Ravens 31, Patriots 30

Regardless of whether or not that field goal was good, and despite the amateurish officiating that seemed to define the game, the Patriots are the most responsible for their loss to Baltimore last night.

And it wasn't the defense. Even though the defense allowed Baltimore to move the ball on that game-winning drive, even though the defense allowed the Ravens to stay in the game, it was the offense that didn't hold its side of the bargain.

The Patriots offense had so many chances to end this game. And they didn't execute. When the Pats' defense stopped the Ravens on 4th & 1, the offense didn't do much. They were up by 9, with about 10 minutes left, and a chance to make it a 16 point game. Or even a 12 point game. 6 plays and 3:21 later and Baltimore had the ball back.

And the drive before that, the Patriots drove to the Baltimore 2, and only managed a field goal.

The Patriots made 5 trips to the Red Zone and only managed 3 touchdowns.

There were other missed opportunities. Joe Flacco should have been picked off 3 times, not just once. Devin McCourty bungled those. He was also burnt more than an Irishman's skin in the Sahara with no sunscreen. I don't know how such horrific burns don't appear on the injury report.

The play-calling last night was, at times, infuriating. The direct-snap to Danny Woodhead, then end-around to Julian Edelman was one of the most enraging moments of my life. It's 2nd & 6, you're moving the ball with traditional plays, so you open up Boise State's playbook, and get all cute and clever? Why?

The Ravens had been penetrating into the backfield all night until that point, and McDaniels/Belichick/Brady gave them a chance to blow up a play and end a drive.

I get the feeling with this offense that they're trying to win a certain way, instead of just trying to win any way possible. These tricks and gadgets are for the Bad News Bears or for the softball team from Camp Misfit when the super-athletes from across the lake come to play them.

If you think you need to try these tricky type of plays in order to win, then you don't have faith in your offense to simply execute the simple.

In that drive, the Patriots already tried an end-around and got a 1st down out of it. So Baltimore was already keenly aware of such a possibility. More traditional plays had been working, so why risk a big loss on 2nd & 6?

Sometimes you can think yourself so smart that you do stupid things and don't even notice it.

Anyway, I'll talk about the refs in a separate post, because it's a big enough issue in and of itself. The refs didn't cause the Patriots to lose, the Patriots caused this loss themselves. Although it's strange how Rob Gronkowski gets called for holding at least once a game. Are these all these replacement refs related to Bibi Jones or something?

Anyway, the Patriots should have won the last 2 games and didn't. That's good news/bad news. The good news is this team has talent enough to be 3-0. The bad news is, they haven't demonstrated an ability to consistently turn that talent into victory. They haven't executed, and consequently they'e 1-2, and below .500 for the first time in 145 games.

And you know what, you can't help but feel sentimental for Torrey Smith. He had a brilliant game only a few hours after tragedy completely changed his life. Logos and jerseys aside, I'm glad he had a good game.

The Pats are in Buffalo next Sunday. The Bills, along with the Jets, are ahead of the Patriots in the AFC East standings. I just puked in my mouth.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo

BBS AWARD FOR GAME OF THE YEAR

This goes to the most exciting, entertaining, important game of the year in the Boston sports world. It was an off year for Boston sports, so don't expect many of the nominees to be big wins. While there were some nice victories out there, they were often followed by heartbreaking defeats. Here are the nominees...

1/1 - Bruins 2, Flyers 1 (OT) - Winter Classic
4/21 - Bruins 3, Sabres 2 (OT) - Conference Quarterfinals
5/7 - Flyers 5, Bruins 4 (OT) - Conference Semifinals
5/13 - Celtics 94, Cavaliers 85 - Conference Semifinals
5/14 - Flyers 4, Bruins 3 - Game 7
6/17 - Lakers 83, Celtics 79 - NBA Finals, Game 7
10/17 - Patriots 23, Ravens 20 (OT)
10/26 - Celtics 88, Heat 80 - Opening Day
11/7 - Browns 34, Patriots 14
11/10 - Bruins 7, Penguins 4

See, there's not much positive here. The Bruins and Celtics ended their seasons in close Game 7 losses. The biggest wins for all four teams were regular season contests, or playoff games that only built up the feeling of loss when our teams ultimately failed.

I'm going to pick the Patriots' 23-20 OT win over the Ravens.



This was the Pats' first game without Randy Moss. They were playing a 4-1 team that had eliminated from the playoffs a few months prior. Nobody had any idea what to expect.

This was Danny Woodhead's introduction to the NFL. He'd contributed in wins over Buffalo and Miami. But this was his first truly big game. He ran for 63 yards on 11 carries, and caught 5 passes for 52 yards. Little did we know that this would become a pattern, not a flash in the pan.

Then there was Deion Branch. This was his first game back with the Patriots. All he did was catch 9 passes for 98 yards and a touchdown.

Little did we know how much these guys would end up contributing. Little did we know that the 11 3rd down stops the defense made, and the 2 Red Zone stops, would be the sign of things to come.

TOM BRADY AWARD FOR SURPRISE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

This goes to someone who wasn't expected to do much, only to do quite a bit. This year's nominees are...

Clay Buchholz - SP, Boston Red Sox
Nathan Horton - RW, Boston Bruins
Danny Woodhead - RB, New England Patriots
BenJarvus Green-Ellis - RB, New England Patriots
Rob Gronkowski - TE, New England Patriots

The winner is...

Danny Woodhead



The reason he wins the Award is because he truly came out of nowhere. A Division II "star" cut by the Jets, then signed by the Patriots. We all thought that the Pats hired him as sort of an informant, because he was acquired the week of the Jets game. Pay a guy an NFL wage for a week, he tells you all about the team you're about to play, then you cut him. Cutthroat Bill Belichick at his finest.

926 total yards from 131 touches (7.1 yards per), and who is he now? He's one of the key cogs to the Patriots' dynamic offense. And a few months ago, he was dropped by the Jets so they could activate David Clowney.

PATS WIN PRE-POST-SEASON GAME

This game felt like the preseason. Even the weather was warm, at least for January. There was nothing at stake, a few players didn't even dress (Welker, Branch, Hernandez), and the starters weren't expected to play the full 60 minutes.

I approved of Bill Belichick's usage of Tom Brady and other key players in this game. The more worrisome Pats fans out there were concerned that there'd be a repeat of last year's Welker injury. But with a first round bye secured, it's kind of silly to sit players for 3 weeks.

I'm sure the practices weren't as rigorous this past week. And when Brady was in the game, the play-calling was run heavy, and there were few long passes. He got hit a few times. But survived.

Danny Woodhead may have suffered a concussion. He may not have. As of now, the Pats are only saying he has a "head injury."

BJG Ellis surpassed the 1,000 yard mark. I'm convinced that Belichick went for it on 4th & 16, just so Ellis could reach 1,000, then be pulled from the game. Ellis is the Pats' first 1,000 yard rusher since Corey Dillon in '04. His contributions this season have been invaluable.



There were many positives to take from this game, but much like after a big preseason win, it's important to keep things in perspective. Julian Edelman's afternoon, for instance, was world class. Will he do that against an elite team, that's playing an important game? It's difficult to gauge performances in a game like this.



The Patriots have 2 weeks off, and will host a Divisional Round game on Sunday the 16th, at 4:30 PM. They'll play either the Jets, Ravens, or Chiefs. Here are the scenarios:

The Patriots will play the Jets if the Jets beat the Colts on Saturday. No matter what happens in the other AFC playoff game. If the Jets win, they come up to Foxborough as the 6th seed. Simple as that.

If the Jets lose, then the Patriots will play the winner of the Ravens/Chiefs game, which will be played Sunday afternoon.

Photo Credits:
AP Photo

SIX PATRIOTS NAMED TO PRO BOWL TEAM

Three Patriots were named starters for the AFC team, and three more were named as backups. Tom Brady, Logan Mankins, and Vince Wilfork were selected as starters. This will be Brady's 6th Pro Bowl (seems low, doesn't it?), Wilfork's 3rd, and Mankins' 3rd. I have to admit that I'm really happy the Patriots finally came around and signed Mankins, as he's been very helpful in the running game.

Devin McCourty, Jerod Mayo, and Brandon Meriweather were all named as back-ups. This is McCourty's first selection, Mayo's first, and Meriweather's 2nd. I'm not too sure if Meriweather belongs there, but whatever.

Remember the first day of the NFL Draft, when fans up here were pissing and moaning about the Patriots taking a cornerback in the 1st round? Where are those people now?

A notable snub would be Rob Gronkowski. I feel like he deserves to be there more than Marcedes Lewis, and perhaps more than Antonio Gates. But it is an All-Star game, and reputation sometimes supersedes results. And until his 3 TD explosion in Pittsburgh, he was relatively unknown around the League.

Some might be upset that Danny Woodhead didn't get any recognition. But MJ Drew, Arian Foster, and Jamaal Charles are all having ridiculous seasons. Woodhead is about 800 yards behind all of these guys.

Hopefully, not a single Patriot will play in the Pro Bowl. I don't mean they'll all be involved in 6 separate calamities, like Mr. Burns' softball team on The Simpsons. But hopefully all 6 will be in Dallas engaged in other business.

BUFFABLOW OUT

This was one of the easier games the Patriots have won all season. Probably the easiest. The Bills did just about everything they could to lose this game by 84 points.

It started early. The Bills drove down the field to begin the 1st quarter, running the ball well, cutting into the Pats' secondary like a burning chainsaw through chocolate. The Bills rushed for 67 yards on that opening drive, on 7 carries (9.6 per carry). Then they got into the red zone, tried a few passes that failed, then kicked a field goal.

The Bills soon got the ball back. And after their 67 yard rushing, 0 yard passing drive, they went 3 and out with 3 straight passes and 3 straight incompletions. Thanks for the favor.

And while the Bills' tactics were moronic, the Patriots' were simple, but effective. They ran the ball. A lot. The Pats amassed 217 yards on the ground, and got 12 of their 19 first downs by rushing. BJG Ellis ran for 104, Woodhead got 93, even Brady rushed for 13.

Then came the turnovers. Then more turnovers. Then more turnovers. The Pats left a few points on the field, especially Wes Welker, but it didn't matter. You can't turn the ball over 7 times and expect to be in the game. The Patriots cruised to victory, clinching the AFC East, clinching a bye, clinching home-field advantage.

This is the Patriots' 13th divisional title, and their 8th under Brady-Belichick. This will be the first time they've secured the #1 seed since 2007.

The Jets lost, but backed into the playoffs thanks to Washington beating the Jags.

The Pats host the Dolphins Sunday afternoon. Don't expect to see a scrub team out there, as Belichick's philosophy has always been to favor reps over rest. And with the bye secured, there's not much of a need for rest.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo