1st Glance, 5 Plays That Decided This Game

The Bash Brothers in action for a Defensive TD

I contemplated naming this article, The Return of 54.  I think dynasty days are back, baby!  I am feeling this intense connection to this jersey number, and I'll tell you why before I review the 5 plays.  Usually numbers are retired because we want to remember the legacy of a great player.  In this case, not enough time has elapsed, and the Brady-Belichick dynasty is not over.  The turnover of the number to Brian Waters did not mean as much because Waters was a veteran and played Offense.

Now though, seeing #54 score a TD on a fumble recovery, the Defense is almost more exciting than the Offense.  Plus, Chandler Jones' performance with 5 tackles, a tackle for loss, and sack-forced fumble takes away any doubts I may have had about this draft class.  Also, Tavon Wilson, The Chosen One, grabs an INT.  Just unbelievable. The top three guys from this year's draft class came up huge in this one.

Phil Simms even said this: "This front 7 of the Patriots might be the best run defense in the league before its all said and done."  And he's right.  The Titans and Chris Johnson could only muster 4 rushing yards.  The Pats never had more than 7 in the box (that I saw) but they were always ready for the run.  They weren't fooled, and they didn't miss tackles.  It was a thing of beauty despite allowing 264 passing yards, they held all players to only 20 rushing yards.  They took the Titans completely out of what they do well.


5 Plays That Decided It

1. The Sack-Fumble TD - By far the most excited I have been for sports in a long time. The excitement comes from a turnover, a TD, and perfect execution by all of the pass rushers.  Vince Wilfork forces the QB off of his spot, and the Bash Brothers clean it up perfectly.  I named them the Bash Brothers last week, and they made me an honest man with the play of the game.  I have a feeling we'll be seeing a lot of Jones and Hightower this year.  Mayo was obviously solid with 13 tackles.

2. The Goal Line Stand (to force a FG) - Yeah, you can't have a true goal line stand unless the other team is willing to try it on 4th down.  Nevertheless, a TD there makes it 17-28, and brings some life to the Titans faithful.  The Titans were on the 1, poised to punch it in.  Instead, Vince Wilfork blew right past his man and dropped Chris Johnson instantly for a 5 yard loss.  This was absolutely a one-man-play, absolutely all Vince Wilfork.

3. Brady To Hernandez - Its not hard to give this play the nod as the play of the drive, but Brady and company strung together some solid work to grab their first TD of the season.  Gronk had a huge catch that went for 28 yards down the seam.  Likewise, Ridley did some nice work to kick-start the drive.  The TD play to Hernandez was really nice though, Brady did nice work to avoid the sack, and found Hernandez near the goal line for 23 yards and a TD.

4. Holding on Tennessee - The Titans did not look utterly inept during this game, and actually executed very well on their 3 scoring drives.  The Patriots did well to force 2 FGs in the red zone.  However, the play I am talking about defused a Titans possession that could have been.  On a 3rd and 10 from their own 10, Jake Locker looked as if he had a nice gain on a QB draw up the middle, but it was called back for a blatant but unnecessary holding call on the Titans.  The holding pinned the Titans deep in their own territory punting from the 2 yard line.  This really swung the field position, leading to some nice New England offense.

5. Tavon Wilson INT - Really, this was good coverage by Kyle Arrington.  Arrington had some rough patches in this game, and the secondary did not look great as a unit.  The front seven looked dominant, but the secondary looked average.  Nevertheless, the unit took advantage of their opportunities.  Also, Tavon Wilson and Patrick Chung made some nice big (but legal and clean) hits on guys over the middle.   However, on the INT, it was just solid coverage on a deep pass from Jake Locker.  Not a good throw, but Arrington did well to maneuver himself into a position to avoid a penalty.  He got himself under it with some good ball skills, but he actually got hit in the face.  The ball bounced up long enough for Tavon Wilson to hustle and make a diving catch.

Honorable mention goes to Brady's Broken Nose.  Its always scary to see your QB sacked from the blindside, and the protection of Brady was one of the few things that was not well executed.  Nevertheless, Brady led the offense effectively enough to command the game with his scoring and his tempo. The team went 6-12 on 3rd down and protected the ball very well.  That is a winning formula even if this was not a dominant game by Brady.  Likewise, this play did not seriously injure Brady or affect his performance much in this game.  So, although Brady's plugged nose is a memorable sight, one sack did not decide the game. It could have, if Brady fumbles, but he felt the heat and protected himself and the ball.  Good football play by a savvy veteran.

Honorable mention also to No Call On McCourty.  The Titans were looking at 3rd and goal, when the Patriots flushed Locker out of the pocket.  He made a decent throw, but McCourty looked to defend the ball pretty well.  Phil Simms thought it was pass interference, and I'll admit that it could have been.  Nevertheless, I thought McCourty was put in a tough position, and the receiver tried to re-enter some of McCourty's space.  Still, McCourty didn't see the ball and didn't look, and it could easily have given the Titans 1st and goal from the 1.  This could have been +4 points for the Titans, and a 7-0 lead instead of 3.