Game Of Jones: Is Sunday Afternoon An AFC Championship Preview?
BOSTON (CBS) - With both the Bruins and Celtics off it was a full five-hour edition of The Adam Jones Show Monday night on The Sports Hub.
Adam Jones and Rich Keefe spent a great deal of time recapping and analyzing the Bears game, as well as looking ahead to the Patriots' big matchup with the Broncos on Sunday.
We've condensed all their best Patriots-Broncos audio nicely inside this one post, and we'll start with a little game. . . Game Of Jones, that is.
Game Of Jones
Buy Or Sell: The Patriots should trade for Bucs WR Vincent Jackson.
"Should? Yes. I'll buy that. I think they should. Absolutely. But I just think about how the Patriots value the position and I don't expect it," said Jones. "But he's the exact kind of guy the offense needs."
Buy or Sell: Madison Bumgarner is the best pitcher in baseball today.
"I sell it. He's been great in the postseason, but I liken Bumgarner more to a Jon Lester-type. Bumgarner feels like a top 10 pitcher in baseball, and before this season I'm not sure I would have said that about Jon Lester, but he's been great," said Jones. "He's a guy that rises to the biggest moments, he's very very good. But the best in the game? I don't feel that way."
Buy or Sell: Jay Cutler will finish the year as the Bears quarterback.
"I buy it. But who's their backup? I don't think there's any real threat behind him. Josh McCown is not there anymore. Cutler will finish the year as their starting quarterback, but that doesn't mean he deserves it," said Jones.
Buy or Sell: Patriots-Broncos this Sunday is an AFC Championship preview.
"I buy it. I felt that way in the offseason, I wavered on it through the first month because the Patriots struggled so bad -- shame on me. It still feels like it's going that way. Both teams are playing at high levels, and we'll get a true feel of how they match up and measure up. I think they're on course for the AFC Championship game. Certainly," said Jones.
Buy or Sell: Couple costumes at Halloween parties.
"I buy it. But they have to be funny. As long as it makes me laugh I'm in. I don't need a King and a Queen."
Listen below for the full segment!
Bears Recap, Broncos Preview
The Patriots won their fourth straight game on Sunday against Chicago, thumping the Bears 51-23 in a game that was basically over at halftime. Now all eyes and attention have turned to Sunday, where the 6-2 Patriots host the 6-1 Broncos.
The Pats have looked tremendous the past month, while the Broncos have looked good all season. The Broncos are favored, but the Patriots are at home.
Do the Patriots have a fighting chance against Denver? Adam Jones examined the Bears game in more detail and how it could be a testament to how good New England really is, and how they stack up against the Broncos.
"I think the Patriots have been able to mask some of their deficiencies and they've been able to overcome some of their early season shortcomings. But that doesn't mean the problems have gone away. The best thing about the Broncos matchup is we're gonna find out. We're gonna know," said Jones.
"It won't be an end all be all. If Denver wins that doesn't mean the Patriots can't take care of them in January. If the Patriots win in convincing fashion, that doesn't mean they're gonna march to the Super Bowl. We can really get a true assessment of this team -- Chicago wasn't a true assessment of this team. That Chicago team is a mess."
Jones and Rich Keefe also look at how Tom Brady and Peyton Manning have fared in recent seasons.
Listen below!
Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald
It's been a tale of two months for the Patriots: a poor 2-2 September followed by an excellent 4-0 October.
There's been a lot of changes to the team, but the biggest difference, according to Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald, is the play of Rob Gronkowski.
"You've got to start with Rob Gronkowski. He looks like a completely different guy. He looks healthy again, which is an unexpected turnaround. I really didn't expect to see him in his peak form from what we saw out of his first month and knowing how guys come back from torn ACLs. He's been outstanding."
Another revelation for the offense has been Brandon LaFell and Tim Wright finally getting up to speed and contributing.
"We heard some of this today from Tim Wright in the locker room. If you give these new guys like Wright and Brandon LaFell added reps in practice, the chance to run the same routes against the same looks, they're only going to get more comfortable with the offense. I think that's why you've seen over this four-game stretch LaFell catch 20 of 26 passes thrown to him and Wright catching all 13 passes thrown his way. Brady is more comfortable with his assortment of weapons."
Howe also gave credit to the offensive line, and talked about the impact Brandon Browner can have going forward. Oh, and he also talked about Brady-Manning XVI.
Listen below!
Brandon Krisztal of the Denver Post
Also on The Adam Jones Show Monday night was Brandon Krisztal of the Denver Post.
The topics covered:
- The state of the Broncos offense
- The state of the Broncos defense
- Broncos fans' perception of Wes Welker
- John Elway's front office approach
- The Brady/Belichick - Peyton Manning rivalry
Listen below!
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