Patriots host Titans in playoff match-up Saturday



He grew up watching the New England Patriots legend shred defenses, which will make Saturday night in Foxborough a little more surreal.

But all of that is in the past entering this week's matchup against the Titans, and Belichick and the Patriots are now focused on the task at hand.

Wickersham said Belichick planned to start Garoppolo sooner than later after Brady turned 40.

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said he's "excited" for Saturday's playoff game against Tennessee and isn't anxious about distractions from the recent turmoil surrounding the team. "But he always has his eyes downfield - always knows when to run, when to throw the pass, I would say his touch on the ball, too, that gets people open when he's scrambling". The Titans' receivers might not separate well, but Mariota can buy time. That brought their confidence back and showed the Patriots that they still had the skill to stifle a top-flight offense.

The Patriots had the NFL's 20th-ranked rush defense during the regular season, allowing a 100-yard rusher four times. He's 11-2 in 13 divisional-round games since 2002 and has completed 316 of 509 passes for 3,700 yards and 28 TDs in those games.


Derrick Henry is coming off a 156-yard effort against the Chiefs as Tennessee's offensive line wore down Kansas City.

Ben Roethlisberger had the worst game of his career in that October loss to the Jags.


"These are fun games to play in". But look for the Patriots' running backs to be used as pass catchers. "I can't complain. I like where I am". We'll see just how much that age and experience gap matters on Saturday.

"We've had back-to-back winning seasons". He gained more yards running than throwing vs. Buffalo in the wild-card round. They're 9-2 when in that position during the Brady/Belichick era. Part has to do with the Falcons almost winning the Super Bowl last February.

After showing impressive poise against the Rams, it's on to Philadelphia, which is the NFC's top seed for the first time since 2004 but is led by backup quarterback Nick Foles following a season-ending knee injury to MVP hopeful Carson Wentz. His grit and determination played a huge role in his recent success highlighted by the return of his danger as a dual-threat. There's a reason I've been able to do what I've been able to do. But the Patriots' defense absolutely improved as the season went on, allowing just 14.6 points per game in the second half of the season.

By contrast, Atlanta's Matt Ryan has a passer rating of at least 100 in five straight postseason games, tied for the second-longest streak in league history. So I don't really care if it was Joe Montana. They yielded touchdowns in the red zone on only 43.8 percent of chances, the fourth-best rate in the NFL. "No one's going to be able to do it for you". And the New Orleans defense didn't come to fruition until Week 3.

"It's my job trying to help this team win games", Henry said.

Mariota said the Titans are "a lot different" than they were during his rookie season.

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