Good morning!
A few random thoughts while I wonder if Nashville is going to be an adopted Boston suburb with all the Patriots fans descending on the city as we speak...
- The Celtics were absolutely dreadful in the first half against the 2-8 Suns and appeared headed to their third straight loss when Kyrie Irving put the team on his back and spearheaded a massive comeback victory.
- Jayson Tatum got benched to start the second half. Good. He was terrible. It's time for Brad Stevens to shake up the starting five. Enough's enough.
- The good news on the Bruins ... for the first time in five games, they received secondary scoring in 5v5.
- The bad news ... they couldn't defend or stop a puck to save their lives as the Canucks put up an eight spot.
- Do you want to know why the Patriots pulled out all the stops against a mediocre team that probably won't make the playoffs? In nearly 70 percent of the game, Tom Brady and the passing offense completed 48.8 percent of their passes and compiled a 68 passer rating.
- By the way, don't believe the hype on the Titans defense. They're worse than the Packers.
- Big day Saturday at The Heights with College GameDay in town for Clemson-BC. Should be fun.
Time to hit the links...
PATRIOTS
Bedard’s Breakdown: Was Patriots’ reliance on ‘deceptive’ plays vs. Packers par for course or cause for concern?
BSJ Live Q&A: Bedard on Patriots and anything else, 8 p.m.
Week 10 NFL Picks: Patriots should pass road test, but Falcons, Rams are our picks for best bets
Video: Josh Gordon talks about being off the injury report and the challenge of the Titans
Patriots Notebook: Burkhead back on practice field; Brown still sidelined
James Develin: Cordarrelle Patterson’s decisiveness has been key element to his success at RB
RED SOX
McAdam: Don’t expect a lot of offseason activity from Red Sox
GM Meetings Notebook: Dombrowski already looking ahead to future Red Sox free agents
CELTICS
Robb: While issues persist, Kyrie Irving keeps putting the Celtics on his back
BSJ Game Report: Celtics 116, Suns 109 – Kyrie leads miraculous comeback
Final: Celtics 116, Suns 109 — C’s rally from 22 down for win
Terry Rozier shoots down reports he’s unhappy with playing time
Marcus Smart knows the Celtics will figure it out, thanks to Brad Stevens
BRUINS
On night where secondary scoring finally arrives, Bruins goaltending & defense unravel
Video: Tuukka Rask on Bruins’ blowout loss – ‘I was just trying to keep it under 10’
Video: Bruce Cassidy addresses blowout loss to Canucks
BSJ Game Report: Canucks 8, Bruins 5 – Goaltending falters in frustrating loss to Vancouver
Final: Canucks 8, Bruins 5 – Halak pulled, Rask struggles against Canucks
Bruins Notebook: Charlie McAvoy’s status still up in the air, new Winter Classic jerseys unveiled
ON TAP
Today
7 p.m.: MCBK — BU at Vermont (NESN Plus)
8 p.m.: BSJ Live Q&A — Bedard on Patriots/NFL.
9:30 p.m.: NBA — Celtics at Jazz, ESPN/NBCSB (Robb)
Saturday
Noon: CFB — Brown vs. Columbia (NESN Plus)
Noon: CFB — BYU at UMass (NESN)
1 p.m.: CFB — UNH vs. Albany (NBCSB)
7 p.m.: NHL — Maple Leafs at Bruins, NESN/NHLN (Ryan)
7 p.m.: MCHK — Northeastern at UMass Lowell (NESN Plus)
7 p.m.: MCHK — Providence at UMass (NBCSB)
8 p.m.: CFB — Clemson at Boston College (ABC)
Sunday
1 p.m.: NFL — Patriots at Titans, CBS (Bedard)
4:05 p.m.: NFL — Chargers at Raiders (FOX)
4:25 p.m.: NFL — Dolphins at Packers (CBS)
8:20 p.m.: NFL — Cowboys at Eagles (NBC)
9:30 p.m.: NBA — Celtics at Trail Blazers, NBCSB (Robb)
PARTING THOUGHT
https://twitter.com/celtics/status/1060752527468032000
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