Yo “Auntie Diaries” could be some REAL barrier-breaking stuff in hip-hop. Kendrick talking openly about his aunt and cousin transitioning and “choosing humanity over religion.”
“Debate me, bro” culture is so dumb, man. And it’s always the goofiest people engaging in it. Ain’t no one trying to debate your lizard people-believing ass.
Aaron Rodgers is inviting Travis Kelce to have a vaccine debate.
Rodgers proposes that it be him and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. against Kelce and Anthony Fauci.
(via
@PatMcAfeeShow
)
Justin Fields has been looking like the best first-round QB from last year’s class of late, and he’s been doing it with a much roster than any of his counterparts. Some big-time growth happening out in Chicago.
Still can’t get over the way I got treated today from a Bears QB. I won’t even say his name because that name means nothing. He’s lucky he got a picture with me.
Tyquan Thornton has DBs looking high and low for him today, but no one can see him. Snapping off routes like crazy. And when he gets the separation...forget it. Gets better every day.
I just want to reiterate what you're asking for if you want the Patriots to trade Mac Jones and start Bailey Zappe: dealing away the No. 15 pick last year, who had one of the best rookie seasons ever for a QB, for a fourth-rounder for two good starts against horrendous defenses.
Matt Barkley, Chad Henne, Brandon Weeden, Blaine Gabbert, Josh Johnson, David Fales, Tom Savage and Brock Osweiler are some of the QBs signed this off-season
There is a Superbowl QB with 85 total career TDs and only 30 INTs with 88.9 Rating who is a free-agent. Why not sign him?
Look at what Bailey Zappe did today AND how the offense got Tyquan Thornton and the tight ends involved, and tell me Matt Patricia doesn’t deserve any credit.
Your eyes are not deceiving you, Patriots fans: Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe are not, in fact, running the same plays. And the Patriots' insistence on making things harder and more predictable for Jones deserves some scrutiny amid his struggles
#ForeverNE
:
Belichick scouting Justin Fields: “Athletic. Gets out of a lot of trouble with his legs…can see the field.
“You can see him getting better every week and making plays every game.”
When I was covering the Patriots in 2022, Damien Harris painted his nails black throughout training camp.
Wanna know how many guys in the locker room had a problem with it?
Zero.
Y’all gotta stop projecting your insecurities onto other people.
Nah. Men want to follow men. Acting feminine and flamboyant doesn’t work when trying to lead a locker room. Painting your finger nails, pink phone case, crying in your mom’s arms after a game… it’s a problem.
I'm going insane listening to people acting like you HAVE to trade either Jaylen Brown or Jayson Tatum for another star.
How can you watch this team and think that's the play? The Celtics created a homegrown contender people say they want, and y'all can't wait to torch it?
Tyquan Thornton with a diving TD on a corner route against Panthers CB Kalon Barnes in 1-on-1s in front of us. When he gets a step, game over.
No Panthers CB can check Nelson Agholor right now. Too shifty.
On the other side, Jalen Mills and Jack Jones are locking people up.
Throw a pick-6, come back with a touchdown on 3rd down.
That’s growth for Justin Fields. Saw Mac Jones do that against Dallas (albeit in a different situation).
Mistakes aren’t breaking those guys. And you don’t find that out by sitting a kid on the bench as a rookie.
Mike Onwenu just said he didn’t expect Bailey Zappe to play today. Said the team didn’t have any notice when he came into the game either.
Just a strange, strange scene here.
As someone who's seen a lot of Justin Fields the past three years -- the tape, the numbers, real-time, all that -- it is honestly weird to see how hard everyone is going against him right now. Like, he's definitely flawed. But he hasn't earned this level of hive-mind hate.
Christian Barmore just used a lethal club move to discard James Ferentz in 1v1s. Used a similar move to gain an advantage on Michael Onwenu as well. Basically you have to double him or he's not getting blocked right now.
#Patriots
This is where I remind everyone that simply reading and questioning things a lot doesn’t make you intelligent.
Researching and questioning is great. But when you consistently come to the wrong conclusions (and are wildly emotionally idiotic while doing so), it not helps no one.
Guess which quarterback's offensive line (96.7%!!) bears the largest amount of responsibility for pressures allowed (per
@PFF
)?
Mac Jones.
BTW, PFF has him ranked eighth-LOWEST in pressure rate he's responsible for (8.2%) among qualified QBs (>25 dropbacks under pressure).
The Chicago Bears had an above-average head coach and a QB who is basically a wizard, and they were so aggressively bad that they ended up with a No. 1 overall pick. Songs will be sung about this tank job for years to come. A truly horrible team.
While it’s fair to ask Ryan Poles about passing on CJ Stroud, I still think we’re asking the wrong question.
Instead of “why didn’t Poles know Stroud would be so good?”, why not “what did HOU do to support Stroud that CHI didn’t w/ Fields?” That answer matters for a new QB too.
Tyreek Hill has 5 return TDs in his career. Very respectable.
Hester had 6 AS A ROOKIE. And then did 6 MORE his next season.
Hill's not even a return man anymore -- he's returned 2 punts in the last two seasons. Do NOT compare this man to the GOAT.
I probably shouldn’t do this, but I’m gonna do it anyway.
If you are currently using this tragedy to push vaccine conspiracy theories, you are exceptionally stupid.
As a football fan, seeing a healthy Cam Newton on a football field again would be cool.
Then again, he probably should've kept that interview to himself if he wanted that because he basically told everyone his mere presence as a backup would be a distraction.
The Broncos are an abysmal defensive team, so you have to take everything Chicago is doing right now with a grain of salt.
THAT SAID:
Justin Fields has made several honest-to-God big boy throws to all parts of the field, including WITH timing and under pressure. He needed this.
One thing I feel like critics of
#Bears
trading Howard, letting Callahan, Amos are missing: this is what good teams do. Replace “good” players with cheaper options and save your money for your actual stars. You want to be good long-term, Bears fans? This is how it works. Welcome.
Some odd numbers re: Patriots’ usage of Mac Jones.
@The33rdTeamFB
Last year, he was 4th in % of snaps under-center (28.9) and 27.1% of passes were play-action. (Zappe currently at 18.2 U-C, 22.1% PA.)
Mac now: just 10% U-C, 10% PA.
Why not give Jones a taste of Zappe plan?
The fact that this is celebrated as “genius” rather than being commonplace says a lot more about the NFL than it does about Daboll (well done by him of course).
Brian Daboll didn’t want to just hire a bunch of friends for his coaching staff when he got the Giants job. Instead, he had a hiring process that assistants called “genius” and “visionary.”
Here’s the inside story of how he assembled an all-star staff:
Two things can be true at once:
1. Jakobi Meyers would not fix the Patriots’ offense.
2. Jakobi Meyers would be far and away the best WR on this team, and the decision to get rid of Mac Jones’ most trusted target was always a bit sus even if somewhat understandable on paper.
Just checked the numbers:
Mac Jones hasn't played since the second quarter, and he STILL leads the Patriots in rushing yards. WITH 24.
Against one of the worst run defenses in football.
In short, you are asking the New England Patriots to do something colossally stupid based on a three-game sample size for both players in 2022. You can afford to be that foolish because it's not your money or your organization. The Patriots cannot, and will not, do that.
In better injury news: S Kyle Dugger and WR Jakobi Meyers look like they’re participating in opening drills after missing last Sunday’s game. Also see LB Raekwon McMillan in action.
#Patriots
The Patriots must believe A. they've got a good read on improving WR via trade, or B. they know they have a young guy they want high in the draft. Because they absolutely could've kept Jakobi Meyers and chose not to while knowing he's good for the production.
Interesting note on new
#Patriots
practice squad WR Lynn Bowden Jr.: he won the Paul Hornung Award in 2019 as the most versatile player in college football.
The most recent winner of that award: Pats rookie CB Marcus Jones (Houston).
Bill Belichick has a type.
"Making the Pro Bowl [last year] pumped his head up a lot... this kid needed to be humbled."
@BenVolin
explains why Bailey Zappe's recent success is good for Mac Jones 👀
Bailey Zappe told
@MFMonWEEI
he found out he was going to be starting this past game on Saturday. Seems like the Patriots are getting closer to making that decision between him and Mac Jones, but as Belichick said today, it “wasn’t an option” this week.
I love people saying "Why isn't Mac Jones throwing the ball away more?!" while he's standing in the pocket. Y'all have heard of intentional grounding, right?
Drake Stoops from
@OU_Football
with the tough catch in tight coverage. Defense alerted the option route out of the slot before the play, but he still made the grab.
If this was really the moment Matt Nagy decided it was time to bench Trubisky, I have to say I hate it.
Trubisky was not the reason the Bears lost. In fact, I’d put far more blame on Nagy’s play calling (especially on 3rd down) and awful receiver play than on the QB.
#Bears
Zappe just said on
@MFMonWEEI
the Patriots basically run the same game plan for both him and Mac Jones. Says he tells Matt Patricia “call whatever you want and I’ll try to make it work.”
Interesting bc it looks at times like Patriots run demonstrably different plays for them.
After rewatching, Mac Jones was not nearly as bad as I thought he was on Sunday. Some bad sacks, the rough INT called back and the miss on 4th-and-short. But he made some quick decisions/good throws against heat, and I think Stevenson let him down on the near-INT to Mosley.
Writing about this a bit now:
EVERYONE (I think?) wants a unicorn at QB. But Josh Allens don't grow on trees. It feels silly to be madder at Mac Jones, who's shown he can play well, for not being a demigod than the Patriots for refusing to maximize what they already have in him.
We’re might not know necessarily whose “fault” the miscommunication was on the INT, but it’s clear Fields thought Kmet was going to continue the route rather than sit down. This ball is cut loose with anticipation and would’ve been right on Kmet’s body if he keeps running.
#Bears
Too much of this happening for Pats early in games: 5-man protection, 4 vertical routes, some goofy flat route that’s like a 3rd read that Mac Jones doesn’t have time to get to. This offense cannot execute these plays right now unless they have extra blockers.
Joe Mazzulla deserves some share of the blame for the Celtics, but let’s be honest:
They’re the same talented but hot-and-cold team they’ve been for the last four years with their third different coach. This is not new. It just hurts more bc we assumed this was their year.
Didn’t think the Patriots would be so forthcoming about some of these upcoming moves. Think it signals how much the Krafts want to show changes are being made.
Would have to think Mayo is getting a title bump of some kind and additional responsibility. (1/2)
When asked about the dynamic between Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe and how it's evolved with Zappe starting, Joe Judge points out the Patriots elected Jones a team captain. Highlights his leadership and willingness to work with Zappe since the rookie arrived.
The biggest thing standing out watching this
#Patriots
offense right now is the chemistry between Mac Jones and WRs/TEs.
He knows exactly where they’re going to be, and they know where to expect the football. Almost flawless high red-zone period to start things off.
TIL people would really rather believe Damar Hamlin is dead/disfigured and that he’s using a body double as part of some anti-vax conspiracy — even though he’s been on IG and been with his team — than that maybe he wants to be lowkey after almost dying on national TV.
Listening to Dante Scarnecchia this morning on
@TheGregHillShow
, two things stood out
#Patriots
:
-Scar has a very high opinion of Mac Jones, says he can be "really good" but has to be protected
-Scar isn't worried about Trent Brown after bad game: "He wants to do well"
Marcus Jones deflects a red-zone throw from Sam Darnold up in the air and picks it off himself right in front of the crowd. What a play by the rookie, who just keeps proving himself in his reps with the first-team D.
Panthers haven’t found the end zone yet against the defense.
Look, it's fair to want to move on from Justin Fields as a quarterback. Totally get it.
But calling him a coward...after all this...just cuz of some social media unfollows...is the nastiest of work.
Well everyone...some professional news!
I'll be joining up officially in a few weeks, but I'm stoked to be making my WEEI debut tomorrow morning. Wake up with Rob, Scheim and me as we try to make heads or tails of this Patriots' draft!
One other fun note: Waldron had both Geno Smith and Russell Wilson getting the ball out faster.
Geno’s time to throw (TTT) was above 3s his first two years starting with the Jets. With Waldron: 2.79 and 2.73.
Russ is a career 3s guy. With Waldron in 2021: 2.78.
Seahawks offense 2021-23 (Shane Waldron 🧵):
- 0.016 EPA/play (12th)
- 44.4% success rate (13th)
- (-0.009) EPA per rush (8th)
- 0.053 EPA per dropback (14th)
Been everywhere. Patriots, Rams, etc.
Rookie contract OL at almost every spot...
Just want to take a second to welcome my daughter, Maya Zenayda 😍😍the most beautiful little creature in the whole world.
And a huge, profound thanks to
@tinytbscientist
for being an amazing mom to our little nugget.
I’m the luckiest man in the world right now.
Might get some pushback for this, but given the comparisons being made lately:
Having seen both guys play in person, Justin Fields is faster than Lamar Jackson.
Lamar is more slippery/arguably better in the open field, but Justin would get Lamar in a 40.
I think we need to remember Mac Jones is a captain on this football team, as voted on by his teammates.
Saying he hasn’t earned a right to rip his teammates or even call out the game plan when it’s not up to code just because he’s a 2nd-year player doesn’t add up.
Mac Jones seems to clarify he said the “quick game sucks” in that video during his postgame comments. Said they were playing from behind and he wanted them to go downfield more. Wanted to provide a spark at a low point for the team but could’ve kept his emotions together better.
Watch Myles Bryant point at Velus Jones Jr. (12) before this Fields TD run.
Pats know Bears gave VJJ a jet-sweep pass for a TD two weeks ago and put both Bentley and Tavai strong side to stop it. Bears catch NE out of position, seal Wise and Judon and Mustipher buries Phillips.
A week ago today, I found out I lost my mom to liver disease. Thanksgiving weekend was the last time I ever saw her, and the first time she met her granddaughter.
Whether you’re in person or remote this holiday, tell your people you love them.
Re: Mac Jones, Bill Belichick just went into depth about how difficult it is for QBs to process things in split seconds, says the best can accurately tell you what he saw on each play.
He called that one of Jones’ strengths this week. Also praised Mac’s cutting down on INTs.
You can get mad at Eliot Wolf and the Patriots for not “burning cash” in FA if you want. But you also have to accept the reality of what the Patriots are right now: a rebuilding team that has no quarterback.
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that big free agents aren’t coming.
With Josh Bellamy skipping town for the New York Jets, receiver Javon Wims has a huge opportunity to earn more playing time next year with the
#Bears
. I broke down what he needs to focus on offensively to gain Matt Nagy’s trust for
@TheBlitzNet
Many will disagree, but there’s plenty of strategy in Patriots hiring Jerod Mayo.
He provides continuity while NOT being a Belichick clone. He has a very diverse perspective and understands the modernizing game.
He’ll be cheaper BY FAR than the likes of a Vrabel or Harbaugh.
The Patriots need to do whatever they can to get a top-2 pick and take a QB. Any Pats fan who disagrees: remember your team is about to start Bailey Zappe on Sunday. Don't want to hear any other arguments.
Lil'Jordan Humphrey has had himself a really nice game today. Six catches for 62 yards and an excellent catch on a low throw from Zappe in the end zone. He and Kristian Wilkerson made the most of their chances tongiht.