Is it January already?? Pats & Colts at it again

by juperee on Oct 28, 2007 5:12 PM EDT Comment 17 comments

Well, it's not Jan 21 yet, but the Pats vs Colts game will be a preview of a not-so-unlikely AFC Championship 2008 game. I am bracing myself for the pregame hype and inevitable Brady/Manning comparisons--you know, all the super meaningful commentary with the, ahem, experts trying to sound balanced and hedging their predictions so that they come out sounding wise and prescient after the game no matter what they said before.

I get the feeling that the Patriots as an organization snapped last postseason when the Colts came out on top in the AFC game after Brady's comeback drive (granted, he is great at them) abruptly ended in an interception. It's as if the Pats felt completely entitled to go on and win the Superbowl, and everything that's taken place since is a reaction to that stinging defeat. Think about the Pats' actions since then: handing over flipping great wads of cash for Moss, the embarrassment of Videogate, the somewhat nasty trash-talking, unnecessary on-field viciousness whenever they can sneak it in, and so on. These are all things I wouldn't previously have thought of as being characteristic of the Patriots, but my, how things changed in the AFC Championship loss to the Colts.

Given the Patriots resentment of that loss to our beloved Colts, and the ends-justifies-the-means approach to this season, and I have a nervous feeling that the Pats will be after the Colts' blood, figuratively and literally. The Patriots don't want to have to be in a 4th QTR "comeback" position this time.

Here's my fantasy scenario for next week's game: Colts with a 4th QTR lead of 2 points, and the Pats have possession. Brady methodically moves the Pats into field goal range, which has won them an important game or two (with Mr Clutch Vinatieri). With 5 seconds left, Gostkowski takes aim, and it goes WIDE RIGHT!! Bwah-hahahahah! That would be sweet.

And if that doesn't happen next week, I'll settle for it being the outcome of the actual 2008 AFC Championship game.

Poll

What's the best outcome for the Pats/Colts matchup?

Colts win in a tooth-and-nail fight against the Pats.

10 votes

Colts win it handily, and Bill Belichick has a Denny Greenesque meltdown.

20 votes

Pats win it, luring them into a false sense of security for the playoffs.

1 votes

Who cares who wins, as long as Brady sprains his wrist??

4 votes

35 votes | Poll has closed

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Stampede Blue's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Stampede Blue's writers or editors.

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From what I saw

The Patriots don't have me scared at all, though I wouldn't say the Colts will win for sure. They were getting Washington on tons of the "cute" little screens and dumpoffs that the fast Colts D just destroys.

If Randy Moss is allowed to push any DB that has a shot at the ball again next week, I'll be a little more worried.

by shake n bake on Oct 28, 2007 6:56 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

they also ran the ball well

which should also concern you. They are more balanced with a healthy Maroney.

by Terry on Oct 28, 2007 7:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah

a lot of good draws wasn't great to see. Colts D got killed on draws all year.

by shake n bake on Oct 28, 2007 7:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

last year

by shake n bake on Oct 28, 2007 7:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

oh and I forgot

Bob Sanders PWNS Maroney

I checked youtube but they don't have it. Sanders jumped over the lineman trying to block him and puts Maroney on his ass in the regular season game last year.

by shake n bake on Oct 28, 2007 7:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Strength of schedule

I just took another look at the schedules thus far for the Pats and the Colts, and it really does seem that the Pats have had an easier start. Plus, looking ahead for the Patriots reg season, only the Colts and the Steelers (maybe the eagles) will cause them to break a sweat. The Colts have had much tougher matchups, although they will have some easier games a little later in the season.

So I think it's going to be a great, tough game, but the Colts are the ones that are going to remain undefeated.

May the wind be always at your back, and may your placekicker have icewater in his veins.

by juperee on Oct 28, 2007 7:59 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Damn you Simmons!

Maybe I've been reading too much Sports Guy, but I always have the sneaking suspicion that at some point, Vinatieri will shank the ball wide right during a playoff game against the Pats, rip off his Colts jersey to reveal a Patriots jersey, and leap into Belichick's arms.

And now some thoughts on this week's game:

Can we officially demote the NFC now? I mean, the two best teams in the AFC completely dismantled two probable NFC playoff teams in what can only be described as a brutal fashion. The Super Bowl is going to be completely anti-climactic.
I figured out why the Pats keep running up the score. Belichick keeps waking up the middle of the night with the same nightmare that the Colts came back from 20+ points down at the half to win in a playoff game.
Can we declare this a hype-free zone? If we don't, I'm afraid my head will explode.
What's going to happen when Jackson and Hayden start leveling the Pats' receivers? How scared does Donte Stallworth have to be that he's going to be lining up ten to fifteen yards away from Bob Sanders?
Can the Pats run the ball? The answer to this question will be HUGE next week.
I don't even want to know what the Vegas line on this is.
Is there a name for this one, or are we sticking with Armageddon at the Dome?

"Hey, if you want me to come here, I want to come here. But if you don't, I'm going to beat your butt for 15 years playing in the AFC." -Peyton Manning-

by MonkeyBusiness on Oct 28, 2007 8:24 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

not so fast monkeyboy

The 2 NFC teams the Colts and Pats dismantled were decent teams, but clearly not as good as the Cowboys who actually had the Pats on the ropes in the 3rd qtr until they self imploded.

The Boys are clearly the class of the NFC and are a young team and will improve as the season rolls on and come February will give either the Pats or the Colts all they want in the SB and could easily win. I got news for you, the Cowboys could easily win 11 or 12 games if they were in the AFC.

I don't think the Pats wrs are going to be intimated by Sanders as they weren't against Williams who is the most intimating safety in the league. I'm pretty sure Roy has knocked out more people than Sanders has in his career.

Yes, the Pats can run the ball with a healthy Maroney.

The line will probably be the Pats favored by 2 or 3.

by Terry on Oct 28, 2007 9:26 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Roy Williams

Yeah Terry.. they were really intimidated by a guy who can't cover and all they had to do was throw it over his head.

by Levante on Oct 28, 2007 9:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm sure they don't want to be hit by him

but it's not too hard to beat him deep so I think they were feeling good.

by shake n bake on Oct 28, 2007 9:51 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

A response

The Colts utterly destroyed the Saints, Panthers, and Bucs. Admittedly, the NFC South isn't exactly the pride of the league. But those are three reasonably decent teams. The Cowboys had the Pats on the ropes until they self destructed, but that's kind of the point. Good teams don't self destruct like that. The Redskins were totally out of their league. Good team with a fighting chance in the NFC's toughest division, but they didn't have anything on the Pats.

If the Pats have any common sense whatsoever, they should be scared of Sanders. Stallworth probably wet himself just thinking about it.

Roy Williams hasn't been scary since they banned the horse-collar tackle. Fortunately, the spear tackle is still legal, so Sanders is good.

And if the Pats can run it, why aren't they? They have similar yardage on the ground to the Colts, but around 500 more yards through the air, and they've played an extra game.

And you're probably right. The Pats will be favored, but someone is going to realize that they're picking against the defending Super Bowl champs at home. That's what we call a sucker's bet.

"Hey, if you want me to come here, I want to come here. But if you don't, I'm going to beat your butt for 15 years playing in the AFC." -Peyton Manning-

by MonkeyBusiness on Oct 28, 2007 10:17 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

got news for you

Roy Williams can spear tackle every bit as hard as Sanders, if not harder.

The Pats haven't run because they really don't need to when their passing game is unstoppable.

Also, Colts fans such as yourself should know that teams can improve over the course of the season and just because a team self implodes in Oct doesn't mean they will in Jan or Feb. Its called improving.

The team that wins the SB this season will be the team playing the best in Jan and it could very well be a team not named the Pats or Colts.

by Terry on Oct 28, 2007 11:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs