I'm looking for the Patriots to win the game, just because our backups are better then theirs. Brady will play 1 drive, and then it'll be up to Matt Cassel, I hope Jackson stops crying and shows up and plays.
NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS Update- If you want to talk to other Patriot fans while the game is in progress, join the chat room starting around 8:00 pm. Tonight will mark the first game the Patriots have played since losing in the playoffs to the Denver Broncos. While it may only be preseason there is still a competitive side to every play on the field. In some cases players don?t want to get hurt (Tom Brady, Richard Seymour, Corey Dillon, Mike Vrabel, ect.) however in other cases they?ll be fighting for a roster spot (Kelvin Kight, Keron Henry, Freddie Roach, Corey Bramlet, ect). Tonight we?ll see a ton of those players fighting for a spot, according to many people the third preseason game is the only one that matters. Matt Cassel will take charge of this group and he?ll have some weapons around him like Laurence Maroney and David Thomas. I really don?t know how much they?ll play Maroney, but I think he?ll get a good amount of carries, however Corey Dillon is the complete opposite look for Dillon to play one drive at best because the Pats don?t want to risk him getting injured. Three Keys for the Patriots1. Must stop John Abraham2. Run it down their throat3. Stop the two young WR?s, Jenkins and White. Three Guys to look out for1. Laurence Maroney, running back2. Matt Cassel, quarterback3. Freddie Roach, linebacker ATLANTA FALCONS After finishing only 8-8 last season Michael Vick and the Atlanta Falcons will look to turn that around this season. The Falcons put themselves in good position helping out their defense by adding former Patriot safety Lawyer Milloy and OLB John Abraham. On offense they still have Vick, who struggled a little last season with the West Coast offense, but with a couple of years of that in the books look for him to have a strong season. Vick will have some nice WR?s to throw to, Michael Jenkins the first round pick from Ohio State in 2004 and Roddy White a first round pick in 2005 from U.A.B. But, Vick?s favorite target Alge Crumpler looks better and better every year and Warrick Dunn still produces. However, I doubt we see any of these guys long then three or four drives. Most likely Matt Schaub will run the offense while he hands it to rookie running back Jerious Norwood. Also watch out for second round pick Jimmy Williams, and quarterback D.J Shockley. Three Keys for the Falcons1. Pressure Reche Caldwell2. Test the defensive line3. Throw it at Eugene Wilson Three Guys to look out for1. Jimmy Williams, cornerback2. Matt Schaub, quarterback3. Jerious Norwood, running back Prediction : 24 - 17 PATRIOTS
Pats fans, keep an eye on Patrick Cobbs. I watched him tear it up for 4 years at UNT (UNT is in the same conference as MTSU). He led the nation in rushing yards his sophomore year, and IIRC he ran well against some good Big 12 teams, too, he didn't just beat up on pansy Sun Belt teams.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (jeefunk @ Aug 11 2006, 08:02 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Pats fans, keep an eye on Patrick Cobbs. I watched him tear it up for 4 years at UNT (UNT is in the same conference as MTSU). He led the nation in rushing yards his sophomore year, and IIRC he ran well against some good Big 12 teams, too, he didn't just beat up on pansy Sun Belt teams.</div>Ya you were right, he looked great last night. Here is my recap from PATRIOTSFANBLOG.COM<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ATLANTA FALCONS (1-0)Coming into the 2006 NFL season the Atlanta Falcons had a need at kicker, well after the preseason showing by Michael Koenen it looks like they found their kicker. Koenen hit four kicks, one in each quarter. He had kicks of 44, 50, 45, and the game winning kick with time expiring 40. Aside from Koenen the Falcons had some players who stuck out in this game, the first person who comes to mind is rookie RB Jerious Norwood, wow does this kid have speed. He showed it off on a 34 yard pass from Bryan Randall, Norwood finished the game with 7 carries for 22 yards, and average of 3.1, on the receiving end Norwood made 2 catches for 71 yards, and that touchdown. Randall looked the best at QB, making one nice 29 yard run and hooking up with Kevin Youngblood and Fells on a couple of passes. As for the starters, Vick went 3 for 4 with 26 yards passing and looked good out of the pocket. Michael Jenkins made a nice catch over Asante Samuel for a touchdown. All and all it was a good performance from the entire Falcons team.NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (0-1)The Patriots got a long look at second year quarterback Matt Cassel, in the beginning Cassel looked bad, missing open WR?s and standing in the pocket to long. However, as the game progressed so did Cassel often hitting rookie Garrett Mills and Patrick Cobbs. Before Cassel got in the game, Brady and about half of the starters led the Patriots to a successful three points (made my Gramatica). Reche Caldwell looked shaky with a touchdown drop, not a good way to forget about Deion Branch and David Givens. However, rookie RB Laurence Maroney showed what he?ll do for the team, starting by rushing for 12 yards on his first carry and 27 yards on his second. Maroney ended the game with 66 yards on 9 carries, a 7.3 average. Maroney wasn?t the only Patriots rookie RB who had a nice game, Patrick Cobbs the rookie from North Texas had a nice screen pass that got in the endzone and ran the ball well, rushing for 25 yards on 5 carries. The Patriots defense looked just alright, but it did have it?s moments like when undrafted rookie Pierre Woods sacked Matt Schaub and then Santonio Thomas and Jonathan Sullivan, both DT?s, made some nice plays. And finally the kicking battle looks dead even, Gramatica did hit two field goals but they were only 26 and 30 yards, Gostkowski hit one field goal which was a 34 yarder. Player of the Game - Michael Koenen (Kicker)</div>
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (The Punisher @ Aug 12 2006, 04:48 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>That was a hell of a game. Watched the whole second half. Falcons have some insane QB foursome.</div>They sure like putting all their eggs in one basket w/all the scramblers. Vick, Randall, & Shockley. I know they got Schaub, too, but man, 3 scramblers on one team.
