matt's pats blog

The Patriots finalized a contract extension with OL Nick Kaczur today. "I'm obviously excited because this is one of the best, if not the best, organization in football, the way you get treated from Mr. Kraft to everyone here," said Kaczur.

Meanwhile, NT Vince Wilfork is humming a different tune. His contact extension talks have stalled, and he claims the team said reason is because they're wary about extending players with the looming 2010 Lockout.

Wilfork doesn't buy it: "There's 31 other teams out there, and a lot of them are making moves. They're in the same situation we're in. I understand what he's saying, but at the same token, it's not stopping the other teams from making their moves, and what they have to do. "

It'll be interesting to see how the Kaczur singing affects talks with Wilfork.

At least one NFL team suspects that Bill Belichick's presence at the UConn Pro Day means the Pats will draft CB Darius Butler with the 23d overall pick. Check his highlights on YouTube.

Wes Welker is excited to catch passes from Tom Brady once again (saying he was excited to catch Brady's balls just didn't sound right).

Mike Reiss notes that BenJarvus Green-Ellis is not eligible for the practice squad, and he'll likely be fighting against Laurence Maroney for a roster spot.

Mike Florio of SportingNews.com thinks the Patriots should trade TE Benjamin Watson, even though he won't warrant much in return.

Scout.com wonders if the Peppers-to-Patriots deal is dead.

LT Matt Light will take over as the Patriots' player representative, now that LB Mike Vrabel is gone.

PatsFans.com has a discussion about the possibility of the Pats trading a 2nd round pick for disgruntled WR Chad Ocho Cinco.

Former Pats QB Matt Cassel will wear number 7 in Kansas City, in case you were wondering.

After being ejected from the week 12 game versus the Dolphins, Patriots LT Matt Light was notified by the league that he will not be suspended. This is extremely important to the Patriots, as they prepare to play the Pittsburgh Steelers this weekend. Matt Cassel seemed exceited, "As a quarterback, you love your left tackle, especially Matt Light. He's such a great player."

And then there were two. Entering week 10, the AFC East was completely up for grabs, with three teams tied for first place and the fourth-place Dolphins only one game back. This game, although not a must-win for either team, had huge implications for both clubs. The Pats were coming off a close loss to the Colts (a game which could have gone either way), and the Bills had lost 3 of their last 4 (including back-to-back losses to division foes Miami and New York) after starting the season at 4-0. The end-result was set ahead of time: win and stay in first place.

The game started in New England's favor. The Bills started with ball, and proceeded to give it to Marshawn Lynch for a 7 yard gain. By some crazy twist of fortune, they decided to pass the ball on the next two downs. On second down, the pass rush got to QB Trent Edwards and he under-threw his target. And on the next down, Richard Seymour completely bested the Bills' LG to get to Edwards for a sack.

After forcing Buffalo to go 3-and-out on their first possession, Matt Cassel led the Pats downfield quickly. On first down, the Bills committed an unnecessary roughness penalty, giving New England 15 yards for free. Then a couple plays later, the Bills failed to challenge a deep pass to Wes Welker where he stepped out of bounds, giving the Patriots more free yardage. Two plays later, Cassel scrambled up the middle for a touchdown. Bills LB Kawika Mitchell seemed to run away from the QB, expecting him to dump it off before he reached the line of scrimmage – this opened up a gigantic hole for Cassel to exploit.

Two possessions later, on the Bills' first play of their 3rd drive, Edwards tossed an ill-advised deep pass to Lee Evans who couldn't reach the ball. Luckily it fell right in to Ellis Hobbs' hands. With the ball and good field position, the Pats were able to add 3 more points with a Gostkowski field goal.

The game continued like this for most of the remainder, with the Pats getting the ball back on their own 8 yard line with 11:05 left in the 4th quarter, up 13-3. Clearly there was enough time for the Bills to tie the game if they could stop the Pats on this drive. Unfortunately for Buffalo, the Patriots conducted one of the most spectacular drives I have ever seen. In fact, the drive set a franchise record. It was perfect.

The drive started slow with Kevin Faulk rushing for 1 yard to the right. Then Cassel failed to connect with Moss. A pass to former-Bills WR Sam Aiken gave them the first, and the cycle continued: short rush on first down, little or no gain on second, and a first down on third. Repeat.

Nineteen plays and over 9 minutes later, the Pats handed the ball to surprising rookie RB BenJarvis Green-Ellis for a touchdown. The TD capped off a record-setting drive, matching their franchise record of a 19 play drive against the Jets in 2002. Let me re-iterate: the drive was perfect, eating up a ridiculous amount of clock, and ending with a touchdown.

Even though the Bills reached the endzone quickly on their next possession and followed up with a very close/genius on-side kick, the game was out of reach. At the end of the day, the Pats walked off with a 20-10 win and a spot at the top of the AFC East. This marked the 10th straight time the Patriots have beaten the Bills.

Every team in the East, other than the Bills, ended up walking away a victor, with the Jets knocking off the Rams and the Dolphins squeaking by the Seahawks. This leaves the Pats and Jets tied for first (and going head-to-head on Thursday), with the Bills and Dolphins tied for 3rd.

On to the player stock market:

Buy:

• BenJarvis Green-Ellis: Remember, this guy is only on the roster because of how many injuries we've had at the RB position. You may have forgotten that little detail because he's tearing it up. In fact, many of my peers agree with me when I say I like Green-Ellis more than I like Maroney. Go figure, an undrafted rookie free agent being better than a first-round pick. "My goal is to get a touchdown on every play," said the RB after the game. He finished with 105 yards on 26 carries and one touchdown. The kid looks good.
• Wes Welker: Brady and Moss got all the records and limelight last year. This year is Wes' turn. By catching a pass in the 3rd quarter, Welker set an NFL record for being the first player in history to catch at least 6 passes in the first 9 games of the season. I still can't understand how Miami got rid of this guy – he is the ultimate slot receiver, and serves as a great security blanket for Cassel.
• Randy Moss: Moved up to #17 on the NFLs overall receptions list. He seems to be doing whatever the Pats want him to do (slants, reverses, etc.), even if it means he gets a bit hurt (which he did during the game, only to return a few plays later). Great team player.
• Jerod Mayo: Clearly the defensive rookie of the year to this point, Mayo remained solid in run stopping, pass rushing, and even in pass coverage. The kid can play ball, and Belichick knows it: Mayo was yet again on the field for nearly every play. Expect to hear his name for a long time on this team.
• Secondary: Two interceptions, but they owe most of their success to ….
• Defensive Front-7: A great showing from the defensive line and the linebackers (especially Mike Vrabel, Richard Seymour, and Ty Warren). Their strong pass rush caused Edwards to miss his mark on several throws, allowing our questionable secondary to succeed.
• Offensive Line: I don't remember seeing the Bills pressure Cassel or consistently stop the run. That means only one thing: great job by the OL.

Hold:

• Special Teams: Gostkowski missed a field goal, but most likely due to the wind. The coverage was terrible, allowing a huge return in the 4th quarter which set up the Bills' only touchdown. Otherwise, this was a decent showing from the group.

Sell:
Nobody. The team performed well overall and nobody deserves to be in this category.

Over the past few years, quarterback has become the most important position on the football field. Clearly, losing Tom Brady is a serious set-back for my beloved Pats, and they'll need a strong showing from every other player to scrap together a decent season. Just the thought of an entire year without the greatest quarterback in NFL history leading his unparalleled-offense has certainly run it's toll on all Patriots fans worldwide, both mentally and physically. After struggling to get through my denial, anger, bargaining, and depression, I'm finally entering the final stage of grieving: acceptance. Don't get me wrong, the Brady situation is terrible for the Patriots, the NFL, and football fans in general, but it doesn't come without a silver lining. Here are 12 reasons why I think the loss of #12 won't be as bad as we expect.

1. Much like Favre, the legend of Tom Brady doesn't properly depict the "true Brady." The 2007 regular season may make it hard to believe, but Tom Brady is human … or at least close to it. Prior to his record-smashing season, Brady had never put up amazing numbers, and he didn't care to; he just did anything and everything necessary to win football games. Since stepping in for an injured Drew Bledsoe in 2001, Brady only surpassed a QB rating of 90.0 in 3 seasons as a starting QB, including '07 when he had a whopping rating of 117.2. And, until last year, he never threw more than 28 touchdowns or fewer than 12 interceptions in a season. Those numbers are respectable, but they're not "legend" great. The legend focuses on his many records, but what made the "true Brady" great were his decision making skills, overwhelming desire to win, and his unwillingness to lose. The Patriots don't need a numbers guy to succeed, they need a winner. All the statistical analysis in the world can't tell you if Cassel has the same "just win" mentality, only time will tell.

2. If the rumors are true, Brady still hadn't fully healed from his foot/ankle injury. Giving him an entire season to rest won't hurt. Add to the fact that he won't be able to walk (so he'll be throwing from his chair), and you can count on his arm strength skyrocketing. Now, it's still not clear if Brady will have healed from his new knee injury by next season (he did tear both his ACL and MCL), but I'm willing to bet he comes back even better.

3. Matt Cassel is a very smart quarterback with a solid arm. He didn't look great in the preaseaon (OK, he looked terrible), but he delivered when his team needed him (in fact, he performed better than Dallas QB Tony Romo in week 1). Cassel's been in the system for several years, learning from the best Coach-Quarterback combination in the league. He will obviously make mistakes and have a few bumps to iron out, but this guy can play football. His reads will improve and his confidence will continue to grow over the next few weeks. He is a serviceable QB, much like Brady was in 2001.

4. Three words: Moss, Welker, and Gaffney. There are very few receiving corps that can be mentioned in the same conversation with these guys, and most of them have long been retired. Regardless of who is throwing the ball, Moss will always demand double-coverage, Gaffney will always be Mr Reliable, and Welker will always demolish defenses over the middle. It doesn't get much better than that.

5. The Patriots may have a stronger defense than last year. Sure, Asante Samuel is gone, but Deltha O'Neal should be more than an adequate replacement, and Ellis Hobbs has significantly improved his game. Other than starting CB, every other position is as good or better than it was in 2007, when it finished 4th overall in the NFL. The front office spent the offseason infusing the aging defense with young talent, and their moves seem to be paying off. For example, rookie LB Jerod Mayo played more defensive snaps than any other Patriots player on Sunday.

6. Running Backs. The Patriots had a solid running game early last year with Sammy Morris and Laurence Maroney sharing carries while Kevin Faulk played his nearly-perfect 3rd down role. The attack seemed to fizzle a bit when Morris was lost for the year, and only picked up late in the season when Maroney got his groove back. This year, Morris is healthy and looking great on the field, Maroney seems much more decisive, and the team landed a big, bruising back in LaMont Jordan. Oh, and did I mention Jordan has some of the best hands in the NFL out of the backfield? Look for the Pats to dominate teams with their running game this year.

7. Coaches. Very few teams have a coaching staff that can minimize their weaknesses like the Patriots' staff. Just look at the offensive line situation a couple years ago: nearly the entire right side was injured. Did the Pats suddenly get annihilated at the line of scrimmage? No, they moved backups around to minimize their weaknesses and were extremely successful as a unit. Bill Belichick, Josh McDaniels, and Dom Capers are at the top of their respective jobs. They will find a way to win without Brady.

8. The Patriots already went through this with Drew Bledsoe. Look how the team overcame the loss of the face of their franchise in 2001. Bledsoe had just signed a 10 year, $100 million deal with the club before he met Mo Lewis in week 2. The rest is history.

9. The Pats are one of the best at running screens. It doesn't sound like much, but when you have a young quarterback leading an offense, opposing defenses will bring the heat. Without a solid screen game, Cassel would be knocked around more than David Carr in Houston.

10. It takes some pressure off of our players. After coming off the only 16-0 regular season in history, the Patriots were certainly under an abnormal amount of pressure to have a similar year. The loss of Brady gives them a clean slate, and the players may perform better with this burden lifted. They are, in a sense, playing with the house's money.

11. Swagger. Every single NFL analyst doubts the Patriots will perform well this year. Some went so far as to say the Jets, who won only 4 games last year, are now the team to beat in the AFC East. Why? Because they have a very old QB behind an old offensive line? The Patriots will finally have their underdog swagger back, and they have been the best team in the NFL at overcoming adversity. It's "us against the world" once again.

12. And the final reason the Patriots will be fine without Brady: they're the Patriots, they always find a way to win.

The Patriots have announced their team captains for 2008: QB Tom Brady, WR Randy Moss and OT Matt Light.

UPDATE: Reader Ernnaastty has pointed out that the team also named LB Tedy Bruschi, LB Mike Vrabel, S Rodney Harrison, and DT Vince Wilfork as defensive captains, while Larry Izzo was named special teams captain.

In a shocking move, the Patriots released CB Fernando Bryant before the 53-man roster deadline. Bryant was penciled in as the top corner on the depth chart and started all four preseason games for the team. This move comes as a big surprise to many who viewed Bryant as Asante Samuel's replacement.

The team also solved the backup QB controversy by releasing QB Matt Gutierrez. Many fans expected Matt Cassel to be victim based on his poor play this preseason. It is still unknown if Cassel is second or third on the depth chart (behind rookie QB Kevin O'Connell).

Other players who were cut include: DE Titus Adams, TE Tyson DeVree, S Mark Sillard, C Mike Flynn (solid preseason, a bit of a surprise), RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis (could be a practice squad player), LB Victor Hobson (poor preseason), LB Vince Redd, CB Mike Richardson (always injured), OT Stephen Sene, S Antwain Spann, DL Santonio Thomas, and OG John Welbourn.

Note the lack of wide receivers on this list, even though the team has 7 on the roster (9 if you count Ray Ventrone and Matthew Slater, who are hybrid safety/wide receivers).

As the 2008 season looms and the team prepares for another AFC East title, the Patriots have several positional battles to solve. The pre-season is where those battles are fought and won. Although you can't read too much into individual player performances during these games, their successes will ultimately decide where they fall on the team's depth chart.

Here are some key battles to watch:

• Backup QB: Brady is the Football Jesus, we all know that. Although he has ice water running through his veins, we all learned last year that his bones are not made of steel. He seems to be fully recovered, but his potential absence due to injury is enough to make some Pats fans nauseous.

  The QBs behind Brady certainly don’t help. Matt Cassell was pulled during a blowout over Miami last year due to poor performance. Matt Gutierrez is quick, but hasn’t shown any signs that he could consistently lead a team. Enter Kevin O'Connell, the shifty quarterback from San Diego State who has impressed during training camp. Cassell is listed as the #2 QB, but will O’Connell be able to take his place? Will Gutierrez play well enough to earn a spot on the roster, or will he be cut?

• Right Offensive Line: Although the Pats have been masters at moving offensive lineman around and minimizing their weaknesses due to injuries, there is still no clear-cut right side to this offensive line. Stephen Neal and Nick Kaczur should get the nod, but Neal is aging and fragile while Kaczur may fall victim to a suspension. The Pats seemed to help their chances by signing a few lesser-known lineman, but their depth at the spot does not overcome their lack of a pure-starter. By all means, the RG and RT spots are up for grabs, and preseason should determine who starts.
• Free Safety: Rodney Harrison has the Strong Safety spot locked. James Sanders was the primary FS last year, but he’s much more suited to play SS. Essentially, the Patriots played two strong safeties last year. This year, 2nd year man Brandon Meriweather should seriously content for a starting spot. He’s got quicks and hits with great power – he just needs to improve his smarts and catching ability. Watch the battle for FS to see if Meriweather impresses enough to overtake Sanders for the starting spot opposite Harrison.
• Middle Linebacker: Bruschi is aging, but he should still start. The question truly lies in who will play next to him: rookie LB Jerod Mayo or veteran LB Victor Hobson. Hobson has had a less than amazing training camp, while the opposite is true for Mayo. So far, Mayo looks to have the lead, but a few costly mistakes in preseason could cost him his job.
• Running Back: Will Sammy Morris be back in time to compete for the bruiser-back role on the team? Will LaMont Jordan take those responsibilities? Maroney is clearly the #1 back, and Kevin Faulk is a lock as the 3rd down back, so the only battle is the bruiser.
• and finally, Cornerback: CB is clearly the biggest question mark for the Patriots. Will Fernando Bryant be able to fill in for Asante Samuel? Will rookie Terrence Wheatley earn a spot over returning CB Ellis Hobbs? This is the biggest and most interesting battle. Literally ever CB spot on the depth chart is up for grabs. Whoever performs well (and consistently) in preseason should earn a starting role.

This looks to be an interesting preseason with key positional battles to watch. Tune in at 7:30 to watch the first round of battles, pitting our team against the Baltimore Ravens (who have several key battles to watch as well).

The New England Patriots have a long-standing offseason awards program devised by Coach Belichick. The awards are given to certain players based on their off-season performance in such areas as improvement from last year, attendance to team-sponsored events, and the players’ workout regimen. The prize? A reserved parking spot closest to Gillette Stadium.

Although Tom Brady is usually the winner of the best parking spot, he didn’t participate this year. "I gave it up. I didn't compete for it this year," Brady said. "I'm sure if I competed for it, I would have won. But I didn't compete for it."

The winners are:

MLB Tedy Bruschi
WR Jabar Gaffney
K Stephen Gostkowski
LG Logan Mankins
RB Sammy Morris
S James Sanders
DT Vince Wilfork
DE Ty Warren

Although Bruschi was on the list, it is hard to believe he was part of the “most improved” group. However, having improvement from the others will make our team simply scary. This is going to be a great year for the Pats.

Offensive Lineman Nick Kaczur, who was arrested near the Canadian border with over 200 prescription pain killers, pled guilty to drug possession charges. The 28-year-old was ordered to pay $355 in fines and fees by Whitestown Town Justice Stanley Wolanin, who said the drug possession charge will be dismissed if he stays out of trouble for the next six months.

Kaczur was originally charged with "seventh-degree" criminal possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail. According to several reports, Kaczur wore a wire to help federal authorities arrest the man accused of supplying him with the drug.

He plans to report to Patriots training camp on Wednesday.