Pats continue to roll heading into Tennessee

Well, I guess it's a good thing that I was wrong again. I had predicted that the Pats would split with the Bills this season, and sweep the Jets, but it would seem the Pats D had other ideas for QB Drew Bledsoe's return to Foxboro last Sunday.

Once again the Patriots defense shut down the Bills from the very start of the game by assaulting Bledsoe from all angles. By the end of the game Bledsoe had taken four sacks, and threw four picks. It was a bad day for Bledsoe, and the omen was there at the start of the game where some strange things were going on in the announcer's booth.

At the beginning of the game, the Bills offense was being announced with Bledsoe standing at the end of the line. The Foxboro announcer had other plans, he read the names down the roster and announced Bledsoe fifth in the order with no emotion in his voice. Then he went on to announce the rest of the Bills offense. Bledsoe was visibly confused, and so was the press as they stood in the tunnel waiting for him to take the field.

The disrespect didn't end there though, when Bledsoe came out for the Bills first series the Foxboro crowd began the "Drew" chant, but before the momentum could build, a Guinness ad came on to the screens and the volume jumped up enough to almost drown out the chants. When they subsided the volume returned to normal.

Now watching this game did feel weird with Bledsoe on the other side, and from this writer's point of view, it's a feeling I haven't felt since RB Curtis Martin came back with the Jets. Bledsoe was now on the other side, and it was confusing to a lot of people.

For example...

About seven rows in front of us there was a guy wearing two NFL jerseys -- one Bills' jersey with Bledsoe on the back, and then a Pats' Jersey with Brady on the back. When the Bills offense was on the field he wore the Bledsoe jersey, when the Pats offense came out the Brady shirt went on over it.

Some fans cheering for both QB's.

Bledsoe throwing to our secondary like they were his wide receivers.

Yes, it was that bad for the Bills and their play calling was horrible. Granted they got down early on, but it's no excuse. The Pats D also let up in the third possibly because they were bored or so in control. Before coming in here I read most of the pre-game literature, and the Bills coaching staff seemed to be so focused on the Pats using screens, and their defense using that roaming d with no down linemen. Well. that may have been the problem because the Pats went long on several plays, and kept their patience with the run giving them a positive victory.

There was a major downside to the game though, as the Pats had three touchdowns nullified by committing penalties -- two holding calls and an illegal shift. All of these could have been avoided by keeping their head in the game. The hard thing to accept is what cornerback Damien Woody said this week when he was on 1510 the Zone.

Woody admitted the penalties are an issue, but what hurts is that no matter what officiating crew watches over the games, they have this roving eye because the team has made a name for themselves. Then to make matters worse you have opposing players pointing out missed holding calls after the play.

Something has to be done because it's not just with the Pats, but holding penalties are at an all-time high, especially on kick or punt returns. The problem is that "holding" can be called on almost every down, but it's not.

On Monday night, the Patriots head into Tennessee to take on a rejuvenated QB Steve McNair and the possible return of Jevon Kearse.

The Titans are the leaders of the AFC South, and looking to continue their winning ways. Look for the Pats to upset the Titans, and send a message to the rest of the AFC, including the Jets who roll into Foxboro the following Sunday.

Comments, email me at: Sinista1@msn.com.