 |
| Terrell Suggs' wasn't wrong when he called the Pats arrogant you know whats... |
ESPN.com -- Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs didn't hold back after his team's 28-13 victory in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday, shouting as he ran through the Gillette Stadium tunnel that the New England Patriots were "arrogant f------!"
"(We) shut them out in the second half! Tell them to have fun at the Pro Bowl!" he shouted as he exchanged congratulatory hugs and high-fives with teammates as they walked into the locker room. Seven Patriots were selected to play in the Pro Bowl, which is slated to be played Sunday. Players on teams that reach the Super Bowl do not play in the Pro Bowl the weekend before.
Maybe Terrell Suggs didn't say it in the most appropriate way, maybe he let his comments drift too far towards class-less, but the ultra-athletic linebacker was far from wrong.
Last night, New England walked on that field expecting to win, an expectation that had strong backing. Yet, they didn't play like it. An aire of arrogance filled the stadium's atmosphere both on the field with the Patriots and in the crowd with their fans. They expected the Ravens to fold like a plastic chair simply because they were New England, they were at Gillette in January and they were the better team. But by halftime the realization that this was actually going to be a game, not a blowout, didn't resonate with the Patriots. Yes, they were up 13-7, but the team's mindset still was one of arrogant expectation and their play in the second half proved so.
For some reason the Pats abandoned their running game and let Joe Flacco dictate the time of possession and really the entire pulse of the game. New England's defense was sliced and diced by Baltimore's run game in the second half and Flacco converted a few big plays. It also didn't help that cornerback Aqib Talib left the game early with a thigh injury leaving the Pats already weak secondary absolutely obliterated. That play completely changed the course of the game, yet the Pats continued to play over confident and increasingly confusing.
Why in the world would you throw 54 times when the running game was what got you to the AFC Championship. It wasn't even like the Ravens went up 28-13 that early in the second half, so the necessity to throw every play as if it's Madden wasn't as immediate as the Pats made it seem. Honestly, the game was over the minute Bernard Pollard wrecked Stevan Ridley, because Belichick clearly had no trust in Shane Vereen (only had four carries). That moment carried more significance than just shelving Ridley, though, it showed that the Ravens' intensity had completely overwhelmed New England.
Oh, and dear lord was Tom Brady bad. Not only did he throw two INTs and 25 incompletions but his poor clock management cost Patriots a chance at a touchdown and a 17-7 lead going into half time. For Tom Brady, supposedly the Patriots "leader," to be so careless in his decision making shows a clear indication that this team believed all they had to do was show up. Well just like Boobie Miles the Pats god given talent's weren't enough to beat an extremely determined and apparently seriously underrated Ravens squad. They were absolutely dominated both on the field and in the psychological game.
Belichick and Brady are now 8-7 since winning their third Super Bowl in 2004 and while Brady still remains an elite quarterback the squad around him isn't as talented as those teams in the early 2000s. Something is off about this team and the scariest part is that Brady isn't getting any younger. He'll be 36 in August and has shown some signs of slowing down. I'm not saying he's close to being done, but I am saying that if the pieces around him don't improve from this year than the Patriots will no longer be the dominant force they've been over the years.
A dynasty crumbles when pompousness and arrogance plague its leaders. If the Pats don't improve their attitudes going forward, we could watch this empire slowly plunge to its death.
0 comments:
Post a Comment