11/10/2009

McGowan loves football, and it shows
FOXBORO — Brandon McGowan grew up in Jersey City, N.J. And Orono, Maine, is nothing like Jersey City.

Patriots journal: Moving Wilfork gives defense a different look
FOXBORO — When the Patriots lined up on defense against the Dolphins, something looked a bit off about the defensive line, and not just because Jarvis Green wasn’t on the field.

11/09/2009

Patriots journal: Porter follows up a mouthy week with a quiet game
FOXBORO — You can’t always judge a player’s performance by his statistics, but for someone who talked so much before Sunday’s Patriots-Dolphins game, Miami linebacker Joey Porter sure had a quiet game.

Pats 27, Dolphins 17: New England tames Wildcat and takes control of AFC East
FOXBORO — The New England Patriots weren’t as crisp on offense as they’d been in recent games, and defensively they didn’t do as good a job against the Dolphins’ Wildcat offense as they would have liked.

Jim Donaldson: Dolphins didn’t learn their lesson with Moss
FOXBORO — Rookie cornerback Vontae Davis already had one interception and had his eye on another as he ran down the right sideline alongside Randy Moss.

For Pats, 1 for 4 inside the 20 raises a red flag
FOXBORO — Between the 20-yard lines, the Patriots had no problems moving the ball up and down the field in their 27-17 victory over the Dolphins yesterday at Gillette Stadium.

Analysis: Pats do enough to get the divisional win they needed
FOXBORO — Last year, the Patriots missed out on the playoffs because they didn’t have the best record within AFC East divisional play. They don’t want that to happen again this year, so they played yesterday’s game against the Dolphins, who entered 3-0 in division play compared to the Pats’ 1-1, as if it were a must-win.

11/08/2009

Pats’ lineman Pryor overcomes ADHD
FOXBORO — The fact that Patriots rookie defensive lineman Myron Pryor has gone from unheralded sixth-round draft pick to regular contributor for the sixth-ranked defense in the NFL is accomplishment enough.

Jim Donaldson: Dolphins not likely to sneak up on Patriots
FOXBORO — It’s been two weeks since the Patriots played a game; three weeks since they played a game in this country.

Up close with . . . Wes Welker
FOXBORO — Some things are all about timing or the best situation at the right time.

Analysis: Patriots have the edge in most categories
No one has to tell the Patriots what is at stake in Sunday’s game against the Dolphins: through Miami is 3-4, all three of their wins have come against AFC East foes. New England, meanwhile, is 1-1 in division play and can ill afford to take a second loss if it is going to reclaim the title it had a stranglehold on from 2003-07, but which Miami claimed last year on a tiebreaker.

11/07/2009

Patriots wary of Ginn’s returns
FOXBORO — How do you win a game in the NFL and score 30 points when you have only 104 yards of total offense?

Patriots journal: Belichick says Moss is smartest receiver he’s seen
FOXBORO — Bill Belichick poked a little fun at himself but also shed a little light on what makes Randy Moss an exceptional receiver on Friday, giving fascinating insight into one of the best wideouts in NFL history.

11/06/2009

Pats’ Mayo says patience is key in defending against Wildcat
FOXBORO — When the Miami Dolphins unveiled their now-infamous Wildcat package against the Patriots in Week Three last season, it was certainly something New England had not prepared for.

Patriots journal: Porter says refs have different rules for Brady
FOXBORO — Apparently, giving Joey Porter credit for holding back a bit during his Wednesday conference call with New England reporters was premature.

11/05/2009

Dolphins’ Porter can’t hide hate for Patriots
FOXBORO — Joey Porter tried. He really did.

Patriots journal: Tougher competition is coming
FOXBORO — The Patriots played the NFL version of the junior varsity in the two weeks leading up to their bye, beating up on the Titans and Buccaneers by a combined score of 94-7 with the offense reminding many of the 2007 glory days.

11/04/2009

Patriots hope to continue second-half dominance
FOXBORO — With the bye week behind them, the Patriots are focusing on the second half of the year.

Patriots journal: Knee surgery will keep Green out for a month
FOXBORO – Patriots defensive end Jarvis Green confirmed yesterday that he had knee surgery last week. He could miss up to a month of action.

11/03/2009

Declawing Miami’s wildcat still a priority for Patriots
With the amount of attention it seems the Miami Dolphins’ Wildcat offensive package receives, you’d sometimes think they invented the forward pass, not simply popularized the single-wing formation that has been in use for decades.

Patriots Journal: Brady thinks he may play at age 40
Fresh off a long bye weekend in the Miami sunshine, Tom Brady seemed to be in good spirits during his weekly radio appearance on Boston’s WEEI, giving Patriots fans some great news when he declared himself to be in great shape physically.

Jim Donaldson: Football, not baseball, is the true ‘National Pastime’
What with the World Series going on, the Fall Classic and all that, this seems like a good time to ask the simple sports question: What is America’s “National Pastime?”

11/01/2009

On the bye week, a look at this year’s distinctive Patriots
The New England Patriots players are away on a bit of a fall vacation, enjoying their three-day bye weekend in places like Pittsburgh, where Leigh Bodden was inducted into the Duquesne Athletics Hall of Fame on Saturday, or Louisiana, where Kevin Faulk returned home to see his Louisiana State Tigers take on Tulane and spend some time with family.

Up close with Kendall Simmons
FOXBORO — For an offensive lineman, job requirement number one is being super-sized. These days, the men in the trenches routinely top 300 pounds.

10/30/2009

Jim Donaldson: For Patriots, the toughest battle could be staying healthy
So far, so good for the Patriots. But there’s still a lot of football left to be played, and the New England doesn't have any players left to spare.

Self-scouting part of Patriots bye-week focus
FOXBORO – Without an opponent to prepare for, Bill Belichick has always taken advantage of the Patriots’ bye week by using two or three days to reinforce some fundamentals and improve his team.

Patriots’ Brady named AFC offensive player of the month
FOXBORO – While the fandom frets about Tom Brady’s performances coming off his knee injury – with many expecting a repeat of his off-the-charts 2007 season – the NFL seems to think QB12 is pretty close to the player he was pre-Bernard Polian.

10/29/2009

Patriots, for now, back to being beasts of East
FOXBORO — Some things are aberrations: For example, the 2008 AFC East title residing somewhere other than New England, where it has been held captive for six of the eight seasons since 2001.

Patriots Journal: Meriweather is staying humble
FOXBORO — Brandon Meriweather is starting to get noticed, though that’s not hard to do when you pull in two interceptions in one game, including one for a touchdown.

10/28/2009

Patriots must continue to play hard-nose, team football to reach goals
The New England Patriots are enjoying their bye week, sitting atop the AFC East with a 5-2 record and having thoroughly dominated their last two opponents by the combined score of 94-7.

10/25/2009

Patriots 35, Buccaneers 7: Meriweather and Pats’ defene lead the way to rout in London
LONDON — The flashbulbs were popping, the crowd was energized, and the loyalties were split – other than the fact that it was in London, Sunday’s New England Patriots-Tampa Bay Buccaneers game felt a lot like a Super Bowl.

Jim Donaldson: Patriots prove that Bucs aren’t really in the same league
LONDON – They could play in Tampa or Foxboro, in London, England; London, Ontario; New London, Connecticut; or Timbuktu.

London fans see a good Tom Brady, but not a flawless one
LONDON – It wasn’t Tom Brady at his best.

Patriots believe London experience has made them closer as a team
LONDON – Before their 2007-08 championship-winning season, the new-look Boston Celtics spent a week in Italy during the preseason, and they said that experience together, all of them in a foreign place, helped forge the bonds that carried the team through the year.

Patriots-Buccaneers postgame analysis
LONDON – On paper, it looked like this would be an easy win for the Patriots against a winless Tampa Bay team. In reality, New England got on the board quickly when Brandon Meriweather read a third-down pass on the fifth play of the game perfectly and ran untouched 39 yards to the end zone.

English Patriots fans have gotten over that unpleasant 1776 thing
LONDON — When they were first married in 1993, Mandy Ward romantically thought she and her husband, Mark, would always have Paris — just like Rick and Ilsa in the classic film Casablanca.

Patriots-Buccaneers Analysis
LONDON — If the NFL has taught us anything, it is that on any given Sunday (or Monday, or Saturday or even Thursday), the greatest of teams can fall to one perceived as weaker.

Buccaneers’ Morris seeks his first win at Patriots’ expense
LONDON — When Raheem Morris speaks, the words tumble out, as though he’s been given a time limit on how long he can talk and he’s trying to fit in as many words as possible in the allotted moments.

10/24/2009

Patriots find that London venue is anything but ordinary
LONDON — The New England Patriots wasted little time getting down to business Friday in London, heading to practice just hours after touching down in the United Kingdom.

Patriots Journal: Kraft envisions an NFL team in London
LONDON — Patriots owner Robert Kraft held a brief meeting with the press in London during the team’s practice at The Brit Oval cricket pitch on Friday and made an eye-opening statement about the future of football in the United Kingdom.

Jim Donaldson: Roger Goodell sees opportunities for NFL to expand in London
LONDON – NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell ought to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics.

10/23/2009

Patriots in London: Former kicker John Smith is now the team’s ambassador in his home country
LONDON –– When the Patriots’ plane lands Friday morning in England, there’ll be an ambassador on board.

10/22/2009

Patriots vow this trip will be all business

Patriots journal: Ninkovich is a London vet

10/21/2009

Tate's long wait to take the field for Pats is finally over
Serious knee injures last season playing for the Tar Heels ended Brandon Tate's senior year.

10/22/2009

Gary Guyton, unlikely leader of Patriots’ defense, remains humble
FOXBORO – It’s not every day that Bill Belichick gets on the phone to recruit players to join the Patriots.

10/21/2009

Patriots journal: Thomas' status remains unknown

10/20/2009

Pats cut Galloway, release and re-sign Banta-Cain and Alexander
The two linebackers receive longer contracts and raises, but had to be released from their previous deals in order to be eligible to sign new pacts.

Patriots journal: Pats ready to head across the pond

10/21/2009

Brady, Patriots eager to impress London crowd
LONDON (AP) - After nine seasons in the NFL and three Super Bowl titles, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is about to embark on a new experience.

10/19/2009

Patriots’ Maroney finally turns in big game against Titans
FOXBORO — Laurence Maroney has heard the whispers all season.

10/20/2009

Patriots Journal: Thomas didn’t start against Titans for strategic reasons
FOXBORO – Adalius Thomas had started every game this season and all but one since joining the Patriots in 2007 as the highest-priced free agent in the Belichick Era, but he was a healthy scratch in Sunday’s 59-0 triumph over the Tennessee Titans.

For 0-6 Bucs, playing Patriots in London will be no vacation
The only thing worse right now for the 0-6 Bucs is the prospect of being thoroughly embarrassed on two continents.

10/18/2009

Patriots 59, Titans 0: Pats' avalanche buries Tennessee
New England piles up more than 600 total yards and breaks or ties 10 franchise records in rout of Titans.

Jim Donaldson: Another snow job by the Pats
Patriots remain perfect when the weather is anything but.

Patriots 59, Titans 0: Pats finally come up big

Patriots 59, Titans 0: Butler plays with heavy heart, after ex-college teammate is stabbed to death at UConn

Patriots 59, Titans 0: Game analysis
How the game broke down.

Patriots journal: Thomas' healthy scratch may be a sign of Belichick's displeasure with the veteran linebacker

Pats should have no trouble laying Titans to waste
Kicking around some football topics while waiting for the Pats and Titans to kick off at 4:15:

Duquesne coach stayed one step ahead of Patriots’ Bodden
FOXBORO — Leigh Bodden can still see him: the young taskmaster, his hat pulled low on his brow as he stroked his chin and watched the cornerback’s every move, his eyes fixed in an “evil stare.”

Up Close with Patriots tight end Chris Baker
FOXBORO — Chris Baker became the latest in a string of players who have played for both the Patriots and the Jets when the tight end signed a free-agent contract with New England this year.

Patriots-Titans Analysis
At the start of this NFL season, the New England Patriots were supposed to be a Super Bowl contender and the Tennessee Titans were supposed to continue the winning ways they had enjoyed the previous two seasons.

10/16/2009

Titans’ Chris Johnson is pure danger
His blistering speed is just one of the reasons teams have had a hard time containing him. He runs hard, makes guys miss and has the breakaway speed that gives opposing defenses nightmares.

Patriots Journal: Mankins, Meriweather and Warren fined for infractions against Broncos
FOXBORO — The Patriots’ 20-17 loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday didn’t only cost the Patriots an opportunity to gain sole possession of first place in the AFC East standings, it cost Logan Mankins, Brandon Meriweather and Ty Warren some money as well.

10/15/2009

Titans have Patriots on high alert
The Pats all feel Tennessee, which finished 13-3 last year, is far better than its 0-5 record would indicate.

Jim Donaldson: Pat Patriot still wearing well at age 50

Patriots journal: Lack of big play is no small issue

10/14/2009

Once again, Seau answers call to duty
The 40-year-old linebacker remains in terrific physical condition and a huge fan of Bill Belichick.

Patriots journal: With Light hurt, Vollmer may play at right tackle as Kaczur switches to left side

10/13/2009

Seau: I'm back with the Patriots
The veteran linebacker confirms that he's signed a contract with New Engkand for the rest of the season

Patriots journal: Belichick happy to have Mayo back

To beat Patriots, Broncos made all the right moves
Here is something the NFL hasn’t seen much of in the last decade: Tom Brady turning the ball over late in a game with a chance to win it.

Sputtering attack holds back Patriots
FOXBORO –– On paper, the Patriots have one of the best offenses in the NFL.

Patriots journal: Gostkowski puts miss behind him
FOXBORO — When Patriots placekicker Stephen Gostkowski found out that his 53-yard field goal in the first quarter against the Denver Broncos was the longest of his career, he didn’t celebrate.

10/11/2009

Broncos 20, Patriots 17: Denver boots the Pats
Broncos rally from a 17-7 halftime deficit and beat the Patriots in overtime

Jim Donaldson: The student shakes up the teacher

Broncos 20, Patriots 17: On a day of missed connections, the one between Brady and Welker was the biggest
'Tom was thinking one thing, I was thinking another,' said Welker, and a sure TD pass was botched.

Patriots journal: Defense bolstered by return of Jerod Mayo

Belichick wrote the book on winning, and then shared it with McDaniels
In February 2008, Bill Belichick gave his offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels, a bible of sorts: Five typed pages of things Belichick felt McDaniels should know in order to be a successful NFL head coach and run an organization.

Patriots-Broncos pregame analysis
There may be few games on the New England Patriots’ schedule this season more intriguing than Sunday’s game in Denver. Josh McDaniels knows the Patriots plays and personnel better than any other coach outside of New England, and Bill Belichick knows McDaniels’ tendencies as a play-caller.

Up close with . . . . Matthew Slater
FOXBORO – Matthew Slater is someone most people would likely consider an old soul. A month past his 24th birthday, the safety/special teamer is quiet and respectful, and exudes a sense of calm. He also has a gravelly voice that sounds like it should belong to a favorite great uncle or R & B radio host.

04/09/2009

Tank Williams ready for second chance with Patriots
Lost amid all the speculation over who might join the New England Patriots in the coming weeks – draft picks, Jason Taylor, Julius Peppers – is one player already on the roster who could have a big impact.