The biggest plays Sunday night were not made by Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers, but by another Aaron -- Aaron Jones, whose fumble with the Packers driving into Patriots territory ignited the Patriots' 14-point fourth quarter burst to break open a tie game. And by a wall of Patriots blockers who set up a screen for James White on a trick play that triggered the first touchdown of that burst and then by the rocket Brady fired to a wide-open Josh Gordon that resulted in a 55 yard touchdown for the second score. And by a defense that stole the show in what was supposed to be a night of offense.

Coach Bill Belichick was practically giddy in the aftermath, gushing over Brady's work ethic, over Rodgers' on-field sense of a play, over his own defensive front. Because it is so routinely a flat line, Belichick's postgame mood is as accurate a barometer as there is of how good he feels about the Patriots. This is all you need to know: Belichick smiled.

The Patriots beat the Packers 31-17 and unless they meet in a Super Bowl -- and that looks increasingly unlikely this year for the 3-4-1 Packers, who are in third place in the NFC North -- we probably won't see Rodgers and Brady face each other again. They embraced and shared a few words late Sunday night and then went their separate ways. Brady, with his team at 7-2 and with a victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in their pocket, toward what seems almost certain to be another January assault on the playoffs. Rodgers into his simmering disappointment and irritation with the direction of the Packers.

Rodgers' displeasure is understandable when the teams are so easily compared side-by-side like this. Brady was not particularly sharp Sunday -- he finished 22 of 35 for 294 yards and one touchdown pass, had a startling six straight incompletions at one point, and looked, for stretches, confused by Mike Pettine's defense. The Patriots had to rely on big plays, because they weren't getting their routine four- and seven-yarders, Brady conceded.

But Brady was surrounded by a better team than Rodgers was, even without the injured Rob Gronkowski or Sony Michel. And Brady is coached by wildly creative coaches. The Patriots went up tempo occasionally. The play call for a flea flicker and the screen pass by Julian Edelman to White on the other side of the field -- Brady was the lead blocker and admitted he hit nobody -- that is the kind of aggressiveness and derring-do that is absent from the Packers' approach and, to be fair, from practically every other team's, too. The pass to Gordon, which flew over Edelman's outstretched arms, underscored that the Patriots manage to find contributors where others do not. Cordarelle Patterson, once known as a receiver and kick returner, morphed into the Patriots' new running back Sunday, with 11 rushes for 61 yards and a touchdown. He entered the game with a total of 61 rushes in his entire six-year career.

"So much of our team is guys being in roles that maybe they didn't sign up for that particular role," Brady said of Patterson. "Injuries, attrition, a lot of guys go down. You're short at certain spots."

Judy Battista  wrote:

Observations/Opinions

Offense.
1. The lack of scheming and creativity is painfully obvious. Compare and contrast some of the clever scheming, up-tempo play, and trick plays New England utilized. And they were key in the outcome.
2. We just don’t have the horses on the offensive line. 12 is under constant pressure. The few times he had time, like the touchdown pass to Graham, he continues to be highly effective. BUT CLEARLY, as has been the case in the last decade, we seem incapable of getting effective OL play on short yardage. Mike McCarthy Did not run the ball and goal line situation despite having four tight ends, what does that tell you about what he thinks about the line.
3. The young wideouts show promise. But, they are young and I are still learning the offense, irrespective of how simple it may be. Cobb is gone...He simply doesn’t have the wheels he used to.
4. Although he got a fair amount of help, Spriggs played decently.

Defense
1. Despite being under manned, I am really liking what is shaping up on the defensive side of the ball.
2. It was nice to see Jackson and Jones get meaningful playing time.
3. Williams was an improvement from Clinton Dix.
4. Our edge rush is nonexistent. This wouldn’t be so troublesome if they were containing on the run, but they don’t seem to be doing a very good job of that either. Expect major major turnover at this position next year with at least three new faces.

Penalties
Yes, we got hosed, but we make it so damn easy to be hosed! Stupid plays, like slapping an opposing player, and running into the kicker and fourth and 21 are really freaking dumb. and dumb plays cost games

Originally Posted by: KRK 

KRK, your #1 point is so spot on. Look at the trick plays NE used. Mike McCarthy has no clue on how to do anything unusual to shake up the defense.
If something doesn’t work, why not try something else?
Mike McCarthy doesn’t seem to be able to think outside the box.
Time to get a coach who can.

Originally Posted by: Cheesey 

I've been waiting for breeland for weeks and it turns out he is fucking terrible

Originally Posted by: gbguy20