Harris said he considered taking himself out of the game, but instead worked only in the team’s dime sub package. He’ll probably only enter if Manning gets hurt or if the future Hall of Famer plays terribly, which would likely mean the Patriots are winning big.
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The New England Patriots are getting healthy at the right time and Tom Brady is playing some of the best football of his storied career.
The Denver Broncos avoided being “one and done” by defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Divisional round of the AFC playoffs.
Then, Manning went to work, driving Denver to its only touchdown. Anderson’s one yard touchdown plunge with three minutes remaining in the game put the Broncos ahead for good.
The Steelers were more than capable of putting points on the board with the young talent of Martavis Bryant, Markus Wheaton and Sammie Coates.
Roethlisberger surpassed Terry Bradshaw (3,833) for most all-time career postseason passing yards.
All afternoon the Broncos defense took more of the “bend don’t break” method. “It’s not as common as outside rushers winning, but if an inside guy wins or even gets pressure pushing the pocket back, that stops quarterbacks – stops him from being able to step up and really follow through his throws”. “I’d like to get in there early in the morning and then I can get it deleted off the game film”. But the biggest mistake was running back Fitzgerald Toussaint’s fumble in the fourth quarter. Bradley Roby was blocked by Darrius Heyward-Bey and Roby had the smarts to punch the ball out from Toussaint’s hands. And yet when absolutely necessary, with alarms blaring, Denver finished off Pittsburgh with a methodical 13-play, 65-yard, 6 minute, 52-second drive.
While Casserly felt Manning was steady, he claimed Brady struggled with the Kansas City defense. He completed 21 of 37 passes for 222 yards, 0 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. In the 10 seasons in between 2004 and this year, the 40 No. 1 and No. 2 seeds were a combined 24-16 in the divisional round, including a 2-2 mark for the Broncos.
The Broncos will prepare to host the Patriots in the AFC championship game Sunday while the injury-riddled Steelers prepare for a long offseason of recovery. But Gronkowski left the game with an injury and Edelman didn’t play at all, as the Patriots blew what seemed to be a sure victory.
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Manning’s comment clearly was made in jest, as there’s a lot of mutual respect between the Broncos quarterback and Belichick, who’ve been engaged in a chess match for the better part of two decades. With those two back it’ll be tougher for the Broncos to establish the run game. Brady and Manning will face off for possibly the last time ever and it’s going to be special.
