Category: NFL

The Rams are 4-0 and It’s All Because of Rams Mafia

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Three years ago Red and myself decided to hop on the Rams bandwagon when it was announced they were heading back to Los Angeles. At the time, the team was in shambles. Jeff Fisher was still a real person, Todd Gurley was not great at running with a football, and the Inglewood stadium was still a pipe dream. Fast forward to Week 4 Thursday Night Football in 2018 and the Rams are nothing short of ELECTRIC. J Goff went off last night for 465 yards and 5 TDs with 0 interceptions. I may be new around here, but even I know that’s a big boy showing from the sexiest man under center west of the Mississippi. He made the Vikings wet themselves on national television and if you ask me, that’s pretty damn impressive.

Now sitting at 4-0, I feel like all my work with Rams Mafia has finally paid off. I took a chance on a team that was going nowhere in the standings. I’d like to take this opportunity to declare my efforts as the turning point for this team. Rams Mafia stuck through all the bad just to get to where we are now. Sure, I tweeted my first tweet from the account today for the first time since the 2016 draft, but I’ve just been incredibly busy motivating, supporting, and standing up for Mr. Goff and Mr. Gurley III all while spreading the gospel from the ground level.

Unfortunately I never was able to honor the above tweet, (as I stated I was busy rallying the troops) but if you see me this weekend in Los Angeles the beers are on me.

All aboard, Rams Mafia has officially left the station!

 

If you’d like to come along for the ride of a lifetime, follow us @RamsMafia on Twitter

Patriots Dolphins Week 4 Game Preview, Odds, and Things to Watch For

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So that was an ugly one last week. Not to take anything away from the Lions, but I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen a Brady-led, Belichick-coached team play that poorly. Mental mistakes. Missed throws. No pass-rush. A sieve of a defensive front that allowed Detroit to record its first 100-yard-rusher in a game for the first time in FIVE years. Also, the Pats scored their lowest point total (10) in over two seasons.

WOOF.

Fortunately, the Pats get to face a familiar foe this weekend – albeit an undefeated one – as the 3-0 Miami Dolphins are set to come to Foxborough this weekend. As always, here’s a look at where, when, and how to watch the game along with the latest lines:

  • Location: Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, MA)
  • Kickoff: Sunday, Sept. 30, 1 p.m. ET
  • TV: CBS (Check local listings)
  • Odds (via Odds Shark): Patriots: -6.5 (spread)/Patriots: -280 (moneyline)/48 (total)

After missing all of 2017 and the very end of 2016 due to injury, Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill has come back this year GUNS BLAZING. Sure, he’s only played the Titans, Jets, and Raiders so far, but he’s completed 73 percent of his passes for almost 700 yards and seven touchdowns. He’s also only thrown two picks and has a ridiculous 121.8 QB rating. Oh, and he led the Dolphins to 8 of their 10 wins before going down in 2016, a season in which they made the playoffs. I don’t know when and where the whole “Tannehill sucks” rhetoric started, but it’s entirely inaccurate.

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Now, if you wanted to say Tannehill sucks whenever he has to play at Gillette, I actually can’t argue with ya there. In five games on the road in New England, Tannehill is winless and the Dolphins have only once been able to score over 20 points.

But it’s been two years since Tannehill last laced ’em up in Foxborough, and things are simply way different on so many levels. Firstly, the Dolphins have been incredibly efficient on offense this season, and that might have to do with no longer relying solely upon Jarvis Landry. Now, before I go any further, I mean no disrespect toward Landry, the game’s best slot receiver and a perennial 100-catch guy.

But letting Landry go has forced Tannehill to look toward spreading the ball around much more, and now the Dolphins feature a solid corps of Kenny Stills, Albert Wilson, Jakeem Grant, Devante Parker, and, as much as it KILLS me to see, Danny Amendola. Due to the less predictable offense the team is running under Adam Gase, Tannehill has yet to throw 30 passes in a game so far in 2018, making the most of each of his opportunities. No Dolphins receiver is averaging more than five targets per game, so the Pats defense will need make sure they have eyes all over the field on Sunday.

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This is going to be like watching your ex-girlfriend show up to the party with that insufferable douchebag you always hated.

The running game has been a bit lackluster. Many expected second-year back Kenyan Drake to run away with the job after a breakout rookie campaign, but for some reason Gase is sticking with a timeshare between Drake and a 35-year-old Frank Gore – who, save for a great Week 1 performance, has averaged just under 2.5 yards a carry over the last two games. Drake has the ability to hurt anyone, but until they figure things out in the backfield I’m not all too worried about the Fins ground attack.

The poor running game and quick-strike offense has killed the Dolphins in terms of time of possession, which could soon really start to wear on the team’s defense. Alas, the D has still looked pretty decent this year, playing to the tune of a very Belichick-ian “bend don’t break” philosophy, as pointed out by Joe Schad of the Palm Beach Post:

The Dolphins defense is currently 21st in the NFL in yards allowed, but sixth in points allowed. That’s a crazy discrepancy, even with the small sample size of three games. Miami is tied for second in the NFL with a +4 turnover margin. And the Dolphins are third in the NFL in red zone defense.

Cornerback Xavien Howard, who had two interceptions against the Raiders last week, has been a revelation in 2018, and Chris Hogan will once again likely have a tough matchup. At least Brady can take solace in the fact the Dolphins have just six sacks on the year and rank second to last in the league with 12 QB hits.

Storylines

(Will Josh Gordon Actually Play?): Good Lord, I hope so. In typical Patriots fashion, we have yet to receive even the slightest bit of information regarding Gordon’s Week 4 status, so I’m not even going to venture a guess on this one.

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Here’s all we have to go off so far (h/t 985thesportshub.com):

“We’ll just take it day-by-day and see how it goes,” Belichick remarked. “There are a number of factors involved here. When he feels like he’s ready and we feel like he’s ready and there’s sufficient opportunity to back that up then we’ll see about making him active.”

Thanks, Bill! Always keeping us on our toes. Looks like we may not get an answer on this one until right before kickoff on Sunday.

(Sooo…Yeah, I Guess Sony IS the Guy Now): With Rex Burkhead seemingly done for the year, the Patriots have pretty much no choice but to rely upon Sony Michel to carry the load for the foreseeable future. Yes, James White will see quite a bit of burn as well, but he’s not a chain-moving, 15-plus-carry-a-game guy. Michel is going to be force-fed the rock, as evidenced by his 24 carries and five targets over the last two games. While he’s only averaged 3.5 yards per tote so far, I’m remaining hopeful. While I have been critical of the team placing so much faith in a guy with such an extensive injury history, I’ve never questioned his talent. I’m excited to see what the kid can do. He just better be ready to roll from here on out.

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It’s your time to shine, kid. Don’t let me down.

(The Linebackers Are Looking a Little Rough): The Pats are one of six teams allowing over 400 yards of total offense per game this season, and they are one of only two allowing over 140 yards on the ground. Now they will be without standout rookie Ja’Whuan Bentley – Pro Football Focus’s fifth-highest-rated linebacker through the season’s first three weeks (h/t Patriots Wire) – for a while, if not the whole season. Dont’a Hightower is still sharp as a tack and one of the best defensive signal-callers in the league, but he’s looked painfully slow at times this year. And after allowing the Lions to rush for over 150 yards as a team last week, maybe this is Drake’s opportunity to prove himself once and for all. (I know I said earlier that I’m not too worried about the Dolphins rushing attack, but I was basing that solely off of who they’ve played so far this year.) The middle of the defense could potentially be gashed in this one, unless somebody else decides to step up.

Prediction 

Sorry to say it, Pats Nation, but this could end up being another shocker. As they say, there’s a first time for everything, and Tannehill and Miami’s extremely fluid offense are in a prime position to flip the script. I do think that Brady & Co. will play much better on offense this time around, especially if Gordon plays and Michel gets it going. But I’m unsure if the defense is prepared enough to shut down Tannehill like in years past. While Belichick will be DAMNED if he lets Amendola show him up, Miami’s plethora of other weapons on offense will be too much for the Pats to keep up with. Brady will keep it close, but in the end the Dolphins will come out on top, 21-17, giving them a puke-worthy three-game lead over the Pats in the AFC East.

Amazon to Offer Fans More Options on Thursday Night Football Stream

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Most viewers who tune into tonight’s Thursday Night Football game between the Minnesota Vikings and the LA Rams will hear the familiar broadcast combo of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman on FOX. Amazon Prime, which has streaming rights for TNF this season, will also offer the broadcast combo of Buck and Aikman. However, Amazon Prime will also offer three additional audio options for fans. Those options will include the Andrea Kremer and Hannah Storm broadcast, a Spanish-language broadcast and a United Kingdom broadcast.

This is a great move by Amazon. In addition to hiring the first all-female NFL broadcast duo, Amazon is offering fans more content and more options. It’s also part of a recent trend in sports broadcasting that deemphasizes the role of a typical play-by-play broadcaster.

In an interview with The New York Times, Storm said “if you had to, you would say that I was doing play-by-play and Andrea is doing analysis, but I don’t think that you should be thinking of this in typical terms of the way that a broadcast is done.” This concept should be familiar to Patriots fans, as the Patriots have gone a similar route for their preseason games recently. On television in 2017 and radio in 2018 Dan Roche was technically the play-by-play person, but the focus was more on the conversation about the team rather than the typical play-by-play. The concept has also been used by TNT for some of its NBA coverage on Players Only broadcasts which featured only former players and no traditional play-by-play person.

This style may not be for everyone, but it is fair to at least ask the question, “Why do we still broadcast games the way Vin Scully did them 70 years ago?” Scully may be the best of all time, but with the box score in my hand on my iPhone why do I need a traffic cop on the broadcast to tell me the score every 90 seconds?

I don’t know if Amazon’s announcement will result in a spike of Amazon Prime subscriptions before tonight’s game but, as someone who already subscribes to Amazon Prime, I will definitely check out the Kremer/Storm broadcast tonight. I will also be checking out the United Kingdom broadcast. I can’t wait to see how the Brits describe some bone-crushing hits.

 

Patriots Place Rex Burkhead and Ja’Whaun Bentley on IR

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When it rains it pours I suppose. After getting trounced by Detroit, and in particular on defense, the Patriots just placed their most promising linebacker in Ja’Whaun Bentley as well as their most used runningback in Rex Burkhead on IR.

This is less than ideal.

Ja’Whaun Bentley had a rough game last week, but he’s a rookie so that is to be expected from time to time. Bentley was the story of training camp though and was projected to be the stud linebacker the team needed this year. Especially with how slow Dont’a Hightower has looked thus far. I don’t know if its just shaking off the rust after missing almost all of last year or if its years or injuries catching up with a now 28-year-old linebacker. Either way, not a great time for a young LB to go down with injury.

Now Rex Burkhead is the least surprising injury news of all time as that guy is hurt basically all the time. Super effective when he’s healthy, but it seems like his body just can’t handle the workload the Patriots want to put on him. We talked about it on The 300s Podcast on our season preview and debated whether Burkhead was injury prone or if last year was just a fluke. Nope, seems like this is a guy who is finally getting an everydown back level of touches and his body just can’t hold up.

That means its time for Sony Michel to sink or swim! He’s looked ok, not great, the first 2 games of his career, but for the talking heads on 98.5 to already be screaming that Michel is a bust is laughable. Maybe give the rookie who had zero training camp snaps more than 2 weeks to find his groove in the NFL.

This is a club thats getting a little crowded.

Dede Westbrook Thinks Blake Bortles Can Be as Good as Tom Brady…No Really, Though

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In a recent interview with Bleacher Report’s Tyler Dunne, Jacksonville Jaguars second-year wide receiver Dede Westbrook flat-out said he thinks Blake Bortles can easily be as good as Tom Brady.

He then doubled and tripled down on the statement after being asked to confirm his belief twice by what I assume to have been a completely dumbfounded Dunne:

Out of the hallway and into the locker room, second-year receiver Dede Westbrook doesn’t complain about the passer with the Tim Tebow-ugly throwing motion. Like Hackett, Westbrook would benefit from a more prototypical quarterback, and yet there isn’t a drop of gloom in his voice. When told that most outsiders look at Bortles, then Tom Brady, and conclude the Jaguars will never get over the hump, Westbrook is visibly irritated.

“I don’t think that’s a thing,” Westbrook says. “Tom Brady’s great, but he’s been playing football for a really, really, really long time. Who’s to say Blake won’t be that person when he puts that many years in?”

You think Bortles can reach that point? “Most definitely. Most definitely.”

Wait, Dede. A Brady point? “Facts. Most definitely.”‘

Look I know Bortles definitely got the upper hand 10 days ago when the two teams squared off down in Jacksonville. But can we please stop with this crap?

Quotes like these are honestly the reason why I can’t even listen to post-game pressers anymore. While there are certainly those out there who aren’t afraid to speak their mind, for better or worse, 90 percent of athletes always just end up spewing out empty, cliche bullshit that means absolutely nothing and basically comes out of their mouth by rote.

No matter how great a certain player performs in a game, it’s always about “the guys around him.” If a team plays poorly, they just need to “prepare better at practice next week” and “give 110 percent effort in the next game.” If an athlete is taken out of the game too soon, it was simply the “coach’s decision” and they always seem to “understand.”

Look, I get that quips like that are meant to make the athlete look like a team player and not stir the pot. There have also been plenty of times where an athlete is a bit too authentic, and it can cause a firestorm.

But don’t outright lie like this for no reason.

“Facts??!!” THREE separate “most definitelys??!!”

You don’t really believe that, Dede. YOU DON’T. Nobody can seriously be that ignorant. As the once great – and BRUTALLY honest and outspoken – Chad Ochocinco once said:

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Again, it’s not even about the fact that such statements are complete blasphemy and downright disrespectful to the G.O.A.T; it’s about the fact that you think we’re all that dumb, Dede. Sure, I agree that Bortles maybe catches too much flak sometimes – I even said as much in my Pats/Jags game preview – but there are also times when your quarterback plays like a blind nun. He will never come close to even sniffing Brady’s talent or level of success – not now, not in the future, not even in an alternate universe.

The Jags may end up ultimately winning a Super Bowl within the next couple of years, or at least get pretty damn close once again, and I’m not saying Bortles is incapable of getting a ring. But let’s not forget that guys like Trent Dilfer and Brad Johnson have rings, too. If the Jags win anything, it’ll be because of their defense, not Blake Bortles.

Am I overreacting a bit here? Maybe. In the grand scheme of things, do Westbrook’s comments mean a damn thing? Probably not. I just couldn’t let this one slip by and thought it might give The 300s clan a good chuckle. Happy Hump Day!

The 300s Bloggers’ Baker Mayfield Invitational Fantasy Football Round Up – Week 3

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Dearest Readers,

I hope this column is enjoyable and an easy read, not a Vance McDonald stiff arm to the skull.

Briefly,

-Joey B.

Papa Giorgio

1-2 for me this week. Fournette and Dalvin Cook being hurt sunk one of my teams as I had to field some garbage RBs. Drew Brees was electric for me though. My one piece of fantasy advice is if you ever have anyone on your roster from the NFC South and two of the teams are playing each other that week, start them. Saints/Falcons always seem to end in some ridiculous score and the wilder the finish, the more fantasy points you’re going to get. Also, my real life Bills thrashed the Vikings so even though I didn’t have the greatest fantasy week, Bills Mafia was reborn under Josh Allen.


Joey B

So I lost in week 3 but find solace in the fact that it took Gronk, both RBs, and my defense shitting the bed, changing the sheets, and then shitting the bed again for that to happen. Stafford played well (against the fucking Pats) and Michael Thomas continues to have the same success on the football field that Dave Thomas had in the fast food industry


Red

We’re swimming in a sea of mediocrity folks as I got my first win of the season but split on my two leagues, bringing my season record to an underwhelming 1-5. On a more somber note; a roster spot just opened up on my squad as my dude Jimmy G tore his ACL on Sunday. I may just keep him on my roster out of respect. A fantasy football moratorium if you will.

Big Z

The Big Z Fantasy Empire improved to 2-1 in Week 3, but boy did I have to sweat it out. I didn’t take my first lead of the week until the fourth quarter of the Monday night game when James Conner put me over the top. I only needed 7 points to win, and he took almost 60 minutes to put up the 9 points that gave me a three-point win.

Oh, and did I mention this was all while Matt Ryan was on my bench? Ryan put up 40 points while Russell Wilson got me 15. Instead of having a Toilet Bowl for last place every year, they should just give a trophy of a horse’s ass to the player with the most bench points. I’d be well on my way to that trophy this season.

As much as I hate a fantasy QB controversy, I may have to make the switch this week. I’ll also have to survive Christian McCaffrey’s bye week, so Week 4 looks like a daunting battle already

 

Mattes

Got the double victory this week for the first time in 2018! Although I would NEVER root for my fantasy team over my real-life team, maaaaybe Brady having one of the worst games of his life this week didn’t turn out all that bad for me. Considering Brady was projected to score 20 more points than he did and I beat my opponent by 19, at least there’s a silver lining. I also only had one guy score less than six points, which was Amari Cooper, who could quite possibly be the most frustrating player to own in fantasy right now. The guy should be a stud, but has gone from two points in Week 1 to 16 points in Week 2 then right back down to two this week. Maddening. Carlos Hyde is looking like a fifth-round STEAL for me as well, especially with Baker now running the show in Cleveland. Also, my sneaky ROY candidate, Kerryon Johnson, looks like he’s ready to take over in the Motor City and may be coming off my bench for the first time this week. It was a rough 0-2 start, but things are now looking up for the Purple Cobras.

My other team continued to roll as well, even with Kirk Cousins and Larry Fitzgerald combining for a measly 13 points. Cousins will bounce back, and I am praying to everything holy that Josh Rosen can turn the Cardinals offense around, because I also have an incredibly disappointing David Johnson, whose week was fortunately salvaged with a receiving TD. Michael Thomas and Jarvis Landry are a nasty WR1 and WR2 in a full-point PPR, and somehow I was able to add Matt Breida on waivers last week. He got me 14 points on Sunday and will be a great FLEX option moving forward along with guys like John Brown and Bilal Powell. Catch City Bitch is now 2-1 and feeling good.

My Patriots Confidence Meter is Officially at Concerned Level

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I’m not, not worried about the Patriots if we’re being honest. After last night’s double digit loss to the Detroit Lions, on my Meter of Confidence, I am currently residing at Concerned, one tick below Alarmed.

It’s only September. It’s only September. It’s only September. Thats what I keep telling myself. However, that was a piss poor effort against a winless team in the Lions. I do want to see this team at full strength with Julian Edelman and Flowers and Chung back before making any final assessments, but those decisions could be made for the Pats before they’re able to get back to full strength.

Well when you say it like that…

Hurley’s right though, even when they do get all their guys back, thats not promising any season altering improvements.

A loss to the 3-0 Dolphins next week would put the Pats at 1-3 and 3 games out of first place as well as putting us Patriots fans in an uncommon position; looking up in the AFC East. I’m also trying to keep my expectations in check because it would be totally unfair to expect hope a guy who’s played 11 games in the last four years to be Tom Brady’s savior at receiver. Unfortunately that what this team needs right now. A game changer.

Or they need to get a whole hell of a lot more creative with the ball. James White, one of the Patriots most reliable veterans on a team suddenly searching for answers, only had 3 touches last night. THREE. One of which was a touchdown, ironically enough. Listen I love Sony Michel and I know the Patriots spent a 1st round pick on him, but having Michel outsnap the veteran while he continues to drop balls is not a recipe for success. It would seem like Tom Brady agrees too.

“Yeah, he had a great catch, and had some good runs there at the end. He’s just a great player for us. So, you’re right. He’s gotta be involved. Guys who can make plays are the ones that should be involved. And James is certainly one of them.”

Thats before we even get to the gigantic elephant in the room. There has been drama swirling around this team for the past year, which started with the Seth Wickersham article and culminated this week with the “Brady wants a divorce from Belichick” story and then on Sunday afternoon Adam Schefter reported that the Pats nearly traded Rob Gronkowski to the Lions only to have Gronk threaten to retire rather than accept a trade to Detroit.

All great news to come out hours before a game. Welp, Gronk finished the game with 4 receptions for 51 yards and 0 TDs after getting double teamed the whole game and then made the whole situation infinitely worse by confirming Schefty’s report post-game.

“Yeah, it happened,” Gronkowski said after New England’s loss to the Lions Sunday night. “Brady’s my quarterback. I’m not going anywhere without Brady.”

And then there’s Gronk’s brother coming to Rob’s defense before anyone pointed to his middling stat line.

So thats just great. Lets not even pretend to be a non-dysfunctional team anymore. Again, I’m not panicking quite yet, as you would want your star TE to want to continue playing for your team. Players threatening to retire doesn’t exactly inspire confidence and trust with the rest of the team, but hey at least he wants to play *here* Right?

I will never count out a Tom Brady led Patriots team until the ink is dry on his retirement papers. Hell I probably won’t doubt a Patriots comeback until I see Tom is his gold jacket.

But with that being said, if the Patriots drop another game next week against RYAN TANNEHILL and the Dolphins, then my meter will officially tick to Alarmed and we will be on Panic watch from there on out.

Patriots Lions Week 3 Game Preview, Odds, and Things to Watch For

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I may have been off by about five points in terms of point differential, but I pretty much nailed last week’s game prediction. The Jags simply look like the team to beat in the AFC right now, and I am not surprised at all that Brady & Co. took an L down in the Sunshine State in Week 2.

Fortunately, the Pats have a good chance at a bounce-back game in a prime-time matchup against old friend Matt Patricia and the 0-2 Detroit Lions this Sunday – which also just so happens to be the date on which ya boy Mattes graced the world with his presence 29 years ago, so it’s only right that they’ll be victorious on such an important day.

(Also, I know everyone is all excited about Josh Gordon. Settle down; we’ll get there.)

Before we get into the game preview, here’s a quick look at where, when, and how to watch the game along with the latest lines:

  • Location: Ford Field (Detroit, MI)
  • Kickoff: Sunday, Sept. 23, 8:30 p.m. ET
  • TV: NBC (Check local listings)
  • Odds (via Odds Shark): Patriots: -6.5 (spread)/Patriots: -265 (moneyline)/51.5 (total)

As you can see from the 51.5-point total, which is the fourth-highest total in the league this week, this game figures to be high-scoring. Both teams have a potent offense which overcompensates for a mediocre defense that is susceptible to giving up a lot of yards and points. Basically, if you got fantasy players on either side this week, feel free to go ahead and put pretty much all of them in your starting lineup.

So, who are some of the weapons that Detroit has? Well, they’re found mostly in the receiving corps, and their success all hinges upon the play of much-maligned quarterback Matthew Stafford.

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After an abysmal Week 1 performance, during which he threw FOUR picks in a loss to the New York Jets, people were calling for Stafford’s head (including our very own Red, who has him as his fantasy signal-caller this year). However, I thought it was a bit much. For as much as he turned the ball over during his first few years in the league (four seasons with 15-plus interceptions), he has an 89:37 TD-to-INT ratio over the past four seasons, which includes 2018. He’s also one of only five players to ever throw for over 5,000 yards in a season, and I bet you didn’t know that he was the fastest quarterback ever to reach 20,000 yards, 25,000 yards, AND 30,000 yards on his career. The guy’s also coming off of a 347-yard, three-touchdown, zero-pick performance against San Francisco.

The point is: this dude can sling the rock, and the only reason he gets so much criticism is because he’s yet to win one playoff game in 11 NFL seasons. (I get it, Detroit; you’re hungry.) And with Detroit’s nasty group of receivers, coupled with the fact that the Pats have given up the fifth-most passing yards in the league through two games, Stafford could do some damage on Sunday.

Of the receivers, I expect Golden Tate to have the most success. The game’s most underappreciated slot receiver has 14 catches on a ridiculous 28 targets through two games so far as Stafford’s No. 1 guy. The Lions also have two big boys on the outside in Marvin Jones (6’2″, 198 pounds) and Kenny Golloday (6’4″, 214 pounds), both of whom use their size and unfair athleticism to gain big chunks of yards in a hurry, averaging 13.5 and 15.6 yards per catch, respectively. The Pats are definitely going to give up some real estate through the air this week – especially if either Trey Flowers and/or Patrick Chung, who both haven’t practiced this week due to being in concussion protocol, are ruled out.

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Sure, I’m excited about Gordon. But MAN, I really wish those Golden Tate trade rumors weren’t just all talk. This dude can BALL.

Fortunately, they could have success containing Detroit’s very lackluster running game. Right now, the team is using a three-pronged “attack” of Kerryon Johnson, Theo Riddick, and former Patriot LeGarrette Blount.

Riddick has been one of the Lions’ key offensive pieces for the past five seasons as the team’s third-down/pass-catching specialist. While he is not built to be any team’s primary ball-carrier, he does have 234 (!) receptions since 2014, including 14 already this season. He’s going to be targeted and used a lot.

Johnson, a rookie, is by far the most talented back of the bunch from an overall standpoint, but for some reason he has been sharing the load with Blount between the tackles so far. Truthfully, Johnson – who also has eight receptions on the year and is by no means a one-trick pony – should have been given the starting role right out of the gate, and maybe this is the game he finally takes a stranglehold on the role for good. It’s only a matter of time until Blount fades away entirely. Either way, I don’t expect the Lions to kill the Pats on the ground.

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Johnson will be a household name soon enough, giving the Lions their first good back since Barry Sanders – and Mattes’s fantasy squad a much-needed boost.

On defense, there’s not much to talk about besides the fact that the Lions are expected to be without stud corner Darius Slay, per Kyle Meinke of MLive, which must be music to Brady’s ears. After a brutal dogfight against the Jags vaunted secondary last week, things won’t be nearly as difficult for the offense on Sunday night. (Especially if Flash Gordon is ready to go!) (UPDATE: Slay did return to Lions practice in a non-contact jersey on Friday, but he is still unlikely to play [h/t Rotoworld].)

Storylines to Keep An Eye On

(What Will We See from Josh Gordon?): This is obviously the biggest storyline heading into the game. Pats Nation is absolutely giddy with excitement over this week’s acquisition of the uber-talented but oft-troubled 27-year-old receiver. He has the skills to make a Randy-Moss-level impact on the team’s offense, or he could easily succumb to past transgressions and fade out in a “Flash.” I’m remaining hopeful, but I’m also not expecting a huge impact from him in Game 1. As we’ve discussed before, the Patriots system has claimed the careers of many former standout pass-catchers in the past, and while Gordon has practiced the past two days, he’s going to need a little more time to get up to speed. He’s also dealing with a minor hamstring issue, so don’t expect him to be truly unleashed until at least next week. If Bill does decide to throw him right into the fire, though, I’d say 4-5 targets, max, isn’t an unreasonable expectation.

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Apparently, Flash is going to be rocking No. 10 as a Patriot.

(So…Maybe Sony Michel is the Guy Now?): After missing basically all summer plus the season opener, Michel was immediately granted 11 touches (12 if you include his kick return) in his debut against the Jags last Sunday. He was even thrown to on two separate occasions. Meanwhile, Rex Burkhead rushed the ball six times and wasn’t targeted once in the passing game. (James White also got eight targets and seven receptions, but that’s always going to happen. He’s basically our Riddick.) Typical. Friggin. Belichick. Some believe it’s because Burkhead was dealing with concussion symptoms earlier in the week and the team was taking it easy with him; I believe, in typical Belichick fashion, he likes to choose which back will be the horse each week depending on the matchup. Until one of them, likely Michel, busts out and locks down the role as top dog, I’m done trying to project anything regarding the team’s group of backs. (My Burkhead for offensive MVP prediction could be in some serious doubt. But hey, at least the rookie finally got on the field!)

(Reunited and It Feels So Goooood): For the 21st time in his Patriots career, Belichick will face off against one of his former assistants, against whom he has a combined 14-6 record. This time it’s former defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, who’s currently suffering through a tough start to his NFL head-coaching career. There’s really not much to be said here, as it’s really only a fluffy storyline being used to try and create some more drama and intrigue. Still, it’s always fun to see if the grasshopper can successfully take down the master…even though he probably won’t.

Image result for belichick patricia

Always remember the good times, boys.

Prediction

The Pats are able to come out and establish the run early on. Detroit’s defense has been absolutely GASHED so far on the ground, giving up 179.5 rushing yards per game, which is good for dead last in the league. (I know it’s only been two games, but the next-worst mark is Oakland with 154. The Lions run D is horrendous.) Brady is also able to move the ball pretty well through the air and puts up over 20 points before the half. Not to be outdone, Stafford also has his way with the Pats defense, but the Pats clock-killing offensive game plan doesn’t give him a ton of opportunities to keep up. In the end, the game will be close and high-scoring, but the Pats will ultimately tame the Lions, 38-28.

Tom Brady vs Bill Belichick Drama Will Never Die as More Juicy Gossip Comes Out in New Book from ESPN’s Ian O’Connor

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ESPN – New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady felt trapped this past offseason and was not sure he wanted to play anymore for the only NFL coach he has ever had, Bill Belichick, according to a new book on Belichick’s life.

“If you’re married 18 years to a grouchy person who gets under your skin and never compliments you, after a while you want to divorce him,” a source with knowledge of the Brady-Belichick relationship told ESPN’s Ian O’Connor, author of “Belichick: The Making of the Greatest Football Coach of All Time,” after the 2017 season. “Tom knows Bill is the best coach in the league, but he’s had enough of him. If Tom could, I think he would divorce him.”

What is dead may never die.

In the latest bombshell to drop in the Belichick (sources) vs Brady (sources) war of words comes this new book from ESPN’s Ian O’Connor that has quite a few juicy excerpts. Before people try to discredit this book or start holding their breath until they pass out like a child, O’Connor has been at ESPN as a senior writer for years and is generally pretty favorable towards the Pats despite being a longtime NY guy.

So lets get to it shall we?

“Based on interviews with 350 people (Belichick did not cooperate), the book, due out Tuesday, reports Brady was so upset with his coach that he still wasn’t certain in late March if he would return to the Patriots.

“But in the end, even if he wanted to, Brady could not walk away from the game, and he could not ask for a trade,” O’Connor wrote. “The moment Belichick moved [Jimmy] Garoppolo to San Francisco, and banked on Brady’s oft-stated desire to play at least into his mid-forties, was the moment Brady was virtually locked into suiting up next season and beyond. Had he retired or requested a trade, he would have risked turning an adoring New England public into an angry mob.”

If Brady felt painted into a corner it’s because he was, but that’s mostly through his own doing. By continuously saying he wanted to play until he was 45 and (allegedly) complaining about a contract extension he essentially told the team I want to be here for the long term. And by elevating his play to levels of success never seen before the Patriots had zero choice when it came to keeping or trading Brady. A victim of his own success it would seem if he does indeed hate working with Belichick that bad.

“New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman recalled in the book that Belichick told him years earlier about a disagreement Brady had with a Patriots strength coach over equipment. “Belichick said, ‘If Tom Brady wants it, Tom Brady gets it,‘” Cashman said. “If you get a player at that level, you get him what he needs, even if the strength coach says otherwise.”

This is a little disingenuous from Cashman because you’re telling me that Jeter, A-Rod, Mariano, Posada, Sheffield, CLEMENS, and other star players didn’t get special treatment? Bull. Shit. The top performers get special treatment in every team or 9-5 office.

According to the book, Brady’s family long felt Belichick would push out his longtime franchise player before he was ready to retire. Brady’s sister Nancy is quoted telling people that her brother believed “Belichick will definitely do to him someday what the Colts did to Peyton [Manning].“

Brady started worrying for his job almost immediately after Belichick cited his age and contract status –– and the coach’s desire to be “early rather than late at that position” — when the Patriots drafted Garoppolo in 2014.

100% valid concern from Brady because Belichick absolutely will would have done this when he felt it was best for the team in the long run. However, Brady winning Super Bowl XLIX, and Super Bowl LI, and Super Bowl MVP in both, and league MVP at the age of 40 kind of blew that plan to smithereens though. Still, it’s not a great look for Brady if true because it essentially admits to something we’ve all known for years; Brady’s late career resurgence is due almost entirely to his fear of being replaced by Jimmy G.

Don’t get it twisted, thats not a knock on Tom Brady, thats just human nature. As much as Brady would hate to admit it; thats just great coaching. Bill knew what buttons to push as Brady would either double down and work even harder to improve from a dip in production….or he wouldn’t and Bill would push Brady out for Jimmy G.

“One New England assistant said the general feeling among staff members around that time wasn’t that Belichick’s system could make Super Bowl quarterbacks out of all 32 NFL starters. “But if you gave us any of the top 15, we could do it,” the assistant said. “I don’t think the coaches view Tom as special as everyone else in football does. Mr. Kraft thinks Tom is the greatest gift ever, but the coaches don’t.”

This is probably the single most disrespectful thing thats ever been said about Tom Brady. Listen, I love Bill Belichick, he’s hands down the greatest coach in the history of the league, but even for him this is cocky. I hate getting into the sports talk radio debate of how many Super Bowls would Bill or Brady have without the other? Would Bill win 2, 3, or all 5 without Brady and vice versa? Its a fortuitous situation for both that built the greatest dynasty the league will ever see. But for Belichick to completely discount Brady’s all-time talent, football IQ, work ethic and clutch ability is just nonsense. Could the Patriots probably be a pretty decent team with Matt Stafford or Philip Rivers or Ben Roethlisberger? Yea probably. Are they winning 5 Super Bowls with any of those guys? Doubtful. But to say that the Patriots would be a consistent Super Bowl team with the Andy Daltons, Dak Prescotts, and Case Keenums of the world is just spitting in TB12’s face and I will not stand for it.

“One person close to Brady said his entire family was “miffed” at Belichick for telling reporters to ask the quarterback about his preferences on game balls and “very miffed” at Kraft for reluctantly announcing in 2015 that he wouldn’t fight Brady’s four-game ban…Brady told friends that his weak answer to the news conference question about whether he was a cheater — “I don’t believe so” — didn’t betray a consciousness of Deflategate guilt, but rather thoughts of the earlier Spygate conviction and his belief that at least some of the suspicions over the years about alleged Patriots black-ops tactics were likely true.

I think years from now we’ll look back and point to Deflategate as the beginning of the end for the Brady Belichick relationship. According to all reports, Brady still outright denies doing anything shady in Deflategate so he feels, whether it’s accurate or not, that he did nothing wrong. Belichick however already had one huge black mark on his resume with the whole Spygate scandal. Despite Spygate being the most overblown story of the past quarter century, Belichick knew what it would mean for him and his legacy if he was blamed for a second league scandal though. So yup, he dumped that shit right in Brady’s lap.

Now if you’re Brady you have to feel like you’re getting hung out to dry *solely* because your coach was fucking around with cameras and filming rules 10 years prior and tossed the hot potato to you. That has to have destroyed any semblance of trust remaining between the two sides. Hell, Brady probably felt like he was paying for Bill’s past crimes as the team felt it had to distance itself from Tom and the Deflategate scandal just to save face as an organization and a coach.

Now we get to the juicy stuff when it comes to past relationships with his former mentor in Bill Parcells.

“[Bill] Parcells is quoted in the book questioning why his former defensive coordinator’s game plan in the Giants’ Super Bowl XXV upset of the Bills ended up in Canton. “I don’t know whose idea that was to put it in the Hall of Fame,” Parcells said. “If anything should be in the Hall of Fame, it should be [offensive coordinator] Ron Erhardt’s game plan. We had the ball for 40 minutes and some seconds. That takes work, consistent play. We were only on defense for 19 minutes. To me, we had a good game plan against them. It was well thought out, a couple of things we did, the two-man lines in that game. But I’m not diminishing anything. I’m just telling you. I don’t know how that happened. I’m not knocking anyone here.”

Bill Parcells remains the saltiest man in the history of the league. If you haven’t seen The Two Bills documentary it is a must watch for any Patriots fan. It details the “repairing” of a fractured relationship between a mentor and mentee, but it sure as shit didn’t feel that way watching it. Parcells came off as a guy who thinks Belichick got lucky in a great situation and all but says he would have won just as much if he had Tom Brady too. I mean I get it, I guess.  In an environment you could never win in your younger protege comes into the same exact environment and wins FIVE Super Bowls. Thats gotta sting. So you tell yourself what you need to tell yourself to sleep at night.

There’s also some great tidbits on Belichick’s relationships with Urban Meyer, Nick Saban, Aaron Hernandez, the unlikelihood of Bill ever getting the Giants head coaching job in the late 80s/early 90s, and Belichick’s father being an awesome dude.

Great, now I have to buy ANOTHER book.

 

The 300s Bloggers’ Fantasy Football Round Up – Week 2

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Hi Friends.

Week 2 is now in the books and I’d say we are one week away from really seeing what our squads “are”? Don’t you love those questions and answers? “We still don’t know what Jimmy G is.” “We will find out tonight what these 2008 *insert team here* are? But ya, horribly hard to be a T.V analyst.

To go along with Week 2 we have our second addition of the recap of how our bloggers did in their respective league(s). As with Week 1, every blogger has submitted a small blurb on their successes and failures. Let’s get to it…


Papa Giorgio

Well, I got absolutely shellacked this weekend. 0-3 across all my leagues. Fournette being out did not help in the slightest. It will be interesting to see how Josh Gordon does for me now that he’s been traded to the Patriots. I have him in two leagues and if the guy can get healthy and live up to his potential my teams should be able to get back on track in the quest for some titles. Otherwise, if things continue to go south I may have to pull a Vontae Davis and get the hell out of Dodge. 

(Joey B Note: Something about a Bill’s fan drafting the most volatile player possibly in league history makes me happy.)


Big Z

Fantasy football is a prime example of where it is better to be lucky than good. I was thisclose to dropping Chris Hogan in favor of Phillip Dorsett this week. I ultimately decided against streaming my WR/TE flex position and stuck with Hogan after a lackluster Week 1. At halftime it looked like they would both post underwhelming Week 2 numbers, but I was rewarded with two late TDs by Hogan. Thank god.

As I’ve written before, defense should be taken out of fantasy football. Until that happens, though, I will continue to stream defenses in fantasy football. This week I dropped Green Bay to pick up New England. Whoops! Thankfully the move only cost me eight points. After an early defensive touchdown by Green Bay it looked like it could’ve been a whole lot worse.

Up 89-88 going into Monday night, my opponent was done and I only had Russell Wilson left. I thought about benching him, but when’s the last time a QB got negative points? I don’t know, but Wilson made me sweat it out, turning the ball over a few times in the second half. A garbage-time TD put me at the century mark, though, and cemented my Week 2 W.

So with a Brandin Cooks, Christian McCaffrey and a little luck, the Big Z Fantasy Empire is on the board in 2018.


Red

(Joey B’s Note: This first sentence is laugh out loud funny. This is the beauty of fantasy: you can taste the bitterness)

If I have any piece of advice from another dogshit start to my fantasy season it’s this; stick to the guys you drafted as long as you can. After a disastrous 4 INT game in Week 1, I benched Matt Stafford for Jimmy G and Stafford went off for 32 points compared to Garoppolo’s 20. Naturally I lost by just a hair under 12 points this week.

I also lost in my other league wasting a 27 point, 14 catch, 100 yard performance from Christian McCaffrey. So all in all I am a combined 0-4 to start the fantasy season. Oh and I bet the Patriots to cover on Sunday while I was down in the great state of NJ and obviously lost that bet. So my gambling advice is radioactive right now. Stay away.


Joey B

The bitch of fantasy football is that sometimes what happens in real-life outweighs fantasy. In this case, Gronk having a bad day fantasy-wise was not nearly as bad as that Patriots game overall. I still not only won but had high score thanks to, in part, another MONNNSTER game from Michael Thomas. Still, seeing that 2 points (or so) from Gronk and what it really represented hurt.


Mattes

If it weren’t for O.J. Howard benefitting from even more FitzMagic this week, it would have been a SAD day for the Purple Cobras. Granted, I did leave over 65 points on the bench this week, which included three guys with over 17-plus points each, each of whose performance would have been better than the four-point abomination I got from Ryan Grant in my flex. (Hey! He had nine targets in Week 1!) But alas, it would not have mattered anyway, as my opponent was the league’s high-scorer this week. Fortunately, those bench guys look like they could be forces moving forward, so hopefully I can start to right the ship in Week 3 after a rough (but not insurmountable!) 0-2 start.

As far as my other league goes, I was able to pull out a two-point victory thanks in large part to Captain Kirk Cousins, who went absolute H.A.M. sandwich in Green Bay on Sunday. Pairing him up with Philip Rivers in a two-QB league proved to be quite the boon this week. Michael Thomas also continues to be a PPR juggernaut, and the fact that Chris Carson didn’t get a carry in the second half killed any chance my opponent had of winning going into what was looking like a very advantageous Monday night scenario for him. If David Johnson, Larry Fitz, and the Cardinals offense ever wakes the hell up, I’d be feeling pretty damn good about this squad. I’ll take a 1-1 start for now.