Archives for December 24, 2017

‘”When you do dumb stuff like he did, you open the door. The referees are a little more lenient because they know you got it coming. You’ve just got to be prepared to take it.”‘

‘Tom Brady has targeted Gillislee zero times, and other backs excel on special teams. Those two phases are how he became marginalized. Depth back Brandon Bolden has two carries all year, but he has forced two fumbles on kickoff coverage and has blocked a punt.’

‘”When we’ve had to put the ball with great location, when we’ve had to get hang time, when we’ve had to deal with elements, none of that stuff has fazed him,” special teams coordinator Danny Crossman said. “He’s executed at a level that we’re looking for.”‘

‘Benjamin is expected to tough it out. But if this game meant nothing, he would probably be sitting. After Sunday’s win, he said he plans to have surgery on the knee after the season. He missed two games after hurting the knee in LA and left in the second half of the Colts win after aggravating the injury. He had two catches for 20 yards last week.’

‘Patriots 27, Bills 17.’

‘Tyrod Taylor vs. Jordan Richards: The Pats used Richards as a spy on the Bills quarterback a bunch in the first meeting. He played 25 snaps in that game, his most in the past two months. Will Bill Belichick repeat the tactic or will Richards be an afterthought in the Pats’ game plan?’

‘The Pats ran screens twice in Buffalo for 11 and 5 yards. This was a 23-yarder to Rex Burkhead (34) in Miami two weeks ago. The Pats created open field with their receivers running a post-wheel route combination. Brandin Cooks (14) took the free safety out of play by going deep. Chris Hogan (15) ran a wheel route up the sideline to run off the cornerback. Center David Andrews (60) and guard Joe Thuney (62) led the blocking. Look for the Pats to keep trying to get the screen game going before the playoffs.’

‘This was a 43-yard pass to Brandin Cooks at Pittsburgh last week on a first-and-10 play from the 50. Brady faked a handoff to both the running back and to Rex Burkhead (34) running a fake reverse. Cooks out-leveraged the deep safety. Sometimes the Pats run this with the receiver wide right and running a deep post all the way across the field. If the safety is protecting deep, Brady can throw the pass more shallow, across the field, and still get a completion.’

‘Can Tyrod rebound? After suffering a knee injury on the first play from scrimmage, quarterback Tyrod Taylor gutted it out in Week 13 for three quarters before leaving the game. At that time, it looked as if Taylor may have played his final down with the Bills, but he missed just a week and returned to the starting lineup in Week 15 against Miami. Taylor played an excellent first half against the Dolphins. He’ll need a similar effort over four quarters Sunday to hang with New England.’

‘There is an obsession in this town, whether you’re for it or against it, with tanking. Yes, it’s better for the Bills to be picking earlier in the draft if they miss out on the playoffs. Everyone knows that. But their chances at the No. 1 pick went out the window when they beat the Jets in the season opener. The Browns are staring at an 0-16 season. The Bills weren’t ever going to challenge them, or the Giants, or the Bears, for one of the top picks.’

‘“Every team’s importance is different,” he said. “You’ve got teams that are 6-6, 7-5, 8-4. Really and truly the only games to me that you would look at as a true playoff game, are those playoff games, where you win and go to the next game. The pressure of those two games, I would say, you could view from a pro style. ‘How did the guy play, when we’re doing free agency, how did he play in the playoffs, when it meant the most?’ ”’

‘Besides creativity, the other thing the celebrations have in common is they go well beyond an individual looking to intensify the spotlight already trained on him for scoring. Most, if not all, of the other members of the offense join in, turning the end zone into a stage and reinforcing the concept that more than one player has a role in scoring.’