Pats Blank The Hapless Falcons 25-0 On Thursday Night Football For Their Fifth Straight Win

 

    It is going to take much more than a short week and an overmatched opponent to slow down the red hot Patriots (7-4 overall, 5-0 away) at the moment. Tonight they went to the Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA and they picked up the 13th shutout in head coach Bill Belichick's tenure in New England with a pretty easy 25-0 victory over the falling apart Falcons (4-6 overall, 1-4 home). This was a very dominant performance by the Pats defense as they held shorthanded Atlanta to 165 total yards and just 11 first downs while they picked off Matt Ryan (19-of-28 for 153 yards, 2 INT), Josh Rosen (remember him!?) and the immortal Feleipe Franks a total of four times and they also sacked Ryan four times. Patriots linebacker Matthew Judon added another sack and he has already reached double-digits and a new career-high (10-5) with six games left to go in the regular season. New England's reward for a job well done is an extended break before Thanksgiving and then their schedule gets way harder down the stretch.

    Aside from linebacker Kyle Van Noy (8 tackles, 5 solo, 2 sacks, pick-6), the best player for the Patriots this evening was kicker Nick Folk (minus that missed PAT in garbage time). Folk started the scoring with his easiest kick of the night-a 32-yard field goal in the first quarter. New England took a 10-0 lead in the second quarter as rookie quarterback Mac Jones (22-of-26 for 207 yards, TD, INT) hit wide receiver Nelson Agholor for a 19-yard catch and run touchdown where he was never even touched by a Falcons defender. Folk's point after made it 10-0 and he added a 44-yard field goal as time ran out in the first half. With no Falcons No. 1 wide receiver Calvin Ridley nor former Patriots great Cordarrelle Patterson in the lineup, the 13-0 advantage by the road team felt like twice that much if not more. 

    This being Thursday Night Football, the second half was a complete bore featuring no points in the third quarter and two additional field goals by Folk to start the final frame (from a season-long 53 yards and 33 yards). Lastly, Van Noy added the laugh track with a 35-yard interception return for a score against Rosen who will probably be out of the league any minute now. Safety Devin McCourty and cornerback J.C. Jackson had earlier picked off Ryan and safety Adrian Phillips made a sweet diving interception on rookie Feleipe Franks who had only one pass attempt. Yeesh. That marked the first time in the NFL since the Chargers way back in 2000 when three QBs on the same team threw INTs in the same game. 

    The next two matchups on the schedule should be the hardest for the Pats in the 2021 regular season: they host the Titans (8-2) a week from Sunday (1, CBS) at Gillette Stadium before going to Buffalo (6-3) for Monday Night Football (8:15, ESPN) on Dec. 6 and their first meeting with the Bills in this campaign. Most would say that those are the two best teams in the AFC so facing them in back-to-back weeks should be a daunting task. Still, after they started this year 2-4, who would have believed that the Patriots could even be in this position? They are clearly a playoff team that should be fighting for an AFC East division title and homefield advantage. How they do in the next few contests will tell us what we can reasonably expect in the postseason this winter.

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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Patriots' Solid Road Win Tainted By Wilfork's Injury

Well tonight the Patriots ran into their first legitimate opponent of the 2013 regular season and you have to admit that they passed the initial test with a 30-23 win against the Falcons at the Georgia Dome in Sunday Night Football. New England (4-0 overall, 2-0 away) would be the first to admit that they should have won much more comfortably (they led 30-13 in the fourth quarter) since the Falcons (1-3 overall, 1-1 home) had a chance to tie it at the end after recovering an onside kick but Matt Ryan's (34 of 54 for 421 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) fourth down pass for Roddy White in the end zone was deflected away by Aqib Talib.

For what it's worth, the last two times the Pats started 4-0 was in 2004 and 2007: both years ended in the Super Bowl (a win and loss respectively). However before we start dreaming of the Super Bowl this season, it's likely that we'll wake up to the sobering reality that Vince Wilfork is out for the rest of the season with a torn Achilles (reported by Boston Globe's Shalise Manza Young and ESPN Boston's Mike Reiss). It happened in the first quarter on a seemingly innocent play but with such a big body sometimes it's tough to tell the severity of an injury. When he got carted off then never returned, you knew it was bad because he never misses action. The Pats could survive without Wilfork since truth be told he plays a rather outdated position in today's pass-first, second and third NFL but he is unquestionably one of their best players, a captain and leader. Let's hope the early reports are somehow wrong.

Tonight's victory was a throwback to the happier times with the Patriots (the Super Bowl years) when nobodies picked up during the week or languishing on the bench turn in huge plays. Which was your favorite: Matthew Mulligan's (6th team in 6 years) first catch for New England (a 1-yard touchdown), undrafted rookie Joe Vellano replaces Wilfork and has a sack or Michael Buchanan (a 7th round pick) who also recorded a sack? I'm not even including Kenbrell Thompkins (6 catches, 127 yards, 18-yard TD catch) since by now we all know his story and importance to this team. Oh and LeGarrette Blount who nobody thought should make the final roster, had a 47-yard touchdown run. Haha it was that kind of night.

The Falcons proved to be the Texans or Chargers of the NFC: a talented team that plays too conservatively (Houston) or is prone to make the brutal mistake in a big spot (San Diego). In the first half they passed up an easy field goal only to get stuffed on fourth down when it was obvious points would be at a premium in this contest. Talib picked off Ryan for his NFL-leading fourth interception of the season that sent the fraud Atlanta fans home early.

No Steven Jackson meant little in the way of a running game for the Falcons. Tony Gonzalez (12 catches, 149 yards, 2 TDs) looked like the greatest tight end who ever lived but that probably isn't far off from the truth. Julio Jones (6 catches, 108 yards) was the focus of Talib and New England's defense so he only showed up in pseudo-garbage time with a miraculous 49-yard grab.

It is always a good day or night as it were for kickers indoors: Matt Bryant and Stephen Gostkowski each had three field goals with New England's kicker booming a 48-yard and 49-yard kick. Tom Brady (20 of 31 for 316 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs, 1 fumble) started off slow with only nine passing attempts in the first half but the Pats adjusted from a power running gameplan to more of a passing attack led by Thompkins and Julian Edelman (7 catches, 118 yards) in the second half except for Blount's long run.

The Pats survived another week without Danny Amendola (anybody seen him by the way?) and Rob Gronkowski. Next Sunday's game (1, CBS) at Cincinnati (2-2) doesn't seem as tough after the Bengals lost 17-6 today in Cleveland to Brian Hoyer and the Browns. Of course the NFL taught us long ago not to make too much out of one week (win or lose). New England is happy to be one of the six remaining unbeaten teams left in the league (5 after Monday Night Football) after a tricky road win against a desperate squad.

UPDATE 10/1: As I predicted, today the Pats resigned cornerback Marquice Cole and safety Kanorris Davis (who was signed off the practice squad on Saturday then released yesterday). I bet Davis is back on the practice squad as soon as tomorrow.

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The one where Patriots discover a running game

The New England Patriots came into yesterday's game with the Falcons facing as much adversity as they've had since they started winning Super Bowls. The roster is in flux, the offense can't score in the red zone and who will make plays on defense?

Those are just a few of the questions facing the 2009 Patriots but yesterday they proved that they're still pretty good and the Falcons (2-1) were a tad overrated.

On a rainy, miserable day at Gillette Stadium, the Pats (2-1) had the ball for 39 minutes, en route to a 26-10 win. The red zone deficiency is still their biggest issue as they went 1-for-5 but at least they discovered a running game.

Fred Taylor had 105 yards on 21 carries and a touchdown. Playing without Wes Welker again, Tom Brady still didn't look like himself but he finished 25-of-42 for 277 yards and a touchdown.

Without Welker in the lineup, Randy Moss has become more of a short, possession receiver, as opposed to his normal deep threat. Straight Cash Homey had 10 catches for 116 yards.

Through the first three games, New England's defense has been the most pleasant surprise. They completely shut down a very good Atlanta offense. Matt Ryan was 17-of-28 for 199 yards but no touchdowns. Michael Turner was held to 56 yards rushing while Roddy White (24 yards) and Tony Gonzalez (16 yards) were neutralized by our no-name secondary.

Jason Elam (26 yards) and Stephen Gostowski (21 yards) traded field goals in the first quarter.

Taylor gave New England a 10-3 lead in the second quarter with an 8-yard run up the gut. Belichick's plan to control Atlanta's offense was simply to not let them have the ball. The Pats failed for the most part in the red zone but the fact that they were there so many times showed how long they possessed the ball.

Turner tied it later in the second quarter with a two-yard run. Gostkowski's 33-yard kick with 20 seconds left in the first half gave the Pats a 13-10 lead.

Another Gostkowski kick (22 yards) was the only scoring in the third quarter and he opened the fourth with another boot (33 yards).

After they showed him on the bench pissed off earlier, Brady was much happy in the fourth quarter when he connected with tight end Chris Baker on a 36-yard catch and run for a touchdown.

Ryan and the Falcons offense could never get anything going and the Pats had a nice win. New England was a perfect 3-for-3 on fourth downs, including a conversion on fourth and inches at their own 24 in the third quarter.

Vince Wilfork left in the second quarter with an ankle injury but New England's D didn't seem to skip a beat. They forced a fumble by Michael Turner which James Sanders recovered.

It's still hard to tell how good this team is but facing the Baltimore Ravens-arguably the top team in the NFL-next Sunday at Gillette should bring some immediate feedback.

The Ravens are 3-0 and finally have some offense to go with that ridiculous defense. Joe Flacco is throwing it all over the field, they have a bunch of good running backs and Ray Lewis is still murdering people/dancing up a storm. Should be a good one.

The Most Meaningless Streak in College Football Continues

With a 24-21 win over Michigan State yesterday in the Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando, FL, Boston College has now won eight bowl games in a row, the longest streak in the country. That streak much like BC football is a joke.

When you look a little closer at the eight bowls, you'll realize there weren't any BCS games and none fell on New Years Day or later. In other words, the Eagles (11-3) have been beating up on garbage teams exactly like Michigan State (7-6) for the last eight seasons.

The Spartans had five players suspended going into the game and it's not like they were LSU to begin with. Michigan State was 3-5 in the Big Ten this season which tied them with three other pathetic teams (Purdue, Indiana, Northwestern) at the bottom, only ahead of winless Minnesota (1-11, 0-8). But I digress.

This game played out pretty much exactly as you'd expect. It was mostly a slop-fest as both teams hadn't played since Nov. 17 (MSU against Penn State) and Dec. 1 (BC against V-Tech in the ACC Championship) respectively. It goes against all reason that almost any bowl will be exciting after teams sit for so long after the season, making the play more choppy and players more susceptible to injuries.

Michigan State went up 7-0 early but BC answered with a touchdown pass from Matt Ryan to backup tight end Jon Loyte. Another Ryan TD pass-to WR Rich Gunnell-in the second quarter gave the Eagles a 14-10 halftime advantage.

The teams traded field goals in the third quarter and then fittingly the fourth quarter was the most exciting as BC seemed to put the game away before Michigan State came back but ultimately choked. Gunnell (6 catches, 138 yards) hauled in another TD pass (this one 68-yards) putting the Eagles up 24-13.

Michigan State scored on a ridiculous rollout, a 14-yard pass from QB Brian Hoyer to receiver Deon Curry. Hoyer hit tight end Kellen Davis for the two-point conversion and Sparty was in business, down only three with plenty of time and all the momentum on their side.

Their defense got the ball back but Hoyer had one last mistake in a game that was filled with them. He forced a ball down the sideline that was picked off by BC safety Paul Anderson. Game over, your 2007 Champs Sports Bowl Champions, the Boston College Eagles!

BC was led by their two best players, seniors who were playing in their last games for the Eagles. Ryan was 22 of 47 for 249 yards for three touchdowns and one interception. Strong Safety Jamie Silva had eight tackles and two picks, both in the first half, to earn the game MVP honors.

Hoyer was a horrid 14 of 36 for 131 yards with two touchdowns and four interceptions. Michigan State had 13 turnovers all season yet had five yesterday.

Let's never speak of BC football, this terrible bowl game or the stupid streak until next September. Deal?

Frauds no more

Stop me if you've heard this before: an overrated Boston College football team, loses an important late-season game that it had to have. Their season goes down the tube as they are relegated to a garbage bowl before New Year's in Podunk, USA. Well the script looked to be eerily similar until Matt Ryan and the Eagles woke up just in time last night, stunning host Virginia Tech 14-10 in a rain-soaked Lane Stadium.

BC was down 7-0 at halftime (after a controverisal Hokie touchdown; no way Royal got a foot down even though they reviewed it and it still stood). After a third-quarter field goal, the Hokies carried a 10-0 lead into the fourth quarter. Ryan had probably the worst half of football in his college career: 9-for-21 for 54 yards.


When he threw a pick with a little over six minutes left in the fourth quarter, his Heisman campaign looked dead while BC's BCS hopes were gone as well. Ryan and Co. responded though. They went 92 yards in 9 plays for the first TD, ending with a 16-yard toss to WR Rich Gunnell. Luck was on the Eagles side on the next play as they rolled the dice and hit an onside kick. A Hokie touched it but it deflected right to BC. The Eagles calmly went 66 yards in 7 plays for the clinching score. On the winning touchdown, Ryan did something he had done twice earlier on the drive. He basically ran around the pocket to buy time before delivering a pass to running back Andre Callender. The throw was something that'll be replayed a million times this season and beyond. Ryan threw across his body (all arm as the commentators said) and just put enough on it to get it beyond multiple Tech defenders to Callender, who was uncovered in the back of the end zone. The play ended with 11 seconds left on the game clock. Wow. Ryan finished a respectable 25-for-52 for 285 yards, 2 TD's and 2 INT's. Florida sophomore QB Tim Tebow is probably still the front-runner but if BC can make it to the BCS Championship, Ryan will be the main reason why and will deserve the hardware.


BC still has to win its last four games but as I've said all along, last night was the biggest one. None of the four remaining teams: Florida State, Maryland, Clemson or Miami are currently ranked nor will they be when the teams meet. The Eagles can still stumble but after last night, who would doubt them this season? Ryan and Coach Jags seem to have that elusive Flutie magic back at the Heights.

Don't Look Now but BC is legit.

As noted in this blog, the Boston College Eagles have a good football team. After the opening win vs. Wake, they've taken care of North Carolina State (37-17 in Boston) with their old coach Tom O'Brien and most recently went down to Georgia Tech and defeated the #15 Yellow Jackets convincingly, 24-10. Did I mention that the rest of the ACC sucks in 2007?

BC will put it on cruise control as its next three games are all at home: Army, UMass and Bowling Green. Not exactly powerhouses. After that, they go to Notre Dame and Virginia Tech. The last four games are vs. Florida State, at Maryland, at Clemson, vs. Miami. Lets not get ahead of ourselves but at the very least BC will be 6-0 in a few weeks. Notre Dame is just awful so 7-0 is pretty likely as well. The thursday night game at Tech will be hard but the Hokies are looking vulnerable since they now start a freshman QB and have a pretty bad offense. Florida State, Maryland and Miami all have talent but as teams they're nothing special. That leaves Clemson. Circle it on your calendars SuperFans: BC at Clemson, Nov. 17. Should be a good one. BC will have to go into a tough environment and get a road win, in all likelihood the game will decide, who wins the Atlantic Division of the ACC. In a scheduling quirk, BC is already 3-0 in conference while only Virginia (in the Coastal Division) has played more than one game (two).

BC has everything in its hands. They've opened up the season playing well in a down year for the ACC as a whole. They have a legitimate Heisman candidate (quarterback Matt Ryan) and enough playmakers on both sides of the ball to win the ACC. And keep this in mind: Wake Forest won it last year, really. The key for the Eagles will be not to choke like they seem to always do in the late season, winnable game. Off the top of my head, I can think of a few recent late season games (home to Syracuse and at Miami) where BC has simply choked when a win would have put them in a conference championship game. BC finds itself sitting at #12 in the USA Today Poll and #14 in the AP Poll. Heady times for the Eagles no doubt but if everything goes as planned, they should continue to climb the polls as the weeks go on.