Patriots Roll Dice And Lose To Indy, 35-34

I am speechless. I don’t know what to say.

Boston is Devastation Station.

Celts drop two in a row.

Bruins blow a lead with .4 seconds left and lose in OT to Pittsburgh.

I didn’t think it could get worse and it did.

Then the Patriots or should I say Belichick blew it.

I understand why Belichick went for it on 4^th and 2 from his own 28 yard line.

He wanted to win the game. He had faith in his offense and Tom Brady.

But you have to give your defense a chance.

The defense has played above and beyond expectations all season.

I am not sure if Belichick was having 2006 AFC Championship flashbacks where his defense was winded and wilted in the RCA Dome.

Gutsy move but way too risky.

You have to punt the ball and make Manning go at least 70 yards.

Manning was not playing lights out. He was missing wide receivers. He threw interceptions.

What made Bill think that Manning was a shoe in to lead a comeback drive from 70 yards away?

The Patriots could only be beaten by a touchdown not a field goal.

I still believe in Bill, but I am just stunned.

The Steelers and Broncos both lost. The Patriots could have had a stranglehold on the second seed and an inside track to home field advantage.

Opportunity lost.

There were some good things that came out of this devastating loss.

Tom Brady is back. No more knee issues or fears.

He sliced, diced, and torched the Indy defense. He threw for 375 yards and 3 touchdowns. The only blemish on Brady’s performance was a pick in the end zone.

Randy Moss devoured the rookie coverage posting 9 catches for 179 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Their passing offense is back to 2007 form.

Look out NFL.

The running game was good, but it was Kevin Faulk not Laurence Maroney that led the rushing attack with 79 yards.

However, Kevin Faulk couldn’t haul in the critical fourth down pass.

Maroney had a costly fumble in the end zone which was the turning point of the game. Every time Maroney shows a spark, he snuffs it out with a bad play or a sub par performance.

I think his days in New England are numbered.

The Patriots are far from dead, but I would like to see how they bounce back against the Jets.

They need to destroy the Jets not just beat them.

The Patriots need to take out their aggressions.

Not just for them but for every Patriot fan that wanted to kick in their plasma tv last night.

Joe Gill is a featured blogger for Boston Sports Then and Now, Rootzoo.com and Trufan.com