Oh Paaaatttsiiieeee fan...

[58Miller]

Same.

I'm basically scared of injuries more than anything now. All the important pieces of our front seven were gone, most of our offense was gone, Gronk gone, Talib in the AFC Championship gone. Gone, gone, gone.

You start the season with a Superbowl contender and finish the season with a team that looks like it's lucky to win a division.

I know Denver lost key people as well.

It sucks.

Losing is a lot more tolerable IMO when you lose with your people on the field.
Getting eliminated in the post season on a raft kept afloat with duct tape and shoe laces just sucks. Makes for a long off season.

The NFL wanting to extend the season two games, when already teams are lucky if they make it to the end without losing major pieces of their formula, is just really assassin.

I hear you man. In the Superbowl Seattle's rotation of fresh d-lineman was brutal. The Patriots would have given us a lot better test had Wilfork and Kelly been healthy.

[LikeABoss]

I hear you man. In the Superbowl Seattle's rotation of fresh d-lineman was brutal. The Patriots would have given us a lot better test had Wilfork and Kelly been healthy.

In all the years that Brady and Belichick have been together, I have never, ever stopped watching a game, and stopped believing they could come back. A lot of the time, this has been rewarding for me because they do just that. When I go to Patriot games I don't leave, no matter what, until the clock hits triple zeroes.

Near come backs against the 49'ers in 2012, and the come back against Denver (and all the other come backs in 2013) aren't that unheard of here. They happen pretty frequently for New England when we're down, and I've just learned not to lose faith.

That said, last years AFC Championship game was the first time I just shut the TV off.
When Brady over shot Edelman I just had a feeling it over, and then when Talib got knocked out of the game I just shut the television off and left the house.

I had never done that before, sticking through far larger point deficits, in my living room or in the rain, with a lot of confidence we would turn it around, but in the AFC Championship I just knew fumes weren't going to carry us past Denver in their own stadium and it was just over.

[ERoyal248]

Bronco fans are pathetic. The Patriots have embarrassed your soft ass team in every game in recent memory and I don't mean "beat," I mean EMBARRASSED. You beat us once when all of our biggest stars outside of Brady were missing. That was before getting a Superbowl beat down that was just straight up humiliating, and that's what you have to hang on to to run your mouths.

Both Den/NE were banged up to about the same degree.

So the injury excuse is stupid.

[ERoyal248]

Getting one of the most embarrassing beat downs in Superbowl history didn't help your case either. I really don't know who you people are trying to fool. Yourselves, I suppose.

Says the guy on another teams message board.

IRONY of that post is hilarious.

[ERoyal248]

Denver will come and Denver will go, just like all the other AFC conference rivals who had at one point fancied themselves our great conference Rival and are now in the basement while NE still competes.

Will NE still compete when BB/Brady are gone?

The SB was pretty bad but given they had a defense made of duct-tape, it's not all that surprising. No one was beating Sea last year other than SF.

Amazing to make it that far despite all the players out, tbh.

[ERoyal248]

And Demarcus ware is suddenly going to become great at the age of 32 and coming off a bunch of injuries?

Again, as captain of the defense, Mayo helps everyone - maybe not in getting sacks, but his presence/leadership in recognizing formation and making calls will help others bring more pressure to the QB. Saying that Mayo won't help the pass rush at all is near-sighted.

A bunch?

Like what?

Isnt 350+ pounds relying on his legs as his main strength like Wilfork.

I see no reason why Ware cant have a very good season.

Mayo will help, i never argued that.

[LikeABoss]

Both Den/NE were banged up to about the same degree.

So the injury excuse is stupid.

Denver wasn't missing any players of Gronk's caliber. Our front seven was eradicated by injuries, and our only hope of stopping Denver's ability to score went out the window with Talib.

I am not trying to argue that Denver was any less or more injured than New England. It doesn't matter.

My point was the circumstances of injury for both teams in that game was a wash. A mistrial. A big fat nothing.

Bronco fans who want to take THAT win, despite how all the other NE v Denver games have gone in the last few years, to talk themselves into believing they're now the undisputed top dogs in the AFC, are really deluding themselves.

If you think you're going to see the same players in week # 9 as you saw in the AFCCG, and the same match ups, and the same defense, and the same offensive weapons, you're just not familiar with the Patriot team or the amount of people we were missing.

You cannot possibly believe that because you stopped Blount, and kept Brady from torching you with injured rookies and Edelman, that that means you can stop Gronk (as one example of many) you're just not being honest with yourselves.

The AFCCG meant one thing and one thing only. That Denver was proceeding and New England's season was over.

Reading into it any more than that is foolish and potentially setting yourselves up for some serious salt in the wounds for 2014.

[LikeABoss]

Will NE still compete when BB/Brady are gone?

The SB was pretty bad but given they had a defense made of duct-tape, it's not all that surprising. No one was beating Sea last year other than SF.

Amazing to make it that far despite all the players out, tbh.

Your defense didn't lose you the game. You're in denial and throwing half your team under the bus to protect the integrity of the other half who looked like scared pansies, for lack of any other adequate description.

Your defense hung in there pretty tough to be quite honest

[bgpatsfan]

A bunch?

Like what?

Isnt 350+ pounds relying on his legs as his main strength like Wilfork.

I see no reason why Ware cant have a very good season.

Mayo will help, i never argued that.

Sticking by what I said until I see otherwise in the regular season that Wilfork will be a early down run stopper and thats it. He isn't the 90% snap guy anymore, despite the positive reports from camp.

Mayo on the other hand is the most underrated LB in the league, captain and leader of the defense.

[58_VONDOOM_92]

Denver wasn't missing any players of Gronk's caliber. Our front seven was eradicated by injuries, and our only hope of stopping Denver's ability to score went out the window with Talib.

I am not trying to argue that Denver was any less or more injured than New England. It doesn't matter.

My point was the circumstances of injury for both teams in that game was a wash. A mistrial. A big fat nothing.

Bronco fans who want to take THAT win, despite how all the other NE v Denver games have gone in the last few years, to talk themselves into believing they're now the undisputed top dogs in the AFC, are really deluding themselves.

If you think you're going to see the same players in week # 9 as you saw in the AFCCG, and the same match ups, and the same defense, and the same offensive weapons, you're just not familiar with the Patriot team or the amount of people we were missing.

You cannot possibly believe that because you stopped Blount, and kept Brady from torching you with injured rookies and Edelman, that that means you can stop Gronk (as one example of many) you're just not being honest with yourselves.

The AFCCG meant one thing and one thing only. That Denver was proceeding and New England's season was over.

Reading into it any more than that is foolish and potentially setting yourselves up for some serious salt in the wounds for 2014.

Lol @ this. Do you need a tissue? We were missing Clady ( top 3 LT) Miller (an all pro pass rusher and one of the best Lb's in the game) Harris jr (top slot corner in the game) Vickerson, Wolfe and Moore.

You say that we will see a different patriot team this year well im pretty sure denver is a completely different team this year also with all the healthy players coming back plus Ware, Ward, Talib and Sanders.

[ERoyal248]

Your defense didn't lose you the game. You're in denial and throwing half your team under the bus to protect the integrity of the other half who looked like scared pansies, for lack of any other adequate description.

Your defense hung in there pretty tough to be quite honest

They forced 0 punts until the game was over and Sea was chewing clock, got 0 sacks, 0 QB hits, 0 forced turnovers.

Sea converted 7/10 3rd downs.

The defense did a decent job but nothing special.

The whole team stunk, defense included.

[ERoyal248]

Sticking by what I said until I see otherwise in the regular season that Wilfork will be a early down run stopper and thats it. He isn't the 90% snap guy anymore, despite the positive reports from camp.

Mayo on the other hand is the most underrated LB in the league, captain and leader of the defense.

I'm not sure with Wilfork, i could see it either way but an Achillies injury for someone his age/size is tough to recover from.

It can be done but it will be hard.

Mayo is a beast, i have never disputed that, i dont know about most underrated LB in the league, lot of others you could put up there with that.

[ERoyal248]

Denver wasn't missing any players of Gronk's caliber. Our front seven was eradicated by injuries, and our only hope of stopping Denver's ability to score went out the window with Talib.

I am not trying to argue that Denver was any less or more injured than New England. It doesn't matter.

My point was the circumstances of injury for both teams in that game was a wash. A mistrial. A big fat nothing.

Bronco fans who want to take THAT win, despite how all the other NE v Denver games have gone in the last few years, to talk themselves into believing they're now the undisputed top dogs in the AFC, are really deluding themselves.

If you think you're going to see the same players in week # 9 as you saw in the AFCCG, and the same match ups, and the same defense, and the same offensive weapons, you're just not familiar with the Patriot team or the amount of people we were missing.

You cannot possibly believe that because you stopped Blount, and kept Brady from torching you with injured rookies and Edelman, that that means you can stop Gronk (as one example of many) you're just not being honest with yourselves.

The AFCCG meant one thing and one thing only. That Denver was proceeding and New England's season was over.

Reading into it any more than that is foolish and potentially setting yourselves up for some serious salt in the wounds for 2014.

Clady, top 3-5 LT.

Miller, one of the top 5 defensive players in the game when healthy/motivated.

Harris/Moore/Vickerson/Wolfe and some young guys like McCray and Quantarus as well.

Den was pretty hurt and missing key guys as well but NE fans act like they're the only team who had any injuries last year.

[TommyBrady12]

Clady, top 3-5 LT.

Miller, one of the top 5 defensive players in the game when healthy/motivated.

Harris/Moore/Vickerson/Wolfe and some young guys like McCray and Quantarus as well.

Den was pretty hurt and missing key guys as well but NE fans act like they're the only team who had any injuries last year.

look, denver was not great defensively at the beginning of the year even when everyone was healthy. Even when miller came back, the broncos gave up 30+ points to both NE and Indy. It wouldn't have made a difference in the Super Bowl. If players on both NE and Denver were healthy, we would have seen an absolute war in the AFCCG like we did in November 2013 where one team won by a few points. Denver probably would have won at home.

[58Miller]

look, denver was not great defensively at the beginning of the year even when everyone was healthy. Even when miller came back, the broncos gave up 30+ points to both NE and Indy. It wouldn't have made a difference in the Super Bowl. If players on both NE and Denver were healthy, we would have seen an absolute war in the AFCCG like we did in November 2013 where one team won by a few points. Denver probably would have won at home.

How many points did Brady score against Denvers starters in the regular season match up? Here let me help jog your memory....ZERO pts in the first half!
Denver lost Vickerson who had a sack and tackle for loss in the first half before leaving the game with a hip injury and DRC was shutting off one side of the field until he was lost in the final seconds of the first half with a shoulder injury.

The Indy game, Denvers defense played well, the offense had 3 turnovers inside the Colts 30 and a safety that resulted in 19 of the 39 pts.
Last I checked that same Colts team beat the 49ers on the road 27-7 & beat the leagues #1 defense & Champion Seahawks 34-28.