Tag Archives: new england patriots

Pete’s Call: Still Not So Good

petecIt’s been a week since the Pats strolled through a trap door en route to their fourth Super Bowl title. I figure this should be enough time to assess the various angles and perspectives regarding the closing minutes of the game. It goes without saying that the widespread reaction to Pete Carroll’s second down play call (you know, the one where Russell Wilson was picked off in the end zone?) has been overwhelmingly negative. Some devil’s advocates have argued the Seahawks needed to call a passing play at some point during their possession, in order to stop the clock.

I tried to find some logic in the counter arguments but I’ve arrived at the conclusion (after some consideration) that Pete Carroll essentially sabotaged his resume with one play call, which is a remarkable bit of misfortune. There were 26 seconds remaining on the clock when Wilson hit Malcolm Butler with a slant pass intended for Ricardo Lockette. Marshawn Lynch had just bulled his way 5 yards to the goal line on first down. You have simply got to call the safe play here, especially with the best goal-line runner in the league. If Lynch somehow couldn’t get one yard on 2nd or 3rd down, then the possibility of throwing a SLANT TO THE CORNER OF THE END ZONE could have been considered. Forcing Wilson to throw a bang-bang slant across the middle should never have been an option at any point in that sequence.

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Pre-Reviewing the Super Bowl

super-bowlI’ve been avoiding the internet like a plague all day, albeit a plague that I would desperately like to get a taste of. Previewing a super bowl that has already occurred is an uncomfortable exercise in patience and self-control.

I’m feeling cautiously optimistic about this game- call it post-causal optimism. I haven’t breathlessly followed every minute’s Gronk injury update, nor do I know the name of Tom Brady’s childhood goldfish. But I’d like to consider myself an informed supporter. And I think the Pats, with or without Gronk, match up favorably with the fighting Coughlins.

The biggest reason for my optimism (and I don’t think enough writers have discussed this) is the revenge factor. The 2007 Super Bowl was, for me, the most emotionally and physically painful loss (I slugged an unforgiving wall after Plaxico Burress burned Ellis Cobbs on the game’s final play.) I took the defeat hard, and I’d imagine Belichick, Brady and co didn’t take it lightly, either. The Pats would never engage in public smack talk, but I would wager a goodly sum that there was a surplus of motivational profanities being hurled in the locker-room, pre-game speech. You can never discount the effect and power of the more-motivated squad, especially on the grandest stage.

I’d also point to the gulf in talent between Tom Brady and Eli Manning, between Gronkowski (or Aaron Hernandez) and Jake Ballard, between Wes Welker and Hakeem Nicks. Yes, the Giants have the superior defense on paper and you would probably be wise to take Ahmad Bradshaw over Benjarvus Green-Ellis in a fantasy draft, but I think the most meaningful position (quarterback) combined with my theory about the motivational edge should tip the scales in the Pats’ favor. I’ll take Tom Terrific and his thirst for revenge over Peyton’s kid brother any day.

Anyway, I’m hoping this post-game-preview reads as insightful and not irrelevant. In a few short hours I’ll either be on cloud nine or I’ll be chucking pans across my apartment..

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Brady Goes Down

Well, it appears Tom Brady will be out for the season. I think I speak for all of Patriot Nation when I say, ‘dang’.

To call the loss of Brady a blow would be an understatement. This is something more along the lines of a cataclysmic bazooka blast from outer space. Kamikaze Pollard, as the Chief’s safety shall from now on be known, took out the central nervous system of the finely tuned Patriot machine and reduced the team to a motley assortment of loose parts.

Enter Matt Cassel, the stately quarterback from USC, who at best can be called unproven but who more realistically should be labeled a greenhorn (Cassel hasn’t started at quarterback since his senior year at Chatsworth High School in 1999). A bit wet behind the ears? Perhaps. But certainly up to the challenge? Lets hope so.

Fans are already flocking to the Tobin Bridge, waiting for their turn to jump. I say give the kid a chance. Where’s the old can-do attitude, New England? Have we already forgotten how Brady began his short trip to stardom? Lets view the unfortunate situation in a positive light- as a fantastic opportunity for a veteran team to rally around its young quarterback in a show of team solidarity. We shall fortify Cassel’s castle! We shall prove that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts! We shall… oh, who the hell am I kidding. The Patriots are screwed.

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