Previewing the Patriots’ competition in the AFC Divisional round
The New England Patriots clinched a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs this winter with their 35-14 win on the road in Miami on Sunday. As such, they join the Kansas City Chiefs on the sidelines this coming weekend watching the AFC Wild Card round on television.
AROUND COVER32
Power Rankings: Playoff addition
QB Rankings:: Who’s riding highest into the playoffs?
Winners and Losers:: Who came out on top to open up 2017?
Patriots’ News: Congratulations Edelman on accomplishment
Patriots’ News: Pats’ Weekly: A weekend in front of the TV for the Pats
Patriots’ News: Lippett meets Floyd and the Pats
With the seeding set, the #3 seed AFC North champion Pittsburgh Steelers host the #6 seed Miami Dolphins and the #4 seed AFC South champion Houston Texans host the #5 seed Oakland Raiders.
With a rematch of the Dolphins 30-15 win in Week 6, as the highest seed, the Steelers will play Kansas City if they win. If Miami wins, they return to Foxboro to play the Patriots for a third time this season.
Houston (possibly without promoted starter Tom Savage) takes the place of the Indianapolis Colts as the requisite cupcake from the AFC South. However, the Raiders–down to rookie third-string quarterback Connor Cook last week after an injury to back-up Matt McGloin (filling in for starter Derek Carr who broke his leg)–have gone from potential #1 seed to on the road in the first round.
To simplify, the teams are broken into three categories: Likely to play next week (Houston or Oakland), unlikely to play next week (Miami), impossible to play before AFC Championship game (Kansas City and Pittsburgh):
LIKELY TO BE VISITING FOXBORO:
Houston Texans:
The Texans played the Patriots already in 2016 in with a hobbled J.J. Watt right before he ended his season on injured reserve with a back injury. The New England 27-0 thrashing of the Texans in Week 3 on Thursday night dealt Houston their first loss of the season as rookie quarterback Jacoby Brissett won in his first NFL start.
After two decent performances to open the season, Brock Osweiler was exposed before the nation as mediocre. For the season, Osweiler completed just 59% of his passes for 2,957 yards with 15 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. Osweiler is starting by default due to Tom Savage being sidelined by a concussion and Savage may be back if they make it to New England.
In the first game, the Patriots draped cornerback Malcolm Butler over wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and challenged the Texans to outscore them throwing to tight end Ryan Griffin and wide receiver Will Fuller. The results were as mediocre as expected.
Former Miami Dolphins running back Lamar Miller rushed 21 times for 80 yards but the bend-but-don’t-break defense watched the Texans punt six times, turn the ball over three times and have three drives end on failed fourth-down conversions.
The Texans are an odd playoff team winning the division with a 9-7 record while being outscored by their opponents by 49 points and with the 28th ranked offense. They host the 12-4 Oakland Raiders and their 20th ranked defense. As hard as it is to believe, the Texans could actually pull out a win and travel to New England for the divisional round.
Oakland Raiders:
Oakland was cruising along this season riding the strong arm of quarterback Derek Carr jumping out to an 11-3 record before Carr broke his fibula in Week 16 against Indianapolis. Instead of competing for the number one overall seed, the Raiders dropped their Week 17 game as back-up quarterback Matt McGloin injured his shoulder and gave way to third-string rookie Connor Cook in the loss to Denver.
The loss dropped Oakland out of the bye week and number two seed down to going to Houston as the fifth seed. Cook is expected to start the game at Houston. While not a great option, he is blessed with arguably the NFL’s best pass blocking offensive line in front of him.
The Raiders still have a strong offense with running backs Latavius Murray, DeAndre Washington and Jalen Richard leading the NFL’s sixth best rushing offense. The Raiders have dynamic wide receiver Amari Cooper and veteran Michael Crabtree giving them two 1,000 yard receivers.
Defense is the issue in Oakland although they showed improvement in the second half of the season. After getting lit-up by New Orleans and Atlanta in the first two games of the season, they have slowly improved. Outside linebackers Khalil Mack and Bruce Irvin are a dynamic duo of quarterback pressure and have 18 of the team’s 25 sacks.
In the secondary, veteran safety Reggie Nelson leads the team with five interceptions and cornerbacks Sean Smith and David Amerson are a solid duo of starters but the loss of 2013 first-round draft pick cornerback D.J. Hayden to injury this month hurts. Hayden was having his best season after transitioning to the third cornerback role defending in the slot.
Oakland is a flawed team with horrendous injury issues at quarterback. Had Carr stayed healthy, they would likely be joining the Patriots on the bye week. They are the most likely to travel to New England for the Divisional Playoff game as even on the road they should have enough talent on both sides of the ball to beat the Texans.
UNLIKELY…JUST SAW YOU–GO AWAY:
Miami Dolphins:
Does anyone in New England really want to see Miami come back north to Foxboro for the second time this season for another game after the Patriots defeated them with and without Tom Brady? Yes, it is very difficult to beat a team three times in one season but New England outscored them 66 to 38 in two games.
In addition, the Dolphins have to travel to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers. Yes, Miami defeated the Steelers 30-15 in Week 6, but the Steelers’ defense was in a bad place at that time and Roethlisberger was clearly hobbled.
Miami looks a lot like the 2015 New York Jets right now: they are a .500 team who took advantage of an easy schedule this year and pulled out a number of close games. They beat Cleveland in overtime, Buffalo by three points twice (once in overtime), Arizona by three points, the Rams by four points, the Jets by four points and the 49ers by a touchdown. Seven of their ten wins were by seven or less points–games which could have gone either way.
Miami had a lot to play for at home versus New England last week and were dominated early and late with only a brief sign of life around halftime. A playoff team fighting for the fifth seed and a match-up against Houston instead of Pittsburgh showed little fire at home generating just 280 yards of offense and falling behind 20-0 before losing 35-14.
The Dolphins figure to be a longshot to go into Pittsburgh and win.
The New England Patriots clinched a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs this winter with their 35-14 win on the road in Miami on Sunday. As such, they join the Kansas City Chiefs on the sidelines this coming weekend watching the AFC Wild Card round on television.
AROUND COVER32
Power Rankings: Playoff addition
QB Rankings:: Who’s riding highest into the playoffs?
Winners and Losers:: Who came out on top to open up 2017?
Patriots’ News: Congratulations Edelman on accomplishment
Patriots’ News: Pats’ Weekly: A weekend in front of the TV for the Pats
Patriots’ News: Lippett meets Floyd and the Pats
With the seeding set, the #3 seed AFC North champion Pittsburgh Steelers host the #6 seed Miami Dolphins and the #4 seed AFC South champion Houston Texans host the #5 seed Oakland Raiders.
With a rematch of the Dolphins 30-15 win in Week 6, as the highest seed, the Steelers will play Kansas City if they win. If Miami wins, they return to Foxboro to play the Patriots for a third time this season.
Houston (possibly without promoted starter Tom Savage) takes the place of the Indianapolis Colts as the requisite cupcake from the AFC South. However, the Raiders–down to rookie third-string quarterback Connor Cook last week after an injury to back-up Matt McGloin (filling in for starter Derek Carr who broke his leg)–have gone from potential #1 seed to on the road in the first round.
To simplify, the teams are broken into three categories: Likely to play next week (Houston or Oakland), unlikely to play next week (Miami), impossible to play before AFC Championship game (Kansas City and Pittsburgh):
LIKELY TO BE VISITING FOXBORO:
Houston Texans:
The Texans played the Patriots already in 2016 in with a hobbled J.J. Watt right before he ended his season on injured reserve with a back injury. The New England 27-0 thrashing of the Texans in Week 3 on Thursday night dealt Houston their first loss of the season as rookie quarterback Jacoby Brissett won in his first NFL start.
After two decent performances to open the season, Brock Osweiler was exposed before the nation as mediocre. For the season, Osweiler completed just 59% of his passes for 2,957 yards with 15 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. Osweiler is starting by default due to Tom Savage being sidelined by a concussion and Savage may be back if they make it to New England.
In the first game, the Patriots draped cornerback Malcolm Butler over wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and challenged the Texans to outscore them throwing to tight end Ryan Griffin and wide receiver Will Fuller. The results were as mediocre as expected.
Former Miami Dolphins running back Lamar Miller rushed 21 times for 80 yards but the bend-but-don’t-break defense watched the Texans punt six times, turn the ball over three times and have three drives end on failed fourth-down conversions.
The Texans are an odd playoff team winning the division with a 9-7 record while being outscored by their opponents by 49 points and with the 28th ranked offense. They host the 12-4 Oakland Raiders and their 20th ranked defense. As hard as it is to believe, the Texans could actually pull out a win and travel to New England for the divisional round.
Oakland Raiders:
Oakland was cruising along this season riding the strong arm of quarterback Derek Carr jumping out to an 11-3 record before Carr broke his fibula in Week 16 against Indianapolis. Instead of competing for the number one overall seed, the Raiders dropped their Week 17 game as back-up quarterback Matt McGloin injured his shoulder and gave way to third-string rookie Connor Cook in the loss to Denver.
The loss dropped Oakland out of the bye week and number two seed down to going to Houston as the fifth seed. Cook is expected to start the game at Houston. While not a great option, he is blessed with arguably the NFL’s best pass blocking offensive line in front of him.
The Raiders still have a strong offense with running backs Latavius Murray, DeAndre Washington and Jalen Richard leading the NFL’s sixth best rushing offense. The Raiders have dynamic wide receiver Amari Cooper and veteran Michael Crabtree giving them two 1,000 yard receivers.
Defense is the issue in Oakland although they showed improvement in the second half of the season. After getting lit-up by New Orleans and Atlanta in the first two games of the season, they have slowly improved. Outside linebackers Khalil Mack and Bruce Irvin are a dynamic duo of quarterback pressure and have 18 of the team’s 25 sacks.
In the secondary, veteran safety Reggie Nelson leads the team with five interceptions and cornerbacks Sean Smith and David Amerson are a solid duo of starters but the loss of 2013 first-round draft pick cornerback D.J. Hayden to injury this month hurts. Hayden was having his best season after transitioning to the third cornerback role defending in the slot.
Oakland is a flawed team with horrendous injury issues at quarterback. Had Carr stayed healthy, they would likely be joining the Patriots on the bye week. They are the most likely to travel to New England for the Divisional Playoff game as even on the road they should have enough talent on both sides of the ball to beat the Texans.
UNLIKELY…JUST SAW YOU–GO AWAY:
Miami Dolphins:
Does anyone in New England really want to see Miami come back north to Foxboro for the second time this season for another game after the Patriots defeated them with and without Tom Brady? Yes, it is very difficult to beat a team three times in one season but New England outscored them 66 to 38 in two games.
In addition, the Dolphins have to travel to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers. Yes, Miami defeated the Steelers 30-15 in Week 6, but the Steelers’ defense was in a bad place at that time and Roethlisberger was clearly hobbled.
Miami looks a lot like the 2015 New York Jets right now: they are a .500 team who took advantage of an easy schedule this year and pulled out a number of close games. They beat Cleveland in overtime, Buffalo by three points twice (once in overtime), Arizona by three points, the Rams by four points, the Jets by four points and the 49ers by a touchdown. Seven of their ten wins were by seven or less points–games which could have gone either way.
Miami had a lot to play for at home versus New England last week and were dominated early and late with only a brief sign of life around halftime. A playoff team fighting for the fifth seed and a match-up against Houston instead of Pittsburgh showed little fire at home generating just 280 yards of offense and falling behind 20-0 before losing 35-14.
The Dolphins figure to be a longshot to go into Pittsburgh and win.
Today at 7:52 am by Rocky
» utube 3/28/24 MM&C Iraqi Dinar - IQD Update - SWIFT - Purchasing Power - Urban Renaissance - Releas
Today at 7:51 am by Rocky
» Al-Mandalawi: Iraq is witnessing competition between major companies...and the House of Representati
Today at 7:49 am by Rocky
» The President of the Republic stresses the importance of the role of programmers in developing the w
Today at 7:46 am by Rocky
» The Minister of Industry and Minerals follows up on the technical and production performance of the
Today at 7:45 am by Rocky
» The Minister of Finance is following up on the field the progress of the newly implemented ASYCUDA s
Today at 7:44 am by Rocky
» Statistics: There are more than 15 million bank accounts in Iraq
Today at 7:42 am by Rocky
» Representative: One paragraph hinders the passage of a general amnesty within the House of Represent
Today at 7:37 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Finance: “The draft federal budget law will be devoid of new job grades.”
Today at 7:36 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary action to resolve the fate of “food security contracts” in 15 governorates
Today at 7:35 am by Rocky
» 300 factories turned into "iron scrap" in Diyala
Today at 7:34 am by Rocky
» A deputy expects the dollar exchange rate to reach 140 Iraqi dinars
Today at 7:32 am by Rocky
» Al-Yasiri: The American administration is working hard to destroy the Iraqi economy
Today at 7:31 am by Rocky
» Infographic: The highest annual salaries of leaders of Arab countries
Today at 7:30 am by Rocky
» Communications announces that the electronic signature project has reached advanced stages
Today at 7:29 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Integrity presents a file related to Kuwaiti violations of Iraqi oil
Today at 7:27 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary move to include amendments to Parliament’s internal regulations on the agenda (documen
Today at 7:25 am by Rocky
» The Iraqi President urges the Minister of Finance to expedite the payment of salaries to the Kurdist
Today at 7:23 am by Rocky
» Central Bank of Iraq sales exceeded $251 million at today’s auction
Today at 7:21 am by Rocky
» The Foreign Minister questions the "Iraqi resistance" attacks against Israel: the other side did not
Today at 7:20 am by Rocky
» The Minister of Labor announces progress in the electronic payment system
Today at 7:17 am by Rocky
» Interior Ministry: For the first time, we controlled the smuggling of petroleum derivatives by 98 pe
Today at 7:16 am by Rocky
» International companies offer offers to invest in the Dhi Qar marshes.. What distinguishes them?
Today at 7:15 am by Rocky
» “Tough” comments on interest rates raise the dollar globally
Today at 7:14 am by Rocky
» Iraq is the fifth largest oil supplier to South Korea in a month
Today at 7:12 am by Rocky
» Recovering more than 100 billion as a result of more than 200,000 employees on social welfare
Today at 7:11 am by Rocky
» The Sudanese consultant announces the completion of Baghdad Metro track designs
Today at 7:08 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani stresses ending the problem of triple-shift schools
Today at 7:07 am by Rocky
» Iraq begins building two new tankers to transport petroleum products
Today at 7:06 am by Rocky
» Forming a council for “competition and preventing monopoly”
Today at 7:04 am by Rocky
» Features of an Iraqi-Turkish agreement regarding the status of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party
Today at 7:02 am by Rocky
» {Al-Buzrajiya} between the hammer of fraud and the power of the owners
Today at 7:01 am by Rocky
» Ministry of Oil: The gas sector is witnessing great development
Today at 6:59 am by Rocky
» An agreement with Britain in the field of securities
Today at 6:58 am by Rocky
» Discussions between Baghdad and Ankara to open a new port
Today at 6:57 am by Rocky
» Trade: About 11 million citizens updated their new card information
Today at 6:56 am by Rocky
» Electronic payment is sustainable growth
Today at 6:55 am by Rocky
» Experts: Iraq qualifies to be an important tourist country
Today at 6:54 am by Rocky
» Amending the Health Professions Law “robs” scientists of the central appointment 3 years after it wa
Today at 5:20 am by Rocky
» Is the “blessings package” that Erbil paid to the citizens of Kurdistan related to the elections?
Today at 5:19 am by Rocky
» Exceeded 5,000 projects.. Allocating 10 trillion dinars to support governorate reconstruction plans
Today at 5:18 am by Rocky
» “His need no longer exists.” Parliamentary Finance confirms the necessity of returning the retiremen
Today at 5:17 am by Rocky
» To communicate with the bases... 12 directives from Al-Sadr, including blocking numbers for non-gove
Today at 5:15 am by Rocky
» In an interview with "Baghdad Today"... an Iranian researcher reveals the importance of Haniyeh's vi
Today at 5:14 am by Rocky
» After it was 63 trillion in 2023... the 2024 budget deficit will rise to 80 trillion dinars
Today at 5:13 am by Rocky
» Parliament reveals the date of the first evaluation of the governors and determines the party respon
Today at 5:11 am by Rocky
» The President of the Republic informs Al-Araji and Al-Basri: Momentum must be mobilized to eliminate
Today at 5:10 am by Rocky
» Can the Federal Court sue others? A legal clarification of its response mechanism to abuse
Today at 5:09 am by Rocky
» Despite promises to soon stop burning gas.. What is the secret behind Iraq renewing the Iranian gas
Today at 5:07 am by Rocky
» Advisor to Al-Sudani: The dollar is on the way to further decline, and 70% of Iraqi traders have ent
Today at 5:06 am by Rocky
» Iraq exported more than 99 million barrels of oil last February
Today at 5:04 am by Rocky
» Barzani “gives good news” to Kurdistan employees: salaries, land, and loan exemptions
Today at 5:03 am by Rocky
» Alia Nassif: Nour Zuhair returned to the port of Umm Qasr to make deals.. An influential Shiite forc
Today at 5:02 am by Rocky
» The Prime Minister announces the movement of nearly 500 stalled projects
Today at 5:00 am by Rocky
» A government strategy to enhance investments.. Iraq is on the verge of a new era of economic develop
Today at 4:59 am by Rocky
» Ranging between 20% and 50%.. The Kurdistan government decides to reduce service fees, customs dutie
Today at 4:58 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: The reform approach in the security services is an integral part of reform in other secto
Today at 4:56 am by Rocky
» Everyone in Iraq wants the Sudanese visit to Washington to be successful, even the factions!
Today at 4:55 am by Rocky
» Sources and experts expect the agenda.. in his bag is the Baghdad dollar and the factions’ truce, bu
Today at 4:54 am by Rocky
» The decision to raise gasoline prices arouses the ire of drivers...a reminder of the large demonstra
Today at 4:53 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary services: 3 important hospitals in Baghdad will enter service at the end of the year
Today at 4:52 am by Rocky
» Iraq signs a contract to supply Iranian gas for a period of five years
Today at 4:50 am by Rocky
» Parliament adds a voting paragraph on amending the Penal Code to its agenda
Today at 4:49 am by Rocky
» His political advisor: We are not afraid of Sudanese entering the elections alone
Today at 4:48 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary services explain the reasons for the rise in real estate prices in Baghdad
Today at 4:46 am by Rocky
» Attia, criticizing the government's decisions: "The citizen's feathers will be ruffled without servi
Today at 4:45 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Communications: Zain Iraq and Asiacell did not pay their debts
Today at 4:44 am by Rocky
» The Governor of Karbala announces the imminent establishment of the largest industrial city in the c
Today at 4:43 am by Rocky
» A government determination to end the issue of displaced persons in the middle of this year
Today at 4:42 am by Rocky
» Iraq buys gas from Kurdistan to generate electricity
Today at 4:41 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary signatures to include an amendment to the internal regulations to decide the choice of
Today at 4:40 am by Rocky
» In Basra.. a demonstration against foreign workers in Iraqi companies (video)
Today at 4:38 am by Rocky
» Al-Samarrai: Presidency of Parliament is an entitlement to the constituents, and calling it a “frame
Today at 4:36 am by Rocky
» Electronic food supplies in 6 governorates... covering 11 million Iraqis and “writing off” about 700
Today at 4:34 am by Rocky
» Corruption of the Ministry of Transport.. Representatives express their surprise at the minister’s s
Today at 4:32 am by Rocky
» The biggest supporter of the invasion of Iraq.. The death of former US Senator Joe Lieberman
Today at 4:31 am by Rocky
» Iraq is ranked “late.” A list of the most and least safe Arab countries for women
Today at 4:30 am by Rocky
» The Council of Ministers exempts the Gulf Interconnection Authority from guarantee fees: it is a gov
Yesterday at 7:48 am by Rocky
» The Iraqi government raises the size of the 2024 budget, and Parliament is “surprised”
Yesterday at 7:46 am by Rocky
» Popular Movement: We have many economic options away from American hegemony
Yesterday at 7:42 am by Rocky
» The Oil Parliament stresses the need to transfer part of the revenues to the producing governorates
Yesterday at 7:41 am by Rocky
» It will cover 14 regions in eastern Iraq.. A deputy reveals the “border electricity” project
Yesterday at 7:40 am by Rocky
» Experts Warn Mass Migration Threatens US Food Security
Yesterday at 7:37 am by Bama Diva
» Al-Fateh: America occupies Iraq through agreements
Yesterday at 7:37 am by Rocky
» Anger in Iraq over a "sudden decision"... and a reminder of a "general strike" that paralyzed the co
Yesterday at 7:34 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Committee: Parliament is discussing today a decision that “disturbed” the Iraqis
Yesterday at 7:33 am by Rocky
» Ministry of Electricity: Our production will reach 27 thousand megawatts by May
Yesterday at 7:31 am by Rocky
» Diagnosing the “most important” problems in the oil file between Baghdad and Erbil.. What is the rel
Yesterday at 7:30 am by Rocky
» The Iraqi Fiqh Academy and the Sunni Endowment issue a fatwa to pay Zakat al-Fitr
Yesterday at 7:28 am by Rocky
» The National Bank of Iraq continues its digital transformation by launching its new banking system a
Yesterday at 7:26 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Investment and the Central Bank are discussing the housing initiative
Yesterday at 7:25 am by Rocky
» The Prime Minister announces the restart of 500 suspended projects
Yesterday at 7:23 am by Rocky
» Al-Barti assesses the region's employees: Your salaries are insured and will be paid after resettlem
Yesterday at 7:21 am by Rocky
» Iraqi-American discussions in anticipation of the Sudanese visit
Yesterday at 7:20 am by Rocky
» Iraq and Turkey hold meetings in Ankara to discuss technical issues related to the development road
Yesterday at 7:17 am by Rocky
» A government parliamentary agreement to support budget revenues and governorate allocations for inve
Yesterday at 7:16 am by Rocky
» Oil: The gas sector is witnessing great development
Yesterday at 7:15 am by Rocky
» A Kurdish-French agreement to develop trade and economic relations
Yesterday at 7:13 am by Rocky
» Exchange companies in Mosul demand that they be entered into the currency selling window
Yesterday at 7:12 am by Rocky