Tough Loss - 49ers
I guess I can be happy that we made this one competitive, but this one is hard to swallow. The player of the game has to be Colin Kaepernick, but the story of the game was ball security. The weather was a huge factor, and the bounces seemed to favor San Francisco. As much as we had the benefit of the bounce against Houston, we couldn't seem to catch a break in this game.
Despite the whining and the crying about about the way the cookie crumbled, this game was winnable. Its just a shame how easily The Patriots' special teams and defense made it on The 49ers' offense when the score was 31-31. Brady and the offense were on a roll, and one more big defensive stop could have won the game for us. Instead, the clock came back to haunt us.
The implications of this loss are tough to swallow as well. Houston and Denver now have the inside track on the #1 and #2 seeds in the AFC. Tom Brady's MVP candidacy definitely took a hit as well. Regardless, there are two more games to play, and one loss from Denver would mean an opportunity for that #2 seed. It stinks that we no longer control our own destiny, but we still have a chance at a bye week.
Honestly, I really missed Gronk in this game. Whenever you have a physical contest like this, you can benefit from a Gronk. The Pats could not establish the run in the first half, and when Ridley finally had a nice run, he fumbled. The blocking just wasn't there on the stretch plays with wham blocks. Worst of all, it was tough sledding in the red zone. I am glad he's at least practicing.
This was a tough loss, but it could benefit the team moving forward. Mentally, the team learned that they could withstand a first half flurry, and still have a chance. They matched up with the #1 ranked Defense, and they scored 30+ points. Unfortunately, we couldn't fall on 49er fumbles, and we couldn't hold on to the ball. We put ourselves behind with mistakes, but we proved that we could contend with the best defense there is. Sometimes a loss can humble you and make you better. This one really proves how important it is to give a full 60 minute effort in big games. Let's hope this helps us moving into January.
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| One of those games... |
Despite the whining and the crying about about the way the cookie crumbled, this game was winnable. Its just a shame how easily The Patriots' special teams and defense made it on The 49ers' offense when the score was 31-31. Brady and the offense were on a roll, and one more big defensive stop could have won the game for us. Instead, the clock came back to haunt us.
The implications of this loss are tough to swallow as well. Houston and Denver now have the inside track on the #1 and #2 seeds in the AFC. Tom Brady's MVP candidacy definitely took a hit as well. Regardless, there are two more games to play, and one loss from Denver would mean an opportunity for that #2 seed. It stinks that we no longer control our own destiny, but we still have a chance at a bye week.
Honestly, I really missed Gronk in this game. Whenever you have a physical contest like this, you can benefit from a Gronk. The Pats could not establish the run in the first half, and when Ridley finally had a nice run, he fumbled. The blocking just wasn't there on the stretch plays with wham blocks. Worst of all, it was tough sledding in the red zone. I am glad he's at least practicing.
This was a tough loss, but it could benefit the team moving forward. Mentally, the team learned that they could withstand a first half flurry, and still have a chance. They matched up with the #1 ranked Defense, and they scored 30+ points. Unfortunately, we couldn't fall on 49er fumbles, and we couldn't hold on to the ball. We put ourselves behind with mistakes, but we proved that we could contend with the best defense there is. Sometimes a loss can humble you and make you better. This one really proves how important it is to give a full 60 minute effort in big games. Let's hope this helps us moving into January.
The play before the first 49'er TD - did that ball ever hit the ground (never saw replay) - Bellichek wanted to challenge, but
ReplyDeleteHochuli told him it wasn't subject to review. Should it have been called an int?
It was ruled an incomplete pass, so it could not reviewed. Lame, but thats the way it is.
ReplyDeleteBut did you see a replay? Was it an INT or did it hit the ground?
Deleteit hit the ground. BB could have challenged that it never hit the ground, but it was pretty obvious that it bounced. Still, I think he had possession, and it should have been a fumble.
DeleteI share on What you say about losing is in part good for the humbling stuff, i see this hit as coming down the cloud and get feet on the ground, i expect patriots to analyse and learn from it, losing is part of a teams growing. The team did a great effort on the second half and thats great. The dennard injury and his replacing on arrington was a factor, and how about giving bolden the ball on the begining of the game, the pats knew they were not gonna be able to get many yards running inside the tackles, because SF defense, so why not to run and hit harder than ridley does, giving so a chance to bolden. However was a great game, 49ers deserve some credit either
ReplyDeleteDennard injury was definitely a factor, but lets be honest... aside from Arrington's lazy (and inexcusable) missed tackle on the 38-31 TD, I don't think Arrington was awful. He played most of the 2nd half when the D played pretty decent.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I think Bolden is still trying to earn the trust of BB after that suspension.