Welcome to first and 10, a roundup of all the (mostly) Patriots-related news you need to start your Wednesday. Grab your coffee and let’s get to it.
--The Patriots are headed for Miami this week, a place that's represented a frequent late-season stumbling block the last few years. It's rare for New England to have such a consistent Achilles' heel, but the Patriots have lost four of its last five in South Florida, with three of those losses coming late in the season. With the AFC playoff chase looking like it's going to come down to the last few games, the Patriots can't afford another meltdown in Miami. It'll be interesting to see what sort of energy New England will have out of the gate this time around -- in those previous road losses in South Florida, one of the things that distinguished the Pats was their lack of fire in the early going. One other added layer of intrigue? If New England wins Sunday, it will clinch the AFC East.
--It's Wednesday, which means we'll get our first practice peek of the week. We'll be keeping an eye out for all the regulars, including Rob Gronkowski and Dwayne Allen.
--Pete Morelli will work as the referee for Sunday's game. The veteran official has been a familiar presence when it comes to New England games over the years -- this will be his fifth Patriots' game since the start of the 2015 season. For a rundown of his work, check out his page at Pro Football Reference.
Wednesday’s Schedule
11:45 a.m.: Bill Belichick press availability (media workroom).
12:30 p.m.: Media availability at practice.
2:35 p.m.: Adam Gase conference call (media workroom).
4-4:45 p.m.: Approximate time for player availability (locker room) and James White and Patrick Chung media availability (media workroom).
Now, on with the links...
1. The Week 14 edition of the NFL BSJ Power Rankings takes an in-depth look at all 32 teams, and features two things: one, we have a question for each team as the final dash to the playoffs begin. And two, we added one thing we like about all 32 teams. Believe me, in some cases, it wasn’t easy, but we found at least one positive about the state of each franchise. Think you'll dig it.
2. Miguel takes a look at the various incentives that some members of the Patriots are chasing as the regular-season winds down. We all know about the deal involving Brady and Gronkowski, but I was intrigued to see how much extra cash Jason McCourty is going to make this year.
3. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has already been mentioned as a head coaching candidate, and on Tuesday, he was asked about the rumors that are out there. “I don’t really worry about the future,” he said. “Honestly, each week is a tremendous challenge and we try to stay in the moment and focus on the task at hand, which this week is obviously considerable considering that we haven’t had a lot of success (in Miami). This is a big challenge for us. All the other stuff is just, it is what it is, and (I) don’t really pay too much attention to it.”
4. On Tuesday, Greg spent some quality time with the fellas from Felger & Mazz.
5. Mike Reiss praises Trent Brown as being the guy who has answered the Patriots' biggest offseason question mark. "Brown has filled the void (at left tackle) this year, becoming a key cog along the line to the point that a potential extended absence due to injury would have been a major concern," writes Reiss.
6. Mike Giardi has the home-road splits for the quarterback this year, and they're pretty stark.
7. Miami cornerback Xavien Howard, who leads the NFL in picks, is having a great season, and wants people to know about it. "I don’t feel like I get recognized enough," Howard said. "I want to let them know I’m the best corner in the game. ... Watch my stats, watch my game."
8. Howard is dong so well, in fact, he's hired a new agent. This story also has some good quotes from Belichick's Q&A with the South Florida media on Tuesday. “They got a good football team," Belichick said of the Dolphins. "They got a lot of good players. They’re well coached. Adam (Gase) does a really good job game planning and scheming. Coach (Darren) Rizzi did a great job in the kicking game against Buffalo; it’s one of the best units we play every year. They’re always tough. It will be a big challenge for us. It always is down there. It’s that way against Miami everywhere. They’re tough.”
9. The Dolphins have struggled with explosive plays this year, both on offense and defense.
10. Strictly speaking, this has nothing to do with the Patriots. But given the fact the Steelers are chasing home-field along with New England, and that Pittsburgh is in Oakland this weekend, I thought this was worthwhile. A crazy story on the Steelers from our pal Dom Cosentino.
Extra Point: This is why it's important to remember sacks aren't the end all and be all when it comes to measuring pressure.
These defenses are getting after the Quarterback.#LARams #DUUUVAL #GoPats #HereWeGo #BeRedSeeRed #GoPackGo #Texans #ChiefsKingdom #InBrotherhood #RaiderNation pic.twitter.com/z3feWzITie
— NFL Matchup on ESPN (@NFLMatchup) December 3, 2018