I won’t belabor this post, as the Patriots trotted out a half-effort on Sunday against Buffalo. I’m not knocking the Patriots for not trying as I personally thought that they should go into full-blown “rest the starters” mode. With nothing to gain and potentially everything to lose, placing the team’s key players in positions where they might get injured just seemed foolish to me. If anything, it’s Bill Belichick’s half-hearted approach that has me the most puzzled. Why sit out Gronkowski but not Revis? Why is Tom Brady out on the field taking snaps when you’re resting key members of his offensive line? Having backups protect Brady from the Buffalo front four seemed like a good recipe to get Jimmy Garoppolo his first playoff start. Thankfully the Patriots made it through the game without any major injuries outside of some potential bang-ups to LaFell and Solder. (I said to sit out LaFell in our round table article this week. Just saying…)
Risers:
Jamie Collins (LB) – Once again, he came up with a big hustle play and turnover with his strip sack of Kyle Orton.
Brian Tyms (WR) – With Edelman out, Tyms showed up as a reliable target in the passing game.
Fallers:
Bill Belichick (Coach) – Why was Tom Brady playing behind a make shift offensive line in a meaningless game. Did the Mark Sanchez injury from last pre-season teach him nothing?
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