5 Observances

The secondary has their moments, but overall it’s been solid: I’ll be the first to admit that I’m extremely critical of the secondary, no matter who happens to be a part of it. When the Patriots brought in Delta O’Neal a few weeks ago I seemed to be the only one who wasn’t excited with the acquisition. Don’t even bring up Ellis Hobbs. However, so far, both have looked impressive especially Ellis Hobbs. OK, so the Chiefs and the Jets don’t have the strongest passing attack, but I find his play impressive nonetheless. Even Lewis Sanders has looked decent. Rodney Harrison may be missing tackles that he would normally make (three years ago), but overall he seems to be holding his job down early on. O’Neal had the biggest play of Week One when he preserved a win against Kansas City late in the game, he also made a good play this week on a failed Jets screen pass. Had Favre not shied away from throwing the pass, O’Neal would have taken it for six. Hobbs also made numerous outstanding plays, all of which the Jets would argue to be pass interference. No such luck. All were fantastic plays by Hobbs.

Gostkowski is connecting in every way: With Brady down, the Patriots won’t be seeing nearly as many touchdown drives which makes Stephen Gostkowski that much more important. So far, Gost is perfect in field goals; the best part about that being that he has had past troubles with shorter kicks. Not only is Gost perfect, but he hasn’t had one kick that has made fans hold their breath. It seems all of his kicks have perfectly split the uprights. Gost also hit a very important kick this past week as his 4th quarter field goal put the Patriots up by more than one possession late in the game. It was by no means an Adam Vinatieri-like pressure kick, but it was big all the same. Also, a big factor of the Patriots win this past week was field position. The Patriots started a lot of their drives in goo field position, which definitely helped Matt Cassel. On the other hand, the Jets started at least six drives from their own twenty, which is mainly thanks to Gostkowski. The wind wasn’t that strong in Jersey and yet Gostkowski was booming kick-off after kick-off out of the end zone and pinning the Jets; something Vinatieri was never able to do with his more accurate-than-powerful leg.

Linebackers unseen: Aside from Adalius Thomas’ throw down of Brett Favre and Leon Washington, who has seen much of the linebackers? I’m not at all surprised by Tedy Bruschi’s lack of appearance since he hasn’t made a big play in a long time and has fallen off the map the past few years. But how about Mike Vrabel? How about rookies Jerod Mayo and Shawn Crable? Aside from Thomas’ sack, the most notable play concerning a Patriot linebacker happened when Pierre Woods injured himself. Due to Brady’s absence during the preseason, we may have gotten to caught up in our younger players success and expected immediate contribution. We were all pumped for Mayo and Crable to burst onto the scene; however, Mayo hasn’t surfaced onto the big picture yet, the same goes for Crable. Crable hasn’t seen much playing time, but I take it that Mayo may become what last years Adalius Thomas was like. He’ll do his job, but stay out of the spotlight. Naturally, this will raise eyebrows and question what he’s bringing to the table (similar to what happened with Thomas in 07), but unless I hear he’s struggling than I’m not going to worry. Lastly, in these first few games we’ve seen a lack of Mike Vrabel. Could Vrabel be slowing down? Vrabel can still come around the corner to pressure the QB, but he hasn’t been fully able to escape the blocks stopping him yet. Patriots haters always talk about guys like Bruschi and Harrison aging, but could this refer to Vrabel as well? I’m going to leave my judgment out of this. To be honest, as long as the Patriots stop the run like they have so far I won’t have any problem with the linebackers being MIA.

Cassel looking stable: We’ve successfully made it past the first game of the Matt Cassel era and I’m sure that the fact that Brady is gone has sunk in by now. Through a start and three quarters, Cassel hasn’t thrown an interception, and while he has thrown a few lame ducks, he’s looked solid so far. However, the entire passing attack relied on short passes and screens. I’m sure the thought of Cassel throwing more than 15 yards into coverage makes most Pats fans cringe, including myself. For that reason alone I am not getting TOO excited about Cassel’s surprising success. A good team will take Faulk and Welker out of the game and make Cassel look for Moss and Gaffney in deeper coverage. It’s been easy to see that Cassel is no Tom Brady. He seems to panic a little when under intense pressure, but hasn’t made a mistake yet…he’s thrown the ball away on a few occasions which is good to see. It’s also clear that Cassel doesn’t have Brady’s pocket presence as he moves out of the pocket a lot more often than Brady does. The thought of Cassel throwing on the run scares me more than the thought of Peyton Manning throwing on the run with five Ty Law’s awaiting his release…

The D-Line: Seymour, Wilfork and Warren have looked good so far. There have been moments where the run defense could be questioned, but for the most part the d-line did a good job of stuffing Larry Johnson and Thomas Jones. I’ve noticed that Ty Warren looks especially quick this year, and hey!! Big man Richard Seymour actually recorded a sack. I’m aware that recording a sack is nothing new to Seymour, but that’s his first that I’ve actually seen in a while.

It’s a Magical World

It’s a Magical World

“It’s a magical world Hobbes ol’ buddy!” – Bill Watterson’s “Calvin and Hobbes”‘

It’s apparent that Calvin and Hobbes couldn’t possibly be hardcore sports fans…and yet, that small and simple statement made by Calvin in the final “Calvin and Hobbes” comic strip could relate to sports situations.

A lot of the time, as sports fans, we get caught up in a moment; other times we may not appreciate those moments until they’re gone. One thing is for sure, sports provide us with a piece of our magical world, although it all depends on how we capture the moments we witness.

I’ve heard both the theories that “no good thing dies” and that “even good things have to die”; however, I may be living in the aftermath of something great. Whether that good thing continues on literally or purely as a memory is yet to be seen.

For those who haven’t caught on, I am of course talking about the injury to Tom Brady and how it may affect the future of the New England Patriots. Tom Brady, the God-like figure of our magical world has been struck down at the worst possible time. Before Brady went down, it seemed this great time we’ve come accustom to was weak, especially after 18-1, but we continued to hold a positive mind state for the most part. We had our saviors in Tom and Bill and as long as those two stayed together and performing then the magic could continue. And then it happened. It was an evil twist and an already heart-wrenching climax. The story of a lowly team, who rose to greatness turned dominance in just a few years, only to face heartbreak in several different forms. Every good thing must come to an end I suppose.

Seeing Tom Brady roll around on the ground clutching his knee was like watching one of your heroes die. At the time, I sat motionless watching it happen and really had no words to express what had just happened. In those few moments that Brady was down, the memories came swarming back from every direction, both the good and the bad. I saw Vinatieri’s two Super Bowl winning kicks split the uprights, I saw Aaron Boone raise his arms triumphantly, I saw the Red Sox celebrating in St. Louis, the Patriots in Jacksonville, and the Celtics in front of their home crowd. I saw Brady walk off the field dejectedly both in Indy and Arizona, with flashes of Ben Watson lighting up Champ Bailey out of the corner of my eye. I relived all of these moments strictly from seeing a New England icon, Tom Brady, lie painfully on the ground.

But above all, I saw Nomar Garciaparra walking out of the Red Sox clubhouse and heading for Chicago. Watching Brady lie there was like losing my hero, my idol, my symbol of something I held dear and now felt unsure of. I remember thinking of the worst when Nomar was traded, and as everyone knows that deal resulted in the best outcome. However, while I couldn’t think of the Patriots without Tom Brady, I still had no thoughts while he lay there. I was stunned. Literally, I couldn’t blink or talk or move. I just stared at the TV screen almost wait for it to scream APRIL FOOLS! Finally, I came around and the first thing I could ask myself was: “is this the end?” I had been crushed when the Patriots lost to Indy two years ago, even if I didn’t wear my emotions on my sleeve. That soon changed when the Patriots blew their undefeated season last year as I let all of my rage out and like most Patriots fans I will never get over that loss. But when Brady went down all I couldn’t ask myself anything except whether or not the Patriots reign on the NFL was coming to an end. The AFC Championship Game. The Super Bowl. The Injury. It all seemed like a nightmare and the thought that all the events happened in a span of three years concerned me. It seemed like far too much bad luck. (Which I obviously blamed it on…come on, the Patriots’ play actually losing a game for them? Pfft.) Could this be the end of our magical world so soon after it started? Needless to say I don’t want to go overboard, but I think I was emotionally and spiritually beat up by the past few Patriots seasons and when I saw Brady helped off the field…a little piece of me died.

And yet a world without magic is a world nonetheless. While Calvin and Hobbes were a pair of uneducated comic strip characters, they represented the world perfectly. Some days they didn’t get along, other days things just flat-out went wrong for them, but when you get right down to it every day, both in sports and life (I guess) is magical whether you’re living it or reminiscing.

Don’t loss the magic Patriots fans. We’ve had the priviledge to see the Patriots go through their best years and also see them face their biggest heartbreaks. We do not know what Matt Cassel will bring, and while he isn’t an icon, every falling empire needs someone to step up and be a leader. And no matter where he may lead us, whether it’ll leave us celebrating new glory, giving us back that hope we lost when Brady went down, or leaving us remembering better times, we’ll keep those magic season, this magic team, this magical world alive.

KEEP THE FAITH! CASSEL ’08!

TFB meet TBB

TFB meet TBB

No, this isn’t Tom Fuckin Brady meet Tom Bitchin’ Brady, this is Tom Fucki Brady being introduced to Patriots fans, who will now go by the nickname “Terrified Beyond Belief”. When Patriots fans didn’t catch a glimpse of Brady in the preseason they started to get a little worried. Eventually, Brady started missing practices and those worried faces became stunned faces. Then comes along the week before the start of the regular season when it’s announced that Brady has a cracked bone in his foot; however, will probably start the opening week. Those worried and stunned expressions quickly moved to terrified expressions, at least in the eyes of this fan.

Normally, Boston fans act either outrageously smug or unbelievably pessimistic depending on how their teams are fairing; however, above all the other cases of smugness vs. pessimism comes the biggest one dealing with Tom Brady. Tom Brady has been the NFL greatest QB for years and Patriots fans (even the humble ones) never let people forget it. It’d be hard to hold a conversation about a Patriots weakness with the phrase “we’ve got Brady, we’ll be fine” being uttered. When Brady is on the field and open in the eyes of the fan, New England is at bliss. Yes indeed, Tom Brady is a hero.

Unfortunately, everyone hero has a heroic flaw.

Don’t get me wrong, Tom Brady is the perfect human being. I’ve never seen another sports figure make less mistakes than he does, no, the problem lies in his faithful worshippers. Patriots fans cared far too much about Tom Brady. What he’s doing, where he’s doing it, what he’s thinking, and above all, his health. BB, meaning “Before Brady,” you would be lucky to find one person who would skip an important day with their family to stay home and watch Drew Bledsoe command the Patriots. The fans cared, but they didn’t REALLY care…especially from 97-2000. The Patriots had been entering a dark age when a Californian prodigy arrived in New England. He wasn’t nestled in a manger, but he might as well have been. As his magical word was spread, more and more people came to follow him and his word.

Seven years and three Super Bowl rings later, fans are obsessed. He is easily the most cared about New England figure in recent years; more than Nomar, Pedro, Ortiz, Ramirez, Pierce, KG, or Allen. (I won’t go as far as to say Russell, Bird, Clemens, Yaz, and Williams since I didn’t witness them do their thing, but I have a feeling Brady is above them as well) Knowing this, can you imagine the reaction to the news that Brady has a cracked bone in his foot? Can you imagine the thoughts of Patriots fans when they heard that Brady SHOULD be ready for opening week? Can you imagine how many people out there would offer up a relative or girlfriend/boyfriend to God as long Brady is healthy?

The coming days and first few weeks, all eyes will be on Brady. The Pats went 0-4 in the preseason, showed both a weak defense and offense, and yet Tom Brady is going to be in the spotlight again. Each time Brady drops back, fans will hold their breath. Every time Brady throws a seed to Randy, Pats fans will exhale and claim how they weren’t worried. Every time he overthrows a receiver, Pats fans will start blaming the foot.

And every time Brady gets hit or falls to the ground, Pats fans hearts will stop.

Just another game in the Tom Brady age, but this time there is going to be a larger amount of worry coming with every play.

And personally, I’m terrified beyond belief.

Team or Flash?

Everyone likes to get see fireworks just like everyone would want to go see the Harlem Globetrotters. Both are examples of exciting entertainment and flash at its highest level. The New England Patriots have never been flashy or have had the explosive players that single handedly brought fans to games. The Patriots have been nothing more or less than a team for the past eight seasons or so.

And then came 2007.

2007 was like a mix of the watergate scandal, a no-hitter, and the McGwire/Sosa home run chase of 98 for the Patriots. To say that 2007 was an amazing season would be an undeniable understatement. Being Patriots fans, we had gotten used to the notion of the “teams win games” philosophy so naturally 2007 took us way off guard. Everyone knew the Patriots would be good, even before the trade for Randy Moss, but what we got was staggering. Within the first month came Spygate, which could possibly be one of the biggest (and most overblown) scandals in NFL history and it was happening to OUR New England Patriots! The same team that always held the team before the player, and that didn’t stand for any rule breaking or acting out was becoming the most hated team in the NFL. The Patriots were docked a first round pick, and having their championships questioned; also, the NFL’s most notable coach was fined 500K and was losing credability with the league. Alone, Spygate would have been enough to make 2007 the most “anti-Patriot” season in a long while…

And then, all of a sudden, a team more famous for its defensive prowess was putting points up like they were computer carrots and the two most notable names on the offense were chasing their positions most respectable records. Seriously? A couple players on the New England Patriots chasing records? Wasn’t this the team that had once claimed to not have one superstar? It was like seeing the picture negatives of this team. And oh yeah, they were also trying to complete a perfect season.

Watergate, McGwire/Sosa, and the pursuit of a no-hitter. All unheard of things when talking about the New England Patriots. Spygate turned out to be as bad as watergate, both Brady and Moss ended up breaking previous records much like McGwire/Sosa and as for perfection? Well…let’s just say the no-hitter was broken up with two outs and strikes in the ninth. Not once has a Patriots season carried so much pressure, so much attention, and so many headlines.

That being said, what should everyone expect out of the 2008 Patriots? More than likely (and hopefully) the Pats won’t be involved in another scandal, and teams have learned that the key to slowing down the offense is to put pressure on Brady and take Moss out of the game. As for perfection? The Patriots almost did it last year and their schedule this year is five times easier so who knows. Look at it this way…the flashy Patriots gathered the front page headlines, the records, the fame, but they lost the Super Bowl. The team-oriented Patriots won 3 Super Bowls in 6 years. My wonder is which Patriots team will we see this year? The firework Globetrotter Patriots or the team-oriented, Super Bowl hungry Patriots?

Which team would you prefer to see? Personally, I’d expect a disporportional sway towards one side.

10 Reasons Why I Wish Manny NO Success in L.A.

1) Manny is an asshole. My, my how quickly my opinion of one player can change within just one week. This sure as hell doesn’t give a good sign of what’s going to happen if my future girlfriend and I have a bad week. But either way, whatever happened this week between the FO and Manny, he made it way worse than it could have been and handled it in the worst way possible. The antics on the field during the Angels series was one thing, but the comments he made were pouring gasoline on the fire. “The Red Sox don’t deserve a player like me”? Eat a bag of dicks Manny.

2) I’m an asshole. I flat out wouldn’t be able to handle it if Manny went into Hollywood and tore it up. I’m a greedy type of guy. If what you’re doing doesn’t benefit me in any way than their success pisses me off. I’m a jealous asshole.

3) Speaking of Hollywood… It’s only been ONE day since Manny has been a Dodger and yet I’ve heard how Hollywood is the best fit for Manny and his persona. Manny being Manny goes Hollywood…just thinking about it makes me sick. You thought the Sox let Manny get away with hell? Just wait and see what the Dodgers let Manny get away with within the span of 2-3 months.

4) All of a sudden he’s Mr. Nice Guy. Now that Manny finds himself out of Boston and on a losing (but improved) team he needs to make it known just how fucking happy he is to be there. It’s such cliche bullshit and Manny found out how to put a new spin on it. He looked like a fool during his press conference, joking around with the media as if they’re not going to be as brutal on him as Boston reporters were…it’s Hollywood for God’s sake.

5) Seeing Jason Bay play one game in left made me feel orgasmic. I had completely forgotten what it was like to see a line drive heading to left and not have to hold my breath. Bay showed in one game just how easy it is to cover the ground in left, which is something Manny still was having trouble figuring out. (No one knows the bounces and the wall better than Manny but he’s just such a slow, lazy, fat fuck.) Anyone else see the gap shot that Manny didn’t chase down in Dodger Stadium? The ball that him and Andrew Jones both looked at each other wondering when the other was going to go retrieve it? What a fat, lazy fuck. Nothing is going to change with him. I can’t wait to see the adventures he has in the significantly larger left field at Dodger Stadium. Oh, and there’s no DH option Manny!

6) His disability to make a decision. I just remembered the several occasions in which Manny claimed he wanted to end his career with the Red Sox. The brutal situations in life even creep into sports. There are devastating divorces in marriage and close friendships that end suddenly. Manny’s eventual departure was like a mix of those. Can you tell I’m fucking bitter?

7) He won’t be forced to cut his hair. Is Manny seriously already getting his way in LA? Did he convince Joe Torre to allow him permission to keep his image? I bet that was Manny’s excuse: “I need to keep da hair man…you know? Da hair’s partoffmy image man…” Ten dollars says Manny has already gotten into an arguement with Torre about it and as a result didn’t hustle to that gap shot and grounded into a double play in the 9th. I can see the situation come the offseason: “The Dodgers drove me out of town. Dey don’ deservef me or ma hair man.”

8 ) Nomar jumping to his defense. Seriously. I’m getting suicidal. But oh how ironic is it that Nomar heads RIGHT back to the DL in order to make room for Manny? You know what Manny’s talking about Nomar? Well, what about your endless trips to the DL since your departure from Boston? I would agree that the Sox mistreated Nomar and drove him out of town, but is it just me or did they make the smartest move in the world in trading his rusty, worn down body away? Defending scum like Manny…he must have some nerve.

9) Manny’s wearing #99. #24 is retired so he decides to be a complete fool and take #99. He’s already drawing even more attention to himself than he already has. God I miss this silly-nanny. Who’s that number dedicated to Manny? Wayne Gretzky?

10) *sigh*…It’s Nomar all over again. I’m loving every part of Manny being somewhere else, especially since Red Sox Nation (I hate that term) has accepted and loves Jason Bay already, and yet a part of me misses Manny’s character, his slightly overboard tomfoolery, and all he’s done for this club. I’m having serious Manny withdrawals…I’m almost bipolar…wait a minute…he said we weren’t good enough for him! Go to hell Manny!

BONUS!!!

11) He’s going to sign with New York in the offseason. We all know it. Doesn’t matter if it’s the Mets or the Yankees. New York is New York. God-fucking-dammit.

Welcome to Boston Jason Bay…

The first page of Jason Bay’s career has been written and if it’s any indication of what’s to come it looks like good news for the Boston Red Sox. By no means did Bay light the world on fire, but he got the big hit when the Red Sox needed it most and helped the Sox win a game that they needed to have. Needless to say, Jasons Bay will receive nothing but praise by the Boston media for the next couple of days. Here’s a couple of things that I noticed during Bay’s first game in Fenway:

• Boston is welcoming Jason Bay. Red Sox fans have always been unpredictable, but for the most part will pay their respects to it’s greats that left and returned with another team and a new superstar being welcomed into town. I knew that Jason Bay would get a warm hand when he came to the plate for the first time…but I didn’t expect it to be as loud as it was. The trade for Bay was an ugly one that Sox fans apparently either hated or loved. Red Sox fans had to go through another “Nomar trade” and lost one of it’s most beloved players over the years. The fact that Bay was the player the Sox received in return for Manny was enough alone to make a select Sox fans hate Bay already.
• He’s got Manny’s eye. If Bay’s night tells us anything it says that he works the count and waits for his pitch. Just like with Manny Ramirez he sometimes won’t get that pitch and ends up striking out. Bay finished his first game in a Sox uniform going 1-3 with 2 walks and was hit by a pitch. I can’t even describe how many times Manny had a hitless or one hit game, but walked more than one time.
• Don’t be fooled, people are excited by him. Bay was given a standing ovation each time he came to the plate, and he seems to already be in the Manny-Ortiz mold meaning that when he comes to the plate with the game on the line people stop what they’re doing and become as loud and rowdy as they possibly can. Hell, these fans were excited by the way Bay ran the bases, but I guess that’s understandable when you’re so used to having a left fielder that’s slow as shit and neglects to hustle half the time.
• The man can actually play defense. Um…hmm…wait…did a Red Sox left fielder actually play a good game defensively…what is this nonsense?
• He’s a quiet guy. From the moment he arrived in Boston to his interview at the end of the game he stayed quiet, humble and cliche. I don’t want to speak for everyone, but after the type of comments Manny’s made and the type of antics Manny has done, I welcome a down to earth, quiet player who goes out there each night, does his job, and keeps quiet.

Much like Manny Ramirez’s first game at Fenway, Jason Bay made a great first impression on Red Sox fans. Barring the postseason, Bay won’t face a more pressure filled game than the one he played in tonight, and considering he got the biggest hit of the game, all signs are positive.