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Patriots Pulse
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Pats Move to 2-0 in Another Close Game |
Pats Move to 2-0 in Another Close Game
By Adam Schefter
The Patriots won their first contest of the year against a solid Saints team but one that is too close to call for a team that is looking to make a deep playoff run. So with a week of adjustments in between games, you would think the Patriots would be able to have a good enough game to handle the Panthers very easily. But that wasn't the case, either the Pats played pretty poorly or the Panthers stepped up but I am leaning more towards the latter. The Panthers, although they lossed, also played the Dallas Cowboys to a tough game which is never easy. So the Patriots have to begin to step it up a bit as they have a whole week off with no games to speak of and in that stretch will need to come up with a gameplan that better suits the team to play better. It's obviously unknown what that is at this time, but it will need to be found out over the next few days.
Moving onto the Panthers game. Although it ended up close in the end the Patriots seized control of the game early and really didn't give up the lead which is a good sign to speak of. QB Jevon Snead may be in a Sophmore slump as he had another poor game this past weekend. He threw 2 TD and 1 INT but he had a poor completion percentage and a pretty poor yardage also. He now has 2 TD and 3 INT total on the year and only a 38 Comp% and will need to be better if they expect to go deep into the playoffs. Mendenhall carried the load again as usual, taking the rock 28 times for 98 yards which isn't overly impressive but still got the job done and is now 2nd in the league in rushing so far this year. The recievers did not have much to do as Snead only attempted 11 passes and only completed 2 of them which was spread among the 2 WR of Wes Welker and Andre Johnson, so not much else to talk about there. The offensive line wasn't exactly stellar but we will say solid for this early in the year. They gave up 3 sacks but we will consider this a hiccup in what will otherwise become a trend where Jevon doesn't see the ground. On defense there were some very impressive games. MLB Jerod Mayo recorded 9 TKL with a whopping 5 of them being for loss and also recovered a fumble. For the 2nd straight week CB Leigh Bodden picked off 2 passes and now has a total of 4 on the season tieing him for the league lead. He has played well and the team hopes he can continue to do so. The rest of the defense played solid as a whole, in rout to a 23-20 victory over the Carolina Panthers. Come back in 2 weeks to see how your New England Patriots fared against the Pittsburgh Steelers. |
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Forum Discussion
(by J_Stanley on 06/22/2010)
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Replies - 3 :: Views - 27 |
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Laws gets Traded Officially |
Laws gets Traded Officially
By Adam Schefter
Foxborough - The Patriots are moving into the preseason, having made some surprising moves that weren't expected to be coming. Namely trading for the last pick in the 6th round from the past draft for more then market value and then planning to use the Diamond in the Rough feature. Then next shipping off a man who played very solid at 3-4 DE for the last 2 years, learned the playbook and was getting better in Trevor Laws, so is there really a plan to go along with the madness or is it not madness at all? The deal rumored to be almost completed with the 49ers would send DE Trevor Laws to SF and send SF 2011 1st Round pick in return. If they think this is the market value then I say sure make the trade. Thinking about the last 2 trades they have made they essentially traded DE Trevor Laws, 4th for 2 1sts, and 6th. Weston will be the equivalent to 1st round value after the feature so if it's looked at from the bright side then they defintely made out, but looking at each trade as an individual and how the players stand right now they didn't do too bad either.
Looking at Laws market value, he has a much higher worth as a 4-3 DT then he does 4-3 DE so there'd need to be some movement there. HE also in reverse has a much higher value at 3-4 DE then he does NT. But at 4-3 DE I think he can still contribute if your wanting that big body to stop the run and still rush the passer which if that's what you want, I think he actually fits REAL well for you. Ultimately if he is playing any of the 3 positions besides 3-4 NT then I think he is worth a pick in the 1st round area and that's exactly what they got, I think though in ultimate scnearios not on skill alone but they may have upgraded after Weston uses the DIR feature. Overall the deals aren't major and don't have a huge impact but I think that the Patriots did well. |
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Forum Discussion
(by J_Stanley on 06/12/2010)
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Replies - 0 :: Views - 13 |
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Pats Hold Training Camp and Select Team Captains |
Pats Hold Training Camp and Select Team Captains
By Adam Schefter
Foxborough - The Patriots mini-camp didn't go as well as planned with a few slumping rookies playing worse then expected, but news out of the full team Training Camp seems to be more incouraging. While everyone competes and trains during Camp, 3 players a year are allowed by the league to get so called 'intense' training where they are allowed to spend more time with coaches and at the facilities to work. The 3 players selected by the Patriots organization where CB Antwuan Molden, P Durant Brooks and QB Brian Hoyer. All are said to be benefiting greatly from the extra training sesssions and are working that much harder to hold a more key position on the squad. Brooks is the starting P and is getting better and better as the days go on and will be nice to have someone who can help with field position. Hoyer is the backup QB to Jevan Snead and it is good to have him ready to go and playing solid in case of an emergengy with Jevan he will be likely able to jump in seemlessly and play well. Molden is the #3 or 4 CB on the roster and said to have the physical skills but being held back by his field awareness and play recognition which can be worked on with his extra time. Each seen below in their extra time with team officials and coaches.
  
The Patriots also made another fairly big announcment, naming their 3 captains for the upcoming season as QB Jevan Snead, MLB Jerod Mayo and C Dan Koppen. Each are very big parts of the team. Snead leads the offense and is already a big presence in the clubhouse and on the field in only his 2nd year of pro ball which is very impressive and will likely continue to improve on that. Mayo leads the defense, now entering his 4th year of football with the team. He is one of the top MLB in the game that we have today and is also a very strong leader, and will continue to get better. Koppen is the one true veteran of the group, who has anchored the Pats line for a while at C. He is a proven veteran who everyone can trust and will be a great addition. **All captains were voted on by teammates and coaches**. |
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Forum Discussion
(by J_Stanley on 06/10/2010)
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Replies - 0 :: Views - 12 |
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Pats Look to make a few Moves |
Pats Look to make a few Moves
By Adam Schefter
Foxborough - As the Patriots move out of their offseason they are pretty satisfied with how things went as they really didn't have any major needs yet they feel they come out with an improved football team and one that can compete at an even higher level then last year's which made the playoffs with a rookie QB. Trading for the likes of Robert Ayers at OLB who is a perfect fit for the scheme that is run here in New England and even a better guy off the field for chemistry and will likely replace Adalius Thomas day one unless AD comes with his game face. They also unloaded a 2nd round pick in the past draft for OT Jeff Otah who then allowed LT Eric Winston to move to RG and RT Stephen Vollmer to move to LT and complete 4 of 5 spots on the OL, which GM Stanley has been talking about for a while.
Now when you think things would continue to wind down in what was a rather quiet offseason overall the Patriots have already committed to one trade and are looking to complete another in almost a domino effect of a move. With the AAO Shop open for business the Patriots and GM John Stanley are one of the higher ranking GM's in terms of points, after recently spending 75,000 dollars on player boosts to bring the total down to about 105,000 dollars, they are now looking to move back up into the 150,000 dollar range to be able to purchase the "Diamond in the Rough" for the 2nd time in AAO history and use it on the player acquired in the deal from the Kansas City Chiefs. The deal breaks down as follows, the Patriots trade their 4th round pick in next year's draft for DT Kade Weston and a 6th round pick next year. This may come as a surprise since Weston was recently taken all the way at the end of the 6th round in this past draft and you are already given 2 more rounds then what value had him at. After a decently favorable skew and review in training camp the Patriots feel with the Diamond in the Rough purchase can make him that much better. The Chiefs who don't have that kind of points and no need for a DT actually capitalize on such willingness to do so. The move would then see Weston move from DT to DE and play in the 3-4 Defense. He brings great size at 6'5" 325lbs and hopefully improved skills to the point where he is a great fit.
In a domino move to that, the Patriots have begun shopping around stud DE/DT Trevor Laws. He is one of the most athletic big man in the league and would be a superb 4-3 DT and is already a great 3-4 DE. They would just like to make room for Weston if they are able to. But they are also fine holding onto Laws and having 4 great 3-4 DE on their roster. They can then shuffle them around in different roles, such as a 4-3 front where they play big and give Vince some plays off, etc. So by no means is it urgent to let him go but don't be surprised New England fans if this does happen. Anyway that's all for now, look for the next addition of New England news on Training Camp. |
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Forum Discussion
(by J_Stanley on 06/10/2010)
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Replies - 2 :: Views - 32 |
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Pats Draft Picks Average at Camp |
Pats Draft Picks Average at Camp
By Adam Schefter
Foxborough - The Patriots moved into this weekend's rookie mini-camp possibly looking for some guys to impress but if that was there main objective they were a little disapointed. A lot of players looked sluggish, slower and not as quick or agile as they did in games and in college which could hurt there position on the squad. While this can all be fixed it's not one of those things that happens overnight and it could hurt there immediate playing time. Here is the lowdown at what happened at camp with attributes:
WR Seyi Ajirotutu
-2 SPD -1 STR -2 AWR -2 AGI -2 ACC -2 CTH -2 JMP
WR Terrell Hudgins
-4 STR -2 AWR +1 AGI +1 ACC -1 JMP
LE Doug Worthington
+2 SPD +1 AWR -1 AGI
HB Brandon James
-2 SPD -2 STR +2 AWR -2 AGI -2 CTH -2 CAR +1 BTK
LT Tony Washington
+2 AWR +1 AGI -3 ACC +2 RBK
FS Shann Schillinger
-3 STR +2 AWR -3 AGI -1 CTH +4 JMP
As you can see it wasn't overly impressive to even the average fan and a little disapointing for the higher managments but as mentioned before it wasn't needed to have a great draft just a solid one and even with the downgrades I think managment feels they did so. Taking it player by player. Ajirotutu really disapointed. He was slower, not as strong, poor route running, not as quick. Everything you'd look for in a WR he disapointed in that aspect which doesn't help him much. Hudgins did seem a little bit worse then on tape but actually helped himself a little. He seemed quicker and more agile which is a good sign and not as worrysome as the fact he is a little weaker at the point of attack than was expected. Worthington at DE was another one to help himself, he wasn't one of those big gainers in everything but the one knock on him from the Pats perspective was that he didn't give them that big speed threat as a 3-4 DE they were looking for, and he at least got within 5 of that threshold of 70. Brandon James was a huge disapointment but if you take into account his style of running it wasn't TERRIBLE. He is still a power back and if the Pats ever want him as a starting back some day they can get his speed back up to par of where they think it needs to be to be a starter. Washington disapointed a little as he wasn't as quick off the ball as a tackle as they'd think he'd be. He is a little sluggish trying to block the quicker DE's or OLB's thrown at him which makes it tough for him to be considered the starter of the future on that 5th and final OL spot. Schillinger was pretty much status quo and nothing changed from where the Pats viewed him. He was a little weaker then expected and not as agile but nothing that would make them think differently. Overall it was a midly successful camp that could have been better. See you next time! |
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Forum Discussion
(by J_Stanley on 06/06/2010)
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Replies - 1 :: Views - 22 |
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At A Glance
| AFC East |
| RNK |
TEAM |
W-L-T |
PCT |
DIV |
| #7 |
 Patriots |
6-2-0 |
0.750 |
2-1 |
| #15 |
 Dolphins |
5-4-0 |
0.556 |
3-1 |
| #25 |
 Jets |
2-6-0 |
0.250 |
1-2 |
| #27 |
 Bills |
2-6-0 |
0.250 |
1-3 |
| PATRIOTS SCHEDULE |
| WK |
DATE |
OPPONENT |
TIME/RESULT |
| 1 |
Sun |
at  Saints #11 |
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| 2 |
Sun |
vs  Panthers #18 |
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| 4 |
Sun |
at  Steelers #19 |
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| 5 |
Sun |
at Bills #27 |
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| 6 |
Sun |
vs Jets #25 |
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| 7 |
Sun |
vs Bills #27 |
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| 8 |
Sun |
at  Texans #23 |
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| 9 |
Sun |
at  Falcons #24 |
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| 10 |
Mon |
vs  Chargers #3 |
9:00pm |
| 11 |
Sun |
vs  Titans #21 |
8:30pm |
| 12 |
Sun |
vs Dolphins #15 |
1:00pm |
| 13 |
Sun |
vs  Jaguars #32 |
4:15pm |
| 14 |
Sun |
at  Colts #8 |
1:00pm |
| 15 |
Sun |
at Dolphins #15 |
4:00pm |
| 16 |
Sun |
at Jets #25 |
4:15pm |
| 17 |
Sat |
vs  Buccaneers #20 |
8:00pm |
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