A Sudden Change In Direction

Shank on the New England Patriots' playoff chances last week - It's dead, Jim. Shank on the New England Patriots' playoff chances last night - So you're saying there's a chance?

Midway through the third quarter, with the Patriots about to take a 23-10 lead on the Baltimore Ravens, NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth assessed the Patriots' prospects in the 2020 AFC East and uttered words that will be repeated 1 million times on Boston sports talk radio this week:

"They’re right back in it.''

Seriously.

The Patriots, who were 3-5 coming into “Sunday Night Football.”

The Patriots, who struggled mightily to beat the 0-8 Jets last week.

The Patriots, who have no Tom Brady, who had eight guys opt out, and are decimated with injuries.

Right . . . back . . . in it.

I’m not so sure about this. But after three weeks of hearing about Tanking for Trevor, New England’s narrative changed when the Pats beat the Ravens, 23-17, on a dark and stormy Sunday night at Gillette Stadium.

With seven games left in their season, the 4-5 Patriots trail the 7-3 Buffalo Bills by 2½ games. The Pats are two games behind the 6-3 Dolphins. But suddenly there is hope. Now we are going to hear about Tomato Can Houston (2-7) next weekend, December rematches with both Buffalo and Miami, and an expanded playoff format that rewards mediocrity.

From there we get a Rod Rust reference and a quote from Napoleon and the rest of the column is readable, devoid of the trademark snark and pessimissim.

Compare And Contrast

Shank, after David Price's first 2016 loss:

NEW YORK — OK, you are officially allowed to hit the panic button on David Price.

We were holding off before Saturday. Price was, after all, 4-0, and there just seemed to be a few bad innings here and there. His career body of work, his poise, and the notion that we were dealing with a small sample were ample reason to hold hysteria at bay.

Not now. Price at this hour is in full Carl Crawford mode.

Shank, after David Price's latest loss (video at link):

Dan Shaughnessy explains why he is not ready to start getting down on David Price just yet until he sees a full season of him struggling.

Shank seems like the kind of guy who has trouble deciding on what to order at a restaurant.