SZ712

JANUARY 6, 2020

BY JIM DAWSON

IT IS WHAT IT IS – PATRIOTS DEFEATED BY TITANS 20-13–SEASON OVER

Well, Patriots fans knew that their team was in trouble this playoff season. An offense unable to generate many points unless helped by its defense and special teams was an ominous sign. This Patriots’ fan thought that they’d at least get by Tennessee. Wrong, Ducko! Can’t remember the last time that a Patriots team did not score any points in the 2^nd half, especially in the playoffs. But so it was on Saturday night, even after a Duron Harmon interception gave the team the ball on their own 41 at the beginning of the 4^th quarter. It might have been 3 and out but for a penalty that gave them a first down. Instead it was 6 and out. No way to win.

The next series after that failure to capitalize on the turnover proved most costly. A look at Game Book shows that the Titans got the ball with 12:45 left in the 4^th quarter. Tennessee then used the running of Derrick Henry (a beast all game) and the conversion of two 3^rd downs (pass to Dion Lewis, run by Ryan Tannehill) before the Patriots finally stopped the Titans who had a 4^th and 5 from the NE 36. However their coach, ex-Patriot Mike Vrabel, then used a Bill Belichick ploy (sure to be changed in the off season) to take time off the clock. Vrabel purposely took a delay of game penalty on 4^th down. Then his lineman Woodyard got a penalty for a false start (by order of Vrabel?). Patriot Justin Bethel then accidentally contributed with a neutral zone infraction. Those 3 events took 1:01 off the clock. When the Pats got the ball at their 11, there was only 4:44 left. That Titans drive that started at 12:45 lasted until 4:44. With a team having trouble generating offense, the reduced minutes meant reduced chances. When the Pats went 4 and out, the window for a comeback had closed. The next time they got the ball was with 15 seconds left.

The other key series came just before the Half. The Patriots had a 13-7 lead with 2:16 left. Tennessee had 2 timeouts and the ball at their 25. But Derrick Henry ripped off a 29 yard run on the very first play. Then came runs by Henry of 11 yards, 9 and 3. The crusher was a pass to Henry, his only catch of the game, for 22 yards to the NE 1. Henry then ran it in and there was only 38 seconds left. The Titans led 14-13 in a Half that the Patriots had pretty much controlled. The vaunted Defense let them down.

LEFTOVERS (GAME BOOK USED FOR DETAILS)

The Patriots started the game well with scores on 3 of their 4 possessions. Trouble was that two of those scores were field goals. On their very first series, the Pats had a 1^st down on the Titans 25 and then a 3^rd and 3 from the 18. Incomplete pass to Harry. 36 yard FG.

After Edelman’s 5 yard end around for a TD made it 10-7 NE, the Defense held Tennessee, forcing two 3 and outs. After the second of those, the Pats got all the way to a 1^st down on the Titans 1. Then Sony Michel lost a yard. Rex Burkhead ran for a yard. On the critical 3^rd and goal from the 1, Michel was stopped for a 2 yard loss. All 3 runs went off left tackle, the last with Elandon Roberts and Marshall Newhouse in to block. That lost opportunity for 7 in the Red Zone was a crusher. A 21 yard FG wasn’t what they needed.

In between the Pats first two scores, the Titans, behind Derrick Henry’s running, got to the NE 12. On a 3^rd down and 10 from there, Ryan Tannehill hit TE Anthony Firkser for the TD. The play before that, Patrick Chung was hurt trying to stop Derrick Henry, and had to come out. Chung usually covers the tight end. Vrabel would know that.

Tom Brady’s elbow might have had an effect on some of his passes, though Julian Edelman had a crucial dropped pass that would have been a 1^st down. N’Keal Harry also had a bad drop.

The game plan by Josh McDaniels seemed way too vanilla. Outside of a failed 1^st half flea flicker on their very first possession (hand off to Burkhead, lateral back to Brady, long pass to Sanu who was well covered), the Pats had no wrinkles, no special plays. Well they did have a 3^rd and 1 run by Elandon Roberts on their 3^rd possession but that was stopped. Of their 4 pigskin possessions in the 2^nd half (not counting that last one with 15 seconds), there were no special plays. NE was down only 3 points all this time.

One other play that could have had an impact came on the Pats 1^st possession of the 2^nd Half. Brady hit TE Ben Watson with a 38 yard play to the Titans 25. It was negated by a penalty on RG Shaq Mason for being an ineligible player downfield. How the hell was Mason downfield on what he knew to be a pass play???

Originally I thought Mike Vrabel was putting salt in the wounds going for 2 points at the

end. Foot Joy pointed out it was to go up by 9 in case the kickoff was returned for a TD.

EMAIL

Yeah, cheesecake, then the Chippendales became beefcake.

Tom Wallis

Hi Tom, yes I left out that when I said cheesecake, 'you mean women? Foot Joy said 'You mean beefcake?’ I laughed and said 'No, that's men.' - Z

Just heard this fact. Don’t know if it’s Zine worthy. Name the only team to win a Super Bowl in each of the last 4 decades.

Jim Dwyer

And this bonus question comes from Pal Al. Name the years.

Jim Dwyer

Yes Jim, this is Zine worthy. Readers – Answer at the end of the Bullets column. - Z

Re: Brissett. Jacoby back to Patriots?

Ken Forestal

Ken, I don't think so but you've been pretty much ahead of the game on a lot of these sports moves. The Colts will keep Brissett next year and see what they have. He had been playing well for them. Did that O Line protect him enough?

Not sure what the Patriots think of Stidham but I wouldn't be surprised to see them get him some competition, probably in the draft.

One thing for sure - the Pats better draft two TEs.

I'm still stunned that Brady could have almost an 80% completion rate vs the Bills (w/ a better D) and play so poorly vs the Dolphins. Elbow? The Bills didn't blitz him much. Flores and the other ex-Pats coaches (like Chad O'Shea) had an advantage knowing the personnel and doubled Edelman. One thing that Scott Zolak pointed out - the Pats played zone much of the game instead of man to man. That may be why DeVonte Parker had a field day vs Stephon Gilmore. - Z

BULLETS

• It used to be that I set aside New Year’s Day to watch 4 great NCAA football games: the Orange Bowl, the Cotton Bowl, the Sugar Bowl and the Rose Bowl. Now there are so many meaningless bowl games because of corporate greed that few are worth watching.

• With that in mind, sports writer Ken Schreiber had a recent column in the Pro Jo (12/21) in which he wrote that he has been campaigning for a Rhode Island Bowl. Schreiber suggested some sponsors: the Coffee Syrup Bowl, the Del’s Lemonade Bowl or the Calamari Bowl.

• Answer to Jim Dwyer’s trivia question: the New York ‘Football’ Giants who won Super Bowls in 1987 (’86 season), 1991 (’90), 2008 (’07) and 2012 (’11). I had to look it up, but should have guessed since Jim Dwyer and Pal Al are huge NY Giants fans. - Z

Sportzine is also available at jimdawsonsports.com thanks to Buffalo Steve Lenz

THE HOT CLUB

My brother Brad was in town just before Christmas and we, of course, headed to the Hot Club where we met up with the Bear, Fleet Feet Pete, Pal Al and Jim Dwyer. Brad came up with an interesting question for all of us: If you were stranded on an island and could get either all the music that you wanted or all the sports, which would you choose? I’ll reveal our answers at the end of the Hot Club section.

We were talking about comedies that we liked and I mentioned to Captain Jack, Making His Mark and Special K about the Canadian series The Red Green Show. They had never heard of it. I told them that it ran for 15 years (1991-2006) and sometimes pops up on PBS. Told them to look for it on the Internet. Home spun humor from Red Green and the Possum Lodge bunch. Their motto: ‘Quando omni flunkus moritati’ - which is mock Latin for “When all else fails, play dead.”

Told the Friday gang that my Dad was a very good amateur artist. He often did portraits of sports figures. He did one of Celtics great Dennis Johnson and brought it to the Boston Garden before a game to give it to DJ. I told him that they never would let him in the locker room. Well he got in and gave it to Dennis Johnson who was very pleased. Reggie Lewis looked at my Dad’s drawing and said, “You don’t have enough freckles.”

Re Brad’s question: We all said that we’d pick music over sports except for Jim Dwyer. I said that music can take you any place that you want to go. Which would you choose?

ANSWER TO LAST ISSUE’S TRIVIA QUESTION

I asked you to name the American band that initially only had success in the UK and Australia, but had four #1 hits in the US in the ’70’s and ’80’s, and if you counted the UK, had a 5^th #1 hit in the ’90’s. The band is in the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame and is still active. No one got it except for Dave Mayo, a Patriots season ticket holder who sits behind us at Gillette. Dave gets partial credit because I gave him an extra clue – the lead singer is a woman. The answer: Blondie, which had #1’s with Heart of Glass (4/79) Call Me (2/80), The Tide is High (11/80) and Rapture’ (1/81). The 5^th #1 was Maria (2/99).

THIS ISSUE’S TRIVIA QUESTION

This song originated as a Christian hymn. A country legend changed some of the lyrics, and it has been a staple ever since, recorded by various artists and included in TV and film scores. Name that tune.

SZ711

BY JIM DAWSON

DECEMBER 9, 2019

THROWN FOR A LOSS – KC EDGES PATRIOTS 23-16

To be or not to be. To throw a flag or not to throw a flag. To impact a game or to let the plays determine the outcome. Some circumstances are beyond our control.

Sunday night, the Patriots were impacted by the worst officiating that I’ve ever seen. Only the roughing the passer on ‘Sugar Bear’ Hamilton against the Raiders Kenny Stabler on 4^th down comes to mind and that was a single bad call. This game had multiple messups. The best referees are the ones that don’t stand out for their ineptness. This crew should not be allowed to officiate playoff games.

N’Keal Harry did not go out of bounds at the 3. He hit the pylon and it should have been a touchdown. While the Pats got a FG, they lost 4 points and would have only needed a FG at the end to tie the score. The referee’s excuse was that a defender blocked his view and the call was made by the end zone official. How hard is it to get into proper position to make the call?

Phillip Dorsett gets mugged by a defender on the last drive at about the KC 4 yard line. No call. Where was the official on that play? Blocked from view? Bill Belichick could not challenge either the Harry missed TD nor the interference on Dorsett because he had used his two challenges previously, a 1^st down call for KC that didn’t look like a first down, and Travis Kelce’s fumble (which might have been returned for a TD by Stephon Gilmore), but the play was blown dead, called down by contact. The Pats won the challenge but got the ball at the spot of the fumble. Here’s a suggestion – if you win the challenge then you keep the challenge, like in baseball (which allows only 1 challenge, but you keep it if it’s a successful challenge).

There were also a number of penalty flags thrown that were then picked up and ruled as ‘no flag’. One was a roughing the passer on Chase Winovich. The other was an intentional grounding call on Tom Brady with TE LaCosse near the throw. There was an illegal block in the back (against KC vs Winovich, I think). That was 3 penalties picked up – all in the 1^st half! It’s unusual to see more than one of those ‘pick up the flag’ calls.

None of this will change the fact that the Patriots lost the game, and that stems as much from a horrible first half by the Patriots who were down 20-7 at the break. The Pats had scored first on a flea flicker when James White took a hand off and lateraled back to Brady who hit a wide open Julian Edelman for a TD.

On the very first KC possession, the Pats had an INT by JC Jackson and got the ball at the Chiefs 40 but did nothing with the turnover, going 3 and out. KC would then kick a FG to make it 7-3.

On the ensuing drive the Pats would get to to the KC 23. They then missed a 41-yard FG by post-appendectomy Nick Folk. It was 4^th and 3. Folk’s kick was blocked. Given Folk’s situation, it would have been better to go for it on 4^th down.

After that blocked FG, the Chiefs overcame a 3rd and 19 (pass to Hill for 21 yards) and then a 2^nd and 25 when Mahomes hit RB Mercole Hardman for a 48 yard TD. 10-7 KC.

Matters got worse when Brady didn’t see CB Bashaud Breeland who intercepted and brought it to the NE 35. What followed was the trick play with Travis Kelce and 2 RBs with Kelce getting a direct snap and running it in from 4 yards out. It appeared to be a similar pistol play used by both the Ravens and Houston to score TDs vs the Pats. At 17-7, the Patriots were in a big hole made larger when KC kicked a FG before half to make it 20-7. Plus the Pats were looking at KC getting the 2^nd half kickoff.

KC kicked a FG on that first 2^nd half possession and things seemed dire at 23-7. When Nate Ebner blocked a KC punt with 5:14 in the 3^rd, that sparked the Pats who scored two plays later on a 10 yard end around by Brandon Bolden. Then James White was stopped on the 2 point conversion. 23-13. However there was the whole 4^th quarter to play.

What followed was the missed N’Keal Harry TD which resulted in a Folk 29 yard FG instead that made it 23-16.

Then on their final possession with 5:04 left, the Pats drove deep, but couldn’t get the ball in the end zone with the potential to tie. The egregious miss of the interference against Phillip Dorsett at about the KC 4 was a crusher. Brady rumbled for 17 yards on a 4^th and 6, but in the end the Chiefs defense stiffened and preserved the win for them.

(Source – Game Book)

LEFTOVERS

The Patriots were unable to run effectively despite the fact that KC’s run defense is poor.

NE held KC to 3 points in the 2^nd half. Losing this game gives the Pats a chip on the shoulder. Do not count this team out. Others have made that mistake.

EMAIL

Hi Jim - Love the 'zine as usual, but not a word about that 2nd place team in the AFC East? Only one game behind! Re trivia: Otis?

Best,

Buff Steve

Hi Steve, yes it's the late great Otis Redding. Never should have bought that small plane. It was the first tour that they used it when it crashed.

The Bills are doing great. Pats will have to be on their toes when they play them on Saturday, Dec. 21 – 4:30. I'd love to see them beat the Ravens, but that's a tall task. - Z

I think I know this trivia. Gotta be Otis Redding —Sitting on the Dock of the Bay ??

Jim Dwyer

Jim, yes you are right, it's Otis Redding. Sadly he died too early. - Z

Hello Jim, Merry Christmas. Trivia answer - Otis Redding?        

Thanks for the "ZINE".

David Annese

Yes, David, the answer is Otis Redding. Good for you. Merry Christmas. - Z

Jim,

Let’s hope that loss is the low point for the Pats. I’m sure all those guys being sick was a factor. Word is that they took both planes to Houston, one for the healthy players and one for the sick. Hoping for a needed rebound against the Chiefs.

I’m thinking that the artist you’re looking for is Otis Redding and for the bonus points the song was “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay”.

Keep up the good work, always enjoy the Zine.

Cheers,

Tom Robinson 

Right you are Tom, the quiz answer is Otis Redding. Glad you enjoy the Zine. Thanks for the kind words. - Z

I just re-read Zine-three names come to mind-Otis Redding(Sitting on the Dock of the Bay)-Jim Croce (Time in a Bottle)-Janis Joplin (Me and Bobby McKee)-she also had hit Album-Pearl-so I will go with Janis

Ken Forestal

Ken, good guesses on the trivia. One of the 3 is right, but not Janis Joplin. - Z

Hey compadre, answer to your quiz is Otis Redding. Good Zine James.

Mike Curtis

Thanks Mike. Otis Redding is indeed the answer to the quiz. You’re the only one of Team 6 to get it. - Z

Sportzine is available at jimdawsonsports.com thanks to Buffalo Steve Lenz

THE HOT CLUB

Asked Professor Peter if he’s noticed an increase in songs from our era being used to sell product on various TV commercials. I mentioned a few, like Free’s All Right Now, Toots and the Maytals’ Pressure Drop, I Got You Babe by Sonny and Cher and Roxy Music’s More Than This. Professor Peter smiled and said that he had noticed it, and then added that the ads are targeted to us because the Boomers have all the money.

The subject of desserts came up and FootJoy asked me if I opted for cheesecake on Thanksgiving. I responded “You mean like women?” He didn’t know what I meant. I said that the term was used to describe sexy photos of women. Not only did he not know it, but the Hot Club staff I asked had not heard of that definition. Neither did Special K, though Dr. John and Fleet Feet Pete knew that connection. So Special K asked some random but young patron if he knew that meaning of cheesecake. He said that he didn’t, and I pointed out that he was too young to know it. So I asked him if he knew that the game that they now call ‘corn hole’ had a very bad connotation. Yes, that one he knew.

ANSWER TO LAST ISSUE’S TRIVIA QUESTION

Last time I asked you to name the singer/songwriter, record producer, arranger and talent scout who had the first posthumous #1 song in the US and the first posthumous LP to reach #1 in the UK. The answer: Otis Redding. Buffalo Steve Lenz had it as did Jim Dwyer, David Annese, Tom Robinson, Mike Curtis and the duo of Mark Allio and Peter Bortolotti who combined to get it at the Hot Club. Otis Redding, who was born in Dawson, Georgia, died 12/10/67 at age 26 when his Beechcraft H18 crashed into a lake near Madison, Wisconsin. Four members of the Bar-Kays also died, with only one, Ben Cauley, surviving. The song was (Sitting on) The Dock of the Bay (co-written by Steve Cropper), which was released in January of 1968 and the LP, released in February 1968, was similarly named. Otis Redding is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music. He was inducted into the Rock Hall of Fame and the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame.

THIS ISSUE’S TRIVIA QUESTION

This American band had four #1 hits but initially only had success in the UK and Australia. Their #1 hits in the US were in the 70’s and 80’s, and if you count a #1 in the UK (for a the 5th #1 hit) the 90’s. The band is in the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame. The band has sold around 40 million records worldwide and is still active. Name?

SZ710

BY JIM DAWSON

DECEMBER 2, 2019

TEXANS SADDLE PATRIOTS WITH 28-22 LOSS

When the Patriots drove to the Houston 7 for a 1^st and goal on their very first possession, I thought that it was a good sign, especially since they had used 7 runs and 2 passes. Sony Michel had runs of 4, 0, 5, 5 and 17 to get to the 7. Edelman contributed catches of 11 and 12 yards. But then they failed to score a TD and settled for a field goal. Tom Brady was visibly mad after throwing away the 3^rd down pass. Houston had wisely put 2 men on James White and no one else could get open. Little did I and other Patriot fans know at that point that Brady’s anger at his receivers had just begun.

When the Pats Defense again stopped the Texans, there was a chance that NE could add to their lead. However there was a troubling sign on that 2^nd Houston possession. Van Noy had sacked Deshaun Watson on 3^rd down, but a replay showed that on the play Kenny Stills was wide open having beaten Jonathan Jones.

It was that second Pats possession that would be a harbinger of their fate. Brady was hit as he threw the ball on the 1^st play as Isaiah Wynn was beaten by his man. Two more passes ensued and on the 3^rd down play, Bradley Roby intercepted Brady. The pass was intended for N’Keal Harry. Did Harry run the wrong route? Or was it Brady’s fault?

The Texans, from their own 21, quickly scored and it was 7-3. The Pats would never see a lead again. But we would see Brady again blowing his top. On NE’s next possession, with a 3^rd and 7, RT Marcus Cannon was beaten and Brady had to run for his life, managing to get a 1^st down. The next play LG Joe Thuney was beaten and Brady threw it away. On a 3^rd and 6, Brady missed hitting Jacobi Meyers. However Brady could be seen yelling ‘separation’ at Phillip Dorsett.

The Texans then went 88 yards in 13 plays, mixing runs with short passes, and took a 14-3 lead. The drive took 6:52 off the clock. On the TD, the Texans showed some trickery as they had 3 men in the backfield with Watson. Two went out for the pass and Duke Johnson was wide open. With an offense that is struggling big time, the Patriots were in big trouble. Brady was sacked on 3^rd down on the next series as RT Marcus Cannon was beaten. It was 14-3 at the Half, but the Pats would have the ball first. Hope.

Hope left early after a Brady INT was negated by a Houston penalty, because Brady was sacked again on a 3^rd and 6. Then the Pats went for it next possession on 4^th and 1 (incomplete pass to Sanu) at the Houston 42. It left the Texans with a short field. Watson took full advantage. After his 35 yard TD pass to Will Fuller was reversed, Watson calmly hit Kenny Stills for a 35 yard TD on the next play. 21-3.

The Pats didn’t give up and scored on a James White 12 yard pass reception, but new kicker Kai Forbath missed the extra point. At 21-10, they would have been a TD (2 point conversion) and FG behind. At 21-9, that wasn’t the case.

The Texans put the final nail in the coffin by beginning the 4^th quarter with a 9 play, 75 yard drive that took 5:18 off the clock and left the Pats looking at a 28-9 deficit. DeAndre Hopkins beat Stephon Gilmore for 10 and 27 yard catches on that drive. The Texans then used a trick play as Watson handed off to Duke Johnson who handed off to DeAndre Hopkins who passed 6 yards to a wide open Watson. The game was effectively over. NE would get two more TDs, White an 11 yard pass at 3:49, and Edelman a 20 yard pass with 55 seconds left. They were lipstick on a pig of a game.

LEFTOVERS (ALL STATS VIA GAMEBOOK UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED)

Tom Brady will shoulder much of the blame (24 for 47 with an INT), but this was a team defeat. Brady was sacked 3 times and hit 12 times. His receivers had great difficulty getting open. Was that good defense by Houston or poor pass routes?

Similarly the Defense did not look like the one Patriots fans had seen in every game but the Ravens debacle. The D gave up a 14 yard TD pass, a 13 yard TD pass and a 35 yard TD pass. We won’t hold it against them for the trick 6 yard pass to Watson.

How much did the illness that caused 9 different players (per the Pro Jo’s Mark Daniels - 12/2) to be listed as questionable affect the Pats performance? 5 were on defense including Collins, Dont’a, Chung and Gilmore. We’ll never know, but Pats fans can only hope that it’s a healthy crew that faces the Kansas City Chiefs next week at Gillette.

On the positive side, the Patriots rushed for 145 yards. James White had 79 on 14 carries and Sony Michel 45 with 10 carries. The Texans only had 52 yards rushing, but it was their passing game that couldn’t be stopped.

DeAndre Hopkins was targeted 8 times and had 5 catches. That was not all against Stephon Gilmore because at times the Pats played zone. Duke Johnson had 5 catches on 6 targets. Kenny Stills had 3 catches on 4 targets. Watson was an efficient 18 of 25.

For the Patriots, James White had a great game. Along with being the leading rusher, White was targeted 11 times, had 8 catches, 2 for TDs. Julian Edelman had 12 targets and 6 catches, 1 for a TD. The rest of the receivers didn’t help much: Meyers had 3 catches (7 targets), Sanu 3 (5), Dorsett 2 (6) and Harry 0 (1). Harry’s stats suggest that he was not on the same page as Brady.

As if the Patriots offensive line didn’t have enough problems, they lost fill-in center Ted Karras on the 2^nd series of the 2^nd half. James Ferentz took over.

On the series in which the Pats scored on White’s 12 yard TD pass that made it 21-9, Brady and Bunch had to overcome 3 penalties (Cannon, Edelman and White). On a 1^st and 30, Brady hit Edelman for 44 yards.

BULLETS

• The Bruins have been playing well especially at home where they are the only NHL team to have not had a loss (11-0-4). Go Bruins!

• Despite no Gordon Hayward, the Celtics are 14-5 and have shown grit. Go Green!

EMAIL

Jim,

The WooSox? THE WOOSOX? What the ????? "Oh for the love of Mike", our mom used to explain to avoid the cursing...

Our single A (instructional league) team (Grand Junction Rockies), along with the entire 8 team Pioneer League, is about to be cut from MLB sponsorship due to financial pullbacks.  So, I guess it's all gonna be the local college for baseball next spring and nothing for the summer.

Waited a long time for summer baseball out here on the frontier; it was decent ball with really young players who were honing their skills for the future. Enthusiasm. Even got to see a couple of major leaguers rehabbing for a few days before going back up (Jorge DelaRosa and Matt Holliday) Yeah, big deal, they drew a couple thousand to see a real guy hit or pitch. The Rockies actually have a couple of players on their roster who started their careers out here as kids and so there is a connection to the majors by the locals. Big time in a little town.

Bruins looking sharp. My Canadiens will be happy with a .500 year; lotsa youngsters.  Watched the Pats Sunday (Donkos are toast-please! fire Elway).  Pats are a bit off offensively, but Tommy Terrific just may have enough gas left in the tank for one more dance; can't ever count him out.

Bill LaPlante

Hi Bill,

https://www.providencejournal.com/news/20191126/mark-patinkin-how-ris-speaker-drove-pawsox-into-becoming-woosox

The above link is to today's ProJo column by Mark Patinkin on how House Speaker Nick Mattiello screwed Rhode Islanders of the PawSox.

Worcester has committed a huge amount of money to the WooSox and their new stadium. After a few years of newness excitement, the team may be called the Woe Sox.

Can't believe last night's Bruins 8-1 win over Montreal. Don't recall ever such a win at Bell Centre or predecessor.

The Patriots offense will be better now with LT Isaiah Wynn and the return of Sanu and Dorsett.

The only team I fear is the Ravens and they just lost their Center. Better play them at Gillette in a playoff game. Belichick and the Brady Bunch will be ready if there is a next time. - Z

just returned from Colorado-got to see Celtics on Friday with my son Justyn and my godson Ryan-good game (just a bit shy of a great comeback-they were down 19 pts. and had lost Walker)-Sun-got to watch Patriots game with my grandkids Frankee B. & Ryan (I did most of watching)-great fun-my son told me that when Boston teams visit, ticket prices are raised and that the seats we had would be cheaper for Nets game.

I believe Layla and more love songs or other love songs by Derek& the Dominos is answer to quiz. Clapton was also member of another group that only put out one album.

Ken Forestal

Kenny, you are correct – the quiz answer is Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs.

I saw the end of that Nuggets game not realizing that Kemba Walker had been hurt. Close but no cigar. However they beat Sacramento at the end. Walker is due back tonight. Tacko Fall set some G League record recently with 18 rebounds (14 on the offensive glass) plus16 points. 

The Patriots have joined the Red Sox in changing the price for games against tougher opponents. Our seats are (I think) $179 x 10 games. However the face price on the Steelers and Cowboys tix was $263. Oddly, the KC game is $189. - Z

Jim, 

Can the Pats field a team Sunday with 8 out sick? Who does the kicking?

Paul Beaudette

Hi Paul, don't know how many of the sick players will make it on the field. Last week it was Marcus Cannon who found a way to play. The Pats signed a kicker for the game - Kai Forbath. Hope the game isn't close and he has little negative impact. Supposedly Folk may only be out for one maybe two games. We'll see. - Z

Sportzine is available at jimdawsonsports.com thanks to Buffalo Steve Lenz

THE HOT CLUB

EE Jim was upset and then he explained why to Dennis and me. He had been by Our Lady of Fatima Hospital and a house on the corner opposite the Hospital has been painted black. Jim thought it was outrageous that someone would paint a house near a hospital black. Dennis and I tried to calm Jim down. Dennis said an owner can paint his/her house any color they want. Jim was not assuaged. He was still indignant.

Last week Special K was mentioning that Netflix and other streaming sites would love to make movie theatres extinct much like what has happened to drive-in theaters. We reminisced about some like the Lonsdale Drive-In and the Seekonk Twin Drive-In with its See side and Konk side. We all knew that the Rustic Drive-In is the only existing Drive-In left in the state (Woonsocket). Captain Jack told us that sometimes when people went to the concession stand, they would move the people’s cars. For a laugh.

Two suggestions I got for my viewing pleasure were provided by HC staff (past and present): The Looming Tower on Hulu and Modern Love on Amazon Prime.

LAST ISSUE’S TRIVIA QUESTION ANSWER

Last time I asked you to name the double album that was the only studio album by a group and was not received all that well initially, failing to chart in Britain and making it to only #16 on the Billboard Top LPs in the US. Yet that double album has since made the Grammy Hall of Fame. Answer: Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs. Only Ken Forestal got it. Derek and the Dominos released it in November of 1970. The band consisted of Eric Clapton, Duane Allman, Bobby Whitlock, Carl Radle and Jim Gordon. Duane Allman played lead and slide guitar on 11 of the 14 tracks. The double album re-charted in the years 1972, 1974 and 1977 and was certified Platinum. It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2000. The 2012 Super Deluxe Edition of Layla won a Grammy for Best Surround Sound Album. The double album is rooted in Clapton’s then unrequited love for Pattie Boyd, who was married to George Harrison at the time. Because of his commitment to the Allman Brothers Band, Duane Allman never toured with Derek and the Dominos when they hit the US in late 1970 (Source – Wikipedia).

THIS ISSUE’S TRIVIA QUESTION

This singer/songwriter also was a record producer, arranger and talent scout. He had a song that became the first posthumous #1 record in the US, and the album it came from was the first posthumous LP to reach #1 on the UK Albums Chart. Name the artist.