New England Patriots Links 1/14/16 - NFL Divisional Round: Patriots Need Defense Back at Full Strength

TEAM TALK

• Game Preview: Patriots vs. Chiefs. Broadcast info, series history, team connections and which players to watch for.
• Patriots - Chiefs Wednesday Injury Report.
• Brady nominated for FedEx Air Player of the Year.
• Patriots 2015 honors and awards.
• Patriots-Chiefs connections.
• Patriots re-sign WR DeAndre Carter to the practice squad; release OL Torrian Wilson from the practice squad.
• Briana Palma talks with "American Idol" alum and life-long Patriots fan Scotty McCreery, who will sing the national anthem Saturday night.
• Patriots Wednesday Locker Room Quotes.

LOCAL LINKS

• Christopher Price gets the sense that whether it's opponents or distractions, the Patriots are set to go 12 rounds this postseason.
• Doug Kyed observes that Bill Belichick has the team focused on the Chiefs despite a sketchy hospital visit that would tear most teams apart.
• Mark Daniels talks about the uncharacteristically noisy playoff week for the Pats.
• Chad Finn writes that the Chandler Jones story is a reminder of a time when weird plot twists actually affected the team.
• Mike Petraglia tries to manage our expectations by telling us why Alex Smith is a real threat vs. the Patriots.
• Rich Thompson notes Alex Smith's mobility and accuracy have put the defense on alert.
• Sam Galanis finds Rob Gronkowski was limited with a knee injury.
• Eric Wilbur watches practice and sees Julian Edelman look like Julian Edelman again.
• Rich Garven notes the Pats' patchwork OL aims to put up a ring of protection around Tom Brady.
• Sam Galanis reports Sebastian Vollmer is back just in time for the playoffs, and now he has to deal with the fearsome Chiefs' pass rush.
• Mike Petraglia wonders how big a difference Sebastian Vollmer will make in his return.
• Mike Reiss hears from Steven Jackson, who is pumped to be in his first playoff game since 2004 and thinks he can contribute to the cause.
• Chad Finn's unconventional preview: Patriots draw a formidable opponent in the Chiefs.
• Michael Hurley tells us what's at stake for the postseason legacies of the Patriots, Brady and Belichick this year.
• Karen Guregian offrers a few examples of how the Patriots defense has been very good at taking away an opposing team's weapons.
• Jeff Howe thinks the top priority for the defense should be discipline in the front seven to stop the Chiefs' deceptive rushing attack.
• Ryan Hannable points out that the defense getting back to full strength is just as important as the offense.
• Karen Guregian expects Chiefs TE Travis Kelce to get plenty of attention Saturday.
• Jeff Howe looks at the key matchup between Patrick Chung vs. Travis Kelce.
• Cyrus Geller (MusketFire) Patriots vs. Chiefs: 5 Matchups to watch.
• Ned Brady (NE Patriots Life) Know your enemy: Kansas City Chiefs scouting report (offense).
• Ian Logue (PatsFans) Chiefs coach Andy Reid on headset issues at Gillette, "I haven't had any issues there."
• Matt Dolloff posts the top 5 Patriots Divisional Round Games of the Brady-Belichick era.
• Henry McKenna picks Bill Belichick's seven worst decisions of the 2015 season.
• Steve Buckley says that the last thing the Patriots need is this Chandler Jones drama.
• Jeff Kane (ESPNNH) Chandler Jones puts Patriots in confusing situation.
• Mike Dussault (PatsPropaganda) Chandler Jones' hospital visit a distraction, but likely inconsequential.
• Adam Kurkjian mentions how Chandler Jones' teammates expressed support for him yesterday, but did not mention any details.
• CBS Boston notes Matthew Slater offers support for Chandler Jones.
• Sam Galanis reports Rob Gronkowski spent Monday night visiting an 8-year-old boy from Westerly, R.I. with stage four cancer.
• Nik DeCosta-Klipa points out how New Englanders got so, so much free Dunkin' Donuts coffee because of the Patriots this year.
• Jeff Howe Patriots Notebook: Rob Gronkowski is still bothered by a knee injury; Sebastian Vollmer didn't have much to say on the status of his sprained ankle; Pat Chung was removed from the injury report; Tre' Jackson (knee) missed a workout; Nate Ebner is wearing a hard cast from his right thumb to his forearm.

NATIONAL NEWS

• Oliver Thomas (247 Sports) 'Love of the game' helping Malcom Brown hit stride with Patriots.
• Oliver Thomas (247 Sports) Patriots re-sign wide receiver DeAndre Carter to practice squad.
• John Breech (CBS Sports) Tom Brady releases playoff hype video that might scare Chiefs fans.
• Tanya Ray Fox (SportsGrid) FAHK: 15 Of the best quotes from the epic 'Sh*t Pats fans say' video.
• Mark Simon (ESPN Stats & Info) Dustin Colquitt, Stephen Gostkowski put their best foot forward in 2015.
• Mike Reiss and Adam Teicher (ESPN) After 2014 blowout, Patriots and Chiefs meet in playoffs.
• Josh Alper (ProFootballTalk) Alex Smith thinks being a game manager will help this weekend.
• Mike Tanier (Bleacher Report) NFL Divisional Round: Game previews and score predictions. Pats win 23-16.
  
• Rocky Boiman (Football by Football) NFL Divisional Playoffs week.
• Daniel Jeremiah and Bucky Brooks (YouTube) Move the Sticks: Will the Chiefs stifle the Patriots? (6.16 min. video)
• Pete Prisco (CBS Sports) Divisional Round Picks: Home teams handle their business. Patriots 27-20.
• Andy Benoit (The MMQB) Divisional Playoff Preview. Advantage: Chiefs.
• Chris Burke (SI) NFL Playoff Power Rankings. Patriots 4th.
• Darin Gantt (ProFootballTalk) Patriots trying to push through latest off-field distraction.
• Michele Steele and Mike Reiss (ESPN) Patriots are in good position to handle things given uncertainty with Chandler Jones. (3.44 min. video)
• Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk) Blandino acknowledges Porter shouldn’t have been on the field. /was wondering if league would get around to mentioning that.
• Robert Mays (The MMQB) ’Tis better to kick than receive?
• Jenny Vrentas (SI) Super Bowl injuries: What it’s like to get hurt in the game of your life.
• Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk) Owners were "blown away" by differences between Inglewood and Carson.
• Doug Farrar (SI) Off the Grid: What the NFL’s Moneyball looks like, Greg Cosell and more.