Back when the Chiefs had a better running game, and the Pats had a worse one.
Not on that day, though you could as easily say, back before the Chiefs defense did a better job against the run and before the Pats had their hands team back and in good health, taking pressure off the running game and opening the chance for New England to run better.
The Pats' offensive line is in the top three for pass protection. KC's D-line is formidable, but NE's O-line is more formidable, imo.
It will be an interesting match up, to be sure. Again, the Chiefs don't have to make Brady less than Brady. They got no pressure on him the first time, but they also gave up the run like crazy. And history tells us that a) Brady isn't as good on the road (almost no one is at the qb position) and b) they only have to do a better job against the run, as they did with Indy. It's really the Indy blueprint that only has to be a little more successful.
Or, it's easier to believe the Chiefs will be a little better than to believe the Pats will be a lot better on the road.
Gronkowski was a non-factor in the passing game against the Chargers, but he was a key part of NE's successful ground game, as he is an exceptional blocker for a TE.
Probably the best thing he does for them now. Probably why he'll retire in the offseason too. His body is getting banged up.
NE's running game is decent, which is unusual for a NE team recently. They used that running game to open up certain pass plays against the Chargers. And the Chargers split their season series with KC.
The Chargers played a horrible game, top to bottom. And NE looked like the Pats playing at home, after a good rest and with time aplenty to work on a game plan against a banged up opponent suffering nerves. That's not going to be KC in any sense.
I disagree. A 3-pt line indicates that on a neutral field, the money is that this game is a push. In Foxboro, NE triumphed by 3 pts. As I said, NE is a stronger team now than they were then, and KC's weaker now than they were then. The Pats will win this game by six.
I don't see evidence that NE is a stronger team now and "triumphed" is a silly way to describe a fg win at home against a team that put over 400 yds on you. If Vegas agreed they'd call it a push. Giving KC a 3 pt edge would be like giving NE a push at home.
3-5. And so far, of NE's 12 wins, five of them were against other playoff teams, the Chiefs included, and home or road, they are 5-0 against those five other playoff teams (Houston, Indy, KC, Chicago, and now LAC). They play quality football games against the league's strongest teams. They will play a quality football game against KC on Sunday, and I don't think that any of the remaining teams can beat them when they play a quality football game.
Nobody wanted Indy late. Arguably the best offensive line in football, a hot and very talented qb, a running game and a defense that had surprised people. KC took them apart.
How is that different for NE now than it is for every other NFL team that's ever been fielded?
I'm not sure what you're asking. Most of the teams that played a traveling NE beat the Pats. 5-3.
Who were those powerhouses that took care of the Pats? The Jags, Lions, Titans, Steelers, Dolphins.
20, 10, 10, 10...that's how many points Brady and company put up on the road against those guys. They did manage 25 on the lowly Bills. 27 on the Jets. They had exactly one road game where they looked like they could bring it, against the Bears. Then they fell back to 10 against the Steelers.
The coaches can always devise a plan to defeat their opponents, but it's always a question of execution, and of talent. NE has been very successful because they tend to execute their game plans better than their opponents execute theirs, and that has tended to, on the average, overwhelm any deficiencies in talent, and when talent is equal to their opponents, they tend to outperform even more.
NE's success is predicated on a couple of things. First, they've played in a trash division for almost all of Brady's tenure, meaning they get a big playoff edge for home field, where they are deadly. Second, they have arguably the best coach in the game and an all-time great qb executing his gameplan.
Consistently great coaching will win a lot of games. Playing most of your playoff games at home coupled with that coaching will create dynasties.
I hate to bring up Andy Reid's history wrt poor game decisions, especially late in close games, but facts are facts, and he has something to prove in this game. I'm not counting him or them out due to this history, but he does still have something to prove. It's not a given that he will succeed. Unless the game's noncompetitive, his decision making will be tested at the end, and it's not granted that he'll be able to pass muster in such a case.
I'd agree that Reid has something to prove, but before this year he had solid tools to work with. This is the first time he's had a qb with this level of talent. It takes a lot of pressure off. And he has a different and more experienced staff around him.
You need to reexamine the box score. They went against a better line and a qb with more physical talent at this stage of the game. They shut them down, played a team no one wanted and schemed their defense brilliantly. As I noted, their averages were top five. They ran the ball and used the passing game to keep the defense honest. It was a very different approach for KC. And that approach is exactly what they need against the Pats.
The Patriots did, otoh, just manhandle and dismantle a team that split two games with KC this season, including one loss at Arrowhead.
By a point and when the Chiefs were coasting late. The Broncos beat those same Chargers by a point in LA. It happens. KC beat those same Chargers by 10 and on the road earlier. I tend to look at the rule and not the exception when considering how a team is likely to play.
They aren't better, but they are different, because they are weaker.
Now that's just nuts. They're playing better defense, their qb has more experience, and the running game is back. This is a better team. The Pats are playing better at home than they did early in the year, but they won't be at home this weekend.
They constituted almost the same threat back in week six as they will this Sunday, except that they are now weaker than they were then, and back then, NE still beat them. Hill is still a demon that they couldn't entirely contain in their first meeting, and I won't be surprised if he breaks a long one in this game once either. If he breaks two or more, then this game will be closer. I still think Mahomes will throw at least one pick, and in close games, picks tend to rule the day, in that the passer who throws them tends to lose.
He threw two picks in their loss to the Pats by that fg. In that game Tom threw zero picks.
Don't you mean . . . 'Noles?'
:chuckle:
Nick Foles ended up Noles for some reason.
There's a sense in which no defending world champion is an underdog. I rooted for Philly in this game, even though I called NO, because 1) I wanted to see a SB rematch, 2) I love to watch dominating D-linemen, and Philly's Fletcher Cox and Michael Bennett are two of the greatest in the game today.
I was going to be happy either way, because I liked both teams and both qbs. Great story to be had with either.
I kind of thought that Foles was still for real and that Philly'd pull it out, but it looks to me like midnight's finally struck and that he's back to being a pumpkin. iow back to being the backup qb formally known as Nick Foles.
We disagree again, since he put that pass right on the hands of his wr, a guy who is usually money. He was leading them back to a win. It took an uncharacteristic mistake and a solid defensive play to stop it. But both of these teams looked like SB bound contenders. Great game and a showcase for an improved Saints defense.
The Saints won't face an equally talented defense (assuming they survive the Rams) in either KC or NE, and Brees can (in a dome) match and out play either opposing qb he'll face.
I can't see the Rams winning, but it was very big for them, to win in the divisional round. But I don't think they can beat the Saints, especially not in NO.
They're capable, but it's a tough and uphill road. And both teams are built to beat the Pats, so you'd better hope for a Saints/KC showdown and a SB with a BIG over/under.
