New England Patriots links 12/27/16 - Improving Patriots want to play, not rest, in Week 17

TEAM TALK

• Paul Perillo tells us who won their matchups on Saturday: Malcolm Butler and Tom Brady dominated.
• Conference Call Transcript: Bill Belichick.
• Patriots locker room celebration following win over the Jets. (1.12 min. video)

LOCAL LINKS

• Mike Reiss notes that with the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage for the AFC playoffs up for grabs, the Patriots have something to play for Sunday. So everyone will play.
• Adam Kurkjian looks at the AFC playoff picture and tells us why the Patriots and Dolphins have plenty to play for.
• CBS Boston gets into the discussion of whether or not the Patriots should rest their star players in Week 17.
• Michael Colangelo (PatriotsWire) AFC Playoff teams are set: which team should scare Patriots most?
• Tom E. Curran says it's not the Patriots fault they're better than everyone else. (2.25 min. video)
• DJ Bean sees the AFC's murky QB situation a major plus for the Patriots.
  
• Jeff Howe points out the surge of turnovers from the Patriots defense.
• Ryan Hannable notes Logan Ryan states 'We're the No. 1 scoring defense in football, that doesn't happen over 4 games.'
• Michael Hurley thinks Julian Edelman's fire cannot be contained, Bryce Petty was horrible, and other leftover Patriots thoughts.
• Jeff Howe breaks down the film and spits out the stats from Saturday’s 41-3 victory over the New York Jets.
• Steve Balestrieri (PatsFans) Film Review: Patriots cruise in big win over Jets. "Brady really completed his work by halftime going 13-21 for 171 with three scores in the first 30 minutes."
• Doug Kyed Film Review: Pats-Jets. Bill Bleichick details three interceptions.
• Levan Reid gives out some gold stars and penalty flags from Saturday.
• Ryan Hannable takes out his stopwatch: Saturday vs. Jets showed Tom Brady doesn't always need a quick release.
• Ron Borges issues his Week 16 Patriots Report Card: No letdown earns extra credit.
• Michael Colangelo (PatriotsWire) Patriots' offensive report card: Five touchdowns and a job well done against Jets.
• Michael Colangelo (PatriotsWire) Patriots' defensive report card: New England keeps lead league in scoring defense vs. Jets.
• Mike Reiss notes Matt Lengel's TD provided Bill Belichick an opportunity to keep Northeastern's football program alive.
• Ryan Hannable notes Tom Brady tells Jim Gray his best Christmas present this year was Bill Belichick giving the team the day off on Christmas.
• Miguel Benzan (PatsFans) Tracking the New England Patriots incentives after the Week 16 Jets game.
• Adam Kurkjian Patriots Notebook: To play or not to play is the Pats main call on Sunday.

NATIONAL NEWS

• Greg A. Bedard (SI) Blanket Coverage: What do top NFL teams all have in common? Strong offensive lines.
• Liam McGuire (The Comeback) With AFC quarterbacks banged up, is this Tom Brady’s easiest road to the Super Bowl?
• Tyler Sullivan (247 Sports) Tom Brady has more playoff wins than the other AFC QB's combined.
• Cameron DaSilva (Fox Sports) Every NFL team’s most disappointing player of 2016. Patriots: Danny Amendola.
• Shalise Manza Young (Yahoo! Sports) Pro tip: Do not ask Bill Belichick about resting Patriots starters for a regular-season game.
• Ryan Williamson (The Comeback) The final week of the NFL season means the "resting starters" debate is back.
• Michael David Smith (ProFootballTalk) With little to play for Sunday, Dolphins will play to win.
• Vinnie Iyer (Sporting News) Steelers stand strong as Patriots' only threat in AFC playoffs.
• Ron Clements (Sporting News) Lions DT A'Shawn Robinson flagged for tackling Ezekiel Elliott too hard. /Included this one to show how refs can be more formidable an opponent than any particular team.
• Kenneth Arthur (Sports on Earth) QB Plan B: Best of the AFC backups.
• Chart (NFL.com) NFL Playoff Picture heading into Week 17.
• Kevin Clark (The Ringer) The 25 best things about the 2016 NFL season (so far). 8. Tom Brady’s Revenge Tour.
• Jay Rigdon (The Comeback) ESPN rolls out new ad format on MNF and it backfired in a hilarious way.
• Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk) ESPN tries split-screen commercial.
• Andrew Bucholtz (Awful Announcing) People hated Thursday Night Football on Sunday. /Because it was stupid.
• Dan Hanzus (NFL.com) Disappointment Rankings of early undefeated teams. /Broncos No. 1, heh heh.
• Zak Keefer (Indy Star) Chuck Pagano: 'I take full responsibility for everything'. /Just for kicks & giggles.
  

DEFLATEGATE, DUMPSTER DIVE

• Editorial (Providence Journal) Deflating the NFL's integrity.
• Sheilla Dingus (Advocacy for Fairness in Sports) What has become of Mike Neal? /Not every NFL player was cleared in that Al Jazeera America documentary 'investigation'. Worth a read.
• Daniel Werly (The White Bronco) NFL Documents. Links to all relevant legal documents, from the CBA and Article 46 to NFL v. Adrian Peterson and Deflategate. /Bookmark-worthy.