All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you better run, better run, faster than Vince Wilfork.
Perhaps they were inspired by our Top 12 plays series this summer, but whatever the case, the Patriots are making spectacular plays a weekly occurrence. Wes Welker's 99 yard TD interception and Big Vince's INT and run would have easily cracked the Top 5 last year, and we're only two weeks into the season.
Brady breaks yet another record.
Brady's 940 passing yards in the first two games of the season is an NFL record. In addition, he's already thrown 7 TD's (and is on pace to break his 50 TD season by 6) and only one, very flukey INT. Everyone thought that 2007 would be Brady's prime, but by all accounts, from what we've seen this decade, Brady's playing his best football yet, right now. Brady is becoming Manning-esque in his absolute control of the game. He seems to know exactly what's coming from the defense, has great protection up front, and the offensive weapons to dissect whatever coverage is thrown at him. What Brady has done over the past few weeks is akin to artwork, and we can only expect more greatness as the season rolls on.
Terrific Tight Ends.
With Devin McCourty failing to light it up the first two games, it's becoming more apparent that Belichick's biggest picks in the 2010 draft may have very well been tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. The two are quickly becoming favorite targets for Brady and are able to disrupt the opposing defense by allowing for a flurry of offensive looks. So far, the duo has combined for 5 of Brady's 7 TD throws.
"Bend but don't break" is apparently back.
At times, yesterday, I felt like I was watching a replay from 2010, with the New England defense allowing the opposition to march down the field only to come up with a big stop. To some degree, you can argue that any drive that ends with 0 points is a win for the defense, still many of the Patriots faithful find themselves longing for the days when Bruschi, Seymour, McGinnest, Law, Harrison, and Vrabel would smother the opposing offense.
Overall, I'd say the Patriots D did a formidable job yesterday. Other than getting ripped to shreds by Vincent Jackson, who was just a beast, they were fairly stout. I think a large part of the reason why we're seeing so many passing yards from the opposition is that the Patriots run defense has really stepped it up this year. Teams simply aren't able to run on Wilfork and Haynesworth, so they somewhat abandon the run and just air it out. Yes, if the Patriots could develop a "lockdown" secondary, they'd be nearly unbeatable, but it's hard to fault guys like McCourty, Bodden, Arrington, and Chung for giving up yards when teams are throwing the ball at them so frequently
No sleeping on the Bills.
Whoever thought Week 3 would be an easy game (why are you looking at me?), think again. The Bills have stampeded to a 2-0 start, and the winner of Sunday's game will be 3-0 and leading the AFC East. You know Buffalo will be hyped and bringing their A game. The Patriots will absolutely need to match that level of intensity.
