Shank recaps last night's 9-7 Red Sox win over the Yankees. Even with the target rich environment of Pedro Martinez, Curt Schilling and Nomar Garciaparra, there were no cheap shots to be had in the column. Must be the Opening Day spirit...
Or maybe Shank saw that "run prevention" as a philosophy is more flexible than he wanted to give it credit for - sort of like the Patriots "winning Superbowls with defense" by needing Tom Brady to bail out the defense almost every time the Patriots got to the SB.
The Pats defense gave up 17 points in the first one. 29 points in the second (not that bad considering the ebb and flow of that game) and 21 in the third which also isn't bad. Even the in Superbowl they lost a couple of years ago they only gave up 17 points.
Paul - the defense not only didn't come through in the fourth quarter of the Rams, Panthers, and Giants SBs, the defense COLLAPSED ENTIRELY. They blew a 14-point lead against the Rams, they got destroyed by the Panthers (this is why I became a fan of the Panthers that year; they were the real deal, the best team to lose a Superbowl ever seen), and they failed against the Giants - now this collapse was less egregious because the play that killed them was the ultimate fluke. But the fact remains that the Patriots did not win with defense, they won because Tom Brady bailed them out.
"But the fact remains that the Patriots did not win with defense, they won because Tom Brady bailed them out."
I'm sorry you feel that way. I guess Rodney Harrison picking off McNabb in the Eagles SB wasn't the defense stepping up.
The defense shouldn't have been put in the position they were in in the Giant SB since for whatever reason, the O-line decided to do their best matador impression. With that prolific offense, the Pats should have scored more that 14 points.
In the Panthers SB, both D's played well in the first half and fell apart in the second. Both teams combined to set a SB record for punts in a half.
They held The Greatest Show on Turf to 17 points! How is that not coming through?
Sorry, I thought the Pats defense played well in the 4 SB's they've went to recently. I mean, their opponents in all of them were no slouches either...What did you expect the defense to do? Pitch a shutout? Hold them to 3 points?
Paul - where was Rodney Harrison on the Panthers final drive? Out with a broken shoulder. Where was the defense on the Rams' last two possessions? Giving up a hideous goalline penalty and then getting torched by Ricky Proehl. It was Brady who bailed out a defense that failed in the fourth quarter.
"In the Panthers Superbowl both defenses played well in the first half and fell apart in the second." Not really. The Patriots defense was indeed destroyed in the second half, but the Panthers defense gave the offense a chance to take the lead on Reggie Howard's endzone INT. Once again, it was Brady who saved the defense.
"They held the Greatest Show On Turf to 17 points! How is that not coming through." Again, the defense blew a 14-point fourth quarter lead and needed the offense to bail them out. What part of this don't you want to understand?
Don't blame the O-line for the Giants SB loss; they stopped the Giants pass-rush enough to take the lead when it mattered. The defense was supposed to stop Eli Manning and they failed.
The defense failed, it was Brady who won those Superbowls. Period. The Patriots won DESPITE their defense, NOT BECAUSE OF IT.
6 comments:
Or maybe Shank saw that "run prevention" as a philosophy is more flexible than he wanted to give it credit for - sort of like the Patriots "winning Superbowls with defense" by needing Tom Brady to bail out the defense almost every time the Patriots got to the SB.
Monkee,
The Pats defense gave up 17 points in the first one. 29 points in the second (not that bad considering the ebb and flow of that game) and 21 in the third which also isn't bad. Even the in Superbowl they lost a couple of years ago they only gave up 17 points.
nice! a side note, how wonderful/weird was it to see curt in a suit?
Paul - the defense not only didn't come through in the fourth quarter of the Rams, Panthers, and Giants SBs, the defense COLLAPSED ENTIRELY. They blew a 14-point lead against the Rams, they got destroyed by the Panthers (this is why I became a fan of the Panthers that year; they were the real deal, the best team to lose a Superbowl ever seen), and they failed against the Giants - now this collapse was less egregious because the play that killed them was the ultimate fluke. But the fact remains that the Patriots did not win with defense, they won because Tom Brady bailed them out.
"But the fact remains that the Patriots did not win with defense, they won because Tom Brady bailed them out."
I'm sorry you feel that way. I guess Rodney Harrison picking off McNabb in the Eagles SB wasn't the defense stepping up.
The defense shouldn't have been put in the position they were in in the Giant SB since for whatever reason, the O-line decided to do their best matador impression. With that prolific offense, the Pats should have scored more that 14 points.
In the Panthers SB, both D's played well in the first half and fell apart in the second. Both teams combined to set a SB record for punts in a half.
They held The Greatest Show on Turf to 17 points! How is that not coming through?
Sorry, I thought the Pats defense played well in the 4 SB's they've went to recently. I mean, their opponents in all of them were no slouches either...What did you expect the defense to do? Pitch a shutout? Hold them to 3 points?
Paul - where was Rodney Harrison on the Panthers final drive? Out with a broken shoulder. Where was the defense on the Rams' last two possessions? Giving up a hideous goalline penalty and then getting torched by Ricky Proehl. It was Brady who bailed out a defense that failed in the fourth quarter.
"In the Panthers Superbowl both defenses played well in the first half and fell apart in the second." Not really. The Patriots defense was indeed destroyed in the second half, but the Panthers defense gave the offense a chance to take the lead on Reggie Howard's endzone INT. Once again, it was Brady who saved the defense.
"They held the Greatest Show On Turf to 17 points! How is that not coming through." Again, the defense blew a 14-point fourth quarter lead and needed the offense to bail them out. What part of this don't you want to understand?
Don't blame the O-line for the Giants SB loss; they stopped the Giants pass-rush enough to take the lead when it mattered. The defense was supposed to stop Eli Manning and they failed.
The defense failed, it was Brady who won those Superbowls. Period. The Patriots won DESPITE their defense, NOT BECAUSE OF IT.
Post a Comment