Buffalo (0-0) at New England (0-0)
Currently: - Game info: 7:00 pm EDT Mon Sep 14, 2009
- TV: ESPN
The New England Patriots’ defense will have a distinctly different look to begin coach Bill Belichick’s 10th season in Foxborough, but the three-time Super Bowl champions will be happy to have a familiar face again at the helm of their offense.
Tom Brady(notes) will be back under center to open the season Monday night after he missed nearly all of last year due to injury, and he’ll be hoping to lead the Patriots to an NFL-record 12th straight win against a single opponent.
That foe is the AFC East rival Buffalo Bills, who will feature newcomer Terrell Owens(notes) in an offense that still has plenty of questions to answer after its coordinator was fired barely a week before the first game.
There aren’t many concerns about the Patriots’ ability to score with Brady back. The 2007 NFL MVP, who set a league record with 50 touchdown passes that year while leading the team to a 16-0 regular season, played less than a quarter in 2008 before tearing his left ACL when he was hit by Kansas City’s Bernard Pollard(notes).
Backup Matt Cassel(notes) played well in his absence as New England became just the second team ever to miss the playoffs after going 11-5.
Cassel, though, was dealt to the Chiefs and the reins of the unit are back in Brady’s hands. He’ll have some familiar weapons at his disposal, such as top wide receivers Randy Moss(notes) and Wes Welker(notes), and some new ones to use, like veterans Fred Taylor(notes) and Joey Galloway(notes).
“I’ve played a lot of games, so it’s not like it’s the first game of my rookie season, that type of excitement,” Brady said. “I think there’s just an excitement for a new season and to see what kind of team we have and to see what kind of mental toughness we have and what kind of character we have.”
The Patriots will also be curious to see what kind of defense they have after mainstays Mike Vrabel(notes), Tedy Bruschi(notes), Rodney Harrison(notes) and Richard Seymour(notes) all departed via trade or retirement. Seymour was surprisingly dealt to Oakland on Sept. 6 for a 2011 first-round draft pick.
The unit will take on a younger look, led by linebacker Jerod Mayo(notes), the NFL’s top defensive rookie last year. New England also seems to have improved its secondary after adding cornerbacks Leigh Bodden(notes) and Shawn Springs(notes) and drafting safety Patrick Chung(notes) with its first pick early in the second round.
“We have a lot of good leaders on our team and especially on the defensive side of the ball,” Belichick said. “No doubt about it, it’s different, but I think it’s good.”
Whoever has played for the Patriots has been good enough the last 11 times they have faced Buffalo - and often by a wide margin. The average score during the streak has been 29-9, and New England outscored the Bills 94-17 in two wins the last time Brady faced them in 2007.
No NFL team has ever won 12 straight against one opponent, and the Bills would have to pull off a major upset to avoid that fate. They’ve never won at Gillette Stadium, losing eight straight at New England since a 16-13 overtime win Nov. 5, 2000.
Buffalo added the controversial Owens following its third straight 7-9 season, but its offense has hardly clicked. After offensive coordinator Turk Schonert installed a new no-huddle attack during the offseason, the first-team offense managed three points in 15 preseason series, and Schonert was fired Sept. 4.
“(Bills coach Dick Jauron) wants a Pop Warner offense,” Schonert said. “He limited me in formations and limited me in plays.”
Schonert was replaced with former Bills quarterback Alex Van Pelt, who is still expected to employ a no-huddle approach.
“This is going to be a little bit of a transition for us,” Owens said. “We have to take accountability, we have to go out there and jell with one another and go out there and play.”
Asked Wednesday if he liked playing without a huddle, Owens said, “No, not really, but I gotta deal with it.” Owens later posted a note on his Twitter page insisting that he was “clearly joking.”
This will be the fourth team in the last seven years for the enigmatic but talented 35-year-old, who had his ninth 1,000-yard receiving season last year with Dallas.
Trent Edwards(notes) will be the newest quarterback trying to get Owens the ball. Edwards led the Bills to a 4-0 start last season before they stumbled down the stretch, losing eight of their last 10. He’ll begin this season without his starting running back, as Marshawn Lynch(notes) was suspended for the first three games after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor gun charge in March.
Another key spot on offense will be also in doubt after the Bills released starting left tackle Langston Walker(notes) on Tuesday. Second-year man Demetrius Bell(notes) will make his first career start protecting Edwards’ blind side.
“I think we’ve come a long way,” Jauron said. “We’ll find out on Monday night how far we’ve come. It’s not going to be easy, there’s no doubt about that. There’s a lot of worry.”
Jauron has returned for a fourth season as the Bills coach even though his contract ran out last year, and he may be under pressure to show some early signs of progress.
Team Comparison
| Team | Records | Standings | PF | PA | Road/Home | AFC | NFC | DIV | Streak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo | 3-7-0 | 4th AFC East | 155 | 228 | 2-4-0 Road | 1-6-0 | 2-1-0 | 1-2-0 | Lost 3 |
| New England | 7-3-0 | 1st AFC East | 290 | 164 | 6-0-0 Home | 5-3-0 | 2-0-0 | 3-1-0 | Won 1 |
Blog Coverage from SB Nation
Buffalo Rumblings
Pats PulpitInjuries
Kyle Williams DT, Terrence McGee CB, James Hardy WR, Jairus Byrd S, Ashton Youboty CB, Marcus Stroud DT, Demetrius Bell T, Keith Ellison LB, Derek Fine TE, Marcus Smith DE, Lydell Sargeant CB, Kawika Mitchell LB, Marcus Buggs LB, Leodis McKelvin CB, Derek Schouman TE, Brad Butler T, Marvin Philip C, Jermaine McGhee DE, Justise Hairston RB
Eric Alexander LB, Sam Aiken WR, Fred Taylor RB, Chris Baker TE, Tully Banta-Cain LB, Ron Brace DT, Benjamin Watson TE, Shawn Springs CB, Tom Brady QB, Ty Warren DT, Rob Ninkovich LB, Stephen Neal G, Sammy Morris RB, Matt Light T, Dan Koppen C, Jarvis Green DE, Julian Edelman WR, Brandon Tate WR, Chris Taylor RB, Shawn Crable LB, George Bussey T, Tyrone McKenzie LB
Notes
No team notes.
Despite winning their final four games, the Patriots became the first 11-win team to miss the playoffs since Denver in 1985. ... New England beat the Bills for the 11th consecutive time. The Patriots also kept up their late-season brilliance, extending their winning streak in December to 12 games and improving to 24-2 in the month since 2003. ... With howling winds gusting over 50 miles per hour, QB Matt Cassel attempted a season-low eight passes. He completed six for 78 yards. ... The Patriots set an NFL record for fewest penalties called against them in a season. They were whistled for 57 infractions, breaking the record of 59 held by Seattle for a 16-game season. ... WR Randy Moss had just one reception for 13 yards, but it was enough to put him over 1,000 yards for the ninth time in his 11 seasons.
Dec 28, 11:19 pm EST
600 Comments
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I'm not a Patriots fan but they did what they had to do. They were given an opprotunity to win and they took advantage of it. That is what football is about. Nobody scores every time they get the ball. Brady hasn't played a meaningful game in about 18 months so he was rusty in the beginning. OMG he's human after all. In my opinion, Brady isn't the best QB in the game but he is most certainly close. The only thing that makes my opinion what it is, was how well Cassell did last year and he hasn't started since high school. I'm not knocking Brady, he is one of the best QB's in the game. Somewhere in top 5, depending on a particular point o view.
It would be nice if the media could talk about somebody else once in a while though.
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It's been a decade of great fun. Thanks Boston sports. You rock.
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Yeah, dk, because every football team plays their entire season like they do in Week 1.
Seriously, was this the first football game you ever saw? Because it sounds like it was.
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do you people realize how silly you are holding these stupid jealous grudges over a team that could care less, its a sport a form of entertainment and if you were a true,real football fan you would give the pats and their first class organization the praise they deserve... even the announcers said all the teams in the league are trying to mimick the pats organization because they see its successful, and thats all that matters...
its pretty sad people still talking about the "taping incident" that happended 2 seasons ago, every team has and still does it so get over yourselves....and if you think the pats won their game based on a tape you are a fool, it takes a lot more than that to win a game.....
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He must be used to the rubber glove by now!
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He should throw the ball to himself, and catch it, Then run after the catch? Brady isn't any good? WRONG, he's the best QB going right now. In his last full season he had 50 TD's almost 5,000 yds and was 35 seconds away from a 19-0 season. But he's no good?!?!?
wow, be a hater but don't lie and be dumb about it.
Yes McKelvin should have gone down, and yes they were out of sync for the first 3qts. BUT, They did score 2 td's in the last 6 min. and had a much needed TO. You think kicking deep when Buff had their hands team were on was just luck?
The Pats won't score 38 a game like 2007, and the D is replacing 5 starters, They aren't as good as the 2007 Patriots. But at the end of the year they will be much better than last night.
Do you really think any team, wants any part of the Patriots in the Playoffs with Brady, Moss, Welker,
And Bill Belichick focusing on the Defense all year?
The might not win the SB, but who ever does will have to go thru the Pats to get there, Something the steelers didn't have to do in both of their last 2 SB wins.
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