Welcome To The AFC East: Where Everybody Is 3-3 After 6 Mediocre Weeks In 2012

Do you remember when the Patriots could put teams away when they had a comfortable lead? Can you recall a New England defense that made timely stops? Finally, what has happened to Tom Brady (36 of career-high 58, 395 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs) who used to be one of the most clutch athletes in sports history?

We are left with all these unanswered questions after yet another unexpected loss by the Patriots (3-3, 2-2 away) to an inferior team. In this case, the Seahawks (4-2, 3-0 home) benefited this afternoon from all of New England's mistakes in a 24-23 win by Seattle at rain-soaked CenturyLink Field.

The funny thing is that the Patriots' three losses so far this season are by a combined four points. That means two things: they've been in every game and they simply don't know how to close out a win against a decent opponent anymore. New England led 23-10 with 9:21 left in the fourth quarter but apparently, that's exactly where Seahawks rookie quarterback Russell Wilson (16 of 27, 293 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INT) and his awful receivers wanted them.

Former Jets great Braylon Edwards cut it to 23-17 with a 10-yard touchdown catch with 7:21 left in the fourth quarter. Sidney Rice (3 catches, 81 yards) had the winning score, a 46-yard touchdown catch with 1:18 remaining. The Patriots bungled two chances to get a bigger lead between Seattle scores there but they were forced to punt both times. That's not even as bad as their bungled possession at the end of the first half that ended with Brady's intentional grounding penalty so a 10-second run off and no points. Brady had another intentional grounding called in the fourth quarter, what's with that (remember the last Super Bowl)?

He was off his game, especially in the second half. Brady badly underthrew a deep ball to Deion Branch (and why look for him in that spot?) in the third quarter which led to Richard Sherman's interception. Then he forced a pass to Wes Welker (10 catches, 138 yards, TD) in the fourth quarter and it deflected for Earl Thomas who picked it off.

After running the ball so well in the first five games, the Patriots seemed to leave that part of their team at home. Stevan Ridley, Brandon Bolden (who left with a knee injury) and Danny Woodhead combined for 87 yards rushing. The lack of a dependable running game really killed them at the end since they were forced to pass on every down which played into the top defense in the NFL's hands.

This game unfolded eerily similar to the loss at Baltimore in Week 3. In the same manner, the Patriots built up a lead after playing well on both sides of the ball then everybody (including the coaches) had a complete meltdown where everything went wrong.

Needham and Middlebury's Steven Hauschka gave Seattle a 3-0 lead with a 34-yard field goal. Welker answered with his second touchdown in as many games. He went 46 yards in the first quarter for a 7-3 advantage. Doug Baldwin (2 catches, 74) ensured that Kyle Arrington would see extended time on the bench in the second half with a 24-yard touchdown catch late in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, Aaron Hernandez returned and made an impact with a 1-yard touchdown catch on a beautiful fade pass by Brady to the corner of the end zone. Gostkowski's 25-yard field goal made it 17-10 in favor of the Patriots but as I said before, it should have been more.

The only points of the third quarter came on Gostkowski's 35-yard field goal that extended the lead to 23-10. Brandon Lloyd (6 catches, 80 yards) and Rob Gronkowski (6 catches, 61 yards) had decent performanecs but I'd love to see them get more cracks in the red zone. Chandler Jones (9 tackles, 4 solo, 2 sacks, 3 quarterback hits, forced fumble) was a beast as usual.

As pathetic as this loss was, to a team that the Patriots normally should wipe the floor with, they still have no chance to lose the AFC East to the assorted cupcakes around them. More importantly, they will look to get back on track as they host the Jets (3-3) on Sunday afternoon (4:25 p.m., CBS) at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots will have to put another disappointing loss behind them as they try to put together the first full 60 minute effort of the season.

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Week 6 Patriots-Seahawks Injury Report

Only a day and a half left before the New England Patriots (3-2) take on the Seattle Seahawks (3-2) at CenturyLink Field Sunday afternoon (4:05 p.m. ET, CBS). Today, the injury report shed some light on who we should expect to see or not see in action.

The Patriots have two guys already out: safety Steve Gregory (hip) for the second straight week and linebacker Tracy White (foot) who left last week's game against the Broncos with an injury. The Seahawks will be missing defensive tackle Jaye Howard (foot) and guard John Moffitt (knee).

As always, New England is taking advantage of the questionable label by putting a whopping 14 guys with that designation. Running back Brandon Bolden (knee), defensive end Brandon Deaderick (ankle), wide receivers Julian Edelman (hand) and Wes Welker (ankle), defensive tackle Justin Francis (ankle), tight ends Rob Gronkowski (hip), Aaron Hernandez (ankle) and Michael Hoomanawanui (concussion), linebacker Dont'a Hightower (hamstring), guard Logan Mankins (calf), center Nick McDonald (shoulder), cornerback Sterling Moore (knee), running back Shane Vereen (foot) and offensive tackle Sebastian Vollmer (back) are all 50/50 wink wink, nudge nudge.

Deaderick and Francis haven't played at all while Hightower missed last week. I'd say Dont'a along with Hernandez (out since Week 2) are the two names to watch out for since they are very important players that we know have legitimately been hurt.

For Seattle, defensive tackle Clinton McDonald (groin) is doubtful but he's the only other Seahawk that is expected to miss the game.

Stay tuned tomorrow and on Sunday as we find out who else will be on the sidelines.

UPDATE 10/14: Hightower and Edelman have been ruled out. The Boston Globe reports that Hernandez is expected to play but in a limited role so don't hold your breath for a big performance. Also, I wouldn't start him in fantasy football but that's just me.

The three other Patriots out today are defensive end Jake Bequette, center Matt Tennant and Hoomanawanui.

The Seahawks out are wide receiver Charly Martin, strong safety Winston Guy, cornerback Danny Gorrer, cornerback Jeremy Lane and McDonald.

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Happy Retirement To Kevin Faulk, A True Patriots Icon

In a move that has been expected for some time, the Patriots announced today that Kevin Faulk will officially retire tomorrow morning after spending his entire career (13 seasons) in New England.

If you are a Pats fan, we have been lucky enough to have countless incredible players walk through Foxboro Stadium and Gillette Stadium in the last 15 years but Faulk will always rank high on that list for a few immeasurable qualities: being a winner, versatility, making clutch plays, dependability and getting the most out of his talent.

A second-round pick (46th overall) out of LSU by New England in 1999, Faulk quickly established himself and hung around long enough to win three Super Bowl rings while also being on teams that lost two others (he was on the roster but didn't suit up in February vs. the Giants). He retires as the Patriots' all-time leader in all-purpose yards (12,349) and return yards (5041). His best two seasons were 2000 (570 yards rushing, 4 TDs; 465 yards receiving, TD; 816 kick return yards) and 2003 (638 yards rushing, 440 yards receiving). For his career, he scored 33 touchdowns (16 rushing, 15 receiving, 2 kickoff returns).

After tearing his ACL two games into 2010, Faulk worked diligently to return last season but he only appeared in seven games. He was a free agent last offseason but he only wanted to return to New England. When the summer came and went with him still sitting on his couch, we could all read the writing on the wall.

In this age of Fantasy Football and crazy stats, Faulk's numbers (other than the ones I just said) won't wow you. However, if you remember how many big 3rd down conversions he made year after year, it's easy to recall what an important part of the team he always was for head coach Bill Belichick. He was Darren Sproles before we knew that Darren Sproles existed. He also basically invented a position-3rd down running back-with his ability to catch passes out of the backfield and block. Fittingly, Belichick and owner Bob Kraft will both speak tomorrow morning (10:30 a.m., the Hall at Patriot Place) at the retirement ceremony.

Maybe it was because he was undersized (5-foot-9) for an NFL running back or had a taste for the good life (caught smoking weed at a Lil' Wayne concert in his native Louisiana) but I feel like in various ways we could all relate to Faulk. He was a great teammate and a standup guy that wouldn't hide from the media no matter what the outcome. For all the wonderful memories, we say thanks Kevin! Good luck with the next phase of your life, whatever that may entail.

Here is a higlight reel of Kevin Faulk that I found on YouTube, enjoy.


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Patriots Get Up Big (31-7), Hang On For 31-21 Win Vs. Peyton & The Broncos

The bottom line is that Tom Brady and the Patriots improved to 9-4 all-time against Peyton Manning. New England (3-2, 1-1 home) beat his new team-Denver (2-3, 0-2 away) 31-21 this afternoon at Gillette Stadium in a contest that went from blowout to somewhat of a nail biter thanks to two TDs by the Broncos.

For everything that the Pats did right, building up a 31-7 lead late in the third quarter, they had to sweat it out a bit in the fourth quarter after Stevan Ridley (28 carries, 151 yards, TD) ruined his perfect day with a costly fumble. Thankfully, Willis McGahee (51 rushing yards, 51 receiving yards) was in a giving mood as well, Rob Ninkovich forced his second fumble of the game and Jermaine Cunningham fell on it to wrap it up.

Manning (31 of 44, 345 passing yards, 3 TDs, 0 INT) and Brady (23 of 31, 223 passing yards, 1 TD, 0 INT) had solid performances but Denver overshadowed it with three costly fumbles and New England put up 251 rushing yards as a team. When's the last time the Patriots had more rushing yards than passing yards in a game?

Brandon Bolden (54 yards rushing) and Danny Woodhead (47 rushing yards, 25 receiving yards) were sprinkled into the playcalling wisely by Josh McDaniels. Wes Welker (13 catches, 104 yards, TD) scored his first touchdown of the season with his mortal enemy Julian Edelman still sidelined with a hand injury.

Demaryius Thomas (9 catches, 188 yards) is a beast and Peyton is helping him become one of the NFL's top receivers but he needs to cut down on his fumbles. Today's fumble after a 43-yard catch and run was his third consecutive game with a fumble. Props though to Patriots cornerback Sterling Moore who chased him down (after getting beaten deep), knocking it loose then recovering it.

The other fumble was from Manning and Vince Wilfork recovered it after Ninkovich drilled Peyton. Jerod Mayo (13 tackles, sack) also played well for the Patriots defense that was superb, until the last quarter or so. Broncos linebacker Von Miller had eight tackles, two sacks, five tackles for loss and a pass deflection.

Welker's 8-yard touchdown catch were the only points of the first quarter. Denver tied it at seven early in the second quarter after Devin McCourty's standard pass interference (not turning his head at all) penalty put the ball on the 1-yard line. Joel Dreessen caught the 1-yard score from Manning.

Of course with all the weapons New England possesses in the running game at the moment, Shane Vereen would be the one to get a 1-yard rushing touchdown in the second quarter that made it 14-7. It was his only touch of the game and first score of the season. The Pats could have gone up two touchdowns heading into halftime but they were stuffed twice on runs at the goalline and had to settle for a 23-yard field goal by Stephen Gostkowski.

In the third quarter, Brady got in on the fun with a 1-yard sneak and Ridley's touchdown had everybody thinking about the two Patriots blowouts vs the Broncos last season. If nothing else, Peyton is not Tim Tebow which means Denver still had some hope to rally. Eric Decker made an amazing 2-yard touchdown catch late in the third quarter and Brandon Stokley (yes, he's still in the NFL) cut it to 31-21 with a 5-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter.

The Patriots' tour of the NFC West continues on Sunday (4:05 p.m., CBS) with a game at CenturyLink Field against the Seahawks (3-2, 2-0 home). Seattle has a big homefield advantage although we all know they should have lost to the Packers in Week 3's debacle that was the swan song for the replacement refs. Pete Carroll's team doesn't have many weapons on offense and rookie quarterback Russell Wilson has struggled but their defense is legit and their home crowd makes a ton of noise so that game won't be easy by any means.

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Week 5 Patriots-Broncos Injury Report

I'll get right to it, the Broncos (2-2) come to Gillette Stadium on Sunday afternoon (4:25 p.m., CBS) to meet the Patriots (2-2) but only one team really did anything with their injury report this afternoon. Haha care to guess which one?

New England had two players out-safety Steve Gregory (hip) and wide receiver Julian Edelman (hand)-while listing an absurd 12 players as questionable. Denver on the other hand simply said five guys were probable, that's it.

The most intriguing names that are questionable for the Pats include tight end Aaron Hernandez (ankle) who hasn't played in three weeks, linebacker Dont'a Hightower (hamstring) and running back Brandon Bolden (knee). Haha you know Bolden has made it when he's getting the questionable treatment, that's usually reserved for some of the best players on the team. I'm willing to bet New England wouldn't have bothered if he hadn't played so well last Sunday in Buffalo.

The rest of the guys that are questionable: defensive end Brandon Deaderick (ankle), defensive tackle Justin Francis (ankle), tight end Rob Gronkowski (hip), tight end Michael Hoomanawanui (concussion), guard Logan Mankins (calf), center Nick McDonald (shoulder), cornerback Sterling Moore (knee), running back Shane Vereen (foot) and offensive tackle Sebastian Vollmer (back).

I won't worry about Gronk, Mankins or Vollmer since they were all on the injury report last week with the same stuff and each managed to make it on the field against the Bills. The rest of the guys that I didn't specifically point out at the beginning or now aren't too important either way (Deaderick, Francis) or too injury-prone to expect anything from (Vereen) at the moment.

In other Patriots news, Brandon Spikes was hit with a $21,000 fine for unnecessary roughness against the Bills. That came on the play where he leveled Buffalo tight end Scott Chandler up high after one of Devin McCourty's interception returns.

Stay tuned tomorrow and Sunday as I update this with the latest news.

UPDATE 10/7: Inactives for the Patriots include Hernandez, center Matt Tennant, Hightower, Hoomanawanui and defensive end Jake Bequette. The only notable Bronco that's inactive is running back Knowshon Moreno. I haven't heard of any of the other bums that will be out, sorry guys.

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The Only Guys On The Red Sox That Should Show Their Faces In Boston Before April

So after last season's meltdown, I felt the need to review every player that was on the Red Sox' roster when it all ended. After this season's long and slow death, I don't have the patience or desire to recreate that tedious exercise. Instead, I want to identify the small group of players that deserve positive recognition for various reasons. Above all, they mostly overachieved based on whatever small expectations we had for them.

Scott Podsednik-19 runs, 60 hits, 7 doubles, 12 RBIs, 8 stolen bases, .302 batting average, .322 OBP and .352 SLG in 63 games.
When they signed Podsednik off the scrap heap, naturally I laughed thinking that he had nothing left in his washed up body. He proved me wrong and at 36, he can still play in MLB.

Pedro Ciriaco-33 runs, 76 hits, 15 doubles, 19 RBIs, 16 stolen bases, 293 batting average, .315 OBP and .390 SLG, in 76 games.
He was the buzz in Spring Training and amazingly enough, a guy that was released by the Pirates turned out to be a diamond in the rough. It seemed like he always made something happen when he was in the lineup and he'll be a great utility guy off the bench.

Dustin Pedroia-81 runs, 163 runs, 39 doubles, 15 homers, 65 RBIs, 20 stolen bases, .290 batting average, .347 OBP and .449 SLG in 141 games.
Numbers wise, it was about an average season for Pedroia but I mention him since he played the last two games with a broken finger. If there was any doubt, he's still the heart and soul of this team and somebody we can all root for/be proud of.

Will Middlebrooks-34 runs, 77 hits, 14 doubles, 15 homers, 54 RBIs, .288 batting average, .325 OBP and .509 SLG in 75 games.
After tearing it up in Pawtucket, Middlebrooks was called up to Boston in May and promptly took Kevin Youkilis' job. One of the worst moments of this season was when he broke his wrist in Cleveland after getting hit by a pitch. His future seems limitless.

Cody Ross-70 runs, 127 hits, 34 doubles, 22 homers, 81 RBIs, .267 batting average, .326 OBP and .481 SLG in 130 games.
A blueprint of a player that can handle things in Boston. He had a great first season individually with the Red Sox. The rare baseball player that seems to be a good guy while also consistently productive. Any day now, he should get an extension.

Junichi Tazawa-37 appearances, 1 win, 1 loss, 1 save, 5 holds in 44 IP; 0.95 WHIP and 1.43 ERA.
It is hilarious that the player that was a complete afterthought has turned into a better pitcher than the supremely hyped Daisuke Matsuzaka, at this point in their respective careers. He should be a big part of the bullpen moving forward.

Scott Atchison-42 appearances, 2 wins, 1 loss, 5 holds in 51.1 IP; 0.99 WHIP and 1.58 ERA.
Who knows how much longer old man Atchison's bionic arm will stay attached to his body? He was great before his forearm injury but he shocked everyone by returning late in the season. Ride the wave.

Clayton Mortensen-26 appearances, 1 win, 1 loss, 1 hold in 42 IP; 1.21 WHIP and 3.21 ERA.
A mystery man, he was what the Red Sox received from the Rockies for Marco Scutaro. He was the mop-up guy but he proved that he is deserving of a better role than that.

Andrew Miller-53 appearances, 3 wins, 2 losses, 13 holds in 40.1 IP; 1.19 WHIP and 3.35 ERA.
We've all accepted long ago that Miller will never live up to his crazy potential. Still, this season was a step forward for him. He proved to be a capable lefty set-up guy.

Craig Breslow was good after coming over from the Diamondbacks but he only made 23 appearances and Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit 25 homers but he batted .222 with a .288 OBP plus 139 strikeouts in 121 games (yikes!).

Hopefully all these guys find themselves back with the Red Sox next spring, they all earned another chance and proved they were winners amid all the drama and losing.

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Red Sox Waste No Time, Firing Bobby Valentine Less Than A Day After The Season Ended

Well that didn't take long. Haha roughly 14 hours since their regular season officially ended last night in the Bronx, the Red Sox acted swiftly this afternoon to fire manager Bobby Valentine. The funny thing about the move is that it was a foregone conclusion since basically when they signed him to a two-year deal last winter. One of the only interesting parts of this summer was debating who the next Red Sox manager would be and that is no way to live.

I can never recall seeing a coach in professional sports in New England that was more overwhelmed by all the day to day duties of his job. I don't know if it's because the game had completely passed him by, his age or what but this whole entire season was a complete joke and you could never get away from that fact. Every awkward press conference, interview session and shots of him in the dugout made you almost feel bad for Bobby V. That is if he wasn't one of the biggest egomaniacs in the world.

We have to make sure to quell our temporary joy over this move since while it feels good to kick him to the curb, the real question is who GM Ben Cherington, team president Larry Lucchino and owners John Henry and Tom Werner choose next? On the one hand, they literally couldn't pick someone more incompetent or less ready to handle the rigors of a big market, high-pressure team that is undergoing a massive rebuilding project. Then again, if they made that terrible decision last year to hire Valentine, who's to say they won't completely whiff again?

Valentine was an embarrassment to the Red Sox and fans and it would be a waste of all our time to run through the litany of mistakes and head-scratching moves he made in his short stay here. All you have to know is that Boston finished in last place in the AL East for the first time since 1992 and 69-93 was their worst overall record since 1965. It is doubtful that anybody could have wrung much more out of that historically awful team but there is only one way to go now: up in the standings while slowly bringing back interest in the team.

Getting rid of him was only step one in a long process that also has to include bringing in much better players, namely pitchers, and building some semblance of a team. You know, a group of guys with chemistry. Like the A's, Orioles, Reds or Giants to name a few. Look around at the teams left standing in the MLB playoffs this October and you realize how far away the Red Sox were from the playoffs in many aspects.

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