hawknation2018":3ag3j6ah said:
Cyrus12":3ag3j6ah said:
Yep that team should of won a couple more...no point in bringing up why they didnt...
It rhymes with level, drevel, and devil.
We tend to focus on the one game-losing play, but there were many other earlier factors that led to that doom.
* Losing Jeremy Lane to an ACL blowout plus folded-in-half forearm at the end of his INT return. If he doesn't get dissected by a low hit by Edelman on the sidelines... maybe different result.
* Losing Lane led to Tharald "Toast" Simon getting into the game and being totally abused by Brady and the too-quick-for-him Pats receivers.
* With Lane gone, Pete Carroll had no quick slot corners available, as he left Marcus Burley off the active list, a healthy scratch. Burley could at least hang some of the time with Edelmans and Amendolas of the Pats world. Simon could hang NONE of the time. So blame that brain fart on Pete Carroll.
NFL Films microphones captured the reaction of Brady and Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels when they learned that Lane was heading to the locker room, and as shown on Inside the NFL, it was obvious that Brady and McDaniels immediately realized that the Seahawks would have a big hole in their secondary.
From: https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2 ... went-down/
“Lane’s out of the game,” McDaniels told Brady, who then asked McDaniels who would replace Lane in Seattle’s base defense. McDaniels didn’t know off the top of his head but said, “They’re gonna have to put somebody else in there.”
The “somebody else” was Tharold Simon, and the Patriots went right to work on attacking the weak link in Seattle’s secondary, as Julian Edelman made a big play by beating Simon in coverage and then Brandon LaFell scored a touchdown, again beating Simon in coverage.
* When we lost Cliff Avril to a concussion, that's when things really went downhill in stopping the Pats defense. On Lane's pick I'm pretty sure it was Avril who had the pressure from the left side as Bennett closed in on Brady and obliterated him as he threw. Without Avril's pressure the rest of the game... enough time for Brady to find and exploit Tharald Simon. BTW, can anyone verify with was Avril with the pressure from left DE on Lane's pick? I'll be damned if the jersey doesn't look like a #55, and Avril wore #56. #55 was listed as Heath Farwell, and that was definitely NOT Farwell pressuring Brady.
Bevell's biggest failings on that play were lack of matchup awareness, expecting Kearse to move Brandon Browner, and choosing to use Ricardo Lockette as the target. Then Bevell's biggest failing was throwing Lockette under the bus after the game, instead of accepting responsibility.