On the Patriots side, there were 13 players either limited or out of practice this week, highlighted by tight end Rob Gronkowski (knee) and OL Sebastian Vollmer (ankle).
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The Patriots open defense of their Super Bowl title under a shroud of uncertainty and a long list of injuries when they host the Chiefs in Saturday’s AFC divisional-round playoff game at Gillette Stadium.
The Chiefs led the National Football League in turnover margin and have the speed and size in linemen and linebackers to pressure Brady into mistakes. “Every week, that’s our plan, that’s our goal: Dominate every snap”. But as the season went on, Peters evolved into an exceptional defensive back, and opponents paid the price for not noticing. The Patriots would love for Kansas City to become one dimensional running the ball, so the New England defense will remove the opposing passing attack. NFL Mobile applications are also another way to stream the Chiefs-Patriots game, which can be downloaded from the Apple App Store, Google Play, and the Windows Store.
The other team is the Patriots. They have won their last six games away from home and their last 11 games overall. How much will wide receiver Jeremy Maclin be able to give Saturday after suffering a high-ankle sprain in last week’s 30-0 rout of Houston? So we look forward to the challenge, though.
Thanks for reading, the column will be up soon, with (hopefully) more coherent thoughts.
The scoreboard shows it’s still close, but Tom Brady and the Patriots are in control.
The Patriots are expecting Gronkowski to play versus the Chiefs but as Thursday’s practice ended, he was listed with knee and back injuries.
The Chiefs and Patriots play Saturday, January 16 on CBS.
“We just haven’t played the way we would’ve liked here these last six games”, Slater said.
“Whoever’s out there we’re going to have to have confidence in”. I have to go with Coach Reid.
Patriots defensive lineman Chandler Jones forced Knile Davis’ fumble on the Chiefs’ first possession of the second half, then Brady added another touchdown pass to Gronkowski to make it 21-6.
New England may have locked up their postseason bid weeks ago, but they limped into the playoffs with back-to-back losses to finish their season and with injuries plaguing them. Hopefully we can flip the script. That’ll be the opportunity we have… “And Tom Brady’s unbelievable and the things that they’ve done there, I mean the accomplishments they’ve had – they’ve made history, so both of them are Hall of Famers”. They’ve got a good scheme. “There’s no next week, so we’re going to have to do everything you can do to be out on the field and help us win”. He was the first quarterback in NFL history to throw 35 touchdowns and rush for 10 touchdowns in the same season as he led the league’s best offense to 31.2 points per game.
When it comes to Alex Smith, people throw the term “game manager” around to slight him.
Knile Davis’ fumble on the Chiefs’ first drive after halftime was a nice reminder why he hadn’t been playing. Without him, they dropped to 31 percent. Chiefs coach Andy Reid has often been criticized for clock management throughout his coaching career, but this might have been his worst clock management game to date. “I’ve never had that experience”. They’re the kind who relish being given up for dead. The Patriots have been in this spot many times during the Bill Bilichick/Tom Brady era and they nearly always come through.
I was happy for the kid, he said. “I don’t put a lot of weight on that, though”.
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That loss will enable Belichick to roll coverage toward tight end Travis Kelce, and it’s tough to imagine the Chiefs getting to 20 points. Professionally, it’s part of the game. I don’t think there’s better momentum than that, not losing a game.
