The Patriots Steamrolled The Hapless Jaguars 50-10 & Clinched A Playoff Spot In The Process

 

    While I take little joy in beating up on one of the worst franchises in American sports, the Patriots (10-6 overall, 4-5 home) desperately needed a win after two tough losses in a row against the Colts (9-7) and Bills (10-6) in the last few weeks. Enter the lambs known as the Jaguars (2-14 overall, 0-8 away) who came to Gillette Stadium this afternoon and got crushed 50-10 by the Pats. With the win, New England clinched a playoff spot and kept alive their faint hopes for a division title. This is the first regular season with 17 games and the Patriots will end the campaign next Sunday afternoon (4:25, CBS) in Miami (8-8) against the Dolphins who were elminated from playoff contention today following a 34-3 drubbing by the Titans (11-5)-who are back on top of the AFC. Buffalo hosts the Jets (4-12) which means it is unlikely that New York will pull off the upset, then again the Jags beat the Bills earlier this season so I guess we can't take almost anything for granted these days in the NFL.

    Seeing No. 1 overall pick rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence (17-of-27 for 193 yards, TD, 3 INTs) look like a puddle was a powerful reminder how much it is all about fit and the situation that you are in when it comes to the NFL. How much better would Lawrence be with the Pats? We'll never know but for now, we feel happy that we have rookie quarterback Mac Jones (22-of-30 for 227 yards, 3 TDs) on our side. New England also has perhaps the best 1-2 combination of running backs in the NFL as rookie Rhamondre Stevenson (19 carries, 107 yards, 2 TDs) and Damien Harris (2 TDs) combined for four touchdowns. This being the Pats, of course we also have to talk about an undrafted rookie wide receiver-Kristian Wilkerson-who made his NFL debut and caught not one but two touchdowns while fellow receiver N'Keal "Bust" Harry was a healthy scratch. 

    New England's top two wide receivers Kendrick Bourne (5 catches, 76 yards) and Jakobi Meyers (8 catches, 73 yards, TD) also had nice performances while cornerbacks Myles Bryant and J.C. Jackson along with safety Kyle Dugger each recorded an interception. Like a homecoming game in college football, this one was never remotely competitive. The Patriots were up 7-3 after the first quarter but that became 28-3 at halftime following three touchdowns by the home team in the second quarter. The Pats tacked on 13 more points in the third quarter and they cruised in the last frame by adding nine more points before Jacksonville scored the most garbage time of touchdowns-a 28-yard catch-and-run by running back Dare Ogunbowale-that along with Matthew Wright's PAT cut New England's lead down to 50-10. 

    After three rushing touchdowns last week, Harris fittingly notched the first score in this lopsided contest: a two-yard touchdown run in the first quarter and kicker Nick Folk added a point after to make it 7-0. The Jags settled for a 29-yard field goal by Wright later in the first quarter. It only took until the second quarter for Jacksonville to look like they didn't want to be there anymore in the cold rain and fog of Foxborough in January. In a little under 11 minutes of game time, New England scored three touchdowns to effectively put it out of reach before halftime. Harris notched a seven-yard touchdown run, Wilkerson caught a six-yard touchdown (his 1st as a pro) and Meyers grabbed a four-yard touchdown with Folk adding three point afters for that 28-3 lead.

    In the third quarter, Wilkerson was left wide open and he caught a 20-yard touchdown (Folk's extra point was blocked) before Stevenson punched in a one-yard touchdown run (Folk's point after was good) after Dugger returned his interception to the Jacksonville one-yard line. In the fourth quarter, Folk hit a 43-yard field goal and Stevenson recorded a six-yard touchdown run (the two-point run conversion failed). The Alabama duo of rookie defensive lineman Christian Barmore and linebacker Dont'a Hightower both took down Lawrence for a sack apiece. This was your classic get right game for the Patriots and all you can hope is that like earlier in the season after they destroyed the Jets (4-12), New England can use this result as a springboard to bigger and better things. They shouldn't need any extra motivation against Miami who beat them in Week 1 at Gillette.  

Patriots Survive Crapfest 23-16, Mostly Because They Were Playing The Hapless Jaguars

The less time spent talking about this afternoon's brutal 23-16 Patriots win against the Jaguars at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, the better. If you didn't see any or even some of this one, I'm jealous of you. I feel like I need a cold shower to wash away the filth from viewing this.

Patrick Chung's (2 interceptions) interception in the end zone sealed a win that was way closer than it should have been for the Patriots. It is not hyperbole to say that if they were playing pretty much any other team in the NFL than Jacksonville, they would have lost. Oh well, I guess it was the predictable letdown/trap game after primetime matchups with the Texans and Niners in consecutive weeks.

New England (11-4, 6-2 away) spotted the Jaguars a 10-0 lead in the first quarter but after Jacksonville (2-13, 1-7 home) went up 13-3 early in the second quarter, it all went to shit for the team that is currently tied with the Chiefs (2-13) for the worst record in the NFL.

With all the guys that they sat with "injuries" or moved around, it appeared that the Patriots didn't have much interest in winning this game when it kicked off. However, maybe once they realized that Houston was losing (they fell 23-6 to Minnesota), they remembered that they were still able to get the No. 1 or 2 seed in the AFC. Hey, we all lose our minds at some point or another during the holidays.

Former Dolphins great Chad Henne (29 of 51, 348 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs) picked the Patriots apart in the first quarter but he soon regressed to the awful quarterback that he's always been. Conversely, Tom Brady (24 of 41, 267 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs) threw two early interceptions but then he settled down and began to find plenty of holes in Jacksonville's awful defense.

Stevan Ridley (18 carries, 84 yards) ran well after his bobble led to Brady's first interception. Wes Welker (10 catches, 88 yards on 12 targets) was Brady's main target as always while Brandon Lloyd (6 catches, 62 yards on 12 targets) came back to Earth after his huge game vs. San Francisco and Aaron Hernandez (1 catch, 13 yards on 5 targets) was M.I.A. all game. It goes without saying that the Pats really miss Rob Gronkowski and he can't return soon enough, maybe next week?

University of Maine product Montell Owens (77 yards receiving; 42 yards rushing) made the most of his rare start while Jordan Shipley (5 catch, 82 yards on 10 targets) and Justin Blackmon (7 catch, 79 yards on 12 targets) took advantage of a depleted secondary for New England with no Alfonzo Dennard and a banged up Aqib Talib.

Blackmon caught a 3-yard touchdown to give Jacksonville a 7-0 lead and Josh Scobee's 41-yard field goal made it 10-0 in the first quarter. Stephen Gostkowski's 25-yard field goal got New England on the board late in the first quarter.

Scobee added a 35-yard field goal before the Patriots finally woke up. Gostkowski drilled a 49-yard field goal and Brady hit Danny Woodhead with a 14-yard touchdown pass with 18 seconds left in the first half to improbably tie it at 13.

Gostkowski's 38-yard field goal in the third quarter was the only score of the frame as both defenses settled in and each offense sputtered. Welker's 3-yard touchdown catch put New England up by 10 (23-13) and that was just enough for them to hold on. Scobee had a 42-yard field goal but Henne couldn't complete the comeback at the end. Story of his life.

Marquice Cole (6 solo tackles, 2 tackles for loss, pass defensed) had his first interception as a Patriot while Dont'a Hightower (6 tackles, 4 solo, sack, tackle for loss, pass defensed, quarterback hit) had one of his best games of the season. Kyle Arrington (7 solo tackles, tackle for loss) also played well in extended action for him.

The 2012 regular season ends next Sunday with the Patriots hosting the Dolphins (7-8) at Gillette Stadium (4:25 p.m., CBS). New England is currently the No. 3 seed in the AFC but they can move up if either Houston or Denver lose. That's what we have to root for, the Pats could even jump to No. 1 if both lose but that probably won't happen with Denver hosting Kansas City (Texans are at Colts).

The game means plenty so I would expect that almost all the healthy Patriots will play. The difference between a bye and having to play during Wild Card weekend is enormous so they should go all out to ensure that they win. Miami isn't going anywhere and they are not great by any means but they'll make it competitive mostly because their defense is above average.

UPDATE 12/24: The Patriots made a bunch of roster moves involving guys you probably have never heard of. They released fullback James Develin and wide receiver Kamar Aiken from the 53-man roster. They also released wide receiver/punt returner Tony Logan and offensive lineman Jeremiah Warren from the practice squad.

New England also received a one-week exemption for Jermaine Cunningham after his four-game suspension ended yesterday. They have a week to activate him to the roster, which they are expected to do. As it stands now, the Patriots have two open roster spots.

UPDATE 12/25: Aiken and Develin both cleared waivers today, meaning they are now free agents. The Patriots have three open slots on their practice squad and both retain practice squad eligibility so look for at least one of them to stick around Foxborough.

UPDATE 12/26: Today, the Patriots signed three guys to the practice squad: Aiken, Develin and cornerback Cyhl Quarles. You're obviously familiar with Aiken and Develin while Quarles spent two plus weeks on New England's practice squad earlier this season.

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Week 16: Patriots At Jaguars Injury Report

I'm not going to sugarcoat, this is by far the least interesting matchup of the entire 2012 regular season for the Patriots (10-4). Coming off two primetime games against some of the NFL's best teams-Houston and San Francisco-New England is a 14.5 point favorite at Jacksonville (2-12) on Sunday (1 p.m., CBS) and everybody knows they are going to blow out the hapless Jaguars.

For the Pats, it's all about getting a big lead and taking the life out of Jacksonville which shouldn't be too hard at all. Today, the injury report came out with 18 Patriots and two Jaguars listed as questionable. Depending on who you believe (the Boston Globe is No. 1 in my heart), Rob Gronkowski (forearm) will be out along with Jacksonville running backs Maurice Jones-Drew (foot) and his backup Rashad Jennings (concussion).

The New England players that are questionable include Mike Rivera (ankle), Patrick Chung (shoulder), Dan Connolly (back), Alfonzo Dennard (hamstring, knee), Aaron Hernandez (ankle), Dont'a Hightower (hamstring/shoulder), Chandler Jones (ankle), Brandon Lloyd (knee), Kyle Love (knee), Logan Mankins (ankle/calf), Jerod Mayo (elbow), Nick McDonald (shoulder), Nate Solder (abdomen), Brandon Spikes (knee/ankle), Aqib Talib (hip), Sebastian Vollmer (back/knee), Wes Welker (ankle) and Tracy White (elbow).

Jacksonville safety Dwight Lowery (foot) and cornerback Aaron Ross (calf) are 50/50 to suit up for the Jags. Who could blame them from ducking this certain beating? Nobody wants to be hurt around the holidays, that is way too depressing to think about. Almost as much as playing for one of the NFL's most hopeless franchises.

This post will be updated with more information when I hear it on Saturday and Sunday. Until then, let's pretend that all the Patriots' good players will sit in the second half/third quarter. Haha a Patriots blogger/honk can dream right?

UPDATE 12/22: Gronk, Dennard and Spikes didn't make the trip to lovely Jacksonville so they are all definitely out for tomorrow's game. Additionally, wide receiver Kamar Aiken was promoted to the active roster. The Patriots only had 52 active players so they left one spot open, meaning they didn't have to do anything else.

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Five Questions For Pariots-Jaguars

The NFL opens up its preseason schedule tonight with five games on the schedule but fans of Boston Bias know that only one game matters, Patriots-Jaguars tonight at Gillette Stadium (7:30 p.m).

The Pats have many questions headed into the 2011 season and the first game in the preseason is a great chance to see what changes they have made so far in the abbreviated offseason. So without further ado, here are five questions as we look forward to the first game of the preseason.

1. Will Tom Brady Play?

Ordinarily, the answer to this would be an emphatic NO, as the icon does not need the extra reps this early in the preseason. However, thanks to the lockout, Brady and Co. have not had the usual amount of training and playbook installation that they have had in years past. His health notwithstanding, I wouldn't be surprised to see Brady play the first series to finally get some game speed action. Look for Brian Hoyer to get the majority of the playing time, as well as rookie QB Ryan Mallett.

2. 4-3 or 3-4?

With the addition of Albert Haynesworth, Shawn Ellis and others, the Patriots addressed one of their most pressing needs; the defensive line. Last year, their base 3-4 had a hard time getting off the field and the bend but don't break philosophy came back to haunt them on many occasions. The revamped defensive line corps has raised questions about whether or not head coach Bill Belichick has considered switching to the 4-3 defense. In classic Belichickian form, he responded to these questions by saying that it doesn't matter where the players line up, just that they do their job. Still, tonight will give us the first glimpse into Belichick's plans for the much-improved front seven.

3. What about OchoCinco?

Word came out of camp that Ocho had a tough tine catching passes and didn't look as sharp as he normally does. Probably because he thought that he was returning to Cincinnati for another season. Regardless, Ocho will most certainly be with the first unit and it will be interesting to see how he plays alongside Welker, Gronkowski and Hernandez. Will he be that Randy Moss "stretch the field" type wideout or evolve into more of a possession role? I am assuming the latter but we will see tonight.

4. Is Nate Solder ready?

Matt Light will not play today, so for most of us, it will be the first chance to see the Patriots' 2011 first-round draft pick, tackle Nate Solder. With Light locked up for two more years, Solder will be the left tackle of the future. Seeing him play tonight, hopefully with the first unit should give us an early glimpse into the next few years, especially next to Mankins.

5. Who's who in the secondary?

Last season, the Patriots were really hurt by the loss of CB Leigh Bidden but had an amazing rookie campaign from Devin McCourty as well as an impressive showing from Patrick Chung. We still need to see more from Darius Butler and Kyle Arrington however. James Sanders and Brandon Meriweather will be there when the season starts, so look for the secondary to improve with age.

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Where has this team been all season? Patriots win AFC East title

For most of this season, Patriots fans (that are somewhat rational) have been resigned to the fact that yes New England would make the playoffs but they'd probably get bounced in the first round. Bottom line, they weren't going to make any noise.

Well yesterday's events threw a wrench in that depressing blueprint as the Patriots played their best game of the season with a 35-7 win over the Jaguars at Gillette Stadium.

It was the Patriots' (10-5) third straight win and it clinched the AFC East title. Tom Brady (23 for 26, 267 yards) threw four touchdowns passes, three to Randy Moss and Wes Welker had 13 catches for 138 yards.

For the first time all season, New England's running game featured a stable of four healthy backs and they produced a season-high 197 yards rushing.

Still without Vince Wilfork, the defense looked great, making an early fourth-down stop and picking off two errant throws by David Garrard.

New England received the opening kickoff and marched down the field on their best, most creative drive of the year. However, Laurence Maroney fumbled at the 1-yard line and Jacksonville (7-8) recovered.

It seemed like a big deal at the time but on the ensuing Jags drive, head coach Jack Del Rio chose to go for it on fourth and 1 at their own 35-yard line. Maurice Jones-Drew (18 rushes, 63 yards) was stuffed by James Sanders and that was basically the game.

Moss gave the Patriots a 7-0 lead in the first quarter with a 2-yard touchdown catch. New England blitzed Jacksonville with 21 points in the second quarter-one of its best of the season. Forgotten man Chris Baker made a nice 26-yard touchdown catch, Sammy Morris (12 carries, 95 yards) scored on a 1-yard run and Moss caught a 6-yard TD.

Brandon Meriweather picked off Garrard in the first half and returned it 56 yards while Shawn Springs made his first play of the year, an interception in the red zone when New England was still preserving the shutout.

Moss' final score was a 17-yard catch and run where he dove near the end zone and stretched his arm and the ball over the line.

Garrard's two-yard run in the fourth quarter ended the shutout but by that time nobody cared.

Fred Taylor looked good in the fourth quarter, running for 35 yards on 11 carries. Kevin Faulk had 41 yards rushing while Maroney was on the bench for the rest of the game following his fumble.

Jerod Mayo had his best game of the season, making 15 total tackles, 11 solo.

Now the question is how much do you play Brady, Moss, Welker and other key players since next week at Houston doesn't mean much to the Patriots. They're locked in to the third or fourth seed but they will host a Wild Card game.

Bill Belichick hates to rest anybody so who knows how it'll play out. The AFC playoff scenarios are a mess which means there should be a lot of interesting games on the final day of the regular season.

They Don't Call Him MVP for Nothing

In the week leading up to the Jacksonville Jaguars-New England Patriots AFC Divisional Round playoff game, I was reminded how much hype accompanies this time of year. Therefore, I didn't preview the game like I had originally planned. Everywhere you turned/tuned in, you heard a breakdown of the game. There's more than enough pseudo-experts out there, so I'm content just to recap the action.

I can say that this game pretty much played out as any devoted but rational Patriots fan would have expected. New England won 31-20 last night at Gillette but not before the Jaguars gave them their best shot.

By taking what the Jaguars gave him (mostly short stuff, to the backs and underneath to the receivers), Tom Brady completed 26 of his 28 passes (an NFL playoff record) for 262 yards three touchdowns and no interceptions.

The Jaguars gameplan was clearly to limit the deep ball and Randy Moss. In both cases, they were pretty successful as they only gave up two long passes (53 yards to Donte' Stallworth and 33 yards to Laurence Maroney) which were catch and runs and Moss was limited to one catch for 14 yards.

The main problems for the Jags were that the Patriots have many more weapons outside of Moss and also Jacksonville's offense while good, simply couldn't match the points that New England can put up in a hurry.

Jacksonville had the best possible start as they took the opening kick and drove 80 yards in nine plays for a touchdown. The Jaguars were playing to win as they converted a fourth-and-one when David Garrard (22 of 33, 278 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception) completed a 34-yard pass to tight end Marcedes Lewis (4 catches, 74 yards). Even crazier than that was the scoring play where Garrard was being pulled down by Mike Vrabel but was still able to find Matt Jones in the end zone for a 8-yard score.

New England answered with a 10 play, 74 yard scoring drive, capped off by a 3-yard fastball from Brady to Ben Watson.

Garrard made two costly mistakes in the game. The first was late in the opening quarter when he fumbled after Ty Warren hit him. Vrabel fell on it and the Pats had a short field. Maroney (22 carries, 122 yards) plunged in from a yard out to put New England up 14-7 early in the second.

Proving they were legit, Jacksonville responded with an 11 play, 95 yard drive, finished off when Garrard found Ernest Wilford on a perfect 6-yard touchdown pass. The throw was beautiful as he put it in the corner of the end zone, away from Asante Samuel and where only Wilford could grab it.

The Pats had a chance to take the lead but Stephen Gostowski missed a 35-yard field goal so the teams headed into halftime tied at 14.

The 11 play, 82 yard drive that the Pats had to open the third quarter was great and they finished it off in style as Brady found Wes Welker (9 catches, 54 yards; 1 rush, 13 yards) in the back of the end zone after a statue of liberty play. It was reminiscent of Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl last season as Brady faked the handoff to Kevin Faulk (5 catches, 36 yards), spun around with the ball behind his back then threw a laser to an open Welker.

The king of second half adjustments, Bill Belichick's team only allowed six points in the second half as Jacksonville had field goals in the third and fourth quarter.

Another Watson TD, this one from 9-yards put the Pats up 28-17 late in the third. The teams traded field goals in the fourth and New England effectively sealed it when Rodney Harrison picked off Garrard.

The Jaguars second-best rushing attack in the league never really got started. Fred Taylor (13 rushes, 47 yards), the dynamic Maurice Jones-Drew (6 carries, 19 yards; 6 catches, 49 yards) and Garrard (3 rushes, 14 yards) were stuck in neutral most of the night.

The Patriots M.O. for the last seven years has been taking away teams favored offensive style and making opponents beat them with other guys or doing things they're not as good at. Mission accomplished once again.

Brady spread it around to eight different receivers and even more impressive, the Patriots never turned it over. Jacksonville played a pretty nice game but by now it's obvious that if you want to beat New England this season, you have to be flawless in every facet of the game.

Junior Seau played like a man possessed as he had a team-high 10 tackles. James Sanders added nine while Randall Gay, Harrison and Tedy Bruschi all had seven in the win. Jaguars linebacker Daryl Smith had a game-high 14 tackles in a losing effort.

The Patriots now await the winner of the Colts-Chargers game. Regardless of that outcome, New England will host the AFC Championship next Sunday afternoon at Gillette. Two more wins and the Patriots will be 19-0, the greatest team in NFL history.