If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times; Tom Brady is too good and the Los Angeles Rams could not compete with the GOAT.

On Sunday, Brady surpassed Peyton Manning for the most wins by a quarterback in National Football League (NFL) history, which means Brady now holds the title of All Time Winningest Quarterback with 201.

While it may be a hot take, Brady is no doubt one of, if not the most consistent quarterback of all time, and this he proved in the 26-10 blow out against the Rams.

The New England Patriots took a very early lead when running back LeGarrette Blount rushed for 43 yards.

Last week against the Jets, tight end Rob Gronkowski took himself out of the game when he noticed that his back and legs were feeling how they felt when he had previously herniated his disk in 2009.

Luckily, Blount came up forceful in this game and led the team with 88 rushing yards and one touchdown, his antics even made coach Bill Belichick smile.

The Rams never got any momentum in this game due to the strong defense that Pats defensive coordinator Matt Patricia put together.

During the broadcast, it was mentioned that Brady thrives on difficult situations and figures out how to make his offense click.

This could be seen throughout the entire game and especially in the sense that Brady was working without his tight end and changed up the offense in order to make it work.

The Patriots ended the first half in control with a 17-0 lead.

When the second half began, the broadcast mentioned that the Pats had more plays than the Rams had yards, which sums up the game pretty well.

The Rams didn’t score until halfway through the third quarter and it came from a forced field goal.

Game Heroes: 

Kicker Stephen Gostkowski made himself known in this game after coming up short in the past few weeks. He redeemed himself and the kicker was a 4-for-4 on his field-goal attempts and hit from 28, 48, 45 and 45 yards.

The wide receiver duo of Julian Edelman and rookie Malcolm Mitchell clicked and Edelman totaled eight catches for 101 yards, and Mitchell also tallied eight receptions for 82 yards, showing his poise on the field.

As for the most obvious hero, Tom Brady, he brought together an offense that needed some work without Gronk. As an amazing situational player, Brady took advantage of the bad football the Rams were playing. He played to the end and didn’t slow down even when the Pats took a huge lead.

The Patriots resume action on Monday against the Ravens and look to get another win to tack onto the 10-2, and remain number one in the American Football Conference East.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at Mcurtin@kscequinox.com

Game 10

After a grim loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 10, Bill Belichick and his New England Patriots marched into San Francisco and struck it rich, returning to the East Coast with a golden win.

With this win, the worst record the Patriots could end the season with would still be .500, which means they would have to lose every single game until the end of the season, which obviously isn’t going to happen, but it is reassuring knowing that your team can’t be any worse than losing half of the season.

Offensive Triumphs: 

Tom Brady earned his 199th victory after he threw for 280 yards and four touchdowns, tying Brett Favre for the second most wins by a quarterback in National Football League (NFL) history.

Running back LeGarrette Blount led the team in rushing yards with 124, tallying 802 total yards on the season.

Malcolm Mitchell, Julian Edelman, James White and Danny Amendola all caught for one touchdown, spreading the wealth amongst the roster.

Kicker Stephen Gostkowski completed 3-for-4 extra points, getting the Pats from 24 points to the magic 30 in the dominant 30-17 win.

Defensive Triumphs:

The Patriots defense went to the Bay Area ready to dominate, and that is exactly what they did.

Between the defensive team, quarterback Colin Kaepernick (who may be known for his recent civil justice movements) was sacked a total of five times throughout regulation.

Patrick Chung led the Patriots defensive squad with seven solo tackles on the 49ers.

Tight end Rob Gronkowski was inactive in this game from the chest injury he sustained during week 10 against Seattle.

The Pats didn’t need Gronk unless it was to possibly break a few more records or run up the score on the 1-9 San Francisco team.

While this game was a sure-win, it just reassured me why I stay around watching this team week after week, and I am holding out for that ring in February.

Game 11

Patriots back on a roll: two in a row

After 17 years and now 200 wins in the National Football League, you would think the Jets would learn how to stop Tom Brady.

Despite the win, this was quite an off day for the New England Patriots offense, which is usually as close to perfect as an offense can be.

After a rocky first half, the New England Patriots rallied and pulled out a 22-17 victory over the petty New York Jets, Brady tying Peyton Manning’s all-time record of 200 career wins by a quarterback. The Pats first down of the game and a timeout call from Brady, as well as the Jets challenging the first down call led to the ruling being overturned, which was a good synopsis of how the rest of the game would go.

After New England kicked off, myself along with all Patriots fans were holding our breath after Jordan Richards leg was twisted into a pretzel on a tackle.

I would be lying if I said I wasn’t at least a little bit nervous during the first quarter; Jets’ quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick was looking pretty strong, hitting all of his receivers, but luckily the only damage was a forced field goal, which unfortunately meant an early 3-0 lead for the NYJ.

The Pats started off looking pretty sloppy and the offense could not connect, but Brady missed two days of practice the week leading up to the Jets game with his knee injury, so early on, I wasn’t reading too much into it.

What made me more nervous, however, was when my semi-injured quarterback decided that lead-blocking for LeGarrette Blount was a good idea.

Any Pats fan knows what Brady looks like when he rushes and that in itself is scary enough; we don’t have to bring lead-blocking into the mix.

Early on, Brady and tight end Rob Gronkowski were having some trouble connecting, and I was honestly surprised to see Gronk on the field after the way his chest was crushed against the Seahawks. The Pats never got momentum and each offensive drive was stop-and-go.

The Pats were forced to punt three time in the first quarter alone and had me biting my nails, questioning my thoughts of a sure-win, especially when Gronk headed to the locker room.

One thing is for sure. Defensive coordinator Matt Patricia had an active first quarter as the NYJ led the Pats 3-0 at the end of the first.

The second quarter began with a touchdown pass from Fitzpatrick to Brandon Marshall, his fifth catch of the game, making it a 10-0 lead for the NYJ.

After this, the Pats offense began to pick up once Malcolm Butler recovered a fumble and Brady tossed to wide receiver Julian Edelman, where Edelman made a beauty of a catch on the sideline.

The Pats then scored a touchdown, but not before Brady lost the ball on the snap, stayed completely poised, picked it up and threw a perfect ball to wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell.

Kicker Stephen Gostkowski hit the extra point, the Pats tied the game at 10 and just like that, my breathing returned to normal for the time being.

A blocked field goal by Alan Branch revved the team right before a missed field goal attempt from Gostkowski.

The Patriots undoubtedly had an off-day, but the fourth quarter offensive surge led by Tom Brady allowed the team to win their second in a row.

The worst the Pats can finish now is 9-7, and something tells me that we are more than in contention for another ring.

With a 9-2 record, the Pats in first place in the American Football Conference East and are out in front of the 7-4 Miami Dolphins.

On to Los Angeles.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at Mcurtin@kscequinox.com

After this past week, I was hoping for something to lighten my mood.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t turn to the one thing that remains constant: New England Patriots Football and its continuous winning franchise.

The Patriots bye week proved to be ineffective judging by the 31-24 score, making this the second loss for the Pats this season.

With a bye week, it was expected that this team would have been better prepared, especially against a team such as the Seattle Seahawks.

This Super Bowl XLIX rematch was a suspenseful one, and each possession posed a new threat for both the offense and defense.

Seattle’s defense is a factor that may present the biggest issue in the effort and hope of achieving a Super Bowl LI win in February.

Defense, offensive deficiencies and even field goals played an optimal role in the Pats second loss of the season.

First Quarter

Running back James White caught the first toss of the game, for a 13-yard gain from Tom Brady in a beautiful connection between White and his quarterback.

New England then took an early lead after a one-yard rushing touchdown from running back (RB) LeGarrette Blount. Blount now leads the team in rushing yards at 609.

Brady commended White’s efforts and said that he is a kid who tries to do everything right.

The Pats led Seattle 7-6 at the end of the first quarter.

Second Quarter

The second quarter began with a shift of momentum when the Seahawks struck first, making it a 12-7 game.

Quarterback Russell Wilson connected with Doug Baldwin for a 6-yard touchdown, but the Seahawks would not go on to receive the extra point.

The Pats reciprocated when Blount rushed for his second touchdown of the game, making it a 14-12 ball game.

Kicker Stephen Gostkowski proved himself worthy of the New England love again after he made each one of his field goals on Sunday.

The back and forth style of this game began early and continued throughout the entire game.

The Seahawks bounced back when Wilson found Baldwin once again for another touchdown, making it a five point game.

Seattle led the Pats 19-14 at halftime.

Third Quarter

New England laid the hammer down quickly in the third quarter when Blount racked up his third touchdown of the game.

Seattle would only gain three more points from a field goal, and the Pats ended the third quarter on a good note when Brady found Julian Edelman downfield for possibly the best looking catch all game.

Fourth Quarter

The Pats started the quarter 22-21 and down by one point.

New England pulled away 24-22 off of a 30-yard field goal from Gostkowski.

The Pats would not score again after that and finished the game down 31-24.

The fourth quarter is where the demise of the game mostly lies.

The Pats had a chance to tie the score up at 31 with less than a minute left, the ball being on the two-yard line.

On third and goal, Brady fumbled the ball and dove on it, but it wasn’t enough.

There was poor ball handling and the execution was nonexistent, and the fourth quarter epitomized the sloppy ball playing of the entire game.

Overall

The execution throughout the entire game was not up to par with a franchise as strong as the Seattle Seahawks.

Turnovers don’t win games, especially not against a team looking for some sort of revenge on the Patriots.

The Seattle offense was clicking and delivering while the Pats’ offense looked sloppy and unprepared.

I don’t want to lose faith in my team’s ability for the chance at another Super Bowl win, despite the loss and the obvious improvements that must be made, but the Patriots still remain on top of the American Football Conference East.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at Mcurtin@kscequinox.com

Musical duo Matt and Kim danced and sang their way into the hearts of Keene State College students when they played their first ever show in New Hampshire.

The two put on a free concert open to all, as long as they texted the word “Daylight” to show their enthusiasm about the music group and the 2016 election.

Luke Stergiou / Senior Photographer

Students and community members gathered together to dance and get excited the night before the 2016 presidential election.

KSC student Kristin Bixby said, “In middle school, I actually really liked Matt and Kim, and I’m so stoked they’re on campus and I also think it’s for a very good cause.”

Before the concert began, President of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund Cecile Richards explained the importance of getting out and voting and how much this election means.

Students were cheering, chattering and excited about the concert and the pending election.

The event was full of balloons and confetti, but it also included an important message.

Matt Johnson of Matt and Kim said during the concert, “I don’t know how to say it, just do it man, just do it. Just be part of it, even if you are not registered, you can register tomorrow and still vote.”

Ana Morales, who identified herself as the press person on site, said the event was all about getting the message out and that everyone can be a part of going out and voting.

Luke Stergiou / Senior Photographer

This was the last show of 2016 for this dynamic duo, and they said it was like eating dessert after a good meal.

Students danced and moved, but were also engaged during the political speech as well.

After the concert, Keene State College senior Meredith Falso said, “First off, I’m a huge Matt and Kim fan, so that was so fun that they came here, and I am totally for Hillary all the way anyway, so this just encouraged my vote even more.”

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

In the words of Miley Cyrus, “We can’t stop and we won’t stop.”

The New England Patriots Reunion Tour rolled through Buffalo, New York, on Oct. 30 and marked the seventh win this season after defeating Rex Ryan and his Buffalo Bills 41 to 25. To make a long story short, Tom Brady is a football god and the Patriots are in full control of the American Football Conference (AFC) east.

Earlier this season, when rookie Jacoby Brissett was playing quarterback, the Patriots picked up their first and last loss of the season so far, making them now 7-1 on the season.

As much as I want to write a novel about how great Tom Brady is, there was another star in this game, and he goes by the name of Rob Gronkowski.

We all know that Gronk is a fired-up and goofy kid, but he is also one hell of a tight-end, and I often think that he may be the best the National Football League (NFL) has ever seen. Brady returned in week five and by then, Gronk was making a full recovery after his hamstring injury.

Since his return, these are the statistics he has recorded: 21 catches for 473 yards and three touchdowns.  Also in Sunday’s game, Gronk set the franchise record with touchdown catch number of 69, surpassing his previous tie with former Pats’ wide receiver Stanley Morgan. These stats and historical milestones just reaffirm my notion that Gronk is one of the greatest tight ends of all time. Now that we discussed the  of the game, let’s go back to Brady.

Brady took his fair share of big hits this game, yet racked up these 22 of 33 for 315 yards, with four touchdowns and no interceptions. He was moving pretty well on the field and even tacked on a 15-yard run for a first down.  I can’t say it makes me comfortable watching my long-legged, gazelle-like quarter back running that much, especially against a defense like the Bills.

According to ESPN, Brady is the third player in NFL history to have 12 touchdown passes, and zero interceptions in his first four games on the season.

We were even lucky enough to see kicker Stephen Gostkowski get back to his normal self after a few out-of-the-norm games. He was two-of-two on field goals and five-of-five on extra points in some extreme Buffalo weather. The Pats don’t play for another two weeks, which means NFL action is going to be slightly less exciting until then. When they return back home on Nov. 13, the Seattle Seahawks are next on the agenda, as the Pats look for their eighth win of the season.

Winning has become second nature and I have gotten so used to it, so I may be lost when the Pats finally lose a game.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at MCurtin@kscequinox.com

Sunday Oct. 24 was just another average Sunday for football fans as the New England Patriots rolled through the Steel City for the third game of the Reunion Tour in a matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Pats proved too much for second-string quarterback Landry Jones, while Ben Roethlisberger was out after having undergone left knee surgery. I still hate that I even had to see his face on the sideline though. I could do without that guy for the rest of existence in the National Football League (NFL).

Week seven proved to be a relatively easy one for New England as they won their third game in a row with a 27-16 win over Pittsburgh.

Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and the entire Pats team came to play and came to win, now 3-0 on the road.

Brady threw for 222 passing yards, completed 19-26 passes and two touchdowns, one of them being to Rob Gronkowski and caught all four passes from his quarterback. We were lucky enough to witness some chemistry between the quarterback and the tight end once again.

Gronk was able to play from the beginning of the game on, and this helped the Patriots do what they are meant to do: win. Gronk is a beast and we all know that, but he just put himself even higher up on the list when he recorded touchdown number 68, tieing Stanley Morgan, a former NFL wide receiver, for the franchise record.

Stephen Gostkowski, however, wasn’t looking quite as chipper this game and this season has been quite shaky for him in general. Whenever he decides to stop playing poorly, that would make me and all Pats fans happy. What happened to the guy who never missed a field goal?

The first half for the offense started off a bit unsteady, but LeGarrette Blount calmed the offense down a bit and led the team with 127 rushing yards, more than double of last week’s 50 against Cincinnati.

Despite the slightly unsteady first-half offense, the Pats’ defense only allowed six points in the second half and the offense then ran away with the game. The Patriots have not lost a game since Brady’s “Deflategate” suspension return, and I do not see how they will lose another game. The Pats are back in action against Rex Ryan and his Buffalo Bills for hopefully another interesting game.

Until then, we can bask in the fact that the Pats are 6-1 and remain number one in the American Football Conference East.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at MCurtin@kscequinox.com

Children often grow up thinking that their dreams are out of reach, but Keene State College students, alumni and academic and career advisors prove that anything is attainable with hard work, exemplary effort and strong on-campus connections.

Career Week at Keene State College offered different activities for students to boost their resumes, speak with alumni and most recently put on the Your Future Fair event.

The Your Future Fair offered students a little extra guidance and laid out potential opportunities.

Many students have trouble with what they want to do with their majors after college, but the resources and events from Academic and Career Advising, along with students working closely with professors, is hoping to curb that confusion and offer support.

Samantha Moore/ Art Director

KSC senior biology major Casey Kimball is an example of a student who knew what she wanted to do and chose a path that felt right for her.

“I did better in the sciences in [high school]. I was looking forward to science every day, and when I got here, I saw all of the labs and classrooms and just fell in love with it so instantaneously,” she said.

This may not be the norm for all students, and even Kimball has changed her mind on her career path since her first year here.

“Professor Jason Pellettieri has been the most influential [for] me on campus, and I do my research with him,” Kimball said.

“[My favorite part of my major] is that it is always changing, [and] discoveries are constantly being made,” he said.

There is always so much being twisted around,” Kimball said.

“At first, I thought I wanted to go into biotech, then more environmental,” he said.

“The more I get into it,” Kimball said, “the more I realize I am into the smaller stuff, the nano and micro, the super small things that make the bigger impact, oddly enough,” Kimball said.

Career and Academic Advisor Aaron Rock said a student might find them in a classroom or in the Elliot Center on the first floor to the right.

”….We work [with] just general resume prep, [mostly] cover letters since a lot of students have never written a professional cover letter, job search skills[and] discovering exploration of what your industry could be,” he said.

KSC students not only have the career and academic advisors to reach out to, but can also look to their professors for guidance, support and even research opportunities.

While a student may not know what he or she wants to do immediately after graduation, this does not mean they should shy away from seeking guidance.

“We see a lot of students in majors that don’t have a direct correlation, but those are the majors we love seeing the most.,” Rock said.

“You can do anything with a communication] degree [and] there is a lot more you can do with a Holocaust and Genocide degree than just go to grad school,” he said.

“There is so much you can do with every degree here at Keene, so we enjoy seeing all students, but we don’t see any one major more than another,” Rock said.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

The Patriots got shutout at home for the first time since Nov. 28, 1993, in a 16-0 loss to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday Oct. 2 after three straight wins with backup quarterbacks.

This was an ugly loss for the Pats and they never took control of the game, and I am sure I can speak for a large majority of Pat’s Nation when I say I was anticipating a stronger [hopefully final] performance from Jacoby Brissett.

Despite a strong defensive performance, the Patriot’s offense couldn’t get on its feet.

Of course, as a loyal New England fan, I have to give this kid some credit. He had to unexpectedly be the “next man up” in an incredibly powerful and serious organization.

However, Buffalo marched up and down the field, as quarterback Tyrod Taylor completed nearly 70 percent of his passes and throwing for one touchdown.

Bill Belichick started third-string quarterback Jacoby Brissett, with wide receiver Julian Edelman as emergency back-up quarterback, if needed.

Brissett completed 17-27 passes for 205 yards, with no touchdowns, as Garoppolo was out for the second week in a row with his shoulder injury, and we also saw tight end Rob Gronkowski for a quick down as he pulled in his first catch of the 2016-2017 season.

Despite the loss, here’s why I am not worried after this surprising shut out:

Tom Brady’s suspension ended eight hours after the game ended, it took two full games with a third-string quarterback for the Patriots to finally get beat up, and New England is still 3-1 and first in the American Football Conference East (AFC East).

After a loss like this, we just have to be optimistic and remember that was the last game with an inexperienced rookie and Brady will be ready to play come Sunday Oct. 9.

Early last week, Rex Ryan posed as “Walt Patulski from Buffalo News” during Edelman’s conference with Bills media members, asking the wide receiver if he would be playing quarterback against the Bills on Sunday.

Ryan reportedly said, “We’re coming after whatever QB they have,” which to me sounded like a threat.

This whole thing led to my rollercoaster of emotions through the final four quarters pending Brady’s return.

Half of me wanted this train wreck of a game to be over, and the other half wanted to see a comeback and show Bills coach, Rex Ryan that just because he can win two games in a row, doesn’t mean the Patriots are going away, and it certainly doesn’t mean he and his team will somehow be playing like that at the end of October when Brady is back in town.

The anticipation for our quarterback’s return against the 0-4 Cleveland Browns, is something that has been pressing since the summer, and I am so ready to watch the Pats win every game for the rest of the season.

Just a public service announcement to Rex Ryan, the Browns and the rest of the National Football League (NFL): look out because Tom Brady is coming back for good.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com

We just can’t seem to catch a break these days.

First, Brady gets suspended for four games for Deflategate, then Garoppolo gets driven shoulder first into the football field and Gronkowski doesn’t play for two games. Then, we got to witness the unanticipated debut of 23-year-old third-string quarterback, Jacoby Brissett. Brissett doesn’t even have a photo of him in a Patriots uniform on his Wikipedia page yet.

Photo Illustration by Tim Smith/ Photo Editor & Samantha Moore/ Art Director

Brissett took the first snap of his career at the Patriot’s home opener at Gillette Stadium after Garoppolo was hit hard in game two by Kiko Alonso of the Dolphins when the Pats were leading 24-0  According to ESPN statistics, before being driven into the turf on Sunday, Garoppolo completed 18-27 passes for a total of 234 yards and three touchdowns.  It seemed that even in the event of an injured quarterback, with a lead like that, it would have been just fine, but Miami seemed to creep back into sight and the Pats went on to win the game 31-24, the most points the Patriots have allowed so far this season.

ESPN also said Brissett completed 6-9 of his passes for 92 yards, 66 percent of his passes, which percentage-wise is the same as Garoppolo in that specific game. We fast forward to Tuesday and Wednesday when we tried to decode Belichick’s comments on his starting line-up. Belichick is about as cryptic as they come when regarding starting line-ups. For example, when asked if Garoppolo would be ready to play for Thursday’s game, Belichick’s quick response was, “I’m not a doctor.”

Hey, to give him some credit, he really isn’t a doctor, so I agree with him there, but the anxiety of wondering who the “next man up” would be was apparent in my apartment.

Thursday rolled around and Brissett was listed as the starting quarterback for Thursday night versus the Texans.

Robert Gronkowski (Gronk) was listed as active before the game, but did not rack up any stats during his return. Naturally, I was feeling a little concerned about a guy only slightly older than myself making his first start as an NFL quarterback in front of close to 69,000 fans hooting and hollering in-house. The first quarter showed the rookie’s ability, when he rushed for 27 yards and led the Patriots to a 10-0 lead after the first quarter.

That was enough to convince me not to write this kid off just yet. The game continued and he completed only 11 of 19 passing attempts for just over 100 yards, just a little over 50 percent, so naturally, with stats like these, I was feeling a little uneasy. But the game marched on and the Pats led at the end of each quarter ,completing the shutout with a 27-0 win against the Houston Texans. Darren Rovell, avid statistic tweeter and ESPN business reporter, tweeted, “The last time the Houston Texans were shut out (12/7/03), Lebron James had played 20 games in his NBA career. To me, that tweet pretty much sums up the Patriots organization as a whole. As I mentioned in week one, Belichick is nothing shy of a football god and turns water into wine when it comes to his team.

As for the next game, we prepare for one more game without Tom Brady and hope we can blow past Rex Ryan and his 1-2 Buffalo Bills in anticipation for game five.

However, there has been news that Brissett may be questionable for game four and Garoppolo’s condition is unknown at this juncture.  One saving grace is the fact that wide receiver Julian Edelman played quarterback at Kent State, where he attended college.

But hey, why worry when you’re an undefeated, 3-0 team and number one in the American Football Conference East?

All I know is that I can’t wait to see what this team has to offer us for the rest of the season.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at Mcurtin@kscequinox.com

Week 1 Hot Takes

Last Sunday night marked the return of New England Patriots football.

The Pats pulled out a 23-21 win over the Arizona Cardinals in a nail-biting game, right to the last down.

If you are a football fan, you know that Tom Brady is in the midst of his four-game suspension surrounding his “guilty conviction” of the so-called “Deflategate scandal”.

We thought we were done with this issue last season, but Roger Goodell can’t seem to stay off of the superstar’s back.

The terms of Brady’s suspension are fairly harsh, considering he allegedly deflated a few footballs one time in one game.

Brady is not allowed to have any football related contact with his teammates, attend any games or practices and cannot go to any New England Patriots facilities during this time.

However, have no fear, there are two words in every football fan’s vocabulary. Some use these words as a prayer, others view them as sacrilegious. Either way, there is no mistaking that the words “Bill Belichick” will be used in vain, hatred and love all season long.

Belichick has a “backup” quarterback, some may know him as Jimmy Garoppolo, or “Jimmy G”. The problem for any team that faces the Patriots is that Belichick can do just about anything with anyone.

It’s not just that winning smile of Garoppolo’s that won over the hearts of Patriots fans in week one.

In his first start as a New England Patriots quarterback, Garoppolo converted 24 of 33 attempts for a total of 264 passing yards, according to ESPN, tossing the football to two other first game superstars: Julian Edelman and Chris Hogan..

What’s even more impressive than not having your starting quarterback is not having your tight end, Rob Gronkowski (Gronk) to receive your passes.

Gronk was out the first game with a hamstring injury, but fans are hopeful for his return in game two.

Personally, after watching this first game, I have full faith in the Patriots organization and am optimistic that Jimmy G can carry this team through the next three weeks.

With that being said, upon Brady’s return, the rest of the league better take notice. A pissed off Tom Brady is not someone to write off.

I don’t expect the Patriots to lose a game once Brady is back for good.

As for now, 1-0 and first in the American Football Conference East with a backup quarterback is just fine with me.

Mary Curtin can be contacted at mcurtin@kscequinox.com