (8-6 overall, 4-3 home) had other plans though as they beat New England (10-4 overall, 3-4 away) 24-20 at Sun Life Stadium. The Pats just missed out on another last-second victory as Michael Thomas picked off Tom Brady (34 of 55 for 364 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) in the end zone to wrap it up. The night ended with plenty of help from the Bengals as they lost 30-20 at the Steelers to remain in the No. 3 spot in the conference.

I'd like to come up with a more creative reason or a viewpoint not already shared by most but New England's biggest issues: injuries on defense and not having Rob Gronkowski particularly in the red zone (1 of 4) were a major factor in this loss. Julian Edelman (career-high 13 catches, 139 yards, 1 TD) and Danny Amendola (10 catches, 131 yards) were locked in with Brady, they combined for 33 of 54 targets (61%). Miami clearly focused on shutting down Shane Vereen (2 carries, 13 yards; 3 catches, 8 yards) and without Aaron Dobson and Kenbrell Thompkins, that's pretty much where Brady's options sit.

This is to take nothing away from the Dolphins, they are a good team and with their last two games at Bills then hosting the Jets, they could very well find themselves in the postseason as well. Ryan Tannehill (25 of 37 for 312 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs) is improving and they are tough to beat when Mike Wallace (6 catches, 105 yards, 1 TD) is involved in the game-plan.

The first three quarters were actually pretty dull, setting the stage for a wild fourth in the heat. New England went 16 plays for 83 yards on their opening drive but they had to settle for a 22-yard field goal by Stephen Gostkowski (remember that). Michael Hoomanawanui made his first touchdown catch as a Patriot a memorable one: he speared it with one-hand to give the Pats a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter.

Wallace shook loose for a 39-yard touchdown catch and run with 32 seconds left in the first half. It was a huge momentum swing for the Dolphins and conversely against the Patriots' defense which had pitched a shutout up to that point. A 32-yard field goal by Caleb Sturgis was the only score of the third quarter and it tied things at 10.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, the Dolphins went up 17-10 on a two-yard touchdown catch by Daniel Thomas. Apparently New England had never seen a swing pass before. The Pats had another long drive (15 plays, 67 yards) stall in the red zone (sense a pattern here?) and Gostkowski's 23-yard field goal cut it to 17-16.

After a timely stop by New England's defense, yes this really happened, Edelman caught a 24-yard touchdown (similar to Wallace's) that gave his team a temporary 20-17 lead. Of course Miami went right down the field and Tannehill found Marcus Thigpen for a 14-yard touchdown. Dont'a Hightower was burned by that nobody, proving yet again that he can't do anything right.

New England is at Baltimore (7-6) next Sunday afternoon (4:25, CBS) at M&T Bank Stadium in the game that was flexed out of Sunday Night Football for Bears-Eagles (huh?). The Ravens are in Detroit tomorrow night for Monday Night Football so hopefully that important game takes something out of them along with the short week of preparation. The Ravens are always a tough matchup for the Patriots and this will be the first time they've met since last season's AFC Championship shellacking by Baltimore at Gillette Stadium en route to their unexpected Super Bowl triumph vs. San Francisco.

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Gronk's Torn ACL Overshadows Another Video-Game Like Comeback by the Patriots

As a sports fan, besides big losses, there are few things more depressing than a serious injury to a star player. Unfortunately, the Patriots will wake up tomorrow having to game-plan the rest of the season and playoffs without Rob Gronkowski who reportedly tore his ACL on a brutal hit by T.J. Ward (helmet to knee). Sure New England (10-3 overall, 7-0 home) rallied for another insane 27-26 comeback victory over Cleveland (4-9 overall, 1-5 away) at Gillette Stadium but forgive us if our minds were wandering a bit. Plus who ever believed the Browns would hand the Pats their first home loss of 2013 (7-0)?

You can't overstate Gronk's importance which is why the Pats had morphed into the top-scoring offense in the league again after he returned from arm/back surgeries. This will be the third straight postseason that he's been hurt which makes you wonder if the poor guy will ever have a fully healthy season (regular season and playoffs) in the NFL.

I said the same thing last week when the Texans gagged a game away to the Patriots but today was the epitome of a certain win that only a few miserable squads can successfully hand over to the opposition. The Browns were up 19-3 late in the third quarter on Josh Gordon's (7 catches, 151 yards; 34-yard run) 80-yard catch and run.

Shane Vereen (12 catches, 153 yards) took over on the next drive and earned his way to a six-yard touchdown run. Julian Edelman (6 catches, 64 yards) caught the two-point conversion as the momentum started to swing towards New England.

Stephen Gostkowski's 50-yard field goal cut it to 19-14 but Jordan Cameron (9 catches, 121 yards) appeared to put it away with a four-yard touchdown catch from Jason Campbell (29 of 44, 391 yards, 3 TDs) on a basic play action pass. Tom Brady (32 of 52, 418 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) calmly drove down the field and threw a two-yard touchdown to Edelman who was drilled but hung on (and stayed in the game).

Gostkowski's onside kick was the play of the game though as Kyle Arrington recovered it at Cleveland's 39. Haha only the Browns. By that point, New England getting one last touchdown felt inevitable and so it went with Danny Amendola catching a one-yard touchdown pass with 31 seconds left.

New England actually left too much time on the clock for Cleveland's horrible offense and Campbell sort of got them in field goal range. I don't think fans of Cleveland teams can actually feel any lower but the Browns tried to toy with their emotions a little more as Billy Cundiff of all people was dragged out for a 58-yard field goal attempt in the last seconds. Do I even have to tell you that it was short?

Gronk is having an MRI tomorrow but countless NFL reporters said his season is over after this game so I'll go with that until I hear otherwise. The Patriots can clinch the AFC East title with a win on Sunday (1, CBS) at Sun Life Stadium in Miami vs. the Dolphins (7-6 overall, 2nd in AFC East). They beat Miami 27-17 in Week 8 at Gillette Stadium but New England always struggles in Miami for whatever reason (the clubs?).

UPDATE 12/9: The news about Gronk couldn't be much worse as he also tore his MCL in his right knee along with the ACL and also suffered a concussion so he was put on IR. Yikes. The Patriots re-signed tight end D.J. Williams to take his place on the 53-man roster; this is the third season in a row that Grnonkowi's missed important games at the end of the season.

UPDATE 12/10: I can't really explain why but the Patriots-Ravens game in Week 16 was flexed from Sunday night to a 4:25 p.m. start. Bears-Eagles will take its place, I guess we should be content with more time to sleep after so many late-night games this season for New England.

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Patriots Come Up With an Old-Fashioned Ass Whooping of the Steelers

Blowout wins like today for the Patriots have been few and far between the last few seasons which reminds us how good we had it for the better part of a decade. New England (7-2 overall, 5-0 home) went into their bye week in style with a 55-31 win over Pittsburgh (2-6 overall, 1-4 away) at Gillette Stadium. The 55 points were the most allowed by the Steelers in franchise history, can you say dumpster fire?

The Patriots' defense has carried the team most of this season so it was nice to see the offense return the favor in this game. Tom Brady (23 of 33 for 432 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs) had a vintage performance as Rob Gronkowski (9 catches, 143 yards, 1 TD), Aaron Dobson (5 catches, 130 yards, 2 TDs) and Danny Amendola (4 catches, 122 yards, 1 TD) became only the six trio of teammates to all go over 100+ receiving yards in one game. KenBrell Thompkins was a surprise inactive but that didn't matter by the time this was over.

Stevan Ridley (26 carries, 115 yards, 2 TDs) had an early fumble, mostly a great play by Troy Polamalu to knock it loose, but instead of stapling him to the bench Bill Belichick tried to build his confidence by sticking with him. What a concept! New England's most talented running back responded with a great game which hopefully will propel him into a much better second half.

You won't see any sympathy here for scummy Ben Roethlisberger (28 of 48 for 400 yards, 4 TDs, 2 INTs) or his hapless squad. Pittsburgh is a proud franchise that's almost always solid so it is surprising to see them fall so low this fast. With so many injuries and a lack of gamebreakers/young talent, they could be in trouble for a while (relatively speaking).

The funny thing about this offensive explosion is that nobody could have seen it coming after the Pats only led 7-0 following Amendola's 34-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter. Gronk caught a 19-yard touchdown (he's starting to look like himself again) for a 14-0 lead in the second quarter before Shaun Suisham kicked a 30-yard field goal. Stephen Gostkowski's 20-yard field goal restored New England's two touchdown lead (17-3). Antonio Brown's 24-yard touchdown cut it to 17-10 late first half but Ridley's 1-yard touchdown run with 10 seconds left in the second quarter was huge.

Jericho Cotchery (7 catches, 96 yards) played like it was 2009 with the Jets in the third quarter with a pair of touchdown catches (20 and 8) that tied it up. Luckily for New England, they still managed to forge ahead on Gostkowski's 27-yard field goal with 2:39 left in the third quarter setting the stage for a beatdown in the fourth (28-7).

Dobson started it off with a pretty 17-yard back shoulder touchdown catch. Ridley's five-yard touchdown run made it 41-24 before Cotchery had one more touchdown grab, from five yards out. Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau weeped while Dobson caught an 81-yard bomb for a score then LeGarrette Blount closed it out with a 5-yard touchdown run.

Plenty of people will take too much out of what turned out to be a lopsided win for the Pats. I simply look at it as them putting it together against one of the worst teams in the NFL. Look at their upcoming schedule, there is no automatic win like Pittsburgh on the horizon. New England will use their break wisely as they return for two consecutive primetime games against playoff contenders: at Carolina for a Monday Night game (11/18) then hosting Denver on the following Sunday Night (11/24). How the Patriots fare in those difficult matchups should tell us much more about them than this. Still, they are pointed in the right direction especially if Aqib Talib ever returns this season.

UPDATE 11/5: The Patriots had some moves before they go into the bye week for real: they released Austin Collie and signed WR LaQuan Williams to take his place on the 53-man roster. Additionally, they signed RB Cierre Wood to the practice squad while Steve Gregory has a broken thumb and he could miss a few weeks. Stay tuned on that injury although truthfully, it doesn't mean much since he's a bum.

UPDATE 11/8: Logan Mankins was fined $10,000 for clipping vs. Pittsburgh.

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Week 8 Injury Report: Patriots vs. Dolphins

This weekend marks the unofficial halfway point for all the NFL teams playing their eighth game of the regular season, crazy right? New England (5-2) hosts Miami (3-3) on Sunday (1, CBS) at Gillette Stadium in their first of two meetings between the AFC East rivals (and I use that term loosely). Both teams really need a victory, the Pats have lost two out of their last three sandwiched around an improbable comeback win over the Saints while the Dolphins have lost their last three games after a nice 3-0 start.

Today the injury reports came out and for our purposes, Miami's is irrelevant because they didn't list anyone at less than probable. Haha that's no fun guys! On New England, Leon Washington and Tommy Kelly continue to be out making you wonder when they'll return this season and if they'll have any impact (well at least Kelly already did, Washington not so much).

Seven Patriots are questionable: Michael Hoomanawanui (knee), Brandon Bolden (knee), Tavon Wilson (hamstring), Danny Amendola (concussion), Aqib Talib (hip), Marcus Cannon (shoulder) and Julian Edelman (thigh). Amendola and Talib obviously are the most important, I'm assuming that Edelman is playing since he hasn't missed any action yet (shocking I know), and they both returned to practice this week which is always a good sign.

We'll have to wait until Sunday to see who else will join Kelly and Washington on the sidelines, keep in mind seven players are deemed inactive on gamedays from the 53-man roster.

UPDATE 10/27: Dolphins inactives-DBs Jamar Taylor and Will Davis; QB Pat Devlin, RB Mike Gillislee, OT Dallas Thomas, OGs Danny Watkins and Will Yeatman. Patriots inactives-Talib, Josh Boyce, Steve Beauharnais, Kelly, Washington, Jake Bequette (how is he still on the team?) and Chris Barker.

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Week 7 Injury Report: Patriots at Jets

I don't want to jinx it since it has been such a long time coming, but it appears that Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski will finally make his 2013 debut on Sunday (1, NBCS) vs. the Jets (3-3) then home vs. Denver on Sunday Night Football. Today's injury report came out and both teams are banged up.

Danny Amendola (concussion), Tommy Kelly (knee) and Leon Washington are all out for New England while former Patriot/Invisible Man Greg Salas (knee) and Santonio Holmes (foot) leave New York with some pretty grimy options for rookie Geno Smith to pass to. Aqib Talib is doubtful (hip) so I'd be shocked to see him on the field on Sunday.

There are many things to loath about the Jets: their players, coaches or fanbase all make it way too easy for others. What I'm trying to say is that despite all that, I admire how New York doesn't screw around with its injury report. Salas and Holmes are the only guys they mention that aren't probable.

The Patriots were not impressed with that refreshing honesty as they piled eight guys that are questionable onto the report: Michael Hoomanawanui (knee), Dan Connolly (concussion), Brandon Bolden (knee), Matthew Slater (wrist), Julian Edelman (thigh), Marcus Cannon (shoulder), Tavon Wilson (hamsting) and Gronk (back). It's interesting to note that they don't mention his arm anymore.

I learned my lesson from Week 2's ugly ugly win by the Patriots that while they own the Jets at the moment, they always seem to have tight games vs the Jets for whatever reason. Stay tuned as I update this while the weekend goes by.

UPDATE 10/19: Wilson and Talib are out but the good news is that Gronk made the trip to NY/NJ so he appears to be playing tomorrow. We shall see.

UPDATE 10/20: Patriots inactives are Wilson, Talib, WR Josh Boyce, OL Chris Barker, Amendola, Kelly and Washington. Jets inactives are Brady Quinn, Holmes, Salas, LB Troy Davis, G William Campbell, T Ben Ijilana and T Oday Aboushi.

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Patriots Stun Saints, 30-27 on Brady's Last-Second TD to Thompkins

For many reasons, tonight was a throwback to better days (yes I know we're very spoiled) for the Patriots as they beat the Saints 30-27 at Gillette Stadium. Tom Brady (25 of 43 for 269 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Kenbrell Thompkins (3 catches, 45 yards) with five seconds left as New England (5-1 overall, 3-0 home) completely stole a win from New Orleans (5-1 overall, 2-1 away) 30-27.

With no Rob Gronkowski plus injuries to Danny Amendola, Jerod Mayo, Aqib Talib and Dan Connolly, this looked like a game the Pats would lose because they simply ran out of healthy bodies and decent players. Oh and the Saints played well on the road for about 58+ minutes and they should have won but they couldn't close it out.

New Orleans went ahead 24-23 on Drew Brees' (17 of 36 for 236 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) 34-yard touchdown pass to rookie Kenny Stills with 3:29 left in regulation. After New England turned it over on downs, the Saints added a 39-yard field goal for 27-23 lead. Keenan Lewis intercepted Brady on New England's next play so by then, it had to be over. Except it wasn't. The Patriots forced the Saints to punt after a 3-and-out and Brady had one last chance starting at his own 30 with 1:13 left.

It only took seven plays to get the clutch score; the big plays were a 23-yard catch by Julian Edelman (5 catches, 57 yards) plus a 15-yard catch and 9-yard catch by Austin Collie (his first two receptions as a Patriot). Brady's touchdown to Thompkins was vintage stuff, the likes of which we haven't really seen for years. The Patriots picked up a clutch win against a formidable opponent facing long odds and many key injuries. Sound familiar?

New England actually built a 17-7 halftime lead thanks to two touchdown runs by Stevan Ridley (20 carries, 96 yards rushing; 14-yard catch) and the first of three Stephen Gostkowski field goals (35, 54, 23). New Orleans predictably tied it up in the third with a 28-yard field goal by Garrett Hartley and 3-yard touchdown run by Khiry Robinson. Gostkowski's last two kicks put the Pats up 23-17 midway through the fourth.

Eight Patriots caught passes today and nine were targeted. It will take that type of approach if they are going to survive another long absence from Amendola who appeared to get knocked out on a vicious hit in the second half. Aaron Dobson (6 catches, 63 yards) had a good performance and even Michael Hoomanawanui (4 catches, 57 yards) played like an NFL tight end for one game.

Kyle Arrington also had a gift interception after Brees tried to call timeout, didn't get it then was forced to chuck it up for grabs. Before he left with a hip flexor, Talib held Jimmy Graham (the NFL's best tight end, sorry Gronk) without a catch. His teammates picked up the slack too as Graham (who also was hobbled late in the contrest) had zero catches.

After playing marquee games against quality teams, it'll be tough to re-adjust to the slop of the AFC East. New England goes to the Jets (3-3 overall) on Sunday (1, CBS). New York lost 16-9 at home this afternoon to the previously winless Steelers (1-4).

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All of New England's Problems Come To the Surface In Ugly Loss To Bengals

We all knew that the Patriots' 4-0 start this season was more a product of a favorable schedule than the makings of a powerful team. Still, it was disconcerting to have all those fears realized this afternoon at Cincinnati's (3-2 overall, 3-0 home) Paul Brown Stadium where the Bengals survived for a 13-6 victory over New England (4-1 overall, 2-1 away).

Former Patriot BenJarvus Green-Ellis (67 yards rushing) recorded this slopfest's only touchdown-a 1-yard run up the gut in the fourth quarter-where Vince Wilfork would have been-and New England's struggles on offense, particularly in the Red Zone or tough situations continued. This being the Bengals though, they weren't content to seize the game so instead they kept giving New England second and third chances (dumb penalties, bad clock management), but Tom Brady (18 of 38 for 197 yards, 1 INT) couldn't take advantage as he had one of his worst performances in recent years.. Adam Jones picked him off on a terrible deep ball to end it.

Danny Amendola (4 catches, 55 yards, 9 targets) returned but he was predictably rusty with a couple key drops. With no Stevan Ridley, LaGerrette Blount got the chance to be the top running back but he flopped gaining 51 yards on 12 carries but also losing a fumble (a tribute to Ridley?) that caused him to be briefly benched.

That wasn't even the worst turnover of the game as Andy Dalton (20 of 27 for 212 yards, 1 INT) threw across his body, easily picked off by Brandon Spikes (12 tackles, 7 solo, 2 tackles for loss, 1 pass deflected) in New England's red zone. Cincy also lost a fumble when rookie Giovani Bernard (62 yards rushing) got popped by Devin McCourty and Jerod Mayo (11 tackles, 7 solo, half a sack, 1 pass deflected and 1 quarterback hit) recovered it.

After a scoreless first quarter (when does that ever happen in today's NFL?), the teams traded field goals. Mike Nugent hit from 39 and Stephen Gostkowski received a gift-a 42-yard kick thanks to three straight runs and a punt by the Bengals right before halftime. Nugent's 50-yard field goal in the third were the only points in the frame. By the time Green-Ellis rumbled in from a yard out early in the fourth, I felt like a two-score deficit to overcome given New England's offensive struggles and Cincinnati's excellent defense was too much to ask for.

Gostkowski's 19-yard field goal provided the final points as the Patriots couldn't punch it in and took the points instead. A scary moment for the Pats occurred when Tommy Kelly went down with an apparent knee injury when he was chasing Dalton and nobody touched him. The good news was that he returned to the game shortly thereafter.

New England will have its hands full on Sunday (4:25, Fox) as they play one of the three remaining unbeaten squads in the NFL: Saints (5-0) at Gillette Stadium.

UPDATE 10/8: Yesterday the Pats re-signed Marquice Cole and waived the Kannoris Davis and Ja'Gared Davis. There are two open spots on the practice squad with their names on it.

UPDATE 10/9: The Davis brothers (just kidding, they're not related but they might as well be) were re-signed to the practice squad) and New England signed defensive tackle Andre Neblett to the 53-man roster.

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Week 5 Injury Report: Patriots at Bengals

Everyone's favorite team from Hard Knocks (just kidding, we didn't have a choice since nobody else wanted to do it)-the Bengals (2-2)-host the Patriots (4-0) on Sunday (1, CBS). This afternoon, the injury report came out and there were some interesting developments for both teams. The headline being that New England running back Stevan Ridley (knee) is out and Cincy's excellent cornerback Leon Hall (hamstring) is doubtful.

Five weeks into the regular season, the Pats have started to play their usual mind games with the injury report. They have 10 guys listed as questionable: Danny Amendola (groin), Sebastian Vollmer (foot), Aaron Dobson (neck), Jerod Mayo (ankle), Brandon Bolden (knee), Leon Washington (thigh), Tavon Wilson (hamstring), Kenbrell Thompkins (shoulder), Rob Gronkowski (back) and Dont'a Hightower (knee). Be aware that multiple media members have said Gronk won't play once again.

Interestingly enough, Matthew Slater (wrist) is doubtful so he'll probably be out again but at least this time he's got a chance to play. He's missed the last two games with a broken wrist but the Pats could always use their special teams captain on the field.

Bengals guard Mike Pollak (knee) and cornerback Brandon Ghee (thigh) are also doubtful while defensive end Michael Johnson (concussion) and cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick (hamstring) are questionable.

Stay tuned before kickoff on Sunday when I update this post.

UPDATE 10/6: Gronk and Wilson are out. The Pats signed safety Kanorris Davis and linebacker Ja'Gared Davis from the practice squad to the 53-man roster so they'll probably play. Also, Amendola made the trip so he must be getting close (fingers crossed) to returning.

The Patriots inactives are Slater, Ridley, Austin Collie, Gronk, offensive lineman Chris Barker, linebacker Steve Beauharnais and Wilson. For the Bengals, Pollak, offensive lineman Tanner Hawkinson, running back Rex Burkhead, Johnson, wide receiver Ryan Whalen, Hall and Ghee are all inactive.

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Injury-Prone White Wide Receivers? The Patriots Can't Get Enough of Them

Common sense be damned, the Patriots love a good deal. Apparently, they're also inclined to sign injury-prone white wide receivers in hopes of finding the next Wes Welker which is impossible. Today at practice, the media spotted former Colt Austin Collie who has signed a deal with New England. This comes on the heels of Danny Amendola (groin) and Rob Gronkowski (back/forearm) continuing to practice although the former only played Week 1 and Gronk has yet to appear in a game this season.

Honestly, I don't know what quack doctor (the Red Sox medical staff?) would clear Collie since he ruptured his patellar tendon last season but more importantly, he's dealt with numerous concussions over his short NFL career (4+ years). That's why he only played nine games in 2010 and just one last season in Indianapolis before he was released. San Francisco signed him but he was one of their final cuts in training camp this summer.

He showed plenty of promise with the Colts and Peyton Manning, hence why teams are still willing to take serious risks by signing him. In his rookie year (2009), he played all 16 games and hauled in 60 catches for 676 yards and seven touchdowns. He was poised for a monster season the next year as he piled up 58 catches for 649 yards and eight touchdowns but concussions curtailed his breakout season. In a full 2011 (16 games), he was limited to 54 catches for 514 yards and one touchdown.

I don't even expect Collie to be on the field Sunday (1, CBS) in Cincinnati, I feel like this is just to give Kenbrell Thompkins (shoulder) and Aaron Dobson (neck) some rest this week to heal their minor injuries. Plus, it allows the Pats the chance to get something out of a guy that is probably looking at his last NFL opportunity.

UPDATE 10/3: Vince Wilfork was placed on IR while tight end Zach Sudfeld was released. Don't be surprised if the undrafted rookie ends up on the practice squad where he can get better up to speed. It's clear in the first four games that we was over his head in the NFL.

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Week 4 Injury Report: Patriots at Falcons

There is still plenty of time left before Sunday Night Football (8:30, NBC) pits the Patriots (3-0) at the Falcons (1-2) but the injury report still came out at the same time as usual this afternoon.

In addition, New England also made a roster move as they somewhat surprisingly released cornerback Marquice Cole who had been dealing with a hamstring injury. I wouldn't be shocked to see him back soon when he's healthy since he sees playing time in nickel and dime packages plus he's on all the special teams.

As for who will or won't play at the Georgia Dome, the three names on all Patriots' fans minds are Rob Gronkowski (back/forearm), Danny Amendola (groin) and Sebastian Vollmer (foot). They are all questionable but it sounds like Amendola won't play; Gronk is slowing getting better and Vollmer missed practice on Tuesday and Wednesday but returned in a limited capacity today.

The other questionable Patriots are Kyle Arrington (groin), Nate Ebner (ankle), Will Svitek (knee) and Leon Washington (knee). Special teams ace Matthew Slater (wrist) has already been ruled out but you knew that if you read my blog post from last week.

For Atlanta, running back Steven Jackson (hamstring) is still out while four other marquee guys are questionable: wide receivers Julio Jones (knee) and Roddy White (ankle) along with former Patriots cornerback Asante Samuel (thigh).

The annoying part of the late kickoff, besides its conflict with great television shows (Boardwalk Empire, Bar Rescue and Breaking Bad to name a few), we also have to listen to basically another full day of injury speculation regarding Amendola and Gronk. Ugh, I can't wait to have them back on the field so we can stop hearing vague speculation from every NFL reporter with a Twitter account.

UPDATE 9/29: Patriots inactives are Steve Beauharnais, Slater, Amendola, Gronkowski, Jake Bequette, Chris Barker and Washington. Falcons inactives are Samuel, safety Kemal Ishmael, Jackson, linebacker Jamar Chaney, guard Harland Gunn, tackle Ryan Schrader and defensive tackle Travian Robertson.

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Week 3 Injury Report: Buccaneers at Patriots

It's funny how quickly we fall into familiar routines when it comes to the NFL season. The Patriots (2-0) last played on Thursday (9/12) and maybe because it was such a horrific game that we tried to put it out of our memories but that feels like it was a year ago. Today, the injury report was released for New England's meeting with winless Tampa Bay (0-2) on Sunday (1, FOX) at Gillette Stadium.

Matthew Slater (wrist) has already been declared out for the Pats who as far as I know haven't publically acknowledged his broken wrist which should put him on the shelf for a while. Danny Amendola (groin) is doubtful and you can basically guarantee that he won't play either. There are six Patriots that are questionable: Brandon Bolden (knee), Dan Connolly (finger), Nate Ebner (ankle), Rob Gronkowski (back/forearm), Will Svitek (knee) and Leon Washington (thigh). Of that group, I'm pretty sure that Connolly and Washington are the only guys to have played in the first two games.

The Bucs aren't messing around as they've already said three of their players are out: defensive tackle Derek Landri (knee), cornerback Michael Adams (knee) and offensive lineman Gabe Carimi (illness). Four Bucs are questionable: tight end Tom Crabtree (ankle), cornerback Rashaan Melvin (hamstring), guard Carl Nicks (foot) and tight end Luke Stocker (hip).

Check back on Sunday prior to kickoff as I'll update these when the inactive list becomes available.

In other Patriots news, the NFL finally came down with their fines from the Jets-Pats game. Vince Wilfork, Alfonzo Dennard and Michael Buchanan were each fined $7875 for unnecessary roughness while Chandler Jones was docked $15,750 for an earlier play where he hit Geno Smith.

UPDATE 9/22: The new inactives for the Pats are Washington, Gronk, Amendola, Steve Beauharnais, Svitek, and Chris Jones. The other inactives for the Bucs include Orlovsky, Adams, defensive end Steven Means and Stocker.

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Week 2 Injury Report: Patriots vs. Jets

It's hard to believe but the Patriots will be playing another game a little more than 24 hours from now. New England (1-0) welcomes the Jets (1-0) to Gillette Stadium for the first installment of their yearly double dose of AFC East hatred. It is also New England's 2013 home opener. For the last few days, we've been focused on all the Pats injuries and now we know the status' of Shane Vereen (wrist) who is out until at least Week 11 while Danny Amendola (groin) and Rob Gronkowski (back/forearm) are both doubtful as expected.

For the Jets, three players have already been ruled out: defensive lineman Quinton Coples (ankle), wide receiver Jeremy Kerley (concussion) and quarterback/punching bag Mark Sanchez (shoulder). Everyone else on New York is listed as probable so we won't bother with them. We'll have to wait until tomorrow night (8:25, NFL Network and ABC) to see what other four guys are inactive for Rex Ryan's squad.

In addition, eight Patriots are questionable: Brandon Bolden (knee), Aaron Dobson (hamstring), Nate Ebner (ankle), Duron Harmon (hamstring), Matthew Slater (knee), Zach Sudfeld (hamstring), Will Svitek (knee) and Leon Washington (knee). Slater and Sudfeld are the ones I'll be keeping a close eye on since they played vs. Buffalo on Sunday afternoon. The other six guys didn't suit up against the Bills but I expect Dobson to play since Amendola will be on the sideline.

I'll update this tomorrow before the opening kickoff. In other Patriots roster news, they picked up rookie defensive lineman Chris Jones off waivers from Tampa Bay. To make room for him, they waived offensive lineman Josh Kline who I feel like has been involved in a million moves over the last few weeks.

UPDATE 9/12: The inactives for the Patriots are Bolden, Amendola, Svitek, linebacker Steven Beauharnais, Gronk, Sudfeld and Jones. The inactives for the Jets are quarterback Brady Quinn, guard William Campbell, tackle Ben Ijalana, tackle Oday Aboushi in addition to Coples, Kerey and Sanchez.

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Shane Vereen Broke A Bone In His Wrist, Welcome Back From the Doghouse Stevan Ridley!

Fortunes change so quickly in the NFL since there is an absurd amount of injuries every week. That's why talk of a longer regular season is always borderline insane, if there were any more games teams would be left with a totally shredded roster and who wants to see practice squad bums playing in December and January?

This is a long-winded way of saying that the Patriots (1-0) could have their hands full in Week 2 with the Jets (1-0) on Thursday (ABC & NFL Network, 8:25) because reports surfaced today that promising young running back Shane Vereen (159 total yards vs. Buffalo) broke a small bone in his wrist on the first play of the game so he'll be out for a few weeks following today's surgery. Oh and rookie tight end Zach Sudfeld (a temporary starter) pulled his hamstring, why he sat out the fourth quarter, so his availability is in doubt too.

The ripple down effect of this means that Stevan Ridley will have to get his head out of his ass and hopefully stop fumbling all the time. After he coughed the ball up twice yesterday (one wasn't technically ruled a fumble cause replays were inconclusive) in the first half, he didn't see the field again all afternoon. Ridley has plenty of talent, this is the same guy who had 1263 rushing yards and 12 TDs last season. He was even on his way to a good game in Buffalo, with nine carries for 46 yards before his bad habit bubbled up yet again.

Should Ridley struggle, there are other options: Brandon Bolden, LeGarrette Blount and Leon Washington. Granted, they are low on the depth chart for a reason. The injury reports will come out tomorrow so we'll get a better idea if the Pats will need to sign another tight end assuming Sudfeld is out. If he can't play, New England would be left with one healthy tight end on the roster: Michael Hoomanauwanui. Yikes.

Even with these injuries, the Patriots will be heavily favored against the Jets in their 2013 home opener at Gillette Stadium but these setbacks won't help an offense that looked very shaky against a mediocre at best Bills squad that they absolutely own.

UPDATE 9/10: Undrafted rookie defensive tackle AJ Francis was re-signed to the practice squad. To make room for him, rookie wide receiver Quentin Sims was released. The Pats put Vereen on injured reserve, designated to return which means at the earliest he can play in Week 11 (they have a bye the week before). To take his roster spot, they re-signed tight Matthew Mulligan who was with the team last week before the latest cut.

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Beating The Bills Doesn't Mean Much, The Patriots Have Plenty of Work To Do

You know that as a fan base we are truly spoiled when we can look at a season-opening win on the road, against a divisional opponent that featured a last-minute drive and think, man the Patriots really played poorly. Such is the world we live in where 23-21 victories over the Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium fill us with more frustration and anger than joy. Stephen Gostkowski's clutch (for him) 35-yard field goal with five seconds left was the difference.

This is more than us being miserable bastards, after all of New England's recent history of being regular season heroes then losing in the postseason, these games take on a more sterile look and feel. A function of being in the AFC East (one of the worst divisions in pro sports) is that the Pats are basically a lock to win it and/or make the playoffs every season that Tom Brady (29 of 52, 288 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) and Bill Belichick are employed in Foxborough.

It was a sloppy contest with both teams combining for five turnovers and Buffalo getting whistled for 10 penalties (75 yards). New England started off well, leading 10-0 after the first quarter, and ended strongly (outscoring Buffalo 6-0 in the fourth quarter) so it was the second and third quarters that were bizarre even by wacky opening day standards.

I will resist the urge to draw final conclusions off of one game but there were certainly some trends to keep an eye on. Danny Amendola (10 catches, 104 yards) might be made of glass but when he can drag himself onto the field, he has great hands and Brady already seems to have built a connection with him. Conversely, preseason All-Stars Kenbrell Thompkins (4 catches, 42 yards; 14 targets) and Zach Sudfeld (0 catches, 1 target) looked like the undrafted rookies they are rather than the preseason standouts that everyone went overboard praising.

Bills rookie quarterback E.J. Manuel (18 of 27, 150 yards, 2 TDs) was predictably up and down. He showed the ability to run (19-yard carry) and sling it (witness the beautiful 18-yard TD pass to Stevie Johnson) but he also lacked touch on some of his easier throws.

Bigger picture, three of New England's obvious storylines coming into this season only got further muddled: 1) their defense got no pass rush (0 sacks, 4 QB hits); 2) Stevan Ridley (2 fumbles, 1 lost) has a case of fumbilitis that might be fatal; 3) outside of Amendola, who can Brady confidently throw to?

Julian Edelman (7 catches, 79 yards, 2 TDs) and Shane Vereen (101 yards rushing; 58 yards receiving) were the unexpected (but not really) workhorses for the Patriots. New England's defense looked solid (albeit against the Bills and a rookie QB that nobody fears), it's not a leap to say they only really gave up seven points since the Bills got a 74-yard fumble return for a TD by Da'Norris Searcy and a gift interception (off Sudfeld's stone hands) that set them up with a short field for another 18-yard touchdown pass-this time to rookie Robert Woods. Jerod Mayo had 15 tackles (12 solo) and Kyle Arrington forced two fumbles that were recovered by Tommy Kelly and Rob Ninkovich respectively.

To state the obvious: Brady really missed Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. The good news is that the former should be back in a few weeks when the competition ramps up (sorry Jets and Bucs). Amendola's groin injury is a worry heading into Thursday's (8:25, NFL Network) home opener vs. Jets (1-0). Playing two divisional games on such a short schedule to begin the season seems cruel but I'm not Adrian Gonzalez so I won't complain.

The Jets should be 0-1 but thanks to an all-time bonehead penalty, they were able to kick a last-second field goal of their own for an 18-17 win vs. Buccaneers that they didn't deserve. Oh well, the Pats will face another rookie quarterback-Geno Smith-who started his pro career by going 24 of 38 for 256 yards, one touchdown, one interception and 47 yards rushing. The Patriots and Bills won't cross paths again until Week 17 at Gillette Stadium, you know by then that Buffalo will be playing for nothing but pride and a high draft pick.

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