by Chris Warner, Patriots Daily Staff

Nothing like a relaxing blowout to jumpstart the week. New England battled the elements and little else Sunday, smacking Tennessee 59-0 at snowy, wet Gillette.

The best aspect? Patriots starters got some rest in the second half. The worst? This game had all the competition of a BB gun vs. a tin can. New England took their shots and consistently hit their targets, with scant resistance.

A few quick reactions below…

Titanic: A perfect description of the Titans, who at 0-6 have definitely hit the iceberg.

Slush Fun: Just like Arizona during last year’s snowy slaughter in Foxboro, Tennessee showed constant discomfort in the adverse conditions, dropping passes and turning the ball over with defeatist regularity. The final tally: five turnovers, including a fumble on fourth down that lost 22 yards.

Laurence Of A-Rave-aw-yeah: As a long-time Laurence Maroney supporter (cough), it brightened my day to see him excel despite sloppy conditions. Maroney dashed through the snow for a 45-yard touchdown run and finished with 16 rushes for 123 yards (7.7 ypc).

A Rolling Moss Gathers Some Stones: Against Tennessee’s undermanned defensive backfield, Randy Moss had himself the kind of day his fans have been craving (eight catches, 129 yards, three TDs). He got most of his momentum in the second quarter, catching a couple of scoring bombs (40 and 28 yards) that warmed the hearts of the frigid faithful. Moss added a 9-yard touchdown grab in the third.

Peaking Tom: What a day for Tom Brady. At one point (after Wes Welker’s first touchdown), Brady had completed 18 of 19 passes for 301 yards and four TDs. After Welker’s second score at the end of the half, Brady had gone 24 of 28 for 345 yards and five – count ’em, five – touchdowns, all in the second quarter. Brady’s final line: 29 of 34, 380 yards, six TDs.

Tackling The Issue: As a huge supporter of drafting Sebastian Vollmer in the second round (cough, cough ), it’s been rewarding watching the gigantic German take over for Matt Light and holding down the left side of the offensive line.  He seems to handle well in the snow, possibly due to his Bavarian engineering.

D Major: Some credit to the defense that shut down Tennessee’s ground game when it mattered, shut out the visitors for four quarters and got five turnovers. Of course, the Titans looked horrible, but plays by newcomer Brandon McGowan (forced fumble), old friend Junior Seau (fumble recovered) and rookies Darius Butler and Patrick Chung (interceptions) all deserve mention.

Next week, New England travels to London to play Tampa, their second winless team in a row. Let’s hope for a bit more of the same.

Email Chris Warner at [email protected]

by Scott Benson, Patriots Daily Staff
October 18, 2009

The Pats are back home this week after the team’s second tough road loss in its first five games.  At first blush a 0-5 opponent looks like the right medicine, but nothing is coming easy for your New England Patriots. Let’s look at our weekly distortion of a few perfectly innocent numbers.

Combined Record of Opponents

Pats:  15-9 (BUF, NYJ, ATL, BAL, DEN)

Titans: 15-10 (PIT, HOU, NYJ, JAX, IND)

Lies, damned lies – Pretty even. This seems like a good time to point out that the Titans have gone oh-for-five against this particular degree of difficulty, while the Pats have managed three wins. I should also point out that last week, some people thought the Broncos hadn’t played anybody, ergo, they would buckle under the Pats. The point is, next question.

Run

Pats Offense: 20^th, 101.0 YPG, 3.6 AVG (139 attempts)

Titans Defense: 3^rd, 75.4 YPG, 2.8 AVG (136 attempts)

Titans Offense: 8^th, 127.6 YPG, 5.3 AVG (120 attempts)

Pats Defense: 11^th, 96.8 YPG, 4.4 AVG (109 attempts)

Lies, damned lies – The Pats aren’t getting any breaks when it comes to drawing weak rushing defenses. It’s no better on the other side of the ball, even though the Pats are somehow 11^th in the league while giving up almost four and a half yards per carry.

Pass

Pats Offense: 6^th, 260.8 YPG, 6.5 AVG (207 attempts)

Titans Defense: 31^st, 303.0 AVG (193 attempts)

Titans Offense: 21^st, 208.2 YPG, 5.7 AVG (188 attempts)

Pats Defense: 13^th, 218.0 YPG (170 attempts)

Lies, damned lies – I don’t want to go on a rant here, but twice this week I’ve read that Tom Brady doesn’t look like he did in 2007. Hmmm, 2007…2007….oh, yeah, you mean the season he threw for more touchdowns and directed his team to more points than anybody ever has? The one he (anyone) would have had a tough time following even if he DIDN’T BLOW HIS FUCKING KNEE OUT? Well, no shit, Sherlock. It’s five weeks, by the way. Isn’t the story that it took Peyton Manning about half a season before he regained his form? Wasn’t that the story with Carson Palmer too? Everybody can see he’s playing like shit – which has been pointed out – but let’s not burden him with unrealistic expectations, like children. Regarding the stats, this may be a good week for the Pats to do something about their awful big-play numbers.  The secondary seems to have a chance at redemption too.

Third Down

Pats 3^rd Down Offense: 10^th, 44% (32-73)

Titans 3^rd Down Defense:  14^th, 37% (27-73)

Titans 3^rd Down Offense:  15^th, 38% (26-68)

Pats 3^rd Down Defense: 24^th, 41% (24-58)

Lies, damned lies – Our eyes are immediately drawn to the Pats third down defense, because we know what happens to you when you can’t get off the field.

Scoring

Pats Offense:  18^th, 20.8 AVG

Titans Defense: 29^th, 27.8 AVG

Titans Offense:  24^th, 16.8 AVG

Pats Defense:  11^th, 18.2 AVG

Lies, damned lies – This all looks good, even with the Pats bottom-half offense. At home, against a team that’s struggling against the pass… like I said, it looks good. The truth is they have to win two games against teams with (at the moment) combined record of 0-10, and then get to the break to retool. If the Palmer and Manning examples mean anything, we may see a more approximate version of Brady emerge by then. It seems to me that consistency team-wide would follow.

Kickoff

Pats Kickoff: 4^th, 69.6 AVG (8 touchbacks in 23 kicks)

Pats Kick Coverage: 28^th, 26.1 AVG (19 returns)

Titans Kick Return: 29^th, 19.9 AVG (21 returns)

Titans Kickoff: 23^rd, 64.1 AVG (4 touchbacks in 22 kicks)

Titans Kick Coverage: 18^th, 23.2 AVG (17 returns)

Pats Kick Return: 14^th, 23.0 AVG (21 returns)

Lies, damned lies – I suppose we could argue that the Pats have a chance to fluff up those kick coverage numbers this week, but this all looks like middling crap to me. Draw. I mentioned last week how good Stephen Gostkowski’s kickoffs are and how bad the Patriots’ coverage is of them. I now realize this is probably a function of longer kickoffs; the top four longest hitters (Jacksonville, Denver, Carolina and the Patriots) all have return averages of at least 23 yards.  I probably should have figured that out without looking anything up.

Punt

Titans Punt: 22^nd (Net), 37.2 AVG (26 punts)

Titans Punt Coverage: 11 returns, 114 yards, 10.3 AVG

Pats Punt Return:  13^th, 7.6 AVG (10 returns)

Pats Punt: 30^th (Net), 34.5 AVG (17 punts)

Pats Punt Coverage: 5 returns, 40 yards, 8.0 AVG

Titans Punt Return:  24^th, 5.7 AVG (13 returns)

Lies, damned lies – Julian Edelman brought a little spark last week, desperately needed across all of Scott O’Brien’s very average units.

E-mail Scott Benson at [email protected]

by Dan Zeigarnik, Patriots Daily Staff
October 16, 2009

In this week’s dangerous and not to be overlooked game, the Patriots welcome a winless Tennessee Titans team. The Titans were 13-3 last year and were supposed to be a playoff contender again. There is a tendency to overlook hapless teams and assume that they have mailed in their whole season as a result of poor starts. There is no point in playing the role of Goliath. That being said, this is more a disclaimer to fans, as the Patriots rarely take wins for granted. If the Patriots get the upper hand in the five matches listed below, it should make for a fourth straight home win.

1) Tom Brady Vs. Himself

It’s clear that Tom is not the same Tom Terrific of old. Last week against the Broncos, it was he who put on a traditional Kyle Orton performance while the Broncos QB looked like the Tom Brady of old. It takes a while to come back from a major injury; just ask Peyton Manning, who after having knee surgery in 2008 started the next season 3-2 and then lost 2 more before winning 9 straight. Also, keep in mind that comebacks are not smooth, and some days Tom will play better then others. He had an awful game against the Jets, but showed signs of improvement in the Falcons game. What is clearly missing from his game is the long ball, and once Tom figures out how to stop overthrowing Randy Moss, the rest of the pieces will fall into place. Until that happens, they will continue to sputter along with good and bad days mixed in together. Hopefully, this is the week that Tom Brady starts to extend the field vertically.

2) Titans Running Backs Vs. Patriots Linebackers

Chris Johnson and LenDale White are very good backs and the Patriots will focus on preventing them from having great games. Despite getting eviscerated by Fred Jackson in Week 1, the Patriots have been playing decent run defense as of late. Fans are glad to see Jerod Mayo come back, and he will surely figure into more defensive schemes in his second week back. If the Patriots are able to prevent the Titans running game from eating up too much yardage, it will be a long day for Tennessee up in Foxboro.

3) Patriots Pass Rush Vs. Titans O-line

Last week against the Broncos, the Patriots couldn’t create a sustainable rush. Kyle Orton’s ability to quickly adjust to defensive schemes and accurately throw the short route didn’t give the Patriots rushers much of a chance. This was disappointing considering how well they accomplished that against Joe Flacco, who was frazzled throughout much of the day. Look for the Patriots to bring in some new wrinkles to disrupt Kerry Collins rhythm.

4) Sebastian Vollmer Vs. Titans Pass Rush

Matt Light was out of practice on Thursday as a result of his knee injury sustained last week. Sebastian Vollmer, a Logan Mankins-like pick in this year’s draft (that Mel Kiper thought was a significant reach), was a fan favorite this preseason. However, as soon as he came in late in the Broncos game, the Patriots ran the ball several times in a row. Does this signal a lack of confidence in Vollmer’s abilities? It will be intriguing to find out this week against the Titans.

5) Alge Crumpler vs. Patriot Safeties

Brandon Meriweather and Brandon McGowan have been playing surprisingly well this year. Look for them to shutdown yet another top-tier tight end.

by Chris Warner, Patriots Daily Staff
October 16, 2009

New England looks for a win this week against the Tennessee Titans, one of the most disappointing teams of the young 2009 season. Picked by many to be an AFC South frontrunner, the Titans have stumbled to an 0-5 start.

This, of course, scares the bejeebus out of me. Some fears leading into Sunday:

Oiler Alert: Can the Pats get psyched for a winless, desperate opponent at home? Can New England play a solid all-around game in their AFL duds?

Pass Fail: Most frustrating about last week’s debacle was the near enshrinement of Broncos QB Kyle Orton, who figured out the Patriot defense as if it were a kids’ Jumble. Tennessee quarterback Kerry Collins hasn’t had a great season,  but he has been effective in the short game. If cornerback Leigh Bodden has 11 tackles in this one, Foxboro fans could witness another slow, painful demise.

Wild We’re Young: With the Broncos’ effective use of the “Wild horses” spread offensive look, the Titans could use QB Vince Young to showcase their version.

White Shoos Johnson: Named after a former Oiler, this worry points to the running combo of bruiser LenDale White and speedster Chris Johnson. The defense can ask for nothing more from Vince Wilfork, who guarantees himself a bigger future payday every week. Ty Warren has also been stout, but can others (Mike Wright, Jarvis Green, Myron Pryor) hold down their end? Where’s rookie Ron Brace? Can any of these guys get to the opposing QB?

No, no. I know. Which reminds me:

Taking The Fifth (And A Third): “Less-Than-Dynamic Pass Rusher” (note I broke out the air quotes for that description) Derrick Burgess came to Gillette to pressure the quarterback. Five games in, he has exactly one more sack than I do, and I cost the Pats zero draft picks. Here’s hoping the decal on Tennessee’s helmets isn’t the only derrick of notice Sunday.

Titan, Teuton; Teuton, Titan: With tackle Matt Light injured, Sebastian Vollmer should get introduced as a starter. Look for the Titans to go after the German like Dustin Hoffman in Marathon Man. Is it safe?

It’s A Long Way To Tip A Randy: One of my father’s favorite old Irish ballads reminds us that the Patriots passing game still has some distance to make up (as in, how much Tom Brady has overthrown Randy Moss). Brady has no completions over 36 yards this season. Without a consistent long ball, New England’s offense looks about as threatening as a Bing Crosby television special.

All of which ties nicely into our ultimate concern…

See The Sun Go Down On Galloway Bay: This song (another of my father’s favorites) comes as a formal request to solve the Joey Galloway problem (aka Mr. Inactive). Either he can help the offense – even as a decoy – or he can’t. If not, time to move on.

Email Chris Warner at [email protected]

by Greg Doyle, Patriots Daily Staff
October 15, 2009

The Tennessee Titans come to Foxboro this weekend, err I mean the Houston Oilers visit the Boston Patriots (this throwback thing is starting to get confusing) this Sunday at 4:15 PM and they’ll be sporting a very unflattering 0-5 record when they take the field. How is that possible? How is it that the Titans had a 13-3 record last year, best in the AFC, and now sit without a win at 0-5 and their season on the verge of being all but over? Were they that good last year or are they that bad this year? There really isn’t one right answer; as is usually the case, the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. Right now, no team is is demonstrating the fine line between success and failure as Tennessee is. So, which is it? Are they bad or good?

In answering that question, one must start with the premise they weren’t as good last year as their 13-3 record suggests. Yes, they started out 10-0. But 7 of those wins came against teams that finished without a winning record. The last 7 games, counting playoffs, the Titans went a disappointing 3-4, including two losses to non-playoff teams. In their playoff loss to Baltimore, the Ravens did all they could to try and give the Titans the win and despite being at home and rested, Tennessee simply refused to take it.

Maybe they’re just not that good? They did lose All-Pro Defensive Tackle Albert Haynesworth in free agency to the Redskins and he was perhaps the premium run-stuffing player in the NFL. They have lost their last two games by 20+ points. But that is too simple. The Titans aren’t struggling against the run, despite being 0-5 and losing Haynesworth. They have had tremendous struggles in stopping opposing offenses, but remarkably Tennessee is third in the NFL against the run. Through 5 games they’re only giving up 75.4 yards per game and 2.8 per rushing attempt (which ranks first). So losing Haynesworth hasn’t been the issue. He was far more of a factor in their run defense than pass defense.

The issue on defense has been in the passing game. There, opposing quarterbacks are shredding the Titans for 287.6 yards per game, second worst in the NFL. They have allowed 71.5 percent of passes against them to be completed, also second worst in the NFL. Their TD/INT ratio against is an abysmal 13/4. And their secondary is the one primary area the Patriots will certainly look to exploit.

There are two problems as I see it for Tennessee. First, their backup corners seem extraordinarily weak and inexperienced for an NFL team. They are trotting out guys like Cary Williams, Ryan Mouton and Jason McCourty in critical nickel and dime situations, all of whom are essentially rookies and had not played in the NFL prior to this season. The starters, in theory, are solid. Nick Harper and Cortland Finnigan are both solid, veteran players, and even All-Pro caliber in the case of Finnigan. But Harper is now out for 6 weeks after getting injured against the Colts Sunday night and Finnigan has been hurt as well with a hamstring injury. He did not play against the Colts and is questionable this week as well. Even so, a team such as the Patriots, who love to spread teams out, seem particularly capable of doing damage to this young, inexeperienced, and now injured, secondary. Look for big numbers from Tom Brady Sunday, struggles so far this year or not. Lets call it right now, he’ll throw at least 4 touchdown passes.

On offense, the Titans essentially have one great player, running back Chris Johnson. He is as fast as anyone in the NFL and can hurt you in many different ways. But that is about it. The tight ends are solid, the wide receivers weak as they always seemed to be even in the Titans glory years. This isn’t a team that is going to easily march up and down the field. But they’re thinking of starting Vince Young, the scrambling athlete who could provide another breakaway threat, and I suppose there is always the danger Johnson and Young could keep the game in range with some big plays.

Lets take a look at some of these Titans:

QB Vince Young (#10)

Young is a phenomenal athlete drafted with the third overall pick by the Titans in 2006. He at timeshe can thread the needle in coverage, but when he played early in his career he tended to take to many of those chances when a guy wasn’t clearly open. He also is inconsistent with his accuracy. He is very dangerous with his legs and if he does play Sunday, it’s likely he’ll make at least a play or two. He played against the Patriots in 2006 as a rookie and completed 15 of 36 passes and ran twice for 29 yards, including a 28 yard TD in a 40-23 Pats win that eliminated the Titans from any playoff chance. Under Bill Belichick, the Patriots have always seemed to play well against this type of athletic quarterbacks who can beat you with their feet. They may give up a play or two, but in the past they have been very disciplined keeping these guys in the pocket and forcing them to be accurate passing. With only very limited play in the last year, its unlikely Young will be able to do that and he’ll have to make some special plays on the move and in broken play situations to put up enough points to win Sunday. Young has, of course, had somewhat of a controversial stint with the Titans. He hasn’t handled criticism well and was rumored to be suffering from serious depression at one point during his career. He contemplated retirement. Those rumors have calmed down and he seems to be patiently waiting his chance this year. That just may come in Foxboro at 4:15 PM Sunday.

RB Chris Johnson (#28)

Johnson is a spectacular player who is among the most breathtakingly fast runners you’ll ever see in the NFL. He can change direction on a dime as well, which makes him even tougher to defend. If the Patriots are to focus on one area to slow down the Titans, it has to be Johnson. There is no other threat comparable on the Titans roster and few even in the NFL. Even as far back as high school Johnson was putting up phenomenal numbers in track, among the fastest in that age group at the time. The Titans find creative ways to get him the ball, either running or in the passing game, and the Patriots will really need to pay attention to him because he is probably the most explosive player they’ll face this year.

Kyle Vanden Bosch (#93)

Patriots left tackle Matt Light could be out for this game with a knee injury and, if so, it’s likely rookie Sebastian Vollmer will get his first NFL starting assignment across from the crafty and solid Vanden Bosch. While not a pure speed rusher, Vanden Bosch does have the ability to get to the quarterback and is an above average pass rusher. He plays the run well also. Vanden Bosch doesn’t excel at anything, but does well in all areas and he is a veteran, smart player who could give Vollmer trouble on Sunday. He is particularly adept at the strip sack, so if he does get near Tom Brady, that will be something all Patriots offensive players need to be aware of.

LB Keith Bulluck (#53)

Bulluck is the emotional leader of the Titans defense who seems to have a chip on his shoulder for the Patriots as well. He is tough against the run, and makes a lot of plays in the passing game as well. In looking at his career, it’s amazing he’s only been to one Pro Bowl (2003) as he has long been among the more active, play making linebackers in the NFL. He has played his entire career with Tennessee and is the face of their defense and always capable of a big forced fumble or interception to turn a close game. He has lost a step, so perhaps the Patriots can exploit him a bit if you get him in one-on-one situations, but in zone coverage he is very alert, covers and catches the ball well and causes tips into the air at times.

Michael Griffin (#33)

Griffin is a supremely talented safety who plays both the pass and run equally well. Last year, he picked off 7 passes and had a total of 192 return yards so he is always capable of big plays. This year, he’s yet to pick off a pass and has had to help out Tennessee’s young corners a lot, which has hindered his ability to make plays in coverage or ability to free lance as a centerfielder a bit more. In just his second year, Griffin has already etsablished himself with a Pro Bowl last year and his slip in play this year is more attributable to the surrounding cast than it is to him. Michael’s twin brother Marcus was a safety with him at Texas, but has not caught on in the NFL.

Defensive Coordinator Chuck Cecil

Cecil is a former Pro Bowl safety who has coached the defensive backs for the Titans since 2004 and has taken over this year at defensive coordinator for Jim Schwartz, who moved on to coach the Lions. The early results indicate the Titans are struggling on defense and Cecil has had a hard time equaling the experienced and respected Schwartz. Whether he can stop an experi