Sports Central

New England Patriots @ Buffalo Bills NFL Week Four Preview

The New England Patriots may be traveling to Buffalo this weekend to play the Bills, but there is very little about this trip that will feel familiar for Bill Belichick's team. The Patriots are used to entering Ralph Wilson stadium and expecting victory as just another step on their way to a division title. In recent years the Bills haven't had the talent to overcome the Patriots, but they proved last season that any complacency will be punished by an upstart group of players.

Last year's Bills outfit was hopeful, but after a season of investment and a seemingly excellent slate of draft picks, this year's version entered the season with high expectations.

Although they were emphatically beaten on opening day against the New York Jets, the Bills have won two games in a row since to reach 2-1 after three games. This despite the consecutive injury losses of Fred Jackson, David Nelson and CJ Spiller. Spiller and Jackson could play today, and Spiller's emergence into a superstar talent is a new dimension for the Patriots to handle. Along with Spiller, the Patriots also will have to handle the Bills' new defensive line additions.

Buffalo Bills Put New England Patriots Offensive Line Issues in Spotlight

The New England Patriots are enduring a difficult week leading up to their first divisional game of the 2012 NFL Regular Season. The Patriots travel to Buffalo this week to face off against the upstart Bills. Despite starting off with an emphatic loss to the New York Jets, the Bills enter the game with a 2-1 record while the Patriots themselves are 1-2.

Injuries are beginning to take a toll on the Patriots roster. This week Kellen Winslow, the tight end signed to ease the loss of Aaron Hernandez, was released for reasons unknown. Along with Winslow's departure, Julian Edelman has missed substantial practice time while Hernandez, despite walking comfortably, still remains sidelined by an ankle injury.

Most significantly however, Logan Mankins has missed practice all this week with a hip injury. Considering that Mankins played through last season with a torn ACL, he is very unlikely to miss time this weekend but that may not actually be a good thing.

New England Patriots Enduring the Inconsistencies of Youth

After three weeks of the 2012 NFL Regular Season, the New England Patriots sit at an unsatisfactory 1-2. The Patriots opened the season in a 'business as usual' matter, with a convincing win over the Tennessee Titans in Nashville. However, after that game, the Patriots suffered a surprise loss at home to the Arizona Cardinals and just missed out on victory in Baltimore against the Ravens.

While the Ravens game was drowned in controversy over the performance of the replacement referees and many will point to the Cardinals as being beneficiaries of a lucky performance, the Patriots' main problem lies with their own performances.

The Patriots are under .500 for the first time since 2003, when they started the season 0-1.

New England Patriots @ Baltimore Ravens - Sunday Night Football Preview

The New England Patriots travel to face the Baltimore Ravens in M & T Bank Stadium tonight hoping to rebound from last week's loss to the Arizona Cardinals. Both the Ravens and Patriots are looking to bounce back from tight losses, as the Ravens lost in the dying moments against the Philadelphia Eagles last week.

After destroying the Cincinnati Bengals in their home opener, the Ravens are looking to beat another potential AFC playoff team and go to 2-1. The Patriots are in a similar situation as they are trying to avoid having a losing record for the first time since 2006.

The Cardinals outlined a perfect blueprint for the Ravens defense to follow entering this game, however the Patriots will likely adjust their approach after last week's struggles. Without Aaron Hernandez, and with the issues the Patriots have had in pass protection, Bill Belichick is likely to turn to Stevan Ridley more this week. That could be a tainted cure for the offense's poison however.

New England Patriots - Will Offense Alter Approach Without Aaron Hernandez?

After suffering a relatively serious ankle injury, tight end Aaron Hernandez has been lost to the New England Patriots for the foreseeable future. In response to Hernandez' loss, the Patriots have made two roster moves bringing in former Cleveland Browns, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Seattle Seahawks tight end Kellen Winslow as well as former Patriots wide receiver Deion Branch.

The Winslow signing is a peculiar one despite him being a very reputable tight end. In fact, that is why it is peculiar.

Winslow was deemed surplus to requirements by new Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano this off-season. Even though Winslow had 75 receptions for 763 yards and two touchdowns last season, the Buccaneers brought in veteran Dallas Clark to take his starting spot. Winslow was subsequently traded to the Seattle Seahawks where he never played a game. Winslow was cut before the beginning of the season and not signed to any roster.

New England Patriots 18-20 Arizona Cardinals - Was Bill Belichick Outcoached by Ken Whisenhunt?

The New England Patriots fell to 1-1 for the 2012 NFL Regular Season after losing at home to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 2. The Cardinals escaped Foxboro with a two point victory after Stephen Gostkowski missed a late game-winning field goal.

Considering that the Cardinals entered the game as the underdogs and were starting backup quarterback Kevin Kolb as John Skelton was sidelined with an ankle injury, the Patriots were justifiably 13.5 point favourites. Patriots fans were left to wonder while Gostkowski's kick sailed wide left of the goal-posts.

Was it all on Gostkowski? A player who had kicked already kicked four successful field goals in the game. Was losing Aaron Hernandez early on too much? Hernandez's injury definitely hurt the Patriots, but considering the dearth of difference between each teams' respective level of talent, his loss alone shouldn't have been enough to decide the game. Maybe the Patriots were simply caught on a down day to the point that even Kevin Kolb could beat them? That one is a bit of a stretch.

Arizona Cardinals Upset New England Patriots in Home Opener

Stephen Gostkowski missed a last minute field goal for the New England Patriots, as the Arizona Cardinals escaped Foxboro with a 20-18 victory. The Patriots move to 1-1, tied with the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins in the AFC East, while the Cardinals jump to 2-0.

Despite missing his final attempt of the game, Gostkowski mostly carried the Patriots' offense during the game with four successful field goals. Tom Brady was stifled by the Cardinals' defense who were led by big performances from Daryl Washington, Patrick Peterson and Calais Campbell. Brady finished the game with 316 yards, but had only one touchdown and one interception.

That touchdown came in the fourth quarter when the quarterback led a drive that ultimately saw Rob Gronkowksi catch a touchdown pass in the endzone. Gronkowski couldn't catch the two point conversion to tie the game at 20.

New England Patriots v. Arizona Cardinals NFL Week 2 Preview and Injury Report

After overcoming the Tennessee Titans in Nashville last week, the New England Patriots welcome the Arizona Cardinals to Foxboro for their home opener in Week 2. Both the Cardinals and Patriots are looking to move to 2-0 after the Cardinals beat the Seattle Seahawks at home last week.

That victory came at a price however as starting quarterback John Skelton will miss the trip to Boston with an ankle injury. Skelton's place will be taken by former starter Kevin Kolb who carried the team to victory last week. Kolb lost out in a quarterback competition with Skelton during the preseason, but finished his first game of the season with a 138.5 quarterback rating.

Kolb completed six of eight passes for 66 yards and a touchdown. Critically, he didn't turn the ball over against a very talented Seahawks' unit. The Patriots will fancy their chances at forcing Kolb into mistakes this week however. The much maligned quarterback has thrown more career interceptions, 22, than touchdowns, 21, and has never succeeded in trying to inspire an efficient offense since the Cardinals acquired him in a blockbuster trade with the Philadelphia Eagles.

New England Patriots' New Faces Already Making an Impact

New England Patriots @ Tennessee Titans NFL 2012 Regular Season Week 1 Preview

The New England Patriots travel to face the Tennessee Titans today to open the 2012 NFL Regular Season. Week 1 matchups always bring significant shocks to the results page and ambiguity to the buildup as franchises roll out the annual versions of their teams for the first time.

With the Titans starting second-year quarterback Jake Locker, that ambiguity is thickened. Locker showed flashes as a rookie, but played very few snaps. Locker completed 34 of 66 passes with four touchdowns and zero interceptions. Since then he has supplanted veteran Matt Hasselbeck as the team's starting quarterback.

It came as no surprise that Locker won the battle, as the Titans had been crafting an offense to suit his skill-set. The addition of rookie receiver Kendall Wright brought in a dynamic play making receiver to pair with the deep threat of Nate Washington and Kenny Britt. Washington and Britt are big physical receivers who can beat defenders for the football while Wright has the ability to adjust to the ball in the air to make difficult receptions. That should help Locker with his accuracy issues while receiving tight end Jared Cook is one of the more difficult bodies in the NFL to stick with.

New England Patriots 2012 NFL Regular Season Index

The New England Patriots kick off the 2012 NFL regular season this Sunday with a trip to visit the Tennessee Titans. Before we dive into the team's first clash against second-year starter Jake Locker and company, it's better to get an impression of what shape the Patriots are in for the coming year.

Despite some sections seeing another undefeated regular season on the horizon, the Patriots have some significant holes on their roster that need to be addressed entering the season. The strengths remain there, but not until the questions are answered will we know if this team can take one more step over last year and lift the Lombardi Trophy in February.

State of the Offense: 
When Tom Brady is your quarterback, there is generally little else you need to worry about on offense. This year Brady has as more weapons than he has had throughout his career, save for maybe 2007, but some question marks over his pass protection. Brady's interior offensive line protection is vital for his success. Even though Brian Waters is seemingly retired, Dan Koppen was released and Logan Mankins missed a substantial chunk of the off-season, the Patriots still figure to have good enough protection upfront. The addition of Brandon Lloyd diversifies the offense, while Stevan Ridley and Shane Vereen coming into the backfield adds even more explosion.

Notre Dame 50 Navy 10 Game Recap

Though both sides had to endure the jet lag that comes with a quick trip across the Atlantic, only Navy appeared sluggish in the Emerald Isle Classic. Notre Dame shot out to a 27-0 lead in the first half before a field goal with seconds left put Navy on the board after 30 minutes.

Regardless of Navy's efforts before and after the half, quarterback Trey Miller led an incisive touchdown drive to open the third quarter that cut the lead to 17, Notre Dame's lead was insurmountable. Touchdowns from running back Theo Riddick(2), George Atkinson(2), Tyler Eifert, Stephen Tuitt and Robby Toma allowed Notre Dame to finish the game on the half-century mark. Winning by 40 points in the process.