Cursed To First - Sox and Pats forever.

Patriots beat Buffalo Bills, miss playoffs

Before their fate was decided at the hands of their sworn enemies, the New York Jets, the Patriots played a memorable season finale against the upstate New York team, in a stadium that had become a wind tunnel.

Gusts were reported in the Buffalo area up to 60 mph--before the game both goalposts were bent over at odd angles. During the game, at least one of them would bend back again, requiring a crew to reposition it before a field goal could be attempted.

Later in the game the wind would calm down, but during the first half only one field goal was successful, by Stephen Gostkowski late in the first quarter. Two more would be attempted, but they were no match for the wind.

Buffalo stepped up first, with a 47-yard attempt that quickly went awry. The swirling gale forced the ball to the left, then reversed direction, pushing it wide right. I don't think I've ever seen anything like it, and don't expect to again.

With a little over four minutes left in the first half, Stephen Gostkowski would also see a chip-shot attempt no further away than a PAT bedeviled by the weather. This time the kick looked to be dead accurate, until the ball was lifted by invisible hands over the goalpost, wide right again.

Because of the elements, the game was a throwback to leather-helmet scrums, with just a handful of passing plays attempted on either side. Sammy Morris and LaMont Jordan were the featured backs for New England, while Buffalo's Fred Jackson spent much of the afternoon powering his way to first downs with half the aging New England defense riding on his back.

When the dust finally cleared, the Patriots had done their job, sealing an 11-5 record with a 13-0 victory. All eyes then turned to the Meadowlands, where Patriots fans faced the unsavory prospect of rooting for the Jets to beat Miami. A win by the Jets would have put the Patriots in first place in the AFC East; meanwhile, a win by the Jacksonville Jaguars over the Baltimore Ravens would've given the Patriots the wild card.

Let's step back for a moment, though. Because I can't let this one issue go: I want to know where I can find the people who were calling this season a moratorium on Bill Belichick's coaching abilities after Tom Brady limped off the field in Week 1. If those people are still paying attention, I'd be curious to know what their final evaluation is.

My admittedly biased sense is that regardless of the outcome, this is the finest coaching performance we've seen yet from Bill Belichick. Without the MVP quarterback or first-string runningback, and with a chequered offensive line and decimated defense, still we were talking about the playoffs yesterday.

Last year, he deserved some criticism. This year, he deserves credit.

Speaking of which, what Matt Cassel has been through and done this year has sometimes had the feel of an epic quest, full of almost cartoonish obstacles--for example, Keyshawn Johnson pointed out yesterday that Cassel has now faced the "hat trick" of weather games: rain against the Steelers, snow against the Cardinals, and wind against the Bills.

All of this while filling perhaps the biggest shoes in the league, having not stood at the helm of a team since high school. And that's to say nothing of the death of his father just a few weeks ago.

We had absolutely no right to expect what we got from Matt Cassel this year. It should not be taken for granted.

But maybe, I thought, as Eric Mangini frowned and Jets fans booed and Brett Favre threw picks, it's for the best if they don't have to face the playoffs this year. Never mind that in some other divisions their record would've been more than adequate to get them a spot; never mind the Jets and the Jaguars. After all, the Patriots always could've just won one more game, and I can think of a couple I'd like to have back. I'm sure they can too.

But there are so many questions and issues facing New England that it's almost as if having to play out this season has been a distraction. Rumor has it in some places that Tom Brady is behind in his rehab; this is contradicted by some other reports. Regardless, a decision must be made regarding Matt Cassel. The team needs time for bodies to get healthy, and a reprieve from more casualties.

Still, I'll probably always wonder what might've happened if this indefatigable coaching staff were allowed to take this team to the playoffs. As this season has already shown us, we might've been in for a surprise.

Have yourself a Merry little...

Christmas at Fenway, originally uploaded by loki0074.

Wishing you peace and joy.

Evil Empire backs up the Brinks truck, Teixeira to wear pinstripes

miss, originally uploaded by Boston Wolverine.

The Yankees dumped $180 million and eight years in Mark Teixeira's lap, and it was an offer he couldn't refuse.

I think it's safe to say the Yanks have reloaded this off-season. They signed C.C. Sabathia to a $161 million, seven-year contract; they signed A.J. Burnett to five years for $82.5 million. And now Teixeira, plus $5 million thrown at Chien-Ming Wang for good measure. Their luxury tax alone on this payroll is reported to be $29.6 million--and there's still the possibility they could sign Manny Ramirez.

As a Red Sox fan, at least objectively speaking, none of this is great news. We couldn't have expected the Yanks to take their miserable 2008 results lying down, of course, but to see them get an actual pair of relatively young starting pitchers--a pair of aces?--is enough to make me gulp. With the Juice Man gone, the Yankees are exponentially better at first, especially on defense, as they also have Nick Swisher to just sort of kick around as a utility player. I also don't want to think about that lineup. A Yanks-fan friend who called me to gloat actually got me started in a discussion about where you'd hit Teixeira, behind or in front of A-Rod, before I finally caught myself and said, "Wait, why the fuck am I even talking about this with you?"

But yeah.

Actually, of all of them, AJ Burnett is the one who scares me the most, based on how he's matched up with the Red Sox in the past. Invoking the usual 'as long as he stays healthy' disclaimer, Burnett has been difficult if not impossible to solve for the Sox when I've seen him face them. Meanwhile, the Sox solved C.C. Sabathia twice back to back in the ALCS in the year he won the Cy Young--that had to have been his best shot, and so I at least feel like it's a fair fight there. And they also beat Teixeira and the formidable Vladimir Guerrerro with the Angels. Burnett, on the other hand...? I'd rather face Roy Halladay than Burnett. Then again, there is that chance he could end up, as the same Yanks fan referenced above put it, "being Jaret Pavano."

Another couple of silver linings for Sox fans: with this kind of payroll, the old "Yankees and Red Sox are the same now" chestnut might have some of its thunder stolen. But the biggest one of all is that the Yankees have once again thrown a ton of money at the problem through some probably unwisely long contracts to procure free agents--the same pattern that put them in this mess in the first place. Recall it was not their more high-priced assemblages of de facto All-Stars that has won the most rings most recently--the sainted Derek Jeter, still the face of the Yankees franchise, is a homegrown kid. As was Pettitte. Mariano Rivera also made his debut with the Yankees (as a non-drafted free agent), as did Jorge Posada.

Meanwhile, we've seen a few Great Hopes signed as free agents to restore glory to the pinstripes this decade. A-Rod himself, by the free-agent instant-improvement logic, should've been more than enough to lead them to the promised land. Randy Johnson, remember him? And who could forget the return of Pettitte and Clemens?

I know there will be some who call this sour grapes, but really. Call me when the Yankees produce a Dustin Pedroia or an Evan Longoria (and please don't give me any of that crap about Joba equalling Josh Beckett). That's when I'll really be shaking in my boots.

Game Diary: Snow, sleet, rain and Cardinals fall at Gillette

Photo, from a different Snow Bowl, by Beth.

The New England Patriots are 9-0 in the snow at Gillette. They've won 22 of their last 24 games in December, and their last 14 regular-season games against NFC opponents. The Arizona Cardinals, meanwhile, haven't played in the snow in 25 years. Merry Christmas, Pats fans.

I was supposed to have been at that game, but the snow, sleet and rain kept me trapped at home this time around. It's not that I would've minded sitting in the snow for the game (far from it)--it's that trying to drive in the snow last winter taught me my lesson. I was stranded once for 7 hours and had an accident another time. No more machismo on the roads for me, even if it means missing out on Snow Bowl 08.

In the meantime, watching from the boring safety of my house, I kept a running diary a la Bill Simmons on this game.

Caption This...and Christmas

Snow Belichick?, originally uploaded by ConfessionalPoet.

Is it a snow Belichick? That appears to be a whistle around its neck. But otherwise it looks overall a little bit more like a deformed polar bear who's waving, or perhaps a mutated snow-dog.

Thoughts?

For those of you who are Patriots-inclined, I've been posting far more regularly on the Patriot Act at MVN this winter. For this game, I kept a running diary of all the snow-filled hijinks.

Anyway, I also know it's been a while since I rapped at ya over here. Believe me that I'm aware the Yankees have gone out and bought a couple of pitchers--including AJ Burnett, which, ouch. Quite frankly, he bothers me more than CC Sabathia, though I can always hope he'll wind up in the Carl Pavano Memorial MRI Tube.

Still little in the way of news about Teixeira or Varitek. Which is fine, because one scenario involves the potential for the loss of Mike Lowell, the other the potential for the loss of the Captain AS WELL as the equally scary possibility of retaining his bat. All of which still have me plugging my ears and going LA LA LA LA.

So for now, here's hoping you all have a safe and happy holiday, and that your stockings (or politically correct equivalent) are full of rare Boston sports memorabilia collectibles.

Belichick mic'd up

NFL.com has an excellent video of Bill Belichick mic'd up. You can view it at this link: http://www.nfl.com/videos?videoId=09000d5d80d74a78

You can see Belichick's humorous side as well as his compassionate side in dealing with Matt Cassel. We often hear from the players that the Belichick we see is not the Belichick known to them, and it seems as though they're right.

Pats smack down floundering Raiders

Well, that was a bit of what the doctor ordered. After last week's struggle against the 2-10 Seahawks, the Patriots were finally able to make short work of an awful opposing team, spanking the Raiders 49-26 when all was said and done.

The first half stats alone were staggering--they looked, on the Patriots side, like more than enough for a complete game. Heck, the first quarter's stats might've stacked up for a complete game, at least score-wise--it was 21-7 Patriots with 45 minutes of football left.

It was enjoyable to see the JaMarcus Russell version of the Peyton Manning face as the Patriots defense confused him. It was gratifying to watch Matt Cassel throw four touchdown passes and be awarded a hug and the game ball by Belichick on the sidelines, after he lost his father earlier this week. But unfortunately, this was kind of a no-win game for the Patriots; given the state of the team in Oakland, beating them should've been as close to a foregone conclusion as you can ever have in the NFL. 

Patriots call in reserves, edge 2-10 Seahawks, 24-21

Depending on whether you're a glass-half-full or half-empty person, the return of itinerant linebackers Rosie Colvin and Junior Seau either looked like the arrival of reinforcements, or like throwing in the towel.

My father took the latter view. "That's not fair to him," he said as Seau lunged and fell on his face trying to block a touchdown pass."He's 40 years old."

For him, bringing back Seau and Colvin is "the sign of surrender. They're just hoping to get through this season and start over."

He added, "If you've gotta dive to try to catch a guy on a 5-yard route, you're a step or two too slow."

The winter of Pedroia

Dustin Pedroia -BP-, originally uploaded by wheelo50411.

First he won the Gold Glove. Then he won the Silver Slugger award. THEN he won the MVP.

As if all that wasn't enough, today, the Sox dumped a four year contract worth $60 million on top of the pile.

Is it just me, or has it been all Pedroia this offseason, all the time?

I can think of worse things.

And wherever he is, I hope he's picking up dinner.

Patriots stage rainy day disaster against the Steelers

More than 24 hours later, I'm still not quite sure what to write about that game.

At first it seemed like it would be another New England-Pittsburgh heavyweight battle on defense, with the score tied 10-10 after a first half that saw thrills and spills in the driving Foxboro downpour. The highlight of the game for me at that point was Mike Vrabel's interception early in the first quarter, deep in Steelers territory, which led directly to a touchdown for the Patriots moments later.

The Steelers were then held to a field goal, and another New England field goal made it 10-3, Patriots, just in time for me to start thinking about how before my very eyes they were returning to an older form, one that paired wily defense and adequate, determined offense with a smart, balanced game plan tailored to each opponent from week to week. In particular that interception from Vrabel felt like a tantalizing taste of the dynasty heyday.

In the second quarter, a scintillating 41-yard run by Kevin Faulk against the top rushing defense in the league and another 14 yard gain by Morris put the Patriots in the red zone.

And that's about when things started to go terribly wrong.

Randy Moss, he of the flypaper hands, dropped the ball in the end zone not once, not twice, but thrice, once when it would've been a deflected near-pick through the hands of a Steelers receiver that fell directly into his lap, and he couldn't hang on.

Reduced to a field goal, the Patriots lined up to collect their three points, and that's when the kicker that's had us saying 'Adam who?' missed the crucial kick, wide right.

Then the second half happened.

What had been a few blunders, maybe mental errors or the slipperiness of the ball in the rain at the end of the first half gave way to a 30-minute period of football that is undoubtedly the worst display from the Patriots at least since their 2005 loss to the Broncos in the playoffs (the last time they had 5 turnovers), and maybe, before that, since the 31-0 opening-day loss to Buffalo in 2004.

"Ugly" doesn't do it justice. By the end of this game, the Patriots offense had converted a grand total of ONE third down. There have been other games, even lost by as wide a margin as this, where you could point to one or the other formation or play by the opponent that bolloxed up the Patriots' game plan, or a few key moments where the breaks didn't go the Pats' way. This kind of analysis might apply to the first half, but the second? Was simply not the Patriots football I've been watching for the last five years--or even most of the last five months.

Mental mistakes. The Patriots fell behind, then played like they were behind. Attempts to force success only led to more turnovers, and the collective implosion snowballed on itself. My kingdom for a pep talk from a cool No 12 at that moment.

But it can't be that simple, can it? Brady wasn't the only leader on the team. Of course, the team is missing other leaders on both sides of the ball, too, guys like Rodney Harrison, Adalius Thomas and Ty Warren. Yet they were missing those guys when they beat Miami and played a barn-burner against the Jets. Were the Steelers just the level of opponent that finally brought out those absences in glaring relief?

Even then, there's a psychological element to this implosion (that's the only word I can think of that really describe it) that is not something I expected to see even on the worst day from a Belichick team, especially not this Belichick team, one that had showed resilience this year despite injuries and some tough losses.

And surely--SURELY--you can't expect me, a New England Patriots fan, to factor in the weather. Especially since the other guys were playing in the rain, too, and managed not to run around like a bunch of headless chickens.

When the Pats lost to San Diego and the Colts, I allowed the thought that while they've beeen able to overcome the holes in the lineup and cover up the inexperience against fair-to-middling opponents, it may be time to admit we are seeing a pattern emerging where the 2008 Patriots can't hang with the top echelons of the AFC anymore, can't step up to those matchups we used to relish, with the likes of Pittsburgh and Indy. But it seems like whenever I've come to that point of writing them off, the Patriots have surprised me by bouncing back for the next game.

So now it's time to wait and see. I hope it was just a really bad day. I hope that nagging 'can't hang' sense turns out to be wrong.