Projo Pats Blog

The New England Patriots entered their bye week after back-to-back games against winless teams -- the Titans (who finally broke through on Sunday by beating Jacksonville) and the Bucs (who remain the only team in the NFL without a victory).

Now, over the next four weeks, the Patriots have both of the NFL's remaining two undefeated teams on their schedule. And the Pats -- the only team in NFL history to finish a regular season 16-0 (the '72 Dolphins went 14-0), have a very real shot at defending that distinction in both games.

Unfortunately for the Patriots, both games will take place on the road, in tough, loud, indoor venues. After New England hosts Miami this weekend, they travel to Indianapolis for a Sunday night game against the Colts. Indianapolis is 7-0 and hosts the improving Houston Texans this week. Dating back to last season, Indy has won 16 consecutive regular-season games, although they fell to San Diego in the first round of the playoffs last season.

After a home game against the suddenly mediocre-looking Jets, the Pats return to the road for a Monday night game, Nov. 30, at New Orleans. The Saints, who beat the Falcons last night to go to 7-0, have games coming up against three weak teams -- Carolina (in New Orleans), followed by St. Louis and Tampa Bay (both on the road). There is a very real shot that they will enter the game at 10-0, and if they can beat the Patriots, the buzz will start to surround New Orleans as a team that could challenge for a perfect season.

The Patriots are not the only remaining challenge for the Saints: They visit Atlanta on Dec. 13, then host the Cowboys on a Saturday night game after a short week of preparation. But there are a lot of turkeys on the schedule, too. In fact, measuring by combined winning percentage of their remaining foes, the Saints have the easiest remaining schedule in the NFL.

The Colts' path to a perfect season is tougher. In addition to the Patriots, their toughest tests appear to be road games against Houston and Baltimore, and a home meeting with Denver.

For now, though, the chance of two undefeated teams meeting in the Super Bowl -- while extremely, extremely remote -- remains intact. But the Patriots will have something to say about it.

 Tags  Indianapolis Colts New Orleans Saints

Comments

hallontheball said:

Just add two more losses to the Patriots record and get on with it. The only reason the Patriots get in the post season is because the AFC east is horrible.., and even that's not a given.

Link | November 3, 2009 10:17 AM
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MaineMan said:

It's a mistake to think of the Jets as "mediocre". Their scrimmage defense is still very, very good. They still generate a lot of QB pressure and their secondary covers very well. They held a pretty decent Miami offense to 104 total yards and 9 points on Sunday. And, with Sanchez back on a tight leash after three debacles, the offense isn't handing over as many points.

Indy has shown that their defense is still vulnerable to a good ground game. If it's combined with a solid passing game, secondary and pass rush, they can be beat. SF nearly got them and Houston might be better equipped, at least on offense. If the Pats (Maroney) can figure out how to run effectively, they may have a real shot.

NO faces their toughest running opponent yet in Carolina and, after what ATL did to them on Monday night in their own building, it's pretty clear that without Sedrick Ellis and Scott Fujita, they're very vulnerable on the ground. If Peppers can be as disruptive as he was against ARZ and the CAR secondary can cover as well, the streak-ender could come this Sunday. NO may well be a tougher game for NE than Indy this year, but neither should be a pre-emptive write-off by any means.

Link | November 4, 2009 4:41 PM
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