With the Patriots playing at home Monday night we’ve pushed the Tuesday “In The Red Zone” feature back to Wednesday so without further audieu.

The Patriots looked like last years team on Monday night in the 41-7 rout of the Broncos. It was New England’s fifth straight win on MNF to improve their overall record to 17-21 in 38 appearances and that came on the 600^th broadcast of the Monday Night Football. Hard to believe it’s been around for 39 years already.

We start where we always do with Patriots head coach Bill Belichick’s Patriots Tuesday chat on WEEI.

NFL.com’s Adam Schefter was the first to report that Rodney Harrison suffered a torn quad at the end of the third quarter and that his season, and possibly the career of the 15-year NFL vet, is over.  This will be his third season ending injury since he came to New England.

With Harrison done for the season, the Patriots need some defensive help and four names keep popping into my head. Those being CB Ty Law, S John Lynch, LB Rosevelt Colvin and LB Junior Seau. Granted only one is a safety but all four know the system and there are younger players in the linebacking corps or one of the corners who could possibly play the safety position. The consensus seems to be that the Patriots will make overture’s to bring Lynch back this week.

Running back Sammy Morris also missed the second half with a knee injury and there’s no news there yet either. Hopefully it isn’t too serious as Laurence Maroney is already on IR, LaMont Jordan has missed the last two games and another injury to the backfield would leave the team very thin.  As it is i think we’re looking at he return of Kyle Eckel.  Hey is Corey Dillon still in shape?

Reiss’ Pieces has the “Bits from Belichick” after a Week 7 rout of a conference foe.

Karen Guregian of the Herald has the Good, the Bad and not the Ugly from Week 7.

The ProJo’s Jim Donaldson says the Pats were pumped on Monday night.

The Patriots media department released some game notes and we get them from Eric McHugh of the Patriot-Ledger in Quincy.

Monday night was Andre Tippett Night and he was celebrated at halftime of the game.

Don’t forget to look for the official Sox & Dawgs Rams – Patriots Week 8 Preview available on Friday morning at your local computer.

After a great start by the Buffalo Bills the Patriots find themselves 1 game out of first in the AFC East heading into Week 8.

1. Buffalo 5-1
2. New England 4-2
3. New York 3-3
4. Miami 2-4

AFC East Week 8 games are:

• Patriots host the Rams
• Bills visits the Dolphins
• Jets entertain Herm Edwards and the Chiefs

Elsewhere in the NFL:

The San Francisco 49ers fired head coach Mike Nolan on Monday and replaced him with linebackers coach Mike Singletary, who won a Super Bowl with the Chicago Bears and is a Pro Football Hall of Fame member.  Singletary who has no head coaching experience was chosen over offensive coordinator Mike Martz, who is a former head coach with the St. Louis Rams. 

The Cleveland Browns suspended TE Kellen Winslow Jr. two days after he went off on club officials for how they handled his recent hospitalization with swollen balls or a staph infection depending on who you believe.  The Browns weren’t happy with him airing their dirty laundry and decided to do something about it and he will not play in their next game Sunday against Jacksonville and it will cost him $235,294.  Maybe the “soldier” should have taken his swollen balls, kept his mouth shut and went home.

The Result

On the 600th game of Monday Night Football, the New England Patriots came out and really played well, something they haven’t always done on Monday nights.  If you take away the sacks of Matt Cassel it was a 180 degree turnaround from last Sundays loss in San Diego as they pasted the AFC West leading Denver Broncos 41-7 Monday Night at Gillette Stadium in front of the 154th consecutive sell out crowd in Foxboro MA.

I figured this game had the potential to be another ugly loss for the New England Patriots.  But I underestimated one thing…the heart of a champion.  We saw it late last week with the Boston Red Sox and their improbable Game 5 comeback from the dead and now we saw an old fashioned New England Patriots ass kicking of a team in the Denver Broncos that has always given them fits whether its at home or on the road.  Maybe Hall of Famer Andre Tippett inspired them on his night at the Razor whatever it was it was a pleasure to watch.

The team was clicking in just about every phase tonight and looked good on both sides of the ball as the forced five turnovers while not having one of their own.  They had Jay Cutler and Patrick Ramsey constantly under pressure, the pass coverage was much better than last week and run defense looked good.  Offensively, Matt Cassel threw three TD passes, two went to Randy Moss, one to Wes Welker, Sammy Morris ran for a TD, undrafted rookie BenJarvus Green-Ellis ran for his first NFL TD and Stephen Gostkowski kicked two field goals.

It was a great rebound win after a subpar effort last week and it keeps them one game behind the Buffalo Bills in the AFC East race.

Scoring Plays

1^st Quarter

• NE – Gostkowski 31 yard FG
• NE – Gostkowski 40 yard FG

2^nd Quarter

• NE – Morris 4 yard run – Gostkowski PAT
• NE – Cassel 14 yard pass to Moss – Gostkowski PAT

3^rd Quarter

• NE – Cassel 27 yard pass to Moss – Gostkowski PAT
• NE – Cassel 6 yard pass to Welker – Gostkowski PAT

4^th Quarter

• DEN – Cutler 11 yard pass to Graham – Prater PAT
• NE – Green-Ellis 1 yard TD run – Gostkowski PAT

Offensive Player of the Game

New England running back Sammy Morris had 138 yards on 16 carries and 1 touchdown all in the first half before leaving the game with a knee injury late in the first half.

Defensive Player of the Game

New England rookie linebacker Jerod Mayo had 8 tackles all of them solo and recovered a fumble.

Turning Point(s) of the Game

The early Denver turnovers gave New England 6 first quarter points and some poor penalties by the Broncos extended a drive that led to a touchdown.

Continue reading →

The New England Patriots have placed RB Laurence Maroney on the injured reserve with a shoulder injury.  The move ends his season.

In other roster moves they activated G Stephen Neal from the PUP list, placed CB Mike Richardson on the 53-man roster and released C/G Dan Connolly.

The Patriots will look to rebound from an awful beating last Sunday night at the hands of the San Diego Chargers and they have to do it against their own personal nemesis, the Denver Broncos.  The Patriots always have a difficult time with Denver whether it’s on the road or like tonight’s matchup at home in Gillette Stadium.  Bill Belichick in his career is only 2-8 against the Broncos and as the Patriots head coach he is 2-4 plus a playoff loss.  The Patriots haven’t beaten the Broncos in Foxboro since October 24, 1999 when they won, 24-23 as Terry Allen rushed for 106 yards and 2 TD’s.

This is the 600th Monday Night Football Game in NFL history.  The Broncos also played in #400 and #500 both times against the Raiders.

Al Riveron will be tonight’s referee.  It’s his first Patriots game in his first season as a NFL referee.

In case you missed it don’t forget to check out the official Sox & Dawgs Week 7 Broncos-Patriots game preview. It has all the game information you need including odds, rosters for both teams, series history and news and notes on the teams.

Tonight is Andre Tippett Night.  The team has been honoring him all weekend and have had his Hall of Fame bust on display at The Hall at Patriot Place.

Patriots defensive coordinator Dean Pees spoke to media this week and he doesn’t think the defense has been as bad as it seems.  He was in San Diego for the game, right?

Getting to know…offensive lineman Oliver Ross.

After practice on Saturday the Patriots upgraded three players from doubtful to questionable they were: LB Eric Alexander, WR Kelley Washington and CB Jonathan Wilhite. Washington and Alexander missed the last two games with injuries, while Wilhite was suffering during the week from flu-like symptoms.

Right now it’s possible that both RB Laurence Maroney and RB LaMont Jordan may miss their second consecutive games as they were remained doubtful along with DL Jarvis Green and OL Nick Kaczur.

Denver WR Brandon Stokley may not play Monday night because of a recent concussion. And at least one member of the Denver media doesn’t think the risk is worth it and that he should sit out this week.

Broncos QB Jay Cutler says turnovers have hurt the Denver offense recently.

When it comes to the passing game, the Patriots are coming up short.

In case you missed it, injured Patriots QB Tom Brady issued a statement to the fans this week.

After losing Brady the Patriots are still looking for consistency this season.

The reigning NFL MVP, New England Patriots QB Tom Brady issued a statement on his website regarding his knee surgery.

“I would like to thank everyone for the well wishes and support you have given me throughout my career. It has been particularly helpful during these past six weeks. It is great to know you are all behind me, not only during the good times, but also during the challenging times. On October 6, I had surgery to repair my knee from the injury that took place four weeks earlier in our season opener.

“The surgery went well and my doctor described my knee as “rock solid.” Unfortunately, in the week following the surgery, I developed an infection. The infection is very treatable and, through a course of antibiotics, it will be knocked out of my system. We were proactive with the infection and the doctors went in for a second procedure this past Wednesday to clean and to test the wound. The results of the tests have all been positive and we are very thankful. I am excited to begin rehabbing my knee and will continue preparing for 2009. I’m looking forward to supporting my teammates throughout the rest of this season, as we strive to achieve the goals we set as a team months ago. Thanks again for your letters and well wishes. The support has meant so much to me during these past few weeks.

“I encourage all of my young fans to keep your bodies and minds as fit as possible and to deal with whatever challenges you may face. We never know what life is going to throw us. The best offense is to be prepared whether for the next school test, the next game, or for an unexpected challenge.

“Thanks again -TB.”

Samsung, The Official HDTV of the NFL, is looking for fans to come out and share their stories of “That’s How I See It” with a chance to have their story turned into a commercial that will air on NBC during the pregame show of Super Bowl XLIII on Feb. 1, 2009.

Fans are invited to stop by the NFL Super Ad mobile studio at Gillette Stadium to tell their story of pregame rituals, family traditions surrounding the NFL or defining moments while watching football. Selected stories will be posted on nfl.com/superad where fans can vote on their favorites Nov. 20, 2008 – Jan. 4, 2009.

WHEN: Oct. 20, 2008

WHERE: Gillette Stadium (Back area of Lots 12/13) One Patriot Place Foxborough, MA 02035
4 – 7 p.m.

WHY: Samsung and the NFL are giving fans the opportunity to share their passion and stories surrounding America’s favorite sport as part of this year’s “Super Ad: That’s How I See It” campaign. The NFL Super Ad mobile studio will be making up to 20 stops in various NFL markets at stadiums and at Samsung’s retail partner Best Buy now through Oct. 26. For a full schedule, please visit www.nfl.com/superad.

The Boston Globe’s Mike Reiss is reporting that NFL MVP Tom Brady had a second procedure done to his knee on Wednesday because of an infection from the first surgery.  While second surgeries are uncommon, they do happen as Indianapolis QB Peyton Manning also had a second surgery for his knee (infected bursa sac). 

Also from the opening of head coach Bill Belichick’s press conference on Friday Morning from Eric McHugh at the Patriot-Ledger in Quincy:

Patriots coach Bill Belichick opened his news conference Friday morning with a question.

“Everybody get a good night’s sleep?” he asked.

 Not really. You?

“Couldn’t turn it off,” he said.

Of course, Belichick was referring to the Red Sox’ magical comeback win over the Rays Thursday night/Friday morning. In case you just emerged from a deep, dark cave that didn’t have Internet access or TV reception, the Sox trailed 7-0 in the seventh and rallied to win 8-7, forcing the series back to Tampa for Game 6.

“It didn’t look too good when it was 7-0,” Belichick said. “Then it’s 7-1, and then it’s 7-4 and 7-6. I thought the Red Sox played with the heart of a champion last night. Pretty impressive.”

Belichick noted one big difference between baseball and football: “You can’t run out the clock (with a big lead). You gotta get them out. You can’t run out the clock. Joe Torre told me that. And (Tony) LaRussa verified it.”

This Week

The New England Patriots entertain the Denver Broncos at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro MA on Monday at 8:30 p .m.

The Patriots are 1-1 at home, 1-1 against the AFC West and 2-2 in the AFC. The Broncos are 1-1 on the road, 0-0 against the AFC East and 2-2 in the conference.

Here are the rosters for the Broncos and the Patriots.

Here are the projected starting lineups for the game.

The Line/Prediction

As of Thursday the line on the game from Yahoo! Sports is Patriots -3. The over/under is 47.

My prediction is Broncos 31, Patriots, 21.  Give the points and take the over. I am 1-4 against the spread and 3 for 5 on calling the over/under in 2008.

Tickets

The Patriots are reporting the game as a sell out. It is the 154th consecutive sellout dating back to the 1994 season opener. The record includes preseason, regular season and playoff games.

Tickets to the game, if available, may be purchased through Ticketmaster. You can check the availability here. Many times tickets are released in the last 48 hours prior to the game.

Getting To The Game

If you’re lucky enough to be going to the game at the Razor make sure you check out the links.

Here is the up to date weather forecast for the game from The Weather Channel.

Click for stadium directions, parking information, parking map, specific MBTA train times for this game and a Gillette Stadium seating chart.

Tailgating

Here’s a bunch of different tailgating recipes from Tailgaiting America. There’s something there for everyone and every type of meal or snack. I’ve tried some of the recipes and they’re very good and for good measure here is one of my own.

And with tailgating many people enjoy some adult beverages. With that in mind check out Drink Nation for how to make all sorts of great drinks. You can look things up by name, ingredient(s) or by theme.

Whether it’s at the game, a bar or someone’s house moderation is always the key to a great time. Please don’t drink and drive and designate a sober driver. Remember You Drink, You Drive, You Lose.

BROADCAST INFORMATION

Television

ESPN is televising the game to the entire country as the Monday Night Football Game and Mike Tirico will do the play-by-play while Ron Jaworski and Tony Kornheiser will handle the game analysis.  In the Boston television market the game will also be broadcast on WCVB-TV 5.  In Denver the game can be seen on KDVR-TV 31 per the NFL television contract.

The channel for Direct TV Feed of the game is 206 (Ch 73 for HD).

For those of you overseas here is some general information on NFL Broadcasts for the 2008 season.

Patriots All-Access airs tonight at 7 p.m. on WCVB TV 5 in Boston. It will also be simulcast on the team website at the same time. Make sure you check out the Patriots Football Network for information on when you can see Patriots All-Access in your market.

Radio

The Patriots Rock Radio Network broadcasts the game from flagship station WBCN-FM 104.1 in Boston. Gil Santos handles the play-by-play and former Patriot Gino Cappelletti does the color.

It all starts with Gary Tanguay, Scott Zolak and Andy Gresh and the pregame show at 5:30 p.m. along the network.

The post game starts after the final gun and continues for three hours.

If you are outside of the broadcast area of the stations on the Patriots Rock Radio Network you can purchase NFL Field Pass which allows you to listen to any NFL game live. You can also pick which teams broadcasters you want to listen to.

All NFL games are also available on Sirius Satellite Radio. The Patriots Rock Radio Network call is available on Channel 127, the Broncos Radio Network has Dave Logan calling the game and David Diaz-Infante  provides the game analysis. Their call is available on Channel 126.

The game will also be heard nationally along the Westwood One Radio Network with Marv Albert on play-by-play and Boomer Esiason providing analysis.

The game will also be heard nationally in Spanish on Univision Radio via ESPN Deportes.  Clemson Smith Ruiz and Roberto Abramowitz will call the game.

Continue reading →

Seems that former Miami Dolphins running back Mercury Morris has told the Nashville City Paper that he hopes the 5-0 Tennessee Titans go undefeated and get the chance to join his 1972 Miami Dolphins with an undefeated season.

“I’ll be watching the Tennessee Titans, and I hope to see them go unbeaten,” Morris said. “We’d like a little company.”

WTF???  Did Morris smoke the chronic that Ricky Williams passed on during the Dolphins bye week?  

Morris is on the record from last year this is from November 15, 2007 when New England was 9-0.

“They have 10 more icebergs to go through in this Titanic trip that they’re talking about. So far, nobody has made it across except us. So we’re over, docked here, waiting on you. I respect the Patriots if they do that. But don’t call me when you’re in my town, call me when you’re on my block and I see you next door moving your furniture in.”

I really don’t get the shift on attitude.  What difference does a year make?  The Titans still have 11 more games to the season plus playoffs and a potenial Super Bowl appearance to as Morris puts it “climb that mountain”.  There’s 11 more icebergs and he’s already taking about company he just better hope that ship doesn’t hit one of them and end up like the Titanic.

With back-to-back West Coast games the Patriots stayed for the week in California to avoid long back-to-back flights. The first leg of the trip was a good one with a win over the Niners, it’s the second half of the trip, the pasting by the Chargers, the club wants to forget. Now it’s back to work as they prepare for the one non-division team that has given them fits over the years, the Denver Broncos. Mike Shanahan’s crew comes here for a Monday Night battle under the lights with the advantage of knowing he is the one coach who seems to really have Bill Belichick’s number. For some reason the Broncos are the Patriots kryptonite.

And unfortunately the Red Sox did nothing Monday to ease our pain as the lifeless Fenway crowd watched them get pasted in Game 3.

We start where we always do with Patriots head coach Bill Belichick’s Patriots Monday chat on WEEI.

Reiss’ Pieces has the “Bits from Belichick” after a Week 6 road loss.

Karen Guregian of the Herald has the Good, the Bad and the Ugly from Week 6.

While everyone is going to want to blame the secondary (see Deltha O’Neal) for the big pass plays that were given up on Sunday night the truth of matter is the problem goes all the way down the defensive line.

For the critics to compare little used 4^th year back up Matt Cassel to NFL MVP Tom Brady just isn’t fair.

The secondary is missing Asante Samuel maybe as much as the offense is missing Tom Brady.

Don’t forget to look for the official Sox & Dawgs Week 7 Broncos-Patriots game preview available on Friday morning at your local computer.

After a great start by the Buffalo Bills the Patriots find themselves 1 game out of first in the AFC East heading into Week 7.

• Buffalo 4-1
• New England 3-2
• New York 3-2
• Miami 2-3

AFC East Week 7 games are:

• Patriots host the Broncos on MNF
• Dolphins host the Ravens
• Bills entertain the Chargers
• Jets visit the Raiders

Ed. Note: Sorry we’re a bit late this morning as they say in the broadcast industry we were experiencing some technical difficulties.