BIG SHOWS
1. Buddy Farnham — Came in and laid the lumber at safety, despite practicing all training camp at wide receiver. Finished with four total tackles and swatted away a sure TD with an athletic play in the third quarter. Add in a 35-yard kick return in the fourth. Versatility, intelligence and a total team attitude with an athlete who can contribute in all three phases of the game. Now, we'll see if Bill Belichick thinks that's enough to earn a ticket on the practice squad.
2. Darnell Jenkins — One Patriot TV commentator called him Darrell. Another called him Daniel. Darnell did a nice job, at least earning himself a second year on the practice squad with five catches for 93 yards and a 66-yard TD.
3. Tyrone McKenzie — Six solo tackles in what some might consider garbage time. At least he made the plays.
NO SHOWS
1. Brandon Spikes — The last time the rookie made a play of consequence was the exhibition opener. He can't cover and doesn't move well sideline to sideline. Between the tackles, he's fine, but right now he's not much more than a short-yardage impact player.
2. Jerod Mayo — With the regular season upon us, the clock is now ticking again. Is the 2008 AFC Defensive Rookie of the Year ever going to make a play?
3. Fred Taylor/Laurence Maroney — Not exactly a confidence boost for the running game. Taylor carried 4 times for 5 yards, and Maroney racked up a robust 3.6 yards a carry (9 rushes, 32 yards) against the Giants third teamers.
BUDDY BALL
The defense rests, literally.
After mini-camps and 40 training camp practices in the hot summer sun, Andover's Buddy Farnham made a stunning final argument, playing the final 2 1/2 quarters of last night's game at safety.
The surprise move probably was a need-based decision for the Pats, who were short on defensive backs and long on receivers on the bottom of the roster.
It had to be a situation that the coaching staff went to the Ivy League Player of the Year and asked him to make the switch to defense in exchange for more snaps.
Farnham made a nice accounting of himself, seeing the first real defensive action since his Andover High days and finishing with a tackle and three assists.
He did take an incorrect angle on the game-winning TD catch and run by Duke Calhoun, but on that play Farnham got a taste of what the Pats starting DBs are in for, attempting to cover for eons as Giants QB Rhett Bomar simply waited and waited and waited with no pass rush until Calhoun broke open.
All that is left now for Farnham, who added a sweet 35-yard kick return after the TD, is to wait until the final roster verdicts.
NFL rosters are cut to 53 on Saturday and on Sunday teams are allowed to add back up to eight players to their practice squads.
YOU TAKE THE GOOD
Tom Brady may have only been 4 for 8, but it's been clear throughout the preseason, one in which Brady's passer efficiency rating has been 128.4, that the Patriots will again torment teams through the air. Randy Moss has been sharper. Wes Welker is back. With talented tight ends added to the mix, you're looking at 2007 offensive numbers.
YOU TAKE THE BAD
The Giants chewed through New England's No. 1 defense like the Rams did last week. It was another affirmation that the New England defense is going to struggle mightily.
There is no pass rush. There is no activity from the linebackers, and the secondary often appears adrift.
Hopefully, this cover-two (two safeties sitting back over the top covering the deep part of the field with zone principles by the rest of the cover men underneath) employed by the Pats in the preseason has just been some Belichickian ruse. It's looked awful.
THE FACTS OF LIFE
The lack of a running game didn't hurt them in 2007 until the Super Bowl. Why will it hurt this club, right?
Randy Moss is a step slower and a couple years older. Wes Welker comes off reconstructive knee surgery. And Julian Edelman might be a solid No. 3, but he's injury prone.
Still, as long as the pieces stay in place, this is an offense that will decimate a lot of defenses.
FEW SECOND-HALF HEROICS
Where are Shawn Crable, Patrick Pass and Bam Childress when you need them?
The New England Patriots, after their starting units leave the field, have been a boring team to watch.
Gone are the days of Crable smacking an opposing QB, Pass running wild on a cast of future accountants and Childress abusing suspect secondaries.
As the final cut from 75 to 53 approaches, have any of the Pats on the bubble made a lasting impression?
ANDOVER-NORTH ANDOVER COLLIDE
Well, not really.
But at one point in punt coverage, Zak DeOssie of North Andover for the Giants and the Pats' Buddy Farnham of Andover were caught on camera, exchanging pleasantries. The two were teammates at Brown in 2006.
DeOssie is still entrenched as the New York snapper for punts and field goals.
Earlier in the night, DeOssie had a nice stop in coverage, hauling down Brandon Tate on a punt return by the sideline.
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