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Do you know those Snickers ads? The ones with the slogan “You’re not yourself when you’re hungry…” at the end?
A variation of that came to me on Sunday as I was digesting Bill Belichick’s defense against Cam Newton’s performance against the Cardinals.
When asked if Jarrett Stidham was an option in the middle of Newton’s 9-for-18, 84-yard, two-pick and three-sack performance, Belichick dodged the question except to point out, “Cam threw for 350 la last week.”
The guy who spawned the phrase “Statistics are for losers?” The man who answered 95% of all Tom Brady omnipotence queries with, “Tom works hard. Like many of our players. “
This same guy is now saying, “Yeah, but last week Cam was awesome !!”?
You are not yourself when your team stinks a bit.
When your team stinks a little, you don’t talk about having “a long way to go…”. You take the W’s wherever you can find them and run home as fast as you can.
When your team stinks a little, you are not the personification of the dark looking for the tiniest cloud in an otherwise perfect sky. You find a ray of hope in the middle of the monsoon.
Phil Perry’s Patriots record for victory over Cardinals
“Really proud of how these guys competed,” Belichick said after the 20-17 win at the buzzer at the foot of Nick Folk. “Give them all the credit in the world for the end result. They played hard, competed for 60 minutes, played enough at critical points in the game to win.
“The leadership we’ve had from the captains and some of the other veteran players here over the past few weeks has been tremendous,” Belichick continued. “I think it really helped other players prepare better and ultimately perform a little more consistently. A great way to end Thanksgiving weekend. We have two big games in Los Angeles next week. Try enjoying this one for a little while and then switch to chargers. “
It’s easy to understand that a head coach reveling in an ugly win and sniffing at the idea that a win like this (or the one just like it delivered them against the Jets) is below it. them.
Guide a team with dimensionless attack and mediocre defense to victory as the quarterback actively harpoons your chances? Difficult to do. Definitely take advantage of it.
They’re breaking their asses and working until midnight to come up with a plan that will end with them having more points than their opponent on Sunday afternoon. They get goal line support. An end-of-game stoppage to force a basket. Two big special teams return which lead in points. A fourth touchdown on an option played to James White? Mission accomplished.
Where the Patriots stand in the updated AFC playoff image
But those of us who don’t coach or play for the Patriots? You have to squint really hard to see the ray of hope.
They won, but they have 5-6 and embark on a pretty tough three-game road trip before heading home to play the Bills. They do not represent a clear and present danger to make the playoffs and – even in victory – the myriad problems they face are laid bare.
They could have the worst passing attack in the NFL. Too often, Newton cannot find anyone to throw at. When he does, he throws wild too often. They have no tight end threat. They don’t have gaps that make anyone sweat. Newton does just enough with his legs to make up for the woes of the game and secure wins that become the scent of spicy performances.
They’re leading an attack back into a first-pitching league, and the building blocks to take them out of the mid-1950s aren’t currently on the list.
Meanwhile, the path to moving away from the mediocrity they seem to orient themselves is in the project, and these moving November victories will ultimately move them further into the commission project.
The Patriots have spent a lot of time this year talking about how close they must have a better record. And that’s true. Hell, they could be 8-3 if things turned out differently in the dying minutes against the Seahawks, Broncos and Bills. They could also be 3-8 if it weren’t for the journeyman kicker who beat this year’s fifth-round pick to replace him.
Gone are the days when the Patriots won and Belichick would say, “(Put in number) wins won’t get you very far in this league.”
This year, take 5th place and go to 0.500? They will take it. Fortunately.
BUT … DEFENSIVELY …
Now from the “Yeah, but…” part of the program… the Patriots have had their way with Kyler Murray. He finished 23 for 34 for just 170 yards and the constant pressure they brought throughout the game pushed him to a pedestrian performance. Deshaun Watson’s sublime display last week was dotted with precise finishes on well-covered receivers. Murray couldn’t match that precision and the Patriots put pressure on Murray at every level of their defense. Rookie Josh Uche, Chase Winovich, Adam Butler and Lawrence Guy in particular had big impacts.
WATCH: Chiefs’ Brady and Chris Jones enter into heated verbal exchange
Adrian Phillips, who came up with a pick on a deflected pass, said the key was the pass rush.
“The pressure, you know? Anytime you put pressure on a quarterback, whether it’s someone who is mobile or someone who is a pocket passer, if you put pressure on him and keep mixing looks, it causes a lot of trouble. to the guys, ”he explained.
“So we were able to do it. If you watch the early parts of the season and even last week when we lobbied, we weren’t doing it under control. We let them out of the pocket and let them scramble or anything, find an open receiver downstream. But today we really made sure that whatever happens, we’re going to pressure this guy, we’re going to bring him back after him, but we’re not just doing that. to let him run. It ended up working. When we execute the game plan like that, it’s going to be hard to fight.
A VERY SPECIAL EPISODE
The goal line stand just before half-time prevented the Cardinals from taking a 17-7 lead at the break. It was obviously a huge moment in the game. But the Patriots special teams were arguably the reason they won. And that goes beyond the winner of the Folk game.
The Patriots’ first touchdown was established in large part by the return of the 53-yard kickoff by newcomer Donte Moncrief. The key play on the ride was a 13-yard completion for Jakobi Meyers with a 15-yard penalty against Arizona when Isaiah Simmons was tagged for lowering his helmet to initiate contact.
Excessive reactions to Pats’ victory over the Cardinals
White scored on a Cardinals 7’s fourth and second pitch to cap the ride.
Moncrief said he hasn’t returned kicks since his first year with the Colts in 2014.
“The special teams coach (Cam Achord) asked me, ‘What do you think of the returns?’ I’m like, ‘If you need me to do it, I will. I will do anything to help this team, “said Moncrief.” He gave me a chance over the week and he liked what he saw so he stuck with it.
“We had the good return and Jak [Jakob Johnson] and gunner [Olszewski] made two large blocks. So I just followed them and saw the hole, ”Moncrief explained. “I hit the crease. I remember the coach telling me earlier in a week, he was like, ‘There’s going to be a hole, you just have to hit it.’ I just put my trust in what he told me, and when I did, it worked.
Cam Newton praises Pats’ D for his goal line
The other big comeback came from Olszewski, who took a 34-yard punt from Andy Lee of the Patriots 18 all the way back. The 82-yard return was curtailed by a peelback block thrown by Anfernee Jennings. Even though he was facing the Cardinals defenseman in pursuit, officials applied the part of the rule that says a player cannot be facing or parallel to his own end zone when delivering the goal. block. The Patriots still got a Folk field goal.
Meanwhile, Jake Bailey continues to have defining moments. He had three punts, one of which was shot at the Cardinals 3.
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