Week 15 @ Dolphins

Yesterday was a tough pill to swallow. We were not the better team, and we just couldn’t execute when we needed to. We didn’t lose because we didn't have Gronk, not because of ref calls, not because of anything than a straight up butt kicking. There were two missed plays that could’ve been given us the win. The first one was when Gostkowski missed a kick that’s usually a piece of cake for him. The other was the dropped pass by Amendola. Now many would say that we needed Gronk in that red zone area but truthfully it shouldn’t have come down to that. Gostkowski should’ve made that field goal, and then we’d have the win by two because all he would have to do was make that kick and we’re good to.

Unfortunately it’s not the case now, and this is New England’s playoff scenario going into Week 16.

AFC

NEW ENGLAND

Can clinch AFC East title with:

1) Win/tie

2) Miami loss/tie

Can clinch first-round bye with:

1) Win + Cincinnati loss/tie + Indianapolis loss/tie

Can clinch playoff berth with:

1) Baltimore loss/tie this week or next week

Courtesy of CBS Sports

It’s tough to think about a situation where New England doesn’t make the playoffs. I mean unfortunately it’s a very real situation after last yesterday’s loss to the Miami Dolphins. We could still lose the AFC East. Miami is only two games behind us and looking at their schedule (Bills, Jets) they need to win out, and very well could do so. Miami has to go into Buffalo, and their last game is a home game against the Jets.

The Patriots have a tough game next Sunday evening in Baltimore. We all know how poorly the Pats play against a team like the Ravens, and that’s not good especially when we really need this game. Flacco usually puts up huge numbers against us. A good thing is that their secondary isn’t as powerful without Ed Reed and Bernard Pollard. Their D Line and Line backing crew is a different story. Dumervil, and Suggs can be a huge problem for our O Line especially with Solder receiving his 4^th concussion against Miami, he might not be a go for Sunday.

I don’t think the Pats played a bad game yesterday. It just wasn’t enough. I think we showed that we can still score points with a depleted offense, and that if somehow we can all manage to stay healthy for a season, we’d be a great team! That’s a no brainer though. Hopefully Thompkins, and Dobson are back next week. If that were the case then we’d have a lot of options to choose from as far WR’s go. Amendola, Edelman, and Boyce are all playing really well. I’d keep Dobson and Thompkins on the outside while Edelman, and Amendola on the inside. I’d switch out Thompkins for Boyce every now and then. We need Dobson though. We need some height on the outside.

Let’s face it Pats fans, this is a new territory for us. We’re usually guaranteed a playoff spot by this time of year but it’s just not that simple. This is what our team’s been doing to us all year long, and that’s keeping us on our feet. This is how I like it though. When our team can prove we can still fight with all of the losses our roster has taken whether injury, new teams, or…well jail haha, It shows that we’re fighting to the end. The Pats are going to need to light the fire under their asses for the game on Sunday because we need to win.

I have faith in my team, you better have it too.

GO PATS!!!

References:

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/24376949/early-week-16-scenarios