By Ian Kea
After a dismal Sunday loss by five points, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady could not move for a good 30 minutes even after a Vince Wilfork pep talk in the locker room, according to Comcast Sportsnet New England.
This loss, along with its many positive takeaways, still crushed Brady and company, as this primetime game determined who would reign on top of the lea gue. But, there are factors to consider.
One factor is this matchup was in one of the hardest places to play in the league, at Lambeau Field. Chances say that if this matchup were fought in the trenches of Foxboro, the Pats would be 10-2.
Another factor to consider is that of the Lambeau benefit. A lot of the calls made on the field were beneficial to the Packers, such as the Jordy Nelson touchdown before the half where Nelson seemed to have pushed off shutdown corner Darrelle Revis in order to breakaway and even postgame, Revis claimed such foul had occurred as the rest of the game Revis played light outs.
The Patriots defensive line is also a culprit as they let halfback Eddie Lacy run free as well give Aaron Rodgers at one point 12 seconds in the pocket to throw.
On the offensive side, it appeared it was the fault of the offensive line. There is no excuse for the offensive line’s mediocre play but Brady missed some reads, overthrew a couple receivers as well as did not feel the pressure which accounted for the Patriots coming up short late in fourth.
The receiving corps, especially the likes of Amendola and Aaron Dobson, could not pull it together, whether it was just poor judgment or Packers pro-bowl linebacker Clay Matthews starring them down, we will never know for sure. Also, one can’t forget that despite his usual high standard of performance, Rob Gronkowksi dropped a sure touchdown with just minutes left in the fourth quarter.
In a close loss there are some positives takeaways. In such a nail-biter on the road versus a high caliber squad such as the Packers, the Patriots held their own. Revis played lights out and he took on pro-bowler and was mightily successful.
The Patriots offense also did not commit a turnover, neither squads did, a testament to the coaching staff and pro-personnel of both organizations. Another solid showing came from Patriots off-season pickup, reciever Brandon LaFell who scored both of Brady’s touchdown passes.
Another twinkle in Bill Belichick’s eye was that of halfback Brandon Bolden who has not seen much time at the halfback position this season due to the emergence of fellow halfback Jonas Gray, the undrafted free agent halfback out of Notre Dame who conquered the Indianapolis Colts with four touchdowns two weeks ago.
Despite having a 9-3 record, the Patriots still remain atop the AFC. Out of Green Bay, the Pats heading to sunny San Diego for next week’s showdown with the Chargers, who pulled off a last minute comeback in Baltimore against the Ravens.
For now, in the spirit of Belichick, it’s on to San Diego.
