Patriots Issue Texans With Reality Check

by Dugald Skene

Last year, the Houston Texans reached the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. This year, they have kicked on from that breakthrough to establish themselves as serious AFC title contenders.

The general consensus is that their run to a 11-1 record prior to this past weekend has been built on a combination of strong offence and defence, a relative rarity in the league. Consistently ranked in the top 5, if not top 3 teams in both areas in the league, Houston have seen themselves top the power rankings more than any other team this season.

The one blotch on their record came at home to a Green Bay Packers side that was coming off a run of indifferent results and languishing 3rd in the NFC North. An imperious display by QB Aaron Rodgers condemned the Texans to their only loss of 2012. The immediate reaction then was that the Texans would only face that sort of test against the top teams in the perceived stronger NFC - the Packers, Bears, 49ers et al. Given their form and their ability to dig out results in overtime as well as blow the occasional team out, the AFC title was surely only a formality, right?

Nobody told the New England Patriots.

After a shaky start in 2012, the Patriots have started to grow into the sort of perennial form that has seen them reach 5 Superbowls in the last decade or so. Under coach Bill Bellichik and led by QB Tom Brady, they are the epitomy of hardened playoff performers, and know exactly what it takes to get there, and then see it through. A trip to Foxboro to take on the Patriots is as stern a test as most will get in the NFL, and the Texans will have eyed the Monday Night Football clash as the true test to whether their aspirations of AFC glory are founded on solid ground or up in the clouds.

I'm not sure anyone expected this to be a blowout, but that's what it turned in to with Brady completing 21/35 for 296 yards and 4 touchdowns to help the Pats record a convincing 42-14 victory.

Tom Brady is fired up during last night's

demolition of the Texans

This was a reality check for the Texans. I still fully expect them to progress from last year in the playoffs and reach the AFC championship game where they are sure to meet the Patriots again. But if this dress rehearsal is anything to go by, they still have a lot of work to do.

Losses against Green Bay and now New England show that they struggle against the experienced quarterback. Both Brady & Rodgers are certain hall of famers, two of the best the league has ever seen with 4 Superbowl rings between them, but they are exactly the sort of opponent the Houston Texans will have to overcome in order to achieve their ultimate ambition.

This is a young and exciting team and one I hope to see go all the way, but for me, this year may be a little premature.

As for the Patriots, it will be hard to bet against them in the playoffs as Brady seeks that elusive 4th Superbowl ring.  Just like all the best teams, their form is starting to peak at the right time.  Some would argue that they want the Patriots to be beaten, just to give someone else in the AFC a go.  But you have to hand it to them. The longevity and sustained success of this team, which has had it's core kept intact for 10 years now, makes them one of the all time greats, up there with the  Joe Montana led 49ers team of the late 80's in my opinion.

So if that was a rehearsal for the AFC Championship game, week 15 sees the Patriots host the San Francisco 49ers in what many will predict as being the Superbowl match up in less than 2 months time.  If the Patriots come through that with a win, they will be favourites to go all the way.

Packers Back In Business

by Dugald Skene

Green Bay Packers   42-24   Houston Texans

It's taken 6 weeks of the 2012 NFL season, but the Green Bay Packers finally seem to have found the kind of form that took them to a 15-1 record last season. In what was a must win game, the odds were stacked against them as they travelled to Houston to take on a Texans side unbeaten all season and owners of a prolific offence and devastating defence.

In the past 9 games with quarterback Matt Schaub starting fit, the Texans have won by an average of 20 points. On the flip side, the Packers have one of the poorer defences in the league, ranked 31st out of 32 teams last year.  Their success last term was predicated on the idea that how ever much the opposition would score, the Packers would just score more.

That sort of offensive form has not been on show this season, and most predicted the Packers slipping to a 2-4 record.  But Green Bay, led by quarterback Aaron Rodgers, had other ideas.

By the end of the contest, Green Bay had amassed 42 points against one of the toughest defences around, and in their own back yard. Rodgers threw for a Packers record equalling 6 touchdowns (matching Matt Flynn's effort at the tail end of last season in a game Rodgers sat out in the run up to the playoffs), notching up 330 yards with no interceptions in the process.

Aaron Rodgers led the offensive rout on the Texans

Despite all 6 TD's coming from passes, the Packers did not disown their running game, with tailback Alex Green carrying 22 times. Like in previous weeks, the emergence of a running game in the Packers offensive arsenal has provided the added dimension that has allowed Rodgers to exploit defences more with the pass.

The Packers dominated this game and led from the front. The Texans got 3 TD's of their own. their defence had limited success but linebacker JJ Watt did have another fine outing, notching up two sacks on Rodgers.  Quarterback Matt Schaub was less on form, particularly after being picked off twice.

The Packers now go to 3-3 and back to a .500 record.  They will certainly see this as a major turning point in their season and will look to extend this win into a series over the coming weeks.  The Texans, on the other hand, will not be dwelling too much on last night's defeat. They are still going to be one of the toughest teams alone will face and I still see them making it to the AFC Championship game come January. Their defeat leaves the Atlanta Falcons as the only undefeated team in the NFL, but they will be back. Nobody will want to be at the receiving end of their backlash.

Home Field Advantage Proves Crucial In Playoffs

What a wild weekdend.  Wildcard weekend that is.
All four NFL wildcard playoff games produced some thrilling football and even the odd upset.  Ultimately, however, it was the home team that triumphed on each occasion.

What needs to be understood about the NFL is that there is very little support for the away team in any game.  There is no such thing as an 'away end' as there is in football here, and so travelling to another ground across the country can be intimidating and often be the difference between winning and losing. 

Take the Atlanta Falcons.  They had a perfect 8-0 record at the Georgia Dome this season, but couldn't produce the goods away from home, winning only 2 on the road.  It was enough to secure them a trip to the Metlife stadium yesterday to face the NFC #4 seeds the New York Giants.  But after a sluggish start, Eli Manning and the Giants produced a solid display that saw them run out 24-2 winners, the scoreline merely reflecting the Falcons season away from the Dome.  The Giants now go on to meet the Superbowl favourites Green Bay at Lambeau Field.

In Houston, the Texans were looking to use their home field advantage to win their first ever game in the playoffs.  With the number 2 defence in the NFL, the Texans defence dominated over a struggling Cincinnati Bengals team who couldn't produce the goods beyond the first quarter, ultimately losing out to Houston 31-10.  A special mention has to go to  defenseman JJ Watt, who produced a massive performance including an intercept and run in for a touchdown.  The Texans will now take their unbeaten playoff record to Baltimore to face the AFC #2 seeded Ravens.

The two best games of the weekend happened in New Orleans where the Saints took on the Detroit Lions and in Denver where the Broncos hosted the fancied Pittsburgh Steelers.

The encounter at the Superdome in New Orleans was billed as the 'shootout'.  Never before had two 5,000+ yard QB's faced each other in a playoff game.  Drew Brees of the Saints smashed Dan Marino's all time passing yard record for a season, while Matt Stafford came up only 46 yards short of achieving the same feat.

From the first drive, it looked ominous that this would be a high scoring game, with Stafford leading his Lions up the field in 8 downs for 80 yards to open the scoring.  Straight from the kick off, Brees and the Saints looked to to prove that anything Stafford can do, Brees can do better.  It certainly looked that way until a fumble in each of their opening two drives handed possession of the football back to the Lions. 

It looked like it might not be Brees' day in the Superdome with the Lions up 14-0 in the first quarter.  But it wasn't long before the record breaking Brees started to show why he is the top QB in the NFL at the moment, throwing for 466 yards completing 33 of 43 passes.  The Saints ran out eventual comfortable winners 45-28, earning themselves a trip to Candlestick Park to meet the San Francisco 49ers.  A special mention also to Pierre Thomas who was phenomenal running the ball for 66 yards, making plays he had no right in making.  The Saints' running game, something they sorely lacked last season, is firing on all cylinders at the moment.

The story of the weekend though has to come from the Mile High Stadium where Tim Tebow was inspired to earn the Broncos an overtime win over the fancied Pittsburgh Steelers.  It would be fair to say that the Steelers, even with Ben Roethlisberger not at 100% and no Mendenhall to run the ball were favourites coming into a game where the Denver Broncos were looking to reverse their fortunes after 3 straight losses at the end of the regular season.

Tim Tebow - defying the odds

But it was the Broncos that got off to the better start against the number 1 seeded defence in the league, taking a 20-6 lead into halftime.  Roethlisberger then inspired the Steelers after the break, to tie the game at the end of the fourth quarter 23-23.  A good game so far, but not worth the column inches compared to what happened next.

The two teams played the first non-sudden death playoff game in history.  This basically means that after the rule changes, both teams need to get the ball in the extra period providing there wasn't a touchdown by either the offense or defense.

So, up steps Tim Tebow.

The Broncos elected to receive the kick and in doing so started from their own 20 yard line.  What would the first play be?  Play it safe, get the ball down the field and look for a red zone touchdown? Nope.  Tebow hurls the ball long to Demaryius Thomas who runs it in for an 80 yard touchdown.  1 down, 1 pass, 11 seconds, making it the shortest period of overtime in NFL history.  That's how you finish a game.

Through the adversity of losing the previous 3 games and the one way traffic in the second half in this one, Tebow produced the goods when it mattered.

Can he take this on when the Broncos go to New England to meet the Patriots and Tom Brady next week?  The Pats will be fancied by the majority, but as with all of the highest scoring teams this year, they leak points.  After yesterday's efforts, anything can happen.

Brees and the Saints will be most likely to upset a home crowd.