The top seeded Patriots host the underdog Texans as they square off in the AFC Divisional Round of the playoffs at Gillette Stadium. The game would be played in a massive snowstorm as the field was blanketed with snow making for some tough conditions for the players and setting the stage for a classic smash mouth playoff game in the snow. The first half was fun to watch as the Texans took a 14-13 lead in to halftime and Arian Foster already had 130 yards rushing as the Patriots defense could not stop him. Tom Brady did a good job of running the New England offense as the Patriots had some good drives and moved the ball well. The Patriots would receive the ball to start the 2nd half trailing 14-13 and struck quick as Brady threw a screen pass to Stevan Ridley who picked up a couple blocks and leaped over a Texans defender who slipped and fell as Ridley scampered 58 yards for a TD to give the Patriots a 20-14 lead. The Patriots tried some trickery when they lined up for a 49 yard FG midway through the 3rd quarter on 4th & 12 as Ryan Mallett completed a pass to Shane Vereen but he was stopped 1 yard short of the 1st down and the Texans would take over at their own 22 yard line which ended up being just as good as a punt for new England. Houston hit for a big play on their ensuing drive as Andre Johnson went for 45 yards on a pass from Schaub on 3rd & 16 but it was called back for holding and Houston would punt it away. The Patriots marched right down field on the next drive but Brady was picked off in the end zone by Danieal Manning for a huge interception to keep the score 20-14 late in the 3rd quarter. The Texans went 3 and out on their possession and had to punt it away again. New England would move the ball down the field again with a good mix of run & pass as the 3rd quarter would come to and end with the Patriots leading 20-14 and on the verge of scoring as they would begin the 4th quarter with 2nd down & goal on the Houston 1 yard line. The Houston defense made a huge goal line stand as they stuffed Ridley on 2nd down from the 1 yard line and then again on 3rd down as Ridley was crushed behind the line of scrimmage and fumbled but the Patriots were fortunate to recover as Dan Connolly jumped on the ball to keep possession and the Patriots had to settle for a FG by Gostkowski to increase their lead to 23-14 with 13:33 remaining in the game. Houston would once again be forced to punt as the Patriots defense continued ot give them fits in the 2nd half. New England would then put together a statement drive as they pounded the ball on the ground and sprinkled in a few throws as they marched and Ridley finished the drive with a 6 yard TD run to make it 29-14 with under 6:00 to play. The Texans struck late as Arian Foster went 67 yards for a TD on a screen pass to cut the Patriots lead to 29-21 with 1:31 remaining. The Texans kicked the ball away as they still had all of their timeouts and would need to come up with a stop on defense. New England would run the ball 3 straight plays but could not pick up a 1st down as the Texans defense stepped up and Houston used all 3 timeouts to stop the clock. The Patriots were forced to punt and Houston would get the ball back with a chance to tie the game but they will need to go 84 yards as they start the drive at their own 16 yard line with 1:10 remaining in the game and needing a TD & 2 point conversion as they trail 29-21. The Texans got out across their own 33 yard line with 0:33 remaining but could not convert on 4th down & 6 as Schaub's pass was knocked down and the Patriots win 29-21 and will move on to the AFC Championship game.
* The Patriots win a very tough game in terrible weather conditions 29-21 to advance to the AFC Championship Game
* Tom Brady had another strong playoff game in adverse conditions as he went 25 of 33 for 291 yards in the snow
* Arian Foster was shut down in the 2nd half as he was held to 0 yards after gaining 130 yards and running all over the Patriots in the 1st half.
* Patriots LB Brandon Spikes left the game in the 4th quarter and did not return with a concussion
* The Patriots will host the Indianapolis Colts next week in the AFC Championship Game for a trip to the Super Bowl. Indianapolis beat the Bengals 35-31 in their Divisional Game.
* The Cowboys beat the Panthers 17-16 and the 49ers beat the Saints 24-17 in the NFC Divisonal Round.
* Dallas will travel to San Francisco to face the 49ers next week in the NFC Championship Game for a trip to the Super Bowl
TNK, I'm loving your sliders now. I'm 3-1 with the Rams in my offline CC franchise. Only a few issues.
But before I continue, I must unabashedly and [rather rudely] announce that I hated them after my opening games against Arizona and Atlanta.
In the Arizona game, I destroyed them 45-14. Carson Palmer went out and Ryan Lindley came in. I sacked Lindley five times and he tossed four interceptions. On offense for yours truly, Zac Stacy had three rushing touchdowns, 1 receiving touchdown and 200 yards on the ground. I was tempted to fall asleep by the time the game was over.
In the Atlanta game, it was absolute bonkers. The Falcons beat me 48-31. Sam Bradford tossed 8 interceptions and fumbled the ball away three times. I was miffed. Most of the interceptions were my fault, but some of them were headscratchers that had me wondering why in the world 'the ball was going 'that way when I threw it 'that' way!' The fumbles? No explanation. I was only scrambling when I fumbled on one of them. The other? Just in the pocket, being sacked.
Then, enter the Dallas Cowboys game: the turning point of the sliders. This is when I fell in love with them -- no ridiculous scores or insane statlines like the above. Just a fun, sim game. I blew a 19-7 lead. It was 23-19 when I had to drive down the field with no timeouts.
Here's yours truly making fun of the 'amazing' announcing team on Madden when Jim Nantz referenced the Atlanta game when saying Bradford had a strong performance:
Here's Harvey Dahl's holding call that nearly halted the drive:
And of course, last but not least, here's this... hey, if anyone's watched the Greg Jennings Madden '11 "broken leg" touchdown with the "Puts da team on his back", you'll understand the poorly done impersonation:
In the following game against the 0-3 49ers, I beat them 27-13 in a tight battle that was closer than what the score indicated. Kaepernick was awful. He tossed three interceptions and only passed for around 115 yards, although Frank Gore went for 130+. Their only touchdown came from a, you guessed it, Sam Bradford fumble (Justin Smith returned it 89 yards).
I'm having a blast.
But the fumbles have been an issue and another thing that's bothering me is the amount of injuries. There's usually an injury every other play or at least what seems to be 2-3 a drive. My team is becoming depleted. I'm thinking about lowering the injury slider because of this. I'll continue to play around.
12-20-2013, 12:39 AM
