Tag: PATRIOTS
Playoff scenarios for Week 15 in the NFL
AFC
CLINCHED: Pittsburgh – AFC North division title
PITTSBURGH STEELERS (11-2) (vs. New England (10-3), Sunday)
Pittsburgh clinches home-field advantage throughout AFC playoffs with:
-
PIT win + JAX loss or tie
Pittsburgh clinches a first-round bye with:
-
PIT win OR
-
PIT tie + JAX loss
NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (10-3) (at Pittsburgh (11-2), Sunday)
New England clinches AFC East division title with:
-
NE win or tie OR
-
BUF loss or tie
New England clinches a playoff berth with:
-
BAL loss or tie
JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (9-4) (vs. Houston (4-9), Sunday)
Jacksonville clinches a playoff berth with:
-
JAX win OR
-
JAX tie + BUF loss or tie OR
-
JAX tie + BAL loss or tie OR
-
BUF loss + BAL loss OR
-
BAL loss + KC-LAC game does not end in tie
NFC
CLINCHED: Philadelphia – NFC East division title
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (11-2) (at New York Giants (2-11), Sunday)
Philadelphia clinches home-field advantage throughout NFC playoffs with:
-
PHI win + MIN loss
Philadelphia clinches a first-round bye with:
-
PHI win OR
-
PHI tie + LAR loss or tie + NO loss or tie + CAR loss or tie
MINNESOTA VIKINGS (10-3) (vs. Cincinnati (5-8), Sunday)
Minnesota clinches NFC North division title with:
-
MIN win or tie OR
-
DET loss or tie + GB loss or tie
Minnesota clinches a playoff berth with:
-
SEA loss + ATL loss + NO loss OR
-
SEA loss + ATL loss + CAR loss OR
-
SEA loss + ATL loss + DET loss or tie OR
-
SEA loss + ATL tie + NO loss + DET loss or tie OR
-
SEA loss + ATL tie + NO loss + CAR loss
LOS ANGELES RAMS (9-4) (at Seattle (8-5), Sunday)
Los Angeles Rams clinch a playoff berth with:
-
LAR win + DET loss or tie + GB loss or tie + NO loss + ATL loss
Rob Gronkowski suspended one game by NFL
ROB GRONKOWSKI of the New England Patriots has been suspended without pay for one game for a violation of unnecessary roughness rules in Sunday’s game against the Buffalo Bills.
NFL Vice President of Football Operations JON RUNYAN issued the suspension for multiple violations of NFL rules, including Rule 12, Section 2, Article 6 which prohibits “unnecessary roughness” and specifically bans both “forcibly contacting a runner when he is out of bounds,” and “running, diving into…or throwing the body against or on a player who (1) is out of the play or (2) should not have reasonably anticipated such contact by an opponent, before or after the ball is dead,” as well as Rule 12, Section 2, Article 7 which prohibits “initiating unnecessary contact against a player who is in a defenseless posture”. Players who are “on the ground” are both “defenseless” and protected from “forcible” hits to the “head or neck area with the helmet, facemask, forearm, or shoulder.”
In his letter to Gronkowski, Runyan wrote:
“Your actions were not incidental, could have been avoided and placed the opposing player at risk of serious injury. The Competition Committee has clearly expressed its goal of ‘eliminating flagrant hits that have no place in our game.’ Those hits include the play you were involved in yesterday.”
Gronkowski will be eligible to return to the Patriots’ active roster on Tuesday, December 12 following the team’s December 11 Monday night game against the Miami Dolphins.
Under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, the suspension may be appealed within three business days. Appeals are heard and decided by either DERRICK BROOKS or JAMES THRASH, the officers jointly appointed and compensated by the NFL and NFLPA to decide appeals of on-field player discipline.
Report: Edelman has torn ACL
According to Albert Breer, Patriots WR Julian Edelman is expected to be out for the year with a torn ACL in his right knee.
Edelman, who led the Patriots in receptions and receiving yards last season, injured his knee in preseason action against the Lions on Friday night.
Fears confirmed via MRI, Patriots WR Julian Edelman has a complete ACL tear in his right knee, per source.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) August 26, 2017
Vince Wilfork announces retirement from NFL
Former Patriots and Texans NT Vince Wilfork announced his retirement from the NFL today. During his 13-year career, Wilfork won two Super Bowls with New England, and was a 5x Pro-Bowler.
Wilfork played the last two seasons with the Houston Texans. Wilfork finished his career with 16 sacks.
Here is how Wilfork announced his retirement on Twitter:
Well y’all – it’s been a great run, but the time has come. @Kingsford #Sponsored pic.twitter.com/DXfDzholBi
— Vince Wilfork (@wilfork75) August 7, 2017
Former NFL RB Corey Dillon: ‘You’ve got O.J. Simpson in the Hall of Fame and my numbers are better than his’
Former NFL RB Corey Dillon put up some great numbers during his 10-year NFL career with the Bengals and Patriots. Dillon rushed for 11,241 yards and notched 82 rushing touchdowns.
The 42-year-old Dillon feels he belongs in the Hall of Fame.
Dillon, who was a guest of the Bengals Beat Podcast, compared his career to O.j. Simpson:
“I’m just bringing up this guy football-wise, nothing else, nothing whatsoever. You’ve got O.J. Simpson in the Hall of Fame and my numbers are better than his. Why can’t I be there is my question? What validates him being there and I don’t. I’m not talking about his transgressions off the field, that’s on him,” Dillon told the Bengals Beat Podcast
Dillon also compared his career to Hall of Fame inductee Terrell Davis:
“I see Terrell Davis get in, and I’m like, ‘Two Super Bowls, an MVP. This guy only has at the most 9,000 yards.’ I’m thinking, ‘I’ve got a Super Bowl too. I look at this too, you played for the Broncos, okay? Any running back that got in that system, they were good. Tell me one running back that played there that didn’t have stats.”
Does Dillon have a point? His numbers are better than the above-mentioned players, and he won a championship. At times, Dillon did not always have the best reputation, and maybe that’s what is holding him back. However, numbers don’t lie!
Dillon belongs in Canton!
Report: Edelman two-year contract extension with Pats
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Patriots and WR Julian Edelman have agreed to a two-year contract extension. The contract will keep the 31-year-old Edelman in New England until 2019, according to the report.
Edelman led New England in catches and receiving yards in 2016.
Eric Mangini on his relationship w/ Bill Belichick: ‘Hopefully, it can change at some point’
Eric Mangini got an opportunity to coach in the NFL from Bill Belichick. Ultimately, working with Belichick helped Mangini get his first NFL head coaching job with the New York Jets in 2006. However, due to Mangini telling the NFL about the Patriots taping signals, which led to the whole situation with “Spygate” back in 2007. Mangini and Belichick have not spoken in 10 years. Mangini talked to ESPN about his relationship with Belichick:
“Look, Bill is a big part of my life. Bill gave me a tremendous opportunity, and I enjoyed that experience, and I respect him. It’s disappointing, the way it’s been. Hopefully, it can change at some point.”
Mangini told ESPN that he regrets how everything turned out:
“It was never supposed to go the way that it went. It was more about, ‘Hey, don’t do this here.’ It wasn’t about reporting it. Sometimes things get out of hand and get rolling in one direction. It was never, ever supposed to go that way.”
Maybe Dr. Phil can fix this situation!
Report: Hernandez’s third letter for lawyer
According to TMZ Sports, the third letter left in Aaron Hernandez’s cell was not for a gay lover, as previously reported, but for Hernandez’s lawyer. The letters were for Hernandez’s fiancee, his daughter and his attorney Jose Baez, according to the report.
This story has had so many twists and turns. Expect those twists and turns to continue
The Tragedy of Aaron Hernandez
The life of Aaron Hernandez was a Shakespearian tragedy. A story that started well, but ended tragically. Today, Hernandez was found dead in his cell after allegedly hanging himself. Hernandez was only 27. He was recently acquitted of double-murder last Friday, and was in the process of appealing his 2015 murder conviction, which put him in jail for life.
Some would call it sad, while others would call it karma. I call it a tragedy. Where did it go wrong? Hernandez was on top of the world after signing a five-year, 40-million dollar deal back in 2012 with the Patriots. Along with Rob Gronkowski, Hernandez helped form one of the more dynamic tight end combinations in the history of the game. Unfortunately for Hernandez, he seemed to like the street life. He was playing in-between two worlds. He was a New England Patriot by day, and a thug by night. You can’t be both. Ultimately, it all caught up to him, and his double life ended when he killed Odin Lloyd in 2013.
If Hernandez had played in another city, would things have been different? (Hernandez grew up two hours from Boston in Bristol, CT). If his father were alive, would things be different? Hernandez lost his father at the age of 16.
We will never know.
Last week, when asked one word to describe Aaron Hernandez, Patriots’ coach Bill Belichick used the word “tragedy.”
Tragedy is the best word to describe the life of Aaron Hernandez.