导出博客文章DENVER -- Even in victory,?Tom Brady made it official Sunday: He would rather
join NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on a two-week Caribbean cruise than play
football in the city of Denver.And thats OK. The greatest of the great usually
cant stand doing something. Frank Sinatra hated singing My Way, for instance,
and things worked out pretty good for him.Brady took the field with a 2-7 record
in this city, a .222 batting average, and then, on muscle memory, struggled to
find his way. Of course, no right-minded fan of the New England Patriots really
cared in the end. As their coach Bill Belichick would say after this 16-3
victory, Were not really interested in individual stats.The Patriots are
interested only in team-centric pursuits, starting with their 14th AFC East
title in Bradys 15 healthy seasons under center, a staggering run in a sport
that tries to protect the principles of parity as fiercely as New England tries
to protect its quarterback.But now that another division title and another
first-round bye are accounted for, the Patriots can focus on what their coach
called a reset of their goals. Home-field advantage is on deck, followed in the
lineup by two postseason victories in Gillette Stadium and then, of course, a
record fifth Super Bowl ring for Belichick and Brady.This is why Patriots fans
dont sweat the small stuff, like Bradys 0-for-6 start on Sunday against the
Broncos, his failure to complete a pass until the second quarter, his failure to
throw for a touchdown for only the second time this season, and his failure to
throw for at least 200 yards for the first time this season. In fact, Bradys
nonperformance coupled with LeGarrette Blounts nonperformance only sweetened the
result and emboldened New Englanders to go ahead and put down some nonrefundable
money on hotel rooms in Houston, site of Super Bowl LI.The Patriots are in
perfect position to play all their AFC tournament games at home. They will pound
the heartless Jets on Christmas Eve (1 p.m. ET) for their 13th victory, and
might not need to worry about finishing a second consecutive year with a
seed-altering loss at Miami. The Raiders and/or Chiefs will likely have to win
playoff games in Foxborough, Massachusetts, and hey, lets face it:Thats not
going to happen.Why? Sundays game told you why. Brady opened the day as the
leading candidate for the leagues MVP award, and Blount opened as a 1,000-yard
back -- something rarely seen during Belichicks reign in New England. The
quarterback completed 16 of 32 attempts for 188 yards. Though Blount did score
on a 1-yard run, breaking Curtis Martins franchise record with his 15th rushing
touchdown of the year, he finished with 31 yards on 17 carries.The Patriots
still controlled the defending champs, with Dion Lewis advancing the ball (18
carries, 95 yards), and with Logan Ryan delivering a game-shaping interception
to start the second quarter that denied Denver a potential score and set up the
touchdown drive that produced the decisive points. On that drive, the visitors
recovered two of their own fumbles. Only the Patriots do that.When it was over,
Belichick allowed that the game wasnt a masterpiece and credited his teams
plus-3 turnover advantage for deciding the result. I think that overrides a lot,
he said.So does an offensive line that no longer crumbles at the mere sight of
the Denver front. The Broncos treated Brady as a human pi?ata in last seasons
AFC Championship Game, and had all the incentive needed for a worthy sequel.
They knew a loss here would dramatically reduce their chances of returning to
the postseason, and yet they put less than a third of the hits on Brady that
they put on him in January. Von Miller, Super Bowl MVP and best player on the
field in the conference championship game, was all but entered into the witness
protection program.Some credit (maybe a lot of credit) belongs to Dante
Scarnecchia, the Pats 68-year-old offensive line coach, who looks so much like a
boxers cut man that you couldve imagined the late, great Burgess Meredith
playing him in the movie. Belichick summoned him out of retirement after firing
Dave DeGuglielmo in the immediate wake of the AFC title game beatdown of Brady
in this same building, and there was the quarterback Sunday evening praising the
line for keeping him safe and sound.Brady fielded only five questions in his
postgame news conference before running a fast break for the team bus, stopping
to sign a young boys jersey along the way. He has been a bit odd in these
post-Deflategate settings, and who knows what exactly is fueling his inner fire.
Bradys friends have publicly and privately said he wants to stick it to the
league commissioner for suspending him for four games, and the other day Denver
coach Gary Kubiak said the New England quarterback has been on a mission since
hes come back. Brady hasnt added anything of substance to that conversation.If
nothing else, Brady should be happy other franchises have recently added to the
New England narrative that the Patriots are hardly alone in the NFLs bad boy
department. The Seahawks and Ravens were punished by the league for offseason
workout violations, and recently the Rooney Steelers were sorta accused of
deflating footballs (by the Mara Giants) before the Mara Giants were definitely
accused of using an illegal sideline walkie-talkie. (Whats next, Rooney Mara
being accused of tampering with a competitors script while landing her part in
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo?)Maybe Brady isnt thrilled that these cases have
received a fraction of the attention that his did. Either way, the four-time
champ wont care as long as he overcomes the loss of Rob Gronkowski, advances to
Super Bowl LI, and ultimately passes his boyhood idol Joe Montana with
championship No. 5.Brady might have to finally beat the Giants in the big game
(and wouldnt that third meeting be fun) and survive Odell Beckham Jr.s attempt
to outdo David Tyree and Mario Manningham. Perhaps hell see the NFC favorite,
the Dallas Cowboys, in a matchup that would make everyone forget about the
leagues ratings woes.But after what went down here Sunday, this much is clear:
Brady and friends appear set for a seventh appearance on the biggest stage in
sports. The 2016 Patriots look very much like the 2003 Patriots -- bound for a
Houston Super Bowl that will enhance the historical standing of their
quarterback and coach.
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Free Shipping . And when it opened, every player was at his stall. Thats a
sure sign that a team is in a slump and is searching for answers. "Its
embarrassing to be at home and play the way we did," said defenceman
Josh Gorges.
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According to a report from the Winnipeg Free Press, the Bombers will name Acting
GM Kyle Walters to the post full time.
http://www.salomoncheap.com/ .In my
heart and mind Im competing for India, luge competitor Shiva Keshavan told The
Associated Press in an email interview. Every day Im flooded with messages from
Indians all over the world telling me they are supporting me.
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Seattle clinched the ALs best record for the Red Sox with one day to spare in
the regular season. "I think everybody was kind of watching," catcher David Ross
said. "Demp (Ryan Dempster) came out before he went to the bullpen and was just
yelling that they lost.
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Shoes . Having already announced that the race will start May 9 with three
stages in Northern Ireland and Ireland and finish in Trieste on June 1, the rest
of the route was unveiled Monday. NEW YORK -- No Manning. No Brady, for the
first four games. No clear-cut favorite in the AFC.With the regular season about
to kick off, its anybodys guess wholl be the conferences representative at the
Super Bowl in Houston in February.The defending champion Denver Broncos will try
to become the first team to repeat since New England in 2004-05. But they wont
have the retired Peyton Manning leading the way. Or even Brock Osweiler, who
bolted from the Broncos and headed to Houston.Instead, Gary Kubiak and the
Broncos have been trying to sort out a quarterback mix that includes veteran
Mark Sanchez, 2015 seventh-rounder Trevor Siemian and rookie Paxton Lynch, the
teams first-rounder this year.You want to see the other guy succeed, you want to
see the team succeed, Sanchez said. So, whatever it takes to win, thats what
well try to do.While their quarterback situation might be a big question mark,
the Broncos know theyve got one of the leagues best defenses back, especially
with the return of Super Bowl MVP Von Miller.If were like last year, our team
didnt worry about the other side of the ball, defensive coordinator Wade
Phillips said. They worried about how well they played. Thats what we want to
do. We have to outplay the other teams defense. If they hold our team to not
much, then we hold them to less. Thats the way we play the game.New England
knows who its quarterback will be at the start of the season. Jimmy Garoppolo
steps in for the suspended Tom Brady, wholl have to sit four games as a result
of his role in the Deflategate scandal.That might make the Patriots stranglehold
on the AFC East appear looser after winning the division the last seven years.
Well, not so fast on writing off Bill Belichicks bunch.Belichick is Belichick,
Buffalo safety Corey Graham said. Hes one of the best, so when its all said and
done, you know hes going to get those guys prepared and make sure theyre ready
to go.Pittsburgh might have as good a chance to win the AFC crown as anyone,
especially if Ben Roethlisberger remains healthy. The Steelers went 10-6 and won
a playoff game last season despite a down year for their playmaking quarterback
because of injuries.Wide receiver Antonio Brown, among the most dynamic
offensive player in the league, broke his own franchise records by catching 136
passes for 1,834 yards. Running back LeeVeon Bell is back from torn knee
ligaments and should provide a boost, but will be suspended the first three
games of the regular season for missing multiple drug tests.ddddddddddddThe
Steelers will also have to contend with AFC North rivals Cincinnati, which has
made the postseason five straight years.Quarterback Andy Dalton is recovered
from a broken thumb that kept him out of the Bengals first-round playoff loss to
the Steelers. He was having a breakout season when he got hurt last December,
setting a team record with a passer rating of 106.3. But Marvin Lewis offense
will have a different look this season with coordinator Hue Jackson leaving to
become Clevelands head coach and wide receivers Marvin Jones (Lions) and Mohamed
Sanu (Falcons) signing elsewhere as free agents.The AFC South could be a
toss-up, with Andrew Luck back from an inconsistent and injury-plagued season
for Indianapolis. Houston has a new quarterback in Osweiler and running back in
Lamar Miller, but star defensive end J.J. Watt is still recovering from back
surgery. Jacksonville is coming off a 5-11 year, but showed promise with
quarterback Blake Bortles breakthrough season with receivers Allen Robinson and
Allen Hurns, who combined for 24 touchdown catches.Any stumbles by Denver might
create an opening in the AFC West for Kansas City, which was a win away from the
AFC title game despite not having running back Jamaal Charles for most of the
season because of a torn knee ligament.Oakland also appears to be a team on the
rise, led by quarterback Derek Carr. The Raiders could get off to a good start
because they face just one playoff team from last season (Kansas City) in their
first eight games.I believe we have a chance to be better, Broncos general
manager John Elway said. Theres no question that the Raiders are better, the
Chargers and Kansas City are going to be better, so that what makes it tough.
Our division is one of the top divisions in the league now. Its going to be a
battle within and thats why every game is going to count.(Corrects to
Jacksonville going 5-11 last season)---AP Sports Writer John Wawrow
contributed.---AP NFL website:
www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed:
http://twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '
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