Day to Day

Dont'a Hightower may be back as early as this coming Sunday. Phillip Dorsett's knee is sore; he's hurt, not injured. And Gronk, like all of us, is day to day. The back is fine. Feeling good.

Oh, and Tom Brady is still Tom Brady.

Listening to WEEI on the way home from work I heard a caller reference "the reverse 18 and 1" and I thought, this is what happens to you after watching Belichick and Brady over the past 18 seasons. Despite a defense that has been raked for 62 points in just two games, despite the loss of Edelman and the existential scariness of Gronk heading to the sideline and riding the stationary bike during the 4th quarter, Sully from Dorchester is not cancelling his February travel plans to Minnesota.

I'm feeling Sully from Dorchester right now.

Before the season started, I was comparing the 2017 Patriots to the 2004 edition but the 2001 team seems the better analog after last Sunday's game.  

Maybe it was that field goal at the end of the 1st half. No timeouts, clock running down, offense running off, kicking team running on and Stephen Gostkowski driving it through the uprights as time ran out.

Little things.

I remember how I became fascinated by that that team; the way they played the game like it meant something beyond wins and losses. Each week there was a new hero. Each week I looked forward to seeing how they would figure out yet another way to win a football game. I didn't know who Tom Brady was then. When Drew Bledsoe went down with what would turn out to be a life-threatening injury, I was sure the Patriots were done. The season was over. But I'm a fan and I kept watching and rooting and falling in love with the team that simply would not quit.

Of course, that team was carried by the defense; this one will be carried by Brady.

All that matters right now is Houston this Sunday, of course, but I can't help but look ahead. The Week 7 Super Bowl rematch with the Falcons looks like it could be a second home loss, the back to back road games against Denver and Oakland look, well, challenging to say the least, and the Week 15 trip to Pittsburgh will likely come down to how banged up Ben Roethlisberger is. Suddenly, 11-5-0 looks a lot more likely that the 14-2-0 I was predicting before the season started.

Still, I'm not ready to call Sully from Dorchester crazy yet.

This is Bill Belichick and Tom Brady we're talking about, after all.

I can't wait for this Sunday.

To see what kind of game plan Belichick, Matt Patricia and Josh McDaniels put together. To see who steps up on defense and offense. I'll be watching Brady, of course. I'll be watching budding folk heroes Dietrich Wise, Jr. and Adam Butler on the D-line. Can Devin McCourty and the defense confuse the hell out of Houston's rookie QB Deshaun Watson with a brilliant disguise? I suppose if they can just keep him from scrambling 49 yards for a TD I should be happy. Could this be Brandin Cooks breakout game? Can Dorsett get on the practice field and continue to build chemistry with Brady? Is Gronk good to Gronk? Do the coaches still like Dion Lewis matching up with the Texans' linebackers? We'll see this Sunday.

We're on to Houston.