State Of The Patriots: Holt and The Hellish Schedule

Posted on April 20, 2010 by Joe Gill

Torry Holt should be a competent compliment to Randy Moss.

Today was a bittersweet day on Planet Patriots.

New England finally made a splash on the free agent market by signing wide receiver, Torry Holt. Holt played 15 games for the Jaguars last year while posting 51 catches and 722 yards with no touchdowns.

The Patriots wide receiving corps needed a shot in the arm after the injury to Wes Welker and the disaster that was Joey Galloway. Holt will be a competent compliment to Randy Moss and Julian Edelman. Tom Brady will have confidence throwing the ball to this proven veteran, something he did not have at times last season.

Torry Holt is not exactly Brandon Marshall or Santonio Holmes talent wise. However, he has a much better character and should fit into the “Patriot Way”. Holt also brings veteran leadership, the Patriots seriously lacked last year.

Torry Holt’s career numbers are as follows; 920 catches for 13,382 yards and 74 touchdowns. His best year was with the Rams in 2003. Holt hauled in 117 balls for 1,696 yards and 12 scores.

Hellish Schedule

The Patriots knew their opponents quite some time ago for the 2010 season, but the schedule was finally released today to much fan

Bill and Tom will have their work cut out for this in 2010.

fare. The NFL is the only league that can pull something off like this with such hype.

The schedule is as follows:

Sunday, Sept. 12 – vs. Bengals (1 p.m.)
Sunday, Sept. 19 – at N.Y. Jets (4:15 p.m.)
Sunday, Sept. 26 – vs. Bills (1 p.m.)
Monday, Oct. 4 – at Miami (8:30 p.m.)
BYE
Sunday, Oct. 17 – vs. Baltimore (1 p.m.)
Sunday, Oct. 24 – at San Diego (1:15 p.m.)
Sunday, Oct. 31 – vs. Minnesota (4:15 p.m.)
Sunday, Nov. 7 – at Cleveland (1 p.m.)
Sunday, Nov. 14 – at Pittsburgh (8:20 p.m.)
Sunday, Nov. 21 – vs. Indianapolis (4:15 p.m.)
Thursday, Nov. 25 – at Detroit (12:30 p.m.)
Monday. Dec. 6 – vs. N.Y. Jets (8:30 p.m.)
Sunday, Dec. 12 – at Chicago (1 p.m.)
Sunday, Dec. 19 – vs. Green Bay (8:20 p.m.)
Sunday, Dec. 26 – at Buffalo (1 p.m.)
Sunday, Jan. 2 – vs. Miami (1 p.m.)

With the Jets and Dolphins acquiring the likes of Santonio Holmes, Jason Taylor, and Brandon Marshall respectively, the AFC East is up for grabs. The Patriots will face NY, Buffalo, and Miami in the first quarter of the season. These games will be pivotal in the division race.

New England will also face the likes of 2009 playoff participants; Cincinnati, Minnesota, Green Bay, Baltimore, San Diego, and Indianapolis. Sprinkle in tough road contests against Pittsburgh and Chicago and the Patriots will have their work cut out for them.

Even games against the rebuilding Browns and the Lions on Thanksgiving Day are far from layups. The margin for error for the Patriots will be slim. There is no wiggle room for mental mistakes and blowing fourth quarter leads.

Bill Belichick must have his team focused for 17 weeks to have a chance at the post-season.

The Patriots of the dynasty years thrived on adversity and rose to tough challenges.

The one million dollar question is what will the 2010 Patriots do?

Wilt or go full tilt?

Tags: 2010 nfl schedule, AFC East, Boston, dolphins, Football, jets, New England Patriots, NFL, torry holt
Category Football, New England Patriots
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BST&N Looks Back....

Vintage Athlete Of The Month: Andy Brickley
April 21, 2012 | 11:06 am

Andy Brickley

Andy Brickley’s voice is familiar throughout New England and to those of us out-of-market fans who get the NESN broadcasts via the NHL’s Center Ice package. Brickley is the top TV analyst for Boston Bruins’ hockey games. Most fans know he was a part of Boston’s 1989-90 teams that reached the Stanley Cup Finals. What many fans may not know is how hard Brickley has had to work for everything in his career. To pay tribute to his effort and to acknowledge his tremendous contributions to the culture of Boston Bruins hockey is why he is BST&N’s Vintage Athlete Of The Month for April.

The need to prove himself to skeptics started right away in college. Brickley went to school at New Hampshire, but had to walk on the hockey team. He made the squad and played all four years, from 1979-82. By the end of his career he had made first-team All-American and led New Hampshire to the Frozen Four in his senior year.

Two years into his college career he was selected in the NHL Entry Draft, but by the skin of his teeth—Brickley was the final player chosen in a 210-player draft, going to the Philadelphia Flyers. He began his pro career there in the fall of 1982, but a year later he was traded to Pittsburgh, as part of a package involving multiple players and draft picks.

By rights, this should have been the point when his career took off. He scored 18 goals in 50 games, the highest goal output of his career and also had 12 assists. But he ended up demoted to the minor leagues for the egregious sin of breaking curfew. To put the early 1980s in perspective, this was a time when frequent reports of players’ cocaine addictions were becoming public—in all sports. Seen in that light, the idea of demoting Brickley because he broke curfew seems absurd beyond belief.

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