Paul: Chris, New England will not win the Super Bowl! Bank it!
The gauntlet has been thrown down by our good friend Paul. I had to run over to the emergency eye wash upon first seeing the words on my screen, and only by wearing a pair of Blues Brothers sun glasses am I able to safely write this response. The temperature in my house must have risen 15 degrees in the past 3 minutes, and for some reason I can’t feel my right arm. This ‘War on Patriots’ has spilled out into my living room here, and to me it’s a sign of the times. America is eroding from the inside…I’ve contacted Bill O’Reiley about it already, so stay tuned.
First game of the weekend is Redskins at Seahawks. The one guy I’m pulling for in this game was robbed by his receivers last year in a game I’m sure Right Thinker would like to forget. Never in my life had I seen such an example of one unit handing the game away. Hasselbeck owning voodoo dolls of both Bobby Engram and Darrell Jackson wouldn’t surprise me. It pains me to think of that last play where Engram droped it in the end zone…but at the same time it gave me hope, as despite all that had happened, Matt kept his head on straight and kept playing! On a personal note, I’m looking forward to seeing Lofa Tatupu out there.
With all that said, the Redskins aren’t going to put up more than 20 points unless Portis is picking up 4 yard gains consistently on first and second down. Seattle should play two deep with their safeties, and in running situations, bring one of them up and leave one back depending on whether Santana Moss is on the weak or strong side. The gameplan on defense has to be taking away Brunell’s chances going deep. If your front seven can’t keep an opposing running back from rushing for 100 yards at this point in the season without major safety help, your chances of going all the way are slim to begin with.
As for the night game…well,
Jake Plummer is who he is, and the “Patriots D is a lot better than Jake Plummer in January” – Psalms 12:93
Skins are hot! NE isn’t the same team ! 🙂
Chris,
One of your better posts. Good humor and the part about Bill O’Reiley is priceless. At least we can agree on the Pats.
After the weekend Indy lost and the Pats spanked Tampa Bay I was betting 5 bucks the Pats were going back to the Super Bowl. No one would take the bet. Not one.
If Bruschi plays, and is affective, they will win easily. If Bruschi does not play it will be close but I like the odds of Brady out performing Plummer in a close game.
GO PATS!
The one guy I’m pulling for in this game was robbed by his receivers last year in a game I’m sure Right Thinker would like to forget.
What are you talking about? I don’t remember this ever happening!!!
After watching the Redskins/Tampa game I am a little more confident in the Seahawks. If the D.C. team plays like they did last week then Seattle will be moving forward.
Thanks Frodo – – Our front seven: Seymour, Wilfork, Warren, (Green), McGuinest, Bruschi, Vrabel, Colvin – is dominant right now, as it’s been for the past few years come January.
I don’t think people think about this enough…last year, against the Colts (4th highest scoring offense in league history), we had Rodney Harrison, Eugene Wilson (2nd year), Randal Gay (undrafted rookie) and Asante Samuel (2nd year) in the defensive backfield. Troy Brown was the nickel back!!!
So the loss of Harrison signals to the blab-brigade that the tipping point has been reached. Yet the front seven is better now than it was at this point last year, Samuel has made the leap, and Hobbs (starting CB-rookie) looks like he could be a special player.
With Bruschi in the lineup, safety help isn’t needed as much on the run. Wilfork is starting to occupy the center and a guard, Seymour has to be double teamed at all times, leaving opponents tight ends and full backs to deal with our linebackers. Bruschi in particular, can shake a block like no other linebacker I’ve ever seen.
Denver runs a singleback, zone blocking scheme in it’s running game. Their wideouts block well, and in terms of a ‘mastermind’ when it comes to running the ball, Shanahan is the man.
All that said…my father reminded me over and over again as a kid that ‘good pitching beats good hitting’ – – – – football is no exception to that rule.
We did it to Peyton last year with the defensive backfield I listed above, AND NO RICHARD SEYMOUR!
This will be a tough game, but as long as Brady puts points up in the first half, we should be alright. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to play Indy at home…but if that’s what happens, I still like our chances.
RIGHT – Last year’s playoff game where Seattle got bounced. Seahawk receivers droped between 9-12 passes as I remember, with the final one coming as time expired – Engram runs a crossing patern in the endzone, Hasselbeck zips it right into his numbers, and he can’t hang onto it. The game would have been tied at 27 all as I remember it.
The fact that it was against St. Louis was a double whammy, as the two previous games they’d played during the regular season were both classics, both great games…and they should have won and gone on in the playoffs last year.
It wasn’t Holmgren’s fault, surely not Hasselbeck’s fault, not the D’s fault…it was all about the receivers not being able to hold onto the ball.
I see you guys have Joe Jerevicious in the depth chart alongside Engram…and even though Engram droped that last ball, it was really Darrell Jackson that blew it the worst. I’m happy to see him out of the #1 spot on the depth chart.
Right, it should be a great game. The Giants weren’t going anywhere, having sputtered in the second half…so I’m not really scared of the Redskins. The game will come down to execution and turnovers.
I’m expecting an offensive explosion from Alexander and Hasselbeck.
You’re watching this game on Saturday, right?
RIGHT – Last year’s playoff game where Seattle got bounced. Seahawk receivers droped between 9-12 passes as I remember, with the final one coming as time expired – Engram runs a crossing patern in the endzone, Hasselbeck zips it right into his numbers, and he can’t hang onto it. The game would have been tied at 27 all as I remember it.
(hands over eyes) This isn’t real, this isn’t real, this isn’t real, this isn’t real….
Right, it should be a great game. The Giants weren’t going anywhere, having sputtered in the second half…so I’m not really scared of the Redskins. The game will come down to execution and turnovers.
I agree and I think sacking is going to figure in also. Blitz’s for loss of yardage plagued the Hawks for years. That’s how you knew it was a Seahawks game, 3 minutes into the game and Kreig gets sacked followed by a 3rd & 18, followed by a punt. Those were dark days :- )
You’re watching this game on Saturday, right?
I’ll have the game on the TV and on the radio. There will be no labor this Saturday!!!
GAME ON!!! Is Alexander alright? I hope so. I think Seattle is doing what I mentioned with their deep coverage, because that bootleg the Skins ran early, where he was running towards the near side, it was obvious right away that:
1. It was a deep route
2. It was covered
As long as that’s the case, they just need to keep Portis under wraps and not turn over the ball!
Right – on this day, we’re both rooting for the same team…IMAGINE THAT!
I almost blew an artery during that first quarter. Every other play had a Seahawk injured. The second half really showed how Seattle can shine but I thought they were still not playing very well. The Redskins wanted a win bad and it showed but the Hawks did what got them to the playoffs in the first place and that’s all she wrote.
Strong is better than a servicible backup, and he held his own in the second half. Alexander’s injury…while a concusion is never good, it’s not something that will keep him out of next week’s game.
The Seahawks WERE able to contain Portis w/ their front seven…Tatupu is a hell of a player. Hasselbeck was the guy who suprised me to be honest, wasn’t 100% on his game, but his receivers didn’t kill him like they did last year.
Now, Carolina is the best team left for my money, so Seattle’s got the toughest game ahead of them. Denver looked great, but not on offense.
I’ve got to get a conference championship post up.
Hoped you enjoyed that Right – it’s not everyday your MVP runningback goes down and the team rises above it! I’ll be rooting for Seattle the rest of the way, but Carolina looks like the most complete unit right now. Their running game is obscene! Chicago wasn’t that soft during the season…there’s a reason why they looked soft in the game, it was Carolina’s power and execution.
God I love football…brings a tear to my eye, the thought that we’ve only got 3 games left (I never watch the pro-bowl).
Hoped you enjoyed that Right – it’s not everyday your MVP runningback goes down and the team rises above it! I’ll be rooting for Seattle the rest of the way, but Carolina looks like the most complete unit right now.
The Seahawks are a balanced team, finally. Alexander is impressive but I really enjoy the passing game. The Redskins had a great running game and that appeared to be a weakness for the Hawks. If the Hawks can just stop turning over the ball and create some turnovers of their own, I’d be happy. I’d say 3rd down conversions are important to win against Carolina, also.
Their running game is obscene! Chicago wasn’t that soft during the season…there’s a reason why they looked soft in the game, it was Carolina’s power and execution.
The Panters lost thier runnig back during the Bears game so that Smith guy is going to have to step up. That isn’t saying alot since Smith is a huge offrensive weapon in his own right. I’m thinking the Panthers are going to have to take to the air and not rely on the run game.
It’s going to be a tougher game than Washington, but w/ Alexander in the fold, I’ve got high hopes. Could come down to special teams/turnovers.
If Alexander recovers from his concussion by game time then Seattle will have a very even offensive capability. Yes, it will be a very tough game.