The Jaguars Again (Lee: design, retire, average)

[Florida2014]

Yes, seemed for a stretch that the Patriots relied on the referees to make interference calls on long passes to get their yards because from the 1st thru the 3rd quarter they were unable to move the ball on the Jags D in any other way. The worst call was probably the fumble by Lewis that Jack stripped and wasn't touched, yet they blew the whistle. But whatever, the Patriots were moving the ball on the Jags in the 4th quarter and Amendola couldn't be stopped for some reason (zone???). Frustrating as, again, I feel like we were the better team outside of them having the GOAT QB in Brady.

[EricBoyd]

Why didn't the Jag defender, who made helmet contact with Gronkowski, also get sent to the locker room for "concussion protocol"? I didn't even think that was worth a penalty, as it seemed to be the usual kind of hit where the helmet contact was rather incidental and the shoulder pads took the brunt of the impact.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by Florida2014

Yes, seemed for a stretch that the Patriots relied on the referees to make interference calls on long passes to get their yards because from the 1st thru the 3rd quarter they were unable to move the ball on the Jags D in any other way. The worst call was probably the fumble by Lewis that Jack stripped and wasn't touched, yet they blew the whistle. But whatever, the Patriots were moving the ball on the Jags in the 4th quarter and Amendola couldn't be stopped for some reason (zone???). Frustrating as, again, I feel like we were the better team outside of them having the GOAT QB in Brady.

Absolutely. If Brady sees questionable contact between a receiver and a defender he often throws the ball that way, even if it's not really THAT close because he'll probably get the call. I understand it's frustrating for opponents, but it's heads up playing by TB12. There's no denying that.

I don't agree at all that the officiating is what won the game for the Pats. They just moved the ball well towards the end of the game against a Jags defense that looked gassed. They were moving the ball well when Lewis fumbled- a call that went the Jags way and could have easily been overturned as it looked like he pinned the ball against his body after it initially came loose. For the record, I think not overturning it was the RIGHT call since the evidence to the contrary wasn't irrefutable; but if the ruling on the field was down by contact, there wasn't enough evidence to overturn it the other way either. That was a big call for the Jags (I though that iced the game with the momentum swing). They then moved it well again the next two drives. The Jags played well the first three quarters, but you need a lot more separation to beat a Patriots team that's so strong in the 4th. They didn't do enough.

This was a hard fought game and the Patriots, as they usually do, grinded a little harder for the whole game and made fewer mistakes than the Jaguars. I absolutely understand why the Patriots are frustrating to play against, but there's no mystique or mystery as to why they're so consistently successful. They condition harder than most teams (which is why they play so well in the 4th), they are well-coached (which is why they almost always commit fewer stupid penalties), and the quarterback, while not the strongest or most athletic, is the most prepared and makes more heads-up plays than his opponents (like the PI plays on deep balls). It's simple stuff that they just do well.

It was a fun one to watch. A lot of people up here underestimated the Jags and I think they learned something. But I can't imagine the Jags doing any better with Bortles as QB. He played what was essentially the game of his life yesterday and they still came up short. You can't get a delay of game in that situation, you have to be able to make better passes consistently (the game plan was to stop the run and force Bortles to win it and he couldn't- even at his best). That defense is tough, but you need a better QB.

[tackup3]

Originally Posted by Florida2014

Yes, seemed for a stretch that the Patriots relied on the referees to make interference calls on long passes to get their yards because from the 1st thru the 3rd quarter they were unable to move the ball on the Jags D in any other way. The worst call was probably the fumble by Lewis that Jack stripped and wasn't touched, yet they blew the whistle. But whatever, the Patriots were moving the ball on the Jags in the 4th quarter and Amendola couldn't be stopped for some reason (zone???). Frustrating as, again, I feel like we were the better team outside of them having the GOAT QB in Brady.

I felt that the Patriots long passes were bait for a flag rather than a high percentage play. It's too bad it worked for them.

Jaguars are a good team, they have a great offensive line, Bortles had all day. They could use some more options at WR

[Florida2014]

I think that was Barry Church who made the hit. He didn't have any concussion symptoms as Gronk did (wobbled while getting up) so he didn't get taken out of the game. The NFL now basically has a zero tolerance policy when it comes to helmet on helmet hits, every single time it's called whether it was on purpose or not. This obviously was not, which is why Church wasn't removed from the game. That was a critical call too as I believe that was 3rd down and it gave them a first down yet again. I thought the Jags were looking good when Gronk went out but to Bellichek and Brandy's credit they found the hot hand in Amendola and kept going to that repeatedly.

[Florida2014]

I actually like our WRs. Keelan Cole stepped up BIG time when called upon this season and Westbrook got better and better as the season wore on. Lee is a bit streaky but when he's healthy he's a better than average slot receiver, just needs to work on using his hands to catch the ball. On the last deep pass Westbrook actually had the Pats' d-back beaten by a step but he made a great play on the ball by swatting it away. Remember we've played this entire season without a WR1 in Allen Robinson. Which is why I think you have to bring Bortles back for his performance.

I think the team needs the following, in this order:

1) Pass catching TE
2) Another LB to make up for Poz's eventual slowdown
3) A speedy pass catching RB to compliment Fournette. Yeldon came on this season but you can never have enough RBs. Grant has moments as well.....either commit to these guys or move on.
4) Interior O-Line

[Florida2014]

Originally Posted by lrfox

I don't agree at all that the officiating is what won the game for the Pats.

It didn't win or lose the game, but contributed heavily in the Patriots favor. Every analyst on the planet would agree with that. Kudos to the Patriots for relying on penalties to move the ball vs., you know, actually moving the ball on their own for 3/4 of the game.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by Florida2014

It didn't win or lose the game, but contributed heavily in the Patriots favor. Every analyst on the planet would agree with that. Kudos to the Patriots for relying on penalties to move the ball vs., you know, actually moving the ball on their own for 3/4 of the game.

Sure, the penalties helped - they always do. But there wasn't a single penalty or call in that game that was questionable or unfair. They were all the right calls. The PI calls were blatant and the delay of game is as boneheaded as boneheaded comes. The Patriots didn't move the ball well in the first half, but the Jags needed to do a heck of a lot more on their end too - namely put up more points early on. I get that whining about officiating is the easy thing to do, but at the end of the day, a strong/talented Jags defense can't make up for stupid PI penalties and for a one-dimensional offense (which it will always be with Bortles at QB) against the more well-rounded teams in the conference. The Patriots won because they made more plays. Period.

[0nyxStation]

Originally Posted by Northside904

New England EARNED that victory, Jags didn't lay down for the Pats. The Jags are a rising team, so they'll be back next year.

Do you think the Jags would have won if this was a home game instead of away?

[Florida2014]

Originally Posted by lrfox

Sure, the penalties helped - they always do. But there wasn't a single penalty or call in that game that was questionable or unfair. They were all the right calls. The PI calls were blatant and the delay of game is as boneheaded as boneheaded comes. The Patriots didn't move the ball well in the first half, but the Jags needed to do a heck of a lot more on their end too - namely put up more points early on. I get that whining about officiating is the easy thing to do, but at the end of the day, a strong/talented Jags defense can't make up for stupid PI penalties and for a one-dimensional offense (which it will always be with Bortles at QB) against the more well-rounded teams in the conference. The Patriots won because they made more plays. Period.

I disagree, as do many NFL television analysts who looked at the Bouye interference call where he and Cooks hand fought down the sideline and the ball was 5 yards overthrown, yet Bouye gets call because he turned his back and Cooks runs out of bounds, flailing as if he had been stabbed with a knife. That call was a killer.
The delay of game was equally crippling and no one is to blame there but Bortles, his one and only mistake of the game.....same blame could possibly be put onto the coaching staff as well as they looked to me to be late getting back from the sideline after that timeout.

I would hardly call the Jags offense "one-dimensional".......far from it. The team scored a combined 65 points (defense scored once) in two playoff games vs two of the supposed best Ds in the league.

Steelers Game: 164 rush yds, 214 passing yds
Pats Game: 101 rush yds, 293 passing yds

Pretty balanced to me and, in fact, maybe leaning too much on the passing game.