Belichick spreads out credit

I don't see the Patriots going any further than a loss to the Steelers this weekend. Jets are now dominating and it doesn't look like they can be stopped. Pats may finish last in the AFC east this year. Your run for the suprbowl can now come to an end. No more cheating for you too.

Ya! The offense looked really good again yesterday, but defense wins championship (or just playoff caliber games). This team has zero chance of going anywhere this year and if they don’t make some serious moves this off-season they are not going anywhere anytime soon. They need to get or develop a legitimate pass rushing linebacker and rebuild their entire secondary (except Meriweather ) with proven veterans. This rookie experiment is not working.

That was one of the worst displays of team defense I have seen by any team this year, or at least since the first Pats Dolphins game. I don’t know if people around here are blind or what. No pressure on a QB that can barely move and he runs for a TD. LB’s missing tackles all day long and getting stopped in their tracks every time they try to blitz. Our DB’s by far are the most horrible group of DB’s in the league. Hobbs (our best) would not start on 90% of the teams in the league. He and whomever they put on the other side are being beat multiple time every single game. The safeties are caught out of position constantly and NONE of these back know how to wrap up and tackle. They are soft and man handled regularly.

Hey Belichick, if you had given Cassel some breathing room - ;you might have been undefeated. It doesn't take a football coach any brains to figure that you don't throw the ball to Moss - not once in the first half of the first Miami game - to say something is wrong with the coaching staff. Also in the first Miami game - you only threw what once or twice to Welker in the first half. Your two top receiver were negated not by the Miami defense, but by the Patriots coaching staff. It was run the ball, run the ball, run the ball and punt. Over and over again, it was hard to watch - finally someone has seen the light. Finally! Now that Cassel's contract is coming due. What are you going to do. Cassel - the new kid on the block or Brady - the super star, the former best quarterback in the NFL, with a bum knee.

how can someone even ask what the patriots would do next year if brady is healthy? that is so ridiculous that people would think that the pats aren't going with brady. absolutely ridculous. i really hate dumb speculation

hey terry do you think Cassel was half the quarterback he was during the first Miami game, this game? Come on pal get a life. This Cassel is nothing like the one we saw that week. He wouldn't have been able to throw it in an ocean at the time. And what the hell do you think Bill's gonna do? Release Tom? Seriously. I'm starting to think u just wrote that to get ppl fired up. Cuz for some reason ur dumb*** post got me way more frustrated than the Jersey jack*** who hasn't been able to talk trash for over a decade.

you people have no sense of how this game is managed, players developed, and what coaching entails. based on your comments, I bet none of you have ever even played the game. We are a 7-4 team with devastating injuries to many starters - more injuries than most teams could ever recover from and still be in the hunt. go back to your fantasy football leagues and leave the real football to the pros.

jerseymike,
Unstoppable, you do recall that you only beat the Pats by 3 points in OT right? Then both teams went on to blowout wins against teams with winning records. The season isn't over by a longshot. Oh another thing you should realize, if the patriots end up tied for the division with the Jets, the Pats win the tie break. The teams were 1-1 head to head with the Pats taking the overall scoring by a margin of 50-44. Not to say the Jets won't make the playoffs or that the Pats will, but to say the season is over for them already reaks of ignorance, arrogance, and more than a touch of homerism.

The cynics who post on this site are amazing. The Patriots have the best organization is the league, and they will continue to do so during the Belichick/Pioli era. No other team in the league would have the record the Pats do if they were in the same situation. The entire offense was built around Tom Brady and he went down. Adalius Thomas and Rodney Harrison, are both injured on defense. Yet, the Pats are still 7-4 and one game behind the "Almighty Jets," who are highly overrated (who just beat the Titans, another overrated team playing in a weak division this year). In one one of the top two toughest divisions in football, the Pats are one game out of first, with an offense that is starting to catch on fire and a defense that has played surprisingly well considering the injuries and rookies that are starting. If I you I would be very scared to play the Pats coming down the stretch and into the playoffs. And I wouldn't be surprised to see an ass woopin of Pittsburgh this weekend to finally prove to everyone that these Pats are for real.

ricomandog, that's just stooopid. Jerod Mayo's consistently our best linebacker, and he IS a rookie. The weakest link in the secondary is Deltha O'Neal, and he's not a rookie. Hobbs is not a rookie. Merriweather's not a rookie and he's the guy you want to build around. Sanders is not a rookie, and he was behind Rodney Harrison. The D line is still excellent. They could do better, but for a young group pressed to play due to injuries at LB (Thomas), CB (Wheatley) and S (Harrison), they're doing pretty well, including making key & timely stops against Miami in the 2nd half yesterday and the 2nd half vs the Jets during the comeback before the OT. This D does not need to be blown up, they need one or two weeks with no injuries.

Yes, JerkyMike. The Pats cheated. And now one of the cheaters is the HC of the NY Jets. I'm not sure how you manage to overlook that Mangini was part of the cheating. I guess you really don't mind.

Why don't you haters (jerseymike and stupid Terry stupid chic) go post somewhere else.

Bill B. is a genious dispite what some morons preach or say. Pats are going deep in the playoffs. Try this for size you Pat haters.

Looks like some Jet fans crawled out from under the rocks. When was your last Super Bowl win?

The cynics who post on this site are amazing. The Patriots have the best organization is the league, and they will continue to do so during the Belichick/Pioli era. No other team in the league would have the record the Pats do if they were in the same situation. The entire offense was built around Tom Brady and he went down. Adalius Thomas and Rodney Harrison, are both injured on defense. Yet, the Pats are still 7-4 and one game behind the "Almighty Jets," who are highly overrated (who just beat the Titans, another overrated team playing in a weak division this year). In one one of the top two toughest divisions in football, the Pats are one game out of first, with an offense that is starting to catch on fire and a defense that has played surprisingly well considering the injuries and rookies that are starting. If I you I would be very scared to play the Pats coming down the stretch and into the playoffs. And I wouldn't be surprised to see an ass woopin of Pittsburgh this weekend to finally prove to everyone that these Pats are for real.

Good to see the Pats clicking offensively like that...we'll need that same type of execution against the league's best defense this coming weekend. As far as worrying so much about our Defense, which hasn't looked great the last two weeks, it's important to realize that overall this year the Pats D is ranked 9th overall in points given up per game (20.2) and 11th overall in yards given up per game. Pittsburgh leads all categories. Should be interesting...I'm already looking forward to it.

Jersey Mike, you will never be a Mensa candidate.

Toss it to Moss! Pleasure to see No.16 look like No.12 last Sunday. Great going. Now if this is when Patriots are starting to peak, it could be some fun games ahead.

Jersey Mike, are you insane? Pats may finish last this season? We play the Seahawks and Raiders this year. At worst the Patriots finish 9-7 but more likely 10-6. That would not put them anywhere near last place.

Hey JerseyMike,

Just wait until the playoffs, Brett Favreau will, once again, slip into interception mode and throw away any chance for the Jets to succeed. Bank on it.

Jersey Mike - you are a moron. Go back under your rock and stay there!

Jeesh, you'd think the pats lost sunday or something!
We ARE really spoiled around here, doesn't anyone remember when, fairly recently, the pats were doormats and the sox were forever searching for the answer to the almighty Yankees, not to mention the hopelessness of the Bruins and Celtics?
Give yourself a break and be thankfull for a very wise owner, probably the best coach/general manager combo the pats will or have ever had in their history and besides as underdogs we've always done pretty well (2000 come to mind)

'

jerseymike needs a spelling and grammar lesson

Why are all these other fans posting on this site? The Pats have 5 starters on IR including their HOF QB, surely they are not worried about the Pats ability to overcome injuries...are they? It’s not like the Pats ever won a super bowl with a back up QB and a bunch of unknown, solid, well coached football players...have they?

Most of you guys are blind! Build a secondary around Meriwether? The kid's a human pinball. Can't tackle and can't cover. Have you noticed how many times the LB's end up covering the TE after Harrison went out? Wanna know why? Because Meriwether can't cover them. And before you point out his whopping four interceptions, go back and see how many of them your grandmother could have caught...no excellent plays on his part, just QB's or WR's making mistakes. Combine him and Maroney and you have a bust almost as big as Leaf.

You can't hang this all on Meriwether though. I've been saying since Game 1 the entire secondary is horrible. Deltha O'Neil is a joke. Sanders is a joke. I have no idea why Hobbs was kept after he let Plaxico run right by him. And it's a trickle down effect, too. If the secondary can't cover, you have to pull more LB's into coverage which limits your blitz packages.
I know this is extremely negative, and huge props need to go to the DL, LB, and the entire offense. Cassel's poise in the pocket and his decisiveness are really improving.

To Brendan Smith:

Unfortunately, the first tiebreaker after head to head is divisional record, which the Jets only have one defeat and the Pats two. The Jets have the inside track on the division, believe me, much to my chagrin.

The fact that they are in the hunt and we are still posted to their every quarter is super! My money is on them getting in the playoffs where anything can happen!

The Patriots stink...Go DOLPHINS !!!!!!

The Patriots have a lot of good players and can play team football. That is what I like about them.

Jersey Mike-Someone wants fries with their burger. Where do the Jets keep all thier rings ?

jersey mike move back duh2jersey loser

Oh jerseymike...if you were here, I'd pat you on the head like a little child, and calmy explain that the only reason you have the courage to speak up is because a 4th-string reciever caught on a ball of his head.

In the meanwhile, we'll root for a sixth straight trip to the NFL playoffs, while otherwise being entertained by our championship basketball squad, our first-place hockey team, and the smartest, best-built organization in baseball. Cheers!

Mike Reiss, you aren't fooling anyone with your "jerseymike14" moniker. Nice ploy though..... iI got enough folks heated up to make it interesting...... By the way, it WILL be very tough for the Patriots to make the play-offs and then subsequently succeed to push deep into the post-season. the secondary is still figuring things out, but all other aspects of the Pat's game is pretty solid, even the running game is OK enough, if Sammy Morris can stay healthy. The biggest problem is that the Jets and other wildcard contenders have slightly easier schedules remaining, so it will be an uphill battle for the Pats,even if they finish 11-5.... In Bill I trust, and also in Cassel....

Unfortunately Brendan Smith You aren't quite right with your tiebreakers. The first thing they check is division record and the jets need to lose at least one of the next two games they have against the division and the pats need to win their last division game vs the bills in order to get to where you are at in your breakdown.

Why are people like Jersey Mike reading this blog? Oh yeah, that's right, they live in Jersey where the 3 highest forms of entertainment are:
1. Butchering the english language
2. Cornering the hairspray/heair grease market
3. Reading blogs about the Pats (sad that in Jersey this was in the top three).
When were any of us Pats fans on a NY Jerks blogsite?
PS. Your own team, the NEW YORK Jets, won't even claim Jersey.

I see the Pats franchising Cassel, for insurance in case Brady cannot make it back
for minicamp. If Brady is good expect Cassel to be traded to a NFC team......
Perhaps DET,SF or the Vikings. This years 2nd rounder and next years 3rd rounder would be my guess.........

SM
you the man, Brady gone to DET for two first rounders and a second.

To fans of other teams who come on here to bash the Patriots:

Nobody is claiming the Patriots to be the best team in the NFL this season. Greatness cannot be determined from who wins a particular game or a particular superbowl. An NFL team becomes a great team by consistently finishing seasons with a good record and winning lots of big games over a long period of time. In this decade, NO TEAM in the NFL has won as many games as the Patriots. The Patriots have consistently won the last 7-8 years, which makes them one of the best franchises in the league.

I think Brandon M is easily the best player in our secondary. I wish he was a bit more aggressive in going for picks but I think that will continue to happen. One thing I will say is that DBs are not usually great, maybe one in 10. So yes, we don't have a great CB but how many teams have one. DBs are made to look good by pass rush (eg Giants DBs), we have no pass rush. I really think Vrabel has been disappointing since the second half of last season. He probably has 1 sack in that time frame. Thats why AD's loss is the worst other than Brady. I also noticed Bruschi was blitzed a few times but couldn't get there. The prob can't blitz mayo since he is our best cover LB. I think we are fine for the season though...GO PATs

If Cassel continues to perform, he will be in quite a position. Belichick is amazing. Just when we were like, what the $%^#@! Bill...let that guy throw the ball...Moss is totally bored...boom, he unleashes Cassel. If Cassel had been unleashed too soon, it wouldn't have worked. He would have had too many screw ups. Look out, NY, NY, here we come!

Let's let up on the cornerbacks a little, shall we? Since I moved to Boston in 1999 we have had our ups and downs. The team strategy has usually been to try to develop mid-round draft picks into good players over the course of a couple of years. Asante Samuel wasn't great stuff in his 2nd year either, but we had some guy coaching secondary back then, name is on the tip of my tongue, begins with M...

Oh, and to all you Ellis Hobbs haters out there who think he is the worst guy ever, two words: Hank Poteat.

To JerseyMike

Go post on your own trashy web sites, this is Boston.com, not jerseytrash.com. How many Super Bowls have the Jets won? Lets see, which QB can always be counted on to throw a pick in a big playoff game? Number 4, Brett Farve. Lets see where things stand at the end of the season.

The game this week against Pittsburg willl be the last tough game this season. I know that the Cards are doing well with Kurt Warner but he will have his frustrations with the Pats D. Therfore after this week with the steelers the Pats could very easily win out and by that time they will be playing on just the right level of confidence and play well into the playoffs. At least long enough to challenge the freakin jets again, It's not over until some little short round woman sings.
Go Pats!

The New York Fans need a reality check. Let's see. In this decade Boston teams have half as many teams as the New York teams do but can boast 6 Championship Rings to your 2.
Sport by sport your teams are not that Impressive.
Basketball = The Knicks are an embarassment
Hockey = The Islanders have regressed and the Rangers will continue to fall short.
Baseball = The Yanks can spend over $208 million dollars and will go no where this year or next. The Mets own the trophy for famous collapses and that's all.
Football = Jets. Favre will do what he did last year against the Giants and blow it.
The Giants are a very powerful bunch but let's not get ahead of ourselves here
with talks of a repeat.

At

F

if we had a shutdown corner we would be a lot better....
our LBs are going to be seriously scary in the coming years

Wow. What's more idiotic than a room full of monday-morning head coaches and haters that haven't played a game of sports since middle school but think they can win the internet.

The real point here is Belicheck. The haters all thought he only succeeded because he filmed video illegally... turns out they were wrong. So they all tried to say he only succeeded because of Tom Brady.... turns out Belicheck just turned a QB that hasn't started a game since High School into the leading passer two weeks in a row.

It's a no win situation for the haters because New England has Belicheck and they don't.

The verdict on Mangini is only delayed by a year. How the heck are the NY Jets going to succeed if they make it to the Superbowl? Right now they will lose either a first or second round draft pick to Green Bay and I believe they will have to re-sign Favre as free agent. But where do they get the money to do that? That $50 million (5 years) for Vernon Gholston (pick 6) has got to hurt right now.... $50 million at 11 tackles is just under $5 million for each tackle.

Compare that to Belickeck drafting Jerod Mayo at pick 10, who signed for $18 million (5 years) with 89 tackles, which works out to $202 thousand per tackle. Next year's draft looks to be great too. Remember how we traded a late third round pick to SD for a 2nd round pick this year? That means we should expect to see 3 highly talenter rookies coming from the first two rounds into next years season.

OMG WTG Mangini!

If Belichick can take this team to an 10-6 record and win a playoff game I'm not sure if there's any doubt he's the best coach of all time. Come on. Losing your star quarterback and playing a guy who hasn't started since high school. Beating teams with a defense that is aging and giving up big points and yardage. I don't think I've seen any other coach do that. It always takes another year or 2 for the great ones to take their teams back to playoffs. Belichick is on track to do it this year.

Jersey Mike needs to open his eyes and look at the facts. Belichicks star high school quarterback almost beat one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time and the Jets. Even with all the injuries the Pats have. I guess the Titans ain't so great. The playoffs should be real interesting.....

Will start by saying I'm a Jets fan. To my fellow Jets fans, let's shut the hell up until we've won a ring. We're 8-3 and have two impressive road wins against two very good teams, but we'll see in January if we're good enough. You have to give the Pats (and Colts for that matter their due)- lesser teams would have folded up for the season with the injuries they've had, and both teams have found a way to win. Until we put either or both of them away in January, it's all empty talk, and we don't exactly have the track record to back it up. So, enjoy the wins, and let's take it one at a time. If Pats fans want to knock us and the downplay the quality of those two wins, let them. After three rings and a 16-0 season, they kind of have bragging rights. If we keep winning on through Tampa, there won't be much they can say at that point.

Will start by saying I'm a Jets fan. To my fellow Jets fans, let's shut the hell up until we've won a ring. We're 8-3 and have two impressive road wins against two very good teams, but we'll see in January if we're good enough. You have to give the Pats (and Colts for that matter their due)- lesser teams would have folded up for the season with the injuries they've had, and both teams have found a way to win. Until we put either or both of them away in January, it's all empty talk, and we don't exactly have the track record to back it up. So, enjoy the wins, and let's take it one at a time. If Pats fans want to knock us and the downplay the quality of those two wins, let them. After three rings and a 16-0 season, they kind of have bragging rights. If we keep winning on through Tampa, there won't be much they can say at that point.

Patriots are the biggest cheaters in the league. Bellicheat is a disgrace and Matt Light is a girl. Pulling another man's hair and then punching them in the back of the head is just plain cowardly and girlish. espcially while he still had his helmet on. The only reason they won is because Bellicheat and the rest of the losers were on their knees before the game pleasuring the refs. Moss your not that good if you have to push off everytime to get an advantage. Classless losers I hope Cassel signs w/ the vikings and Brady breaks both his legs next year

Patriots are the biggest cheaters in the league. Bellicheat is a disgrace and Matt Light is a girl. Pulling another man's hair and then punching them in the back of the head is just plain cowardly and girlish. espcially while he still had his helmet on. The only reason they won is because of all the NO CALLS. Moss your not that good if you have to push off everytime to get an advantage. obvious offensive pass interference I hope Cassel signs w/ the vikings and Brady breaks both his legs next year

Patriots are the biggest cheaters in the league. Bellicheat is a disgrace and Matt Light is a girl. Pulling another man's hair and then punching them in the back of the head is just plain cowardly and girlish. espcially while he still had his helmet on. The only reason they won is because of all the NO CALLS. Moss your not that good if you have to push off everytime to get an advantage. obvious offensive pass interference I hope Cassel signs w/ the vikings and Brady breaks both his legs next year

ukpatsfan
I'm glad you know who our rookies are, but i was calling out the ones in the secondary who can't break into this pathetic secondary line up we have. Also the rookie LB (except Mayo) who are going to need the normal two or three yeas to develop. I don't think they should wait. We need a LB that can pressure QB now. Like Colvin, and McGinest before him.

mike "Most of you guys are blind! Build a secondary around Meriwether? "
You right, i called Meriwether because he is about the bet we have in our secondary as sad as that may be.

I laughed at Norman's post...here's two more words for all the chuckleheads piling on Hobbs...Duane Starks

Mike, why would you let a player go for one play? Name me three cornerbacks in the league who would stop Plaxico one-on-one. Now, how much do you have to pay those guys? Seriously, give Hobbs a break. He works in the system and does what he's asked. Honestly, I am not sad about losing Samuel. He gambles too much, looking in the backfield and trying to read the QB.