Success

We just got obliterated by PTI. It's kind of funny how hot take narratives are. If we scored from the 6, the narrative would probably be that BB played too conservative, the game has passed him by, and maybe Mac Jones isn't all that because they clearly don't trust him. But we didn't, so the Pats dominated us, and we're not a contender. We had our 15 minutes.

I suppose the pattern could continue. Or, we may run the table until the SB. Either way.

Gotta win. Doesn't matter how.

This is such faulty analysis, and the bolded is incomprehensible.

I mean, I'm not even sure how to respond to that one. Allen couldn't have done more last night.

I've heard so many takes that it said nothing about Jones, because they didn't have to pass. But I agree 100% - it was clear to me what they thought of Jones, and where they think his ceiling might be. We'll never fear Mac Jones. He'll work great in BB's system, but lots of QB's would & could. We just need to build early leads on that team for different results.

McD is a good coach. It's easy to look at last night's game and say he got outcoached - and he did - but BB will always be the master. McD really didn't have a bad strategy or gameplan. BB's was better - and NE got the breaks that made all of the hindsight analysis more stark. I.e. - if we score on that last drive, the talk today is more about how the Pats might have blown it by not being more aggressive and passing more. That's how it goes in hot take nation. We weren't going to keep sweeping the Pats year after year. The important thing now is to get the split.

Jones is the best rookie like Mayfield was. He has the best line, coach & system, and is asked to do very little. Probably any of the rookie QB's except Lance would be the same in NE. It was obvious to me last night - they don't trust him w/ much.

Did anyone catch BB's extended conversation with Josh after the game? That was respect. He went out of his way to find Allen. Last year before the 2nd game, BB made some comments about JA that were uncharacteristic. He didn't criticize him, but it was clear he thought Allen was overhyped. I think he's come around on that.

2 of the "drops" were great plays by the defender - they would have been amazing catches, honestly. People are being to harsh about those. But the penalty probably lost the game.

Thank you. Though, I am always prepared for the overreactions after a loss. I too was proud of the team. They played HARD. We focus on the mistakes today - but in any other game, it wouldn't have been many. It's just that the BB Pats make so few, so there is little margin for error. And Allen was spectacular, imo. I'm not like "we got this" today, but I'm on to the Bucs. It's an absolutely enormous game, against a team that - like KC - we're more built to compete w/ and beat. Take that game & the playoffs are back on the menu in a big way.

The way the Pats are constructed will only work for them in some games. I know that they have a 7-game win streak going - but I don't think they're built to go on a playoff run. KC will likely STILL be the team to beat next month. It's easy to fault the team construction after last night - but let's see how it plays out from here.

The only QB I think is really "better" is Rogers, and he's getting old - so I don't make that trade. Objectively, there isn't another QB in the league I'd rather have. He can literally do everything at this point - touch passes, bombs, playing in the wind & bad conditions, running, diagnosing defenses & changing plays at the line. HIs play is guts personified - he is fearless out there. Outside of Brady, I'd be hard-pressed to think of a QB who is more driven, competitive and obsessed w/ improving. Compared to Mac Jones? Please. We'll have the better QB as long as he's in NE, by a mile. Last night showed me that the hype is just that - hype. I know people will say they didn't have to pass, but they didn't WANT to pass. Jones is a game manager playing under the best coach & in one of the best systems. He'd be average at best anywhere else.

I'm not going to say we can't still make a SB run w/ this roster - because we can. But it feels like we're still a year away. The flaws are obvious, and I'm sure they'll get addressed - but we may fall short this year because of them.

Gotta beat the Pats or Bucs, and then make sure they don't have another unexpected loss. Tall order. Doable.

Their lines impressed me a bit. But their style probably isn't sustainable.

The Breida fumble was rough. If that turned into a scoring drive, it could have changed how the rest of the game was played.

It all kind of goes back to the biggest problem - we're built to beat KC. And we did. And I can't blame them for building the team that way - they looked like they would be our biggest hurdle for years. But we're small & finesse. The Pats looked like the Varsity out there.

You have a lot more faith in Jones than I do. Honestly, this game confirmed to me how hyped he is. That coaching staff doesn't trust him beyond the basics. Sure, they didn't need to run - but they definitely did not want to pass.

Well, maybe. I definitely don't think the Pats keep up w/ the Bills in a shootout. This is the kind of game that the Pats win against the Bills. If the Bills get up by 2 scores, the Pats are not a comeback team.

I'm focusing on what I'm encouraged by - and we have such a gamer in Allen. That dude WILL win a Lombardi. The competitive fire in him is something to behold. He just wills that whole team sometimes.

EVERYONE should take heart - the Jones hype is hype, and we'll likely always have the better QB by a mile. I know they didn't HAVE to throw. But they didn't trust him.

You're not wrong - but that's also the nature of a game against the BB Pats. They generally don't beat themselves, so teams have a smaller margin for error. The list of mistakes we made wouldn't look so bad in most games.

Thanks, PatsFanNH. The lines for NE are better - I'm not sure if that's something the Bills can truly overcome. But if they can take a good lead in a game, it tilts in their favor. I'd like to see that game the next time.

It was a tremendous football game. 2 strong teams - that was a heavyweight bout. We'll see what kind of team we have.