Pats Pulpit: FanPosts

Joey Porter and Charlie Brown

2009-11-05T22:56:46Z

The Miami Dolphins must be in town, because Joey Porter is at it once again. Porter, who talks trash with the best of them, is once again crying the blues. How many times are we going to hear about the Super Bowl rings that Joey Porter lost because of Spy Gate? Instead of respecting him for his talents and accomplishments on the field, especially backing his guarantees against the Patriots. I find myself laughing at him as he transforms into Charlie Brown trying to kick the football while Bill Belichick pulls it away. Enough is enough, move on, go talk to Dr. Phil or Oprah, please do something. There is no need to interview you when we play you in a couple weeks or next year because we already know what you are going to say. Let me paraphrase in the words of Charlie Brown's teacher. "mwah mwah mwah, Brady and Belichick robbed me, mwah mwah mwah the Patriots cheated me of my rings, mwah mwah mwah". Get the hint Joey Porter, you sound like a scorned lover who talks about their ex-wife on a blind date. You come off as being petty and insecure. We will never know to what extent those grainy practice films did in helping out the Patriots in winning three Super Bowls. One thing is for sure; it didn't help in the second half in 2006 when the Pats were leading the Colts 21 to 6 at half. It also didn't help against the Giants in last years Super Bowl. So let me paraphrase here what you are trying to say. It was okay to beat the Patriots on Halloween of 2004 to end their 21 game winning streak, but having Deion Branch catch a 60 yard bomb and add a 23 yard reverse for a touch down in the Conference Title game sealing your fate with a 41 to 27 lose is cheating. Losing can be infectious; it brings the worst out in people, look at this years Cleveland Browns. Funny thing is you never hear the great ones complain. They use it as fuel to compete at the highest levels and drive them towards their goals. You never heard Roger Staubach complain that he was cheated of a Super Bowl ring in 1979 because most of the Steelers were on Steroids. I don't recall Derek Jeter crying in 2004 that Big Papi and other Red Sox players were on Steroids and that was the reason why they lost a trip to the World Series. Nope, it just doesn't happen. Bottom line, Joey Porter should have his own talk show so that he can filter out his message that the Patriots cheated him. So sit back and stay tuned to the Joey Porter show after Sunday's loss, mwah mwah mwah!

Ribbing Massachusets

2009-11-04T23:17:47Z

I stole this from a website. Yeah I'm a Dolphins fan, but I couldn't resist

Hi, it’s Jimmy Football here!

Nobody likes being stuck watching the ugly shit the Browns and the Bills call football. 6-3? What is that? That’s awful!

[Shot of audience members wincing]

So what if we all just did drugs instead?

[Audience looks intrigued]

Introducing the Bud Light Attack Pipe! It’s a crack pipe! In team colors! The police won’t suspect a thing!

Generic Fans in Parking Lot: We’re totally strung out and everybody’s cool with it! I don’t even care that this game blows!

STA-STAMP! Tailgate approved!

Say! You know what’s worse than having John Fox as your coach?

[Audience looks puzzled]

Having Jim Zorn as your coach!

[Audience erupts in laughter]

That’s why our team of scientists developed this – introducing the Bud Light Sherman Lewis!

[Audience stares in disbelief]

It doesn’t solve anything!

STA-STAMP! Tailgate approved!

Hey! Nobody likes having to listen to Boston fans get all melodramatic after one loss! What a bunch of crybabies!

[Audience looks exhausted]

Well, worry no longer. Introducing the Bud Light Bitchblade. It’s a switchblade you use on those Boston bitches.

[Shot of someone gleefully stabbing a person in a Red Sox hat]

One simple motion does all the work!

STAB! WHOOOOOAAAAA! Tailgate approved!

You know what really steams me sometimes?

[Audience puzzled again]

When people complain about the quality of the advertisements during football games.

[Audience nods knowingly]

Jimmy Football’s just trying to earn a living. We all can’t have jobs where we’re charmingly wry and funny. Sometimes we just have to get the goddamn message across and move some product. It’s called hustling. Sor-fucking-ry if this sponsor, who by the way is responsible for bringing you free football on TV, can’t make an entertaining ad. So we came up with this. Introducing the Bud Light TV Couch. You sit on it real nice and you shut your fucking yap while Jimmy is trying to make a sale.

Audience: TAILGATE TESTED!

Jimmy: Tailgate Approved!

DUH-NUH-DUH-NUHHHH DUH-NUH-DA!-DA!

Poll

Would you buy/use the Bitchblade?

Ramblers, let's get rambling...

2009-11-04T23:01:19Z

Ramblings from a mind that rambles…

Hey sexy Rexy, how’s the smack talk thing working out for you?

Yeah, Pat’s fans…FYI – Edge James was washed up like 3 seasons ago. If he is our best answer, I am afraid of what the question is.

OK, ok, maybe I was wrong, perhaps Brandon Tate has a little more Stephan Starring than Stanley Morgan in him.

Billy Balls stashing guys away on the Inactive list rather than IRing them and moving on? What has this world come to?

Not sure Miami has much of a chance on the second of their back to back road games playing a team coming off the equivalent of 3 bye weeks in a row.

Guessing Billy Balls saw both the Tenn and TB games as a free look at how his secondary rookies, like Butler and Chung, would respond to a healthy dose of playing time. Probably figured he couldn’t lose those games anyway.

Dear Vince Young, I wouldn’t make those reservations for the Pro Bowl just yet. Many a slip, twixt a cup and a lip.

I absolutely loved the Al Davis interview after the Seymour trade – where old Mr. Burns proudly intimated that Billy Balls had to “check with his owner” before consummating the Seymour trade. It was a veiled reference to the fact that old Al wasn’t the only “meddlesome” owner. Hey Al, WOW – you really got over on that one. Solid work. Don’t bust your skeleton wrist patting yourself on your bony crypt keeper back. Oh and one thing, just a reminder for those keeping score at home…Billy Balls has got Randy Moss, Derrick Burgess and a Number 1 pick for Richard Seymour, a 3rd, 4th and a 5th. You really stuck it to him that time. Live that one up.

After 4 weeks of country bumpkin Phil Simms and the world’s most insincere man, Jim Nantz – I really enjoyed the bye week. If I ever hear Nantz say such and such player is from “down (insert southern city name here) way” – again I am going to puke. And Simms with his uses of the word “HIM” without the letter “H.” “Oh and it looks like they got ‘im, but they missed ‘im.” And they wonder why we throw snowballs into their booth during games.

It’s pretty obvious the collapse starts this week for the Vikings, right? Just like my ex-wife, he waited two years, got his weird trumped up “revenge” and now what? Oh I have to play nine more games? You mean I can’t go ride my tractor? Speaking of that, it better be the best damn lawn I have ever seen after all the talk about riding around on his stupid tractor.

I wonder if the Mangenius had it all to do over again, if he would’ve taken Billy Balls advice and stuck around with the Pats for a few more seasons to learn a bit more from the master. In his deepest recesses of his brain, I am guessing he wishes he had a mulligan on that one.

Are you like me and take perverse pleasure in watching the Giants stumble around like walking wounded and lose three straight. Destiny thy name is Karma and it is coming back around. Guess the last three weeks the Giants didn’t “WANT IT MORE.”

Even though the 2007 team didn’t finish off perfection, I find myself turning into a bit of Mercury Morris and secretly hoping the Ponies and the Aints both stumble pretty soon. If I start clinking glasses and popping champagne, just put my head in the oven.

Dallas is faking; check out who they have played. San Diego is a fraud too, and will get killed on East Coast time this week. Jekyll and Hydes are Arizona, Jax and Carolina. Just like Forrest Gump, you never know whatcha gonna get.

I think the future marketing of the NFL lies with reality shows filmed and broadcast in season, like Hard Knocks – but throughout the regular season and playoffs for each team – aired locally. Tell me you wouldn’t watch that on weekly basis on the Pats. When I hear Jarvis Green is going to miss 2-4 weeks with a knee scope, my first thought is how it affects the outcome of the upcoming games. But if we were able to know a bit more about Jarvis as a person, it would strengthen the connection between fan and team. It would also rake in the lesser tapped female market. The females need that Oprah connection and this would do it. HBO has done it with boxing and it works. Pretty sure Billy Balls would have an embolism though.

Is Tampa Bay the piece of poop that floats in the bowl, amongst all the others that sink? Or vice versa? I mean they stand out now for being the only O-fer team left– but in the end – aren’t they all really just poop in the bowl (STL, DET, TEN, OAK, WASH)?

This cat on Boston.com that replaced Reiss, Bert Breer, is good, really good. I am back at the old Reiss’ Pieces blog much more than the last 6 weeks, now that he is on-board. Guess they call it “Extra Points.” Why don’t they call it “Football Tidbits and Discussion Points” if they want a really crappy name? How about some creativity? ‘Bert and Ernie?’ Breer Goggles? Boston Breer Works? Gotta be something better than Extra Points out there.

After listening to Felger and Mazz on 98.5, I find it painful to tune into EEI. Now don’t get me wrong I think Mazz is whistling past the graveyard and out of his league with Felger. I also wish I could buy stock in headlines like, “Holley joins The Sports Hub to Team with Felger.” EEI is just spent. Ordway, with his Napoleonic complex has surrounded himself with sycophants (Sheppard, Smerlas) and wannabes (DeOssie) that aren’t very talented or intelligent. Merloni is progress for the show, but it is too little too late. Real managers surround themselves with talent and share in the glory – and allow intelligent discourse. Shouting down, asking obvious pointed questions to make a point and blowing people up isn’t the way to build rapport with an audience. As successful as he has been, I am not sure he is seeing the forest for the trees. It is insulting to the local audience, for every blue collar guy living in Malden relishing the show there are 2 living in affluent communities (with more buying power) that soon will be listening to the Sports Hub. Keep playing the fiddle Glenn. The lifeboats are to your left, in case you were wondering.

The Pats have more young talent than I can remember them having in a long time. Wilhite, Butler, Chung, Mayo, Guyton, Meriweather, McGowan, Vollmer, Edelman, Tate. Oh and don’t forget 7 picks in the first two rounds of the next two drafts. The common theme seems to be that all of them, save Vollmer, can fly. Team speed has definitely been a focus in player acquisition.

Enjoy week 9!

The Hill's Week 9 Power Rankings

2009-11-04T15:45:39Z

Rank	Team	QA Score	Change from Last Week
1	New Orleans Saints	157.00	0
2	Denver Broncos	131.99	0
3	Minnesota Vikings	126.25	1
4	Indianapolis Colts	125.14	-1
5	Cincinnati Bengals	116.40	0
6	New England Patriots	105.69	0
7	Philadelphia Eagles	91.40	1
8	Pittsburgh Steelers	86.83	2
9	Houston Texans	86.25	2
10	Dallas Cowboys	85.11	2
11	Atlanta Falcons	80.24	-4
12	Arizona Cardinals	79.10	-3
13	New York Giants	76.13	1
14	Baltimore Ravens	75.96	1
15	Chicago Bears	68.39	1
16	New York Jets	65.38	1
17	Green Bay Packers	64.67	-4
18	Miami Dolphins	62.76	4
19	San Diego Chargers	60.81	0
20	San Francisco 49ers	53.90	-2
21	Carolina Panthers	47.47	2
22	Jacksonville Jaguars	41.61	-1
23	Buffalo Bills	31.75	-3
24	Seattle Seahawks	26.89	0
25	Oakland Raiders	19.63	0
26	Washington Redskins	14.74	0
27	Kansas City Chiefs	3.44	0
28	Detroit Lions	1.16	0
29	Tennessee Titans	0.44	3
30	Cleveland Browns	(3.88)	-1
31	St. Louis Rams	(5.50)	-1
32	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	(15.29)	-1

I believe that looks pretty good.

I went 8-5 with the ratings picks last week. Ravens over Broncos, Rams over Lions, Panthers over Cardinals, Titans over Jaguars and Dolphins over Jets were my incorrect picks. Rams vs Lions was more of a push, and all the other ones were upsets (except for Dolphins over Jets, but that was at the Meadowlands so I expected the Jets to pull out the win).

Week 9 Power Rankings

2009-11-03T20:43:07Z

National Football Post ranks them 4th (nc): The Pats come off the bye week and get to see the Dolphins and the wildcat offense for the first time in ’09.

The Sporting News ranks them 5th (-1): A bye week gave them extra time to prepare for the Dolphins and their Wildcat attack.

Fox Sports ranks them 5th (nc): Quick quiz: Name the only team in the league with each of the NFL's two remaining unbeaten teams remaining on its schedule. Tom Brady and those Patriots, sweet. Perhaps no other team in football could be better cast to potentially take down both undefeated teams. Regardless, with their weak December opposition, the Pats should be a lock for 11-12 wins and a playoff spot when the dust settles this season.

ESPN ranks them 5th (nc):. Enjoying a bye after a romp in London, the Patriots didn't have to do anything to open up ground in the AFC East.

Vic Carucci at NFL.com ranks them 5th: The refreshed Patriots have had plenty of time to prepare for the Dolphins' Wildcat, although it’s hard to say how much they’ll see of it considering the recent shift in Miami’s offensive approach.

Yahoo! Sports ranks them 5th (nc): Has anyone noticed that they’re completely in control of the AFC East – exactly as we expected them to be?

CBS Sports ranks them 5th (nc): They come off the bye with a chance to take a real hold of the division by beating Miami. You know they'll be ready for the Wildcat.

Don Banks at SI ranks them 5th (nc): Wondering what the heck is going on with Adalius Thomas in the New England defense? So are the Patriots, I imagine. The truth is, Thomas just isn't making many plays, and he really never has since arriving as a highly paid free agent in 2007. At this point, his impact seems mostly in the past, and the Patriots aren't going to let him take snaps away from younger, developing players. That's the New England way, and that's how you wind up with Adalius Thomas as a game-day inactive.

Cold Hard Football Facts ranks them 5th (nc): Last week: bye. Over their two-game sweep of Tennessee and Tampa, the Patriots piled up 1,025 yards, ran for 300 and forced eight turnovers.

USA Today ranks them 5th (nc): Their big-play offense set to square off with Dolphins.

What If Sports ranks them 6th (-1)

Peter King at SI ranks them 6th (-1): Tom Brady's yards-per-attempt in the past two games: 10.42. Not bad, considering that intergalactic is anything above 9.0, even though Tennessee and Tampa Bay are, well, Tennessee and Tampa Bay.

ProFootball Weekly ranks them 6th (nc): What has happened to James Sanders, Adalius Thomas?

WEEI ranks them 6th (nc): The next four weeks will tell us what type of team the Patriots really are. The bye week came at a perfect time for the Pats as they needed some time to get healthy. Ty Warren said on the Dale & Holley show yesterday that he is “OK” and it looks like he should be ready to play. That is great news because the Pats don’t have much depth on the defensive line and they will need Warren against the Dolphins.

AVERAGE RANK: 5.21 (-.29)

Pats play spoiler in weeks 10 and 12 (T.O. get your popcorn ready!)

2009-11-03T18:07:45Z

I ate the humble pie and I still know that the pats can walk away with wins over the unbeatens. Just check the numbers.

First lets take a look at the week 10 matchup with Indianapolis, to get to 7-0 they beat teams with a combined record of 17-33. The colts 1st ranked passing attack faced an average of a 24th (STL and CLE) ranked pass defense with the best opponent Seattle having a pass defense of 18th, Patriots passing defense ranks 5th!. The Colts own the 30th placed rushing attack against opponents that have an average 13th ranked rushing defense, the Patriots rushing defense is ranked 15th. So sprinkle in the Patriots 3rd ranked total offense against the Colts 9th ranked total defense and I say we come away with a solid W.

Second up is the Saints or this years current unbeaten super bowl favorite and lets see where the numbers match up. The Saints beat opponents with a combined record of 25-27 respectable but below .500. The Saints have the 6th ranked passing offense (Patriots ranked 2nd) against teams with an average 15th ranked passing defense. The Saints own the 4th placed rushing offense (Patriots ranked 14th) against teams with an average rushing defense of 18th. So finally you get a game where the the Saints best total offensive unit goes against the 6th ranked total defensive unit of the Patriots and were in for a Super Bowl Preview! or the Saints fall to the Vikes in the playoffs and the patriots fans get the superbowl that should have been in 2007.

Note: In the next 8 games for the Saints (excluding the Patriots) they face teams with a combined record of 18-39 CAR,TB,DAL,ATL,WAS,TB,STL,CAR (only two teams better then .500). The Saints have already beaten Atlanta and puttting any hope in Dallas is a mistake, so basically the only thing other then a fluke that stands between the Saints and perfection is a slice of some humble pie.

Poll

What are the odds the Patriots walk away with a win in Lucas Oil Stadium and the Superdome?

Ask The Phinsider

2009-11-03T02:09:16Z

How's it going, Pat fans?

Myself and MaPatsFan decided to do a fanpost swap on each other's blogs to get some chatter going about Sunday's game. Needless to say, it shouldn't be very long until the trash talking starts. But let's keep it somewhat reasonable.

The point of this is to answer your Dolphin questions. Anything you want to know, feel free to ask and I'll do my best to answer. Like I said, your leader is doing this as well over at The Phinsider so be sure to check in there if you'd like.

Fire away...

Check out NFL Fan in ENGLAND's pics from Pats game in LONDON baby!

2009-11-02T23:32:34Z

Check out my 13 blog posts from the wembley game -

It has taken me about a week to do all of this but I have added 13 separate posts to my blog all about the Buccs v Pats game at Wembley last sunday.

For those of you who did not attend or did not get tailgate tickets I hope these posts make you smile.

I have some pretty cool picture and a video of one of the touchdowns.

Start by clicking here

http://nflfaninengland.wordpress.com/2009/10/26/nflfaninengland-london-road-trip-part-1-wembley-welcoming/
as this is part 1 - then scroll up through my blog for pictures and some comments.

I have more pics so if anyone wants to see anything else I may have captured it.

Let me know your thoughts by posting back on my blog and feel free to forward to anyone you like.

Sorry its taken a week but I hope it was worth the wait.

cheers

Lawrence.
lawrencevos@yahoo.co.uk

cheers

Lawrence

http://nflfaninengland.wordpress.com/

Who Will Replace Troy Brown (aka the Naked Patriot)?

2009-10-31T18:38:18Z

I'm not worried about who is going to wave their hand in the end zone indicating a fair catch or who is going to fill in at cornerback if things get really dismal. I am worried about who is going to be naked in the locker room. Troy Brown never failed to pop up on Mohegan Sun Sports Tonight, New England Tailgate, PVN or the local WHDH with less than the average amount of clothing. Sometimes it was just one or two pieces missing but I am pretty sure I have seen the scrambled pixels over Troy's pigskin on at least one occasion.

As a woman I have never been able to hang out in a locker room naked or even close to naked. Sorry to disappoint the men but women's locker rooms do not look like a "Vivid Video" set. It is more like a who's who of who you don't want to see naked. Women are too insecure, even the hot ones, to walk around a locker room showing full frontal, especially if it's on fire. Add cameras, reporters, coaches, and god forbid Felger, and any woman would want to be covered fashionably with perfect lighting.

Troy is not the only New England Patriot to show some sweaty pec, furry shoulders or perky nipples (thank you Wes Welker), but Troy was a naked guy you could count on. Troy was consistently naked on camera after every game, practice, preseason, postseason, every season.

As a new season of Patriots football has started I'm watching all the shows looking to see who will fill these cleats. I'm asking myself, "Who will take on pivotal position?" No one seems ready to take on the reigns of naked guy; no one has emerged as a frontal runner. This is a commitment and will take a lot of hard work. Troy never once looked uncomfortable and that is a skill.I have seen a shirtless Laurence Maroney and Brandon Meriweather, but not consistently and not with the confident stance that Troy had.

Like many other women out there I have my hopes and dreams of who will become the Naked Patriot, but deep down I know it will not be who you think, or who you want, but you will learn to love him and his important roll on the team.

The worst-case scenario is that no one stands in the circle listening to a Bellichick post-game monotone speech wearing only what appears to be a washcloth hanging on a doorknob. I know as a fan I would be very happy if Troy was brought back, even if only to wave that one hand for a fair catch. Then I would know on post-game coverage I would be getting some Brown nudity, and the team would be complete for the 2009 season.

17, 16, 10, 14, 20, 0, 7 - or why the outlook at the midway point is great

2009-10-30T11:59:00Z

The bye week is a time for reflection on what has happened so far in the season and how things look going forward.

Had anyone before the season offered me a 5-2 record after the bye, I would have taken it. I would have guessed, that the two losses had come in the Falcons-Ravens-Titans games, but the season never shakes out exactly as you expect.

Had anyone offered me an offensive development from shaky (Bills) over bad (Jets) and good halves (Falcons, Ravens, Broncos) to dominant (Titans and Bucs) I would have taken that too. For all the talk of 2007 and the return of Brady, some rust was to be expected. It never became a huge concern because a) Brady has continually improved his movement, accuracy and timing with the receivers and b) Belichick and the team still managed to win some games early on.

The main reason for hope, however, is the development of the defense. Last year, odd scheduling and bad luck kept the Patriots out of the playoffs, but even after the loss of Brady, the offense continued to be the strength of the team. Sure, it took some games to regroup, but at the end of the season, the offense was humming as usual, whereas the defense was getting old and slow, unable to make key stops at third down.

The numbers in the headline are points given up by the defense this year – I have taken out the pick-six against the Bills and the fumble-recovery against the Ravens – and it shows a pretty good defense, that’s only getting better. It hasn’t looked pretty all the way, but the results speak for themselves. Right now, the Patriots are sixth in yards per game and third in points per game. Considering the number of new players / starters on defense and key injuries to Mayo and Sanders, that is pretty remarkable.

Some will say the two last games against two hapless teams don’t really count. If the Patriots had won 24-13 and 31-17, I would agree, but they DESTROYED two teams, who are also talented, professional, and playing to keep their jobs. Talented, you say. The Bucs? Yes. All teams in the NFL has raw talent and making sure that doesn’t pop up, even a little, two weeks in a row, is also a sign of a great team coming into its own as the build-up for the playoffs begin. Remember, the Titans almost beat the Steelers and hung 31 on Houston, 17 on the Jets and 17 on the Jaguars. They can move the ball – but not on us. The Bucs scored 21 against Dallas and Carolina, 14 against Philadelphia and 20 against Buffalo.

The pass rush and coverage is improved from last year, and the secondary has brought more physicality and more big-play potential. Now, none of this guarantees success against top passing teams. The Broncos and the Ravens have been pretty good this year, but they just don’t compare to how the Saints and the Colts move the ball through the air. Maybe they will torch us, but even if they do, the outlook is good, because we play a lot of young guys who can improve for a rematch later.

MaPatsFan has already looked at the schedule ahead, and it looks good. There are two really good teams coming up, but I’d say we split with Colts and Saints and pick up another defeat or two along the way to go 12-4 or 11-5 and enter the playoffs with a great team on the rise. It is good to be a Patriots fan.

Mike Lynch hosts sports talk with former Patriots Players

2009-10-28T19:44:04Z

The Four’s and The Sports Museum Debut “The Legendary Lunch” Series

On November 5th, dine and chat with legendary New England athletes and sportswriters

(Boston, MA) – The Four's Restaurant and Sports Bar and The Sports Museum are pleased to announce “The Legendary Lunch” series, which kicks off on November 5th at The Four’s Boston on Canal Street.

For the premiere event, former Boston Patriot legends Gino Cappelletti, Larry Eisenhauer, and Tom Yewcic will be joined by legendary WCVB sports anchor and nine-time recipient of Massachusetts’ “Sportscaster of the Year” award Mike Lynch to discuss “The Patriots and the Renegade Days of the AFL: A Fond Look Back At The League That Changed Football Forever.” This topic is especially relevant given the NFL’s ongoing celebration of the 50th anniversary of the legendary upstart league.

“The Legendary Lunch Series” is the ultimate experience for the true Boston sports fan – a Four’s sports-themed lunch and an intimate sports conversation with the greatest and most beloved Boston sports legends and the knights of the keyboard, the Boston sports media.

In addition to a mouth-watering meal and great sports conversation, attendees will receive a gift bag filled with items from The Sports Museum and The Four’s. All guests will be entered into a raffle to win a gift certificate from The Four’s.

Tickets for the November 5th event are $20 in advance and $25 at the door and include lunch and the panel discussion. The event begins promptly at noon and will last until 1:30 pm. All proceeds will benefit The Sports Museum, a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational institution.

Call The Four’s Boston at 166 Canal Street to reserve a ticket at 617-720-4455.

For more information about the “Legendary Lunch” series, please visit www.thefours.com or find us on Facebook.

UAbout The Fours Restaurant and Sports Bar

The Four's Restaurant and Sports Bar has been a Boston Tradition since 1976. One of the country's first sports pubs, The Four's is known for fine food and great service. Voted as

America’s #1 Sports Bar by Sports Illustrated, The Four’s Restaurant and Sports Bar has three locations: Boston located on Canal Street near the TD Garden, Quincy located on Cottage Avenue, and the newly-opened location on Route 53 in Norwell. For more information, please visit www.thefours.com

UAbout The Sports MuseumU

The Sports Museum is a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational institution that has served Boston and New England for more than 30 years. Located on Levels 5 and 6 of the TD Garden, The Sports Museum preserves and showcases the distinctly rich sports heritage of New England through an unparalleled collection of artifacts, multi-media, works of art, and interactive exhibits – and uses all of that to help build character and teach the values of leadership, respect, and cooperation to our youth. For more information please visit is www.sportsmuseum.com

The Hill's Power Rankings + Week 8 Picks

2009-10-27T22:21:35Z

So I guess I should do some introduction for my power rankings. They include a few simple statistics and are defined by another simple formula that I've come up with.

Included:

Winning Percentage

Points Differential/Game

"Quality Wins"

"Bad Losses"

Initially, I come up with the ranking using just winning percentage and points differential/game. The formula I use is:

100*Winning Percentage+Points Differential/Game

This groups teams by their current record and splits teams according to what the point differential is.

Rank	Team	Score
1	New Orleans Saints	118.50
2	Indianapolis Colts	117.00
3	Denver Broncos	111.17
4	Minnesota Vikings	94.00
5	New England Patriots	85.71
6	New York Giants	78.86
7	Green Bay Packers	77.50
8	Pittsburgh Steelers	76.86
9	Cincinnati Bengals	76.43
10	Philadelphia Eagles	74.50
11	Dallas Cowboys	73.33
12	Atlanta Falcons	71.67
13	Arizona Cardinals	71.17
14	New York Jets	64.00
15	Houston Texans	58.43
16	Baltimore Ravens	56.50
17	San Diego Chargers	53.00
18	San Francisco 49ers	51.83
19	Chicago Bears	47.50
20	Jacksonville Jaguars	45.50
21	Buffalo Bills	39.29
22	Seattle Seahawks	34.83
23	Miami Dolphins	32.33
24	Carolina Panthers	24.83
25	Washington Redskins	24.71
26	Oakland Raiders	12.14
27	Kansas City Chiefs	3.43
28	Detroit Lions	2.50
29	Cleveland Browns	(1.00)
30	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	(15.29)
31	Tennessee Titans	(19.00)
32	St. Louis Rams	(21.57)

With this base ranking, I adjust it with the quality wins and bad losses:

"Quality Wins": Victories against teams ranked 1-16 in the base rankings

"Bad Losses": Losses against the bottom 10 teams in the base rankings. If your team is in the bottom 10, then a "Bad Loss" is a loss against a team ranked lower (ie: I have Washington base ranked 25. They lost to Detroit (base ranked 28), so they get 1 bad loss).

I adjust the rankings with

Base Score + Quality Wins*10 - Bad Losses*5

Why? No rhyme or reason, it works well in my opinion and, in my power rankings, that's all that really matters!

Here are my final rankings and how the Adjusted Ranking differs from the Base.

Rank	Team	QA Score	Difference
1	Denver Broncos	151.17	2
2	New Orleans Saints	148.50	-1
3	Indianapolis Colts	127.00	-1
4	Cincinnati Bengals	116.40	5
5	Minnesota Vikings	113.99	-1
6	New England Patriots	105.69	-1
7	Atlanta Falcons	91.70	5
8	Arizona Cardinals	91.20	5
9	New York Giants	88.83	-3
10	Pittsburgh Steelers	86.83	-2
11	Dallas Cowboys	83.37	0
12	Houston Texans	78.39	3
13	Green Bay Packers	77.53	-6
14	New York Jets	73.96	0
15	Philadelphia Eagles	69.53	-5
16	San Francisco 49ers	61.83	2
17	Chicago Bears	57.50	2
18	Baltimore Ravens	56.50	-2
19	San Diego Chargers	53.00	-2
20	Jacksonville Jaguars	50.50	0
21	Miami Dolphins	42.30	2
22	Buffalo Bills	39.33	-1
23	Seattle Seahawks	34.80	-1
24	Carolina Panthers	24.80	0
25	Oakland Raiders	22.17	1
26	Washington Redskins	14.74	-1
27	Kansas City Chiefs	3.44	0
28	Detroit Lions	2.53	0
29	Cleveland Browns	(0.99)	0
30	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	(15.29)	0
31	Tennessee Titans	(19.00)	0
32	St. Louis Rams	(21.57)	0

Thoughts? Comments?

Thanks for reading!

Edit:

Predictions for Next Week's Games!

Away Teams: Adjusted Score + Away Winning Percentage*50

Home Teams: Adjusted Score + Home Winning Percentage*100

Picks in Bold

Denver Broncos	151.17	201.17
Baltimore Ravens	56.50	122.50

New York Giants	88.83	126.33
Philadelphia Eagles	69.53	135.53

Houston Texans	78.39	111.39
Buffalo Bills	39.33	72.33

Seattle Seahawks	34.80	34.80
Dallas Cowboys	83.37	149.37

Miami Dolphins	42.30	42.30
New York Jets	73.96	139.96

San Francisco 49ers	61.83	78.33
Indianapolis Colts	127.00	227.00

St. Louis Rams	(21.57)	(21.57)
Detroit Lions	2.53	52.53

Cleveland Browns	(0.99)	15.51
Chicago Bears	57.50	157.50

Oakland Raiders	22.17	38.67
San Diego Chargers	53.00	86.00

Carolina Panthers	24.80	41.30
Arizona Cardinals	91.20	124.20

Jacksonville Jaguars	50.50	67.00
Tennessee Titans	(19.00)	(19.00)

Minnesota Vikings	113.99	151.49
Green Bay Packers	77.53	143.53

Atlanta Falcons	91.70	108.20
New Orleans Saints	148.50	248.50

Woo!

Week 8 Power Rankings

2009-10-27T19:34:04Z

National Football Post ranks them 4th (+2): Where is the panic in New England? The Pats are back where they belong—atop the AFC East.

The Sporting News ranks them 4th (+2): As often happens, they seem positioned to have a strong November and December.

Cold Hard Football Facts ranks them 4th (+2): Last week: 35-7 win “at” Tampa Bay. Randy Moss and Wes Welker have produced 57 first downs between them – more than the entire passing games of Tennessee, Buffalo, Cleveland, San Francisco and Oakland.

What If Sports ranks them 5th (-1)

Peter King at SI ranks them 5th (nc): Pats 94, TitanBucs 7 over the past two weeks, on two continents.

Fox Sports ranks them 5th (+1): Are the 2007 Patriots back? This year's bunch sure has looked perfect in pasting the Titans and Bucs by a 94-7 combined score the last two weeks. Of course, those two teams are a "perfect" 13-for-13 in the loss column this season. After the bye week, Brady's buds kick off a challenging five-game stretch that includes three tough division games, plus must-see matchups with the Colts and Saints.

ESPN ranks them 5th (+1): The Titans and Bucs gave the Patriots two nice exhibition games before the bye week.

Yahoo! Sports ranks them 5th (+2): Yo, Victoria Beckham – are you aware that according to the Times of London, Tom Brady is “The Real Golden Balls”?.

CBS Sports ranks them 5th (+2): Nothing like getting the Tennessee Titans and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in successive weeks to help fix all that ails you. Tom Brady has come alive.

Don Banks ranks them 5th (+1): It feels utterly weird to write this, but the Patriots actually feel like an under-the-radar team these days. The road losses to the Jets and Broncos made them look downright vulnerable, and the blowouts against the winless Titans and Bucs haven't really earned them much respect. In other words, Bill Belichick and the boys have us exactly where they want us. Not paying close enough attention.

USA Today ranks them 5th (+1): No more cupcakes on schedule after their bye.

ProFootball Weekly ranks them 6th (+1): Message sent to Bucs QB Josh Johnson: Clear off, lad!

WEEI ranks them 6th (nc): The Patriots head into their bye week at a perfect time as they are a little beat up. Ty Warren and Randy Moss were the latest Patriots players to suffer injuries. This is a good time for the Pats to heal up and prepare for a tough schedule ahead — Miami, at Indy, Jets and at New Orleans will be no easy task.

AVERAGE RANK: 4.92 (+1.08)

Hail to the Undrafted Free Agents

2009-10-26T18:55:29Z

Most Patriots fans are are aware that Wes Welker was an Undrafted Free Agent. They could probably name Gary Guyton and BenJarvus Green-Ellis as part of that undrafted class as well. But can anyone guess just how many Undrafted Free Agents are currently on the Patriots roster?

My friend Steve brought that question up at some point during the Sunday football blur that followed New England's win, and he was able to list 8 off the top of his head. Impressive as I thought that was, since I could only name 4, both of us were waaaaaay off in our underestimation. Here's a clue. Out of the 45-man active roster for yesterday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 14 of those were undrafted free agents. And that's not all. The Patriots also have four undrafted players on the Practice squad, three on the Reserve/Military List and one on Injured Reserve for a total of 22.

I can't tell you how this compares to other teams in the NFL, but I know that the number surprised me.

Here is a list of players and which team acquired them as Rookie Free Agents.

	Player		College	Acquired By	Year
52	Eric Alexander	LB	Louisiana State	Patriots	2004
23	Leigh Bodden	CB	Duquense	Browns	2003
63	Dan Connolly	OL	SE Missouri State	Jaguars	2005
42	BenJarvus Green-Ellis	RB	Mississippi	Patriots	2008
59	Gary Guyton	LB	Georgia Tech	Patriots	2008
6	Chris Hanson	P	Marshall	Browns	1999
8	Brian Hoyer	QB	Michigan State	Patriots	2009
64	Mark LeVoir	T	Notre Dame	Bears	2006
38	Bret Lockett	DB	UCLA	Browns	2009
30	Brandon McGowan	S	Maine	Bears	2009
61	Stephen Neal	G	Cal State-Bakersfield	Patriots	2001
83	Wes Welker	WR	Texas Tech	Chargers	2004
58	Pierre Woods	LB	Michigan	Patriots	2006
99	Mike Wright	DL	Ashland/Cincinnati	Patriots	2005

	Practice Squad
85	Robbie Agnone	TE	Nebraska	Patriots	2009
27	Kyle Arrington	CB	Hofstra	Eagles	2007
49	Bruce Davis	LB	UCLA	Patriots	2009
10	Terrence Nunn	WR	Nebraska	Patriots	2009

	Military/Reserve
15	Tyree Barnes	WR	Navy	Patriots	2009
44	Eric Kettani	RB	Navy	Patriots	2009
16	Shun White	WR	Navy	Patriots	2009

	Injured Reserve
35	Chris Taylor	RB	Indiana	Texans	2006

Pot calling the kettle black, Peyton Manning plays well into 4th quarter of Rams drubbing

2009-10-26T17:13:42Z

In other news, the pot was caught calling the kettle black. Colts fans, who called the Patriots the Unclassiest Team of the Decade are left eating this:

...while living in one of these:

While the Colts hammered the crap out of the Rams, Peyton Manning was left in WELL INTO THE FOURTH QUARTER. But Colts fans will figure out a way to twist and turn that one to STILL portray their QB and team as the classier winner. Just wait, it'll come...

Enough is Enough

2009-10-25T12:51:21Z

The Red Sox traveled to Japan and now the Patriots are playing in London. What’s next, the Bruins strapping on their skates and heading to Alaska, or how about the Celtics playing in Australia while eating a little shrimp on the Barbie. Truth be told, I don’t care where the Pats play today, all I want to see is a well-played game that they can build on. To the entire nay Sayers out there crying that the Patriots ran up score, enough is enough. This is a professional game with professional athletes who get paid millions of dollars to perform at their best. Brady lost an entire year with this offense and needs all of the time that he can get, even in lopsided games. If the Yankees were losing to the Red Sox 10-0 because C.C. was walking the ballpark; and trust me that is a big if, do you really think that the gentlemanly thing to do would be for the Red Sox to swing at every pitch no matter if it were a ball of strike because sports etiquette dictates they should? How about the 32-point comeback the Buffalo Bills displayed on the Houston Oilers with backup Frank Reich in 1993, or the Jets miracle versus the Dolphins in 2000 to stun the league with a 40-37 victory. If you don’t think that they would like to have a mulligan and go back and maybe keep up their intensity because they thought the game was over, well you are wrong. The point is, that when you have a team down, keep them down. To many times in sports we have seen comebacks because other teams have let up. Trust me, if the Pats were to let up last week and somehow the Titans came back to win the game, there would be mass suicides in the streets of Boston questioning Bill’s decisions from the sidelines. Why is nobody questioning the Giants romp over the Raiders two weeks ago? I will tell you why, because people love to hate the Patriots and Bill Belichick. It is okay for Manning to tear up the league in route to his 49-touchdown season in 2004, but not for Brady in 2007. There was a four-week stretch were the Colts blow teams out by the scores of 49-14, 41-10, 41-9, and 51-24. I don’t remember writers and fans screaming out that Coach Dungy was running up the scores, or Peyton Manning should let up off the gas peddle because it was the right thing to do. No, everyone was enamored because Manning was going to break Marino’s touch down record that had sat for twenty years. The second Brady and Belichick break records it’s bad for the league and frowned upon. A note to everyone, take your emotions out of the game and just enjoy what you are watching. Remember, it is just a game.

The Good Ole Days?

2009-10-25T09:24:01Z

Does anyone miss the New England Patriots of the start of the decade? I do.

The ones who were perennial underdogs, had no individuals coveted by fantasy owners, and had some young, scrawny, late-round quarterback leading them? (Rather than the 14-point favorites, fantasy superstars, and the golden-boy QB married to Gisele)

The ones who had a defense of unheralded no-names, who somehow, despite being slower, older and underpaid, found a way to make that huge stop, after spending the entire game bending-but-not-breaking? (Rather than a young, exuberant, hard-hitting defense led by the exciting-but-inexperienced Meriweather-Mayo-Wilfork)

The ones who just managed to stay in the game, mount a couple fourth-quarter drives, then hit a field goal as the clock expired to win the game? (Rather than forty-five point leads before halftime and "F-U" touchdowns)

Don't take me wrong, I enjoy seeing the offense firing on all cylinders. But throughout 2007, I felt like I was watching a team that was somehow different from the one I had fallen in love with, the one that had won three Super Bowls by the slightest of margins.

It was like witnessing a teenage guy who had just lost his V-card, and had a whole new perspective on the world and how to live in it. While he may have enjoyed the next few months prancing around with every girl he met, scoring at will, eventually he just run out of steam. Stamina finally failed him. That was our 2007 Patriots, a team that discovered how much fun scoring was, and how sometimes you can lose yourself, and the Super Bowl, within it.

So when the Patriots started this year winning less-often, and in a far-uglier fashion, I got excited. I thought we might be back to early-decade form, with a team that knew how to get the job done in whatever fashion was necessary.

I was ready for another Super Bowl.

Then last week, 59-0, happened. Brady came back in the second half for the "F-U" score. And my worst nightmare is now back.

Do I have any reason to be worried?

Where's the Bucs Buzz?

2009-10-23T22:22:47Z

This is the oddest week I can remember. It's week 7 and the Pats, in need of a road win, are in London readying to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. Someone asked me who their quarterback was and I couldn't tell them. [It's Josh Johnson.] It just seems to be the oddest, quietest football-talk week in a long time.

The buzz has been about the logistics of the trip to London, the league's ~~possible~~ eventual international expansion, why Adalius Thomas was benched and which player will be activated to fill in as the 3rd WR and in the return game. Has there even been any mention of the Patriots offense vs. Bucs D or how well the Bucs offense will match up against the Pats D? I know head coach Bill Belichick has thought about it, but the fans are pretty much treating this either as a gimme game or otherwise demonstrating that theyr'e just not that interested in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a team to discuss.

See? Even this logo doesn't include the Bucaneers.

Here are some quick hits about this series, courtesy of Patriots.com:

SERIES HISTORY
The Patriots and Buccaneers will meet this week for the first time since the 2005 season when New England shutout the Buccaneers 28-0 in a home victory.

Head coach Bill Belichick's first game as head coach of the Patriots came against Tampa Bay on Sept. 3, 2000. Tampa Bay claimed a 21-16 victory in that game, but the Patriots have won four of the six total games in the series, which dates back to 1976, the first year of existence for the Buccaneers franchise. New England won the first three games in the series from 1976-88. Tampa Bay claimed the next two meetings, before the Patriots shutout victory in the last meeting between the two teams in 2005.

The Patriots beat the Buccaneers in 1988 and then went 17 years before their next win against the Buccaneers in 2005.

The 17-year victory gap is the second longest for the Patriots, trailing only a 33-year win drought against the Washington Redskins.

BRADY VS. TAMPA BAY
Tom Brady is 1-0 against Tampa Bay. In his only meeting against Tampa Bay (12/17/05), Brady led his team to a 28-0 victory by completing 20-of-31 pass attempts for 258 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions for a QB rating of 112.8. Brady owns a 25-4 record against NFC opponents in the regular-season.

LAST MEETING
On offense, Tom Brady threw for three touchdowns and compiled a 122.8 passer rating, completing 20 of 31 passes for 258 yards. David Givens led New England's receiving corps with a career-high 137 yards on six catches, including a touchdown, while Corey Dillon scored a rushing touchdown and also added a receiving score.

The Patriots produced their most complete game of the season, recording a 28-0 shutout over the Buccaneers in Foxborough.

INFREQUENT FOES
The Patriots and Buccaneers have met just six times in regularseason play. The Patriots' six games against Tampa Bay are the fewest against any team that entered the league prior to the most recent era of expansion, which began with the entry of Jacksonville and Carol ina to the NFL in 1995.

PATRIOTS IN OCTOBER
The Patriots are 24-5 in October games since 2003, having swept the month in 2003, 2006 and 2007. The Patriots had an 11-game winning streak in the month of October that was snapped last season when New England dropped a 30-10 decision at San Diego (10/12/08).

* Also, here are the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Depth Chart and Team Roster for anyone like me who's unfamiliar with this team we'll be playing on Sunday.

Maybe the 3rd receiver has been on the roster all along?

2009-10-23T21:11:44Z

Heard a ton of sports radio talk about the Pats lack of a 3rd receiver the last two weeks, even before Edelman was hurt. Cleary Joey Graybeard wasn't the answer. Aiken appears to be a ham and egger. I think it is curious that THE GENIUS would cut Galloway, knowing Edelman was out of commission.

I know he is coming off ACL/MCL. I know the "true" recovery isn't until the second year for speedsters with those types of injuries. I know he is a pothead, Focker. I know these are just college highlights.

But JC, maybe THE GENIUS knew the third receiver has been on the roster all along. Tell me this doesn't make you excited watching this montage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fS6L070REw0

Niko from Buc'em welcomes Pats fans to check out our Bucs/Pats videos

2009-10-22T11:15:02Z

Hey Pats fans, over at Buc'em, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers blog for SB Nation, I do a video each week called Enemy Flashback, and also Classic Enemy Flashback.

You can checkout Enemy Flashback today (Thursday) at 10am which will be of the Pats win over the Chris Simms led Bucs, who were doing pretty well in 2005.

Then Don't Miss Friday morning the Classic Enemy Flashback video which features the Ray Perkins led Buccaneers visiting New England to take on Tony Eason and Irvin Fryar!

Hope you come visit!