New England Patriots Links 9/28/10 - Offensive Line Providing Protection, Opening Holes

Bill Belichick addresses the media Monday morning with his usual in-depth and detailed responses.

After looking at the tape this morning and going through it with the players this afternoon, a few big plays in the game really turned out, I think, to be a big factor. We were able to make a couple stops in the red area and finish our drives and get the ball in the end zone. Of course, the turnovers were big. We kind of offset things there with a long kickoff return, but fortunately we were able to just do a little bit more there. [In] the drive before the half, there were a couple good plays offensively, good situation football. It was good to get out of there with three [points] and neutralize the three we gave up when Buffalo had the ball there and kicked the field goal right before the half. [It's] always tough against Buffalo. That's the way it looked on film. That's the way it was yesterday. I'm sure it will be that way next time, too.

Q: On C.J. Spiller's kickoff return, what did you see from a Patriots perspective? Was it well covered?

BB: Obviously not.

Tully Banta-Cain assesses the defense's performance after the win against Buffalo.

"Obviously, no one's happy about giving up 30 points, but I still think that there's a lot of room for improvement. It isn't anything where we're going to panic or anything like that. I just think that we're not playing complete team defense. You have flashes of guys playing well in certain departments. You know – the D-line sometimes plays well, the linebackers play well, the secondary...but, it's not consistently doing it at the same time. So I think once we put together a complimentary game with all those departments, you'll see a good defense."

That's usually always the case [that the defense will improve as the season progresses]. I think when you start off, you kind of don't know what you have. You have to get guys in certain situations and see how they react. As the season goes on, coaches can see what positions guys are best in to do their best. So, right now, we've only played three games, so it's still early in the season. We have a lot of improvement to work on and I think we'll see it.

TEAM TALK

• Erik Scalavino focuses on the big play of Danny Woodhead, the newbie running back picked up from the Jets' discard pile last week.
• Patriots Locker Room Quotes from Monday at Gillette.
• Bill Belichick Monday Presser (17.55 min. video) Plus transcript.
• Patriots Today - Young RBs step up. (3.45 min. video)
• Locker Room Uncut - Comments on win vs. Bills. (3.47 min. video)

LOCAL LINKS

• Mike Reiss reports that through three weeks, the Patriots rank second in the NFL in fewest sacks allowed per pass play (2 sacks in 100 pass plays), with only 6 QB hits.
• Christopher Price notes that without Mankins and Kaczur, the Patriots line has held it's ground.
• Mike Reiss takes a look at where the Patriots rank in key NFL statistical categories after three weeks.
• Tom E. Curran says next Monday's Patriots-Dolphins game is crucial.
• Ian Rapoport breaks down the Patriots eight no-huddle plays that began the second half.
• Ian Rapoport notes the Patriots were intent on playing all 60 minutes on Sunday, and doing it in a hurry.
• Troy Brown "loves BenJarvus Green-Ellis" and says he is "that good."
• Mike Reiss finds, against expectations, that the Patriots did have a pass rush. Both Fitzpatrick interceptions came against a four-man rush with rookie Jermaine Cunningham providing pressure off the edge.
• Mike Reiss picks out some Patriots bright spots from the win.
• Mike Reiss writes that the Patriots will take the win and then deal with the problems.
• Albert Breer posts a terrific picture detailing the difficulty of Randy Moss' 35-yard touchdown catch as it happened. Moss, and Brady, are amazing.
• Monique Walker says the Patriots defense will keep trying for a consistent, complete game.
• Mike Reiss reports LB Tully Banta-Cain is positive there will be improvement on the defense. They're confident but not consistent yet.
• Michael Hurley says the Dolphins' offense is capable of shredding the Patriots defense next Monday night.
• Chris Gasper says injuries and inexperience have put the Patriots defense near the bottom of the NFL ranks. If they can't stop the run or the pass it'll be in big-time trouble playing the big-time QBs.
• Mike Reiss notes Belichick liked what he saw from CB Kyle Arrington Sunday.
• Mike Reiss takes a look at the positional groupings utilized by the Patriots in their 38-30 win over the Bills and offers his analysis.
• Mike Reiss looks at the snaps played by defenders in Sunday's 38-30 win over the Bills and offers his expert analysis.
• Jeff Howe reports Gary Guyton's mother's successful battle with breast cancer has inspired him to fight through and tackle whatever challenges he faces on and off the field.
• Mike Rodak reviews the game on TV and offers his observations: First quarter, Second quarter, Third quarter and Fourth quarter.
• Monique Walker offers some highlights from Tom Brady's appearance Monday morning on WEEI.
• WEEI Patriots Monday: Tom Brady, Brandon Meriweather, Vince Wilfork and Bill Belichick.
• Monique Walker Patriots Notebook: Brady targeted 8 different receivers Sunday, effectively showing the opposition a variety of looks; T Steve Maneri was waived after being inactive through week 3; The O-Line is giving Brady the time he needs to be successful.
• Ron Borges Patriots Report Card. "Who knew the Pats defense would be Christmas for the nonexistent Bills offense?"
• Kirk Minihane Patriots Report Card. This team is only going to go as far as Tom Brady can take it.

NATIONAL NEWS

• Countdown Daily (ESPN) Trent Dilfer on the tight end impact for Pats. (1 min. video)
• Tim Graham (ESPN) Through three games, how do QBs rank?
• Tim Graham (ESPN) Edwards from starter to gone in a week.  Jets are among the clubs looking at him.
  
• Tim Graham (ESPN) Jets among clubs looking at Trent Edwards.
• Tim Graham (ESPN) Tony Sparano stands behind Wildcat.
• Pro Football Weekly Chiefs offensive coordinator Charlie Weis had emergency gall-bladder surgery Monday morning.
• Jerome Bettis (SI) Inside the NFL: If the Steelers get to 4-0 just before Big Ben's return, watch out.
• Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk) Bill Polian calls 18-game schedule a done deal.