Patriots Place in History

Sal Palaolontonio says the Pats are the best NFL team ever.  Old Sal has written an article comparing the 2007 New England Patriots to some of the best teams in the history of the NFL.  He compares the new Patriots to the 1989 San Francisco 49ers, the 1985 Chicago Bears, and the 1972 Miami Dolphins.  According to Sal, the 2007 Patriots are the most dominant, most amazing, most awe-inspiring NFL team ever.

Only one problem – The Pats haven’t won all their games or the Super Bowl yet.  I understand, as a paid sportswriter, how hard it is to find stories, especially during bye weeks, about teams.  I also understand that in New England’s bye week, these types of stories are unavoidable.  However, I truly believe that in the presence of possible history being made, we all have a responsibility to not jinx it.  Therefore, until New England finishes their season, I’m not making any prognostications on their place in football history.

You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on November 14, 2007 - Post a comment

Patriots Rest, Still Top Power Rankings

ESPN.com has released their weekly NFL Power Rankings, and the New England Patriots held on to their number one spot without playing a game this week.  With Indy’s loss during the Pats bye week, there was never any true danger of New England relinquishing their spot at the top to one of the lesser teams in the league.  Even if the Colts had won their game versus San Diego, the Pats likely would have held on to #1.

The Colts managed to slide from the two spot to number three in the Power Rankings.  The Patriots are now trailed closely by the Dallas Cowboys, who edged their way up to number two.  The Packers and Steelers rounded out the Top five, with the New York Giants coming in at number six.  This means, according to ESPN.com, the Pats have defeated two of the top six teams in the NFL to date this season, and will face two more in the latter half of 2007.  For anyone who says the Pats have played an easy schedule, we can refer to that fact as Exhibit A for the defense.

You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on November 13, 2007 - Post a comment

Belichick Working through Bye Week

According to a report from Boston.com, Bill Belichick has worked furiously through the Patriots’ bye week, even after giving the entire team the week off of work altogether.  Belichick gave his 9-0 Pats the whole week to relax for the first time in anyone’s memory, and they only players seen in the Gillette Stadium facilities this week are the men working through injuries and the coaches.  And through it all Belichick is still pulling 12 hour days, studying game film for the Patriots’ next opponent.

The Patriots’ next opponent, in case you’re keeping track, is Buffalo.  Those would be the Buffalo Bills – the same Buffalo Bills who the Patriots defeated by 31 points in their first meeting of the season.  These are the same Buffalo Bills who had trouble putting away the winless Miami Dolphins last Sunday.  Bill Belichick is studying game film of these Bills 12 hours a day.  I fully expect the Pats to come out even hungrier and sharper after their bye week.  That’s such a scary, awesome statement.

You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on November 12, 2007 - Post a comment

Moss Named AFC Offensive Player of the Week

Randy Moss was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week.  Moss, who has been considered offensive by many pundits, fans, and teammates throughout his storied career, won this award for the right kind of offense.  Moss had nine catches for 145 yards and a touchdown against the Colts last Sunday in the Patriots 24-20 victory over their AFC rivals.  Moss continues to pay massive dividends for the Patriots. looking like the steal of century around the halfway point of this season.  His 12 touchdown catches now have him knotted up with Stanley Morgan for the most receiving touchdowns in Patriots history.

Something tells me Moss is going to shatter that record.  The Patriots are on pace to break nearly every offensive record in the NFL (save for rushing records), and Moss is one of the players benefiting most from their breakneck offensive pace.  The bye week will give any banged up Pats a chance to rest and get healthy,  It will give the Patriots a chance to regroup and collect themselves and practice any aspect of their game upon which they feel they can improve.  Is the rest of the league calling for their brown pants yet?  Is anyone else terrified to see what a well-rested Patriots team can do in the second half of their season?  It’s going to be amazing.  I for one can’t wait.

You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on November 9, 2007 - Post a comment

Shula Backpedals on Spygate Stance

According to ESPN.com, Don Shula has backed off from his statements that the Patriots unbeaten season (if it does indeed occur) should have an asterisk attached to it. Now, it seems, Shula has completely changed his tune, praising the Patriots accomplishments and saying that the Spygate scandal should not diminish the record pace the Patriots are setting, going so far as to say that they should be heralded as the best team of all time if they do go undefeated. Of course, that would put them ahead of Don Shula’s own 1972 Dolphins team - the only team in NFL history to run the table.

I don’t know who got to Mr. Shula and told him that his original comments sounded like a bunch of sour grapes, but kudos to you, whoever you are. Mr. Shula is too classy an individual to liken the Spygate scandal to the Barry Bonds home run chase and he’s just too dignified a man to go around with a long face just because it looks like a team might really have a chance to finally break into the Dollphins’ amazing undefeated club. Whether or not the champagne gets popped this season, no one can take away from what the Patriots have accomplished this season, and what they will continue to accomplish in the future.

You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on November 8, 2007 - Post a comment

New England Reigns Atop Power Rankings

It’s Wednesday, which means it’s time for your weekly update of your team’s place in ESPN.com’s Power Rankings.  With things in the AFC starting to settle down for the moment, the good folks at ESPN.com have decided to shift their focus to the NFC, which will feature tons of great match-ups in the coming weeks.  And with Super Bowl 41.5 behind us, it’s about time the NFC got some love.

As for the Patriots, they remain firmly entrenched at the top of the list of dominant NFL teams.  After their comeback win over the Colts, the Pats will likely occupy the first slot in the rankings for at least another month, barring some amazing upset.  The Patriots really only have a few more difficult games on their schedule after their bye week, so look for their dominance to continue well into December.

You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on November 7, 2007 - Post a comment

Wojciechowski Says Pats will go Undefeated

So if you lose, you know who to blame, Pats fans.  I have trouble even typing the word, for fear of jinxing this magical run, but apparently the Wojonator has no such qualms.  In fact, he has gone so far as to simply call it a forgone conclusion that the New England Patriots will go 16-0 on their way to a fourth Lombardi Trophy.  Wojo claims that if the Patriots can manage to overcome three and one half quarters of terrible football while playing in the RCA Dome against the defending Super Bowl Champion Indianapolis Colts, then no one is going to beat them down the stretch this season.

I see the man’s point.  The Patriots did have tons of penalties, and Tom Brady did throw another two interceptions in the game, doubling his season total, but I can’t say I’m ready to declare the Pats as the second coming of the 1972 Miami Dolphins just yet.  First of all, the Pats didn’t actually have that many penalty yards, as half those yards came on two very touchy pass interference calls.  Second, the Patriots still have a few good teams to play, and this is football.  They didn’t come up with the phrase “Any Given Sunday” because this league was conventional or predictable.  Stranger things have happened.  Plus, who says things like this?  Is Wojo trying to jinx the Pats?  I just don’t get it.

You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on November 6, 2007 - Post a comment

Patriots Remain Perfect

Just in case you missed it, the New England Patriots defeated the Indianapolis Colts at the RCA Dome on Sunday afternoon by a score of 24-20, keeping their record unblemished heading into their week 10 bye. The Patriots were down by 10 points with less than 10 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter when Tom Brady went to work and remembered that he was the best big game quarterback in the league today. The Pats scored 14 unanswered points to steal a victory from the defending Super Bowl champs. Brady found Wes Welker in the end zone late in the game and Kevin Faulk had a TD as well to seal it up and keep New England undefeated.

If you missed this game, then I am truly sorry. Rarely do sporting events live up to the incredible hype surrounding them in the 21st century, but this game had it all. For those keeping score, there are now two teams in the NFL with only one loss, and the Patriots are responsible for both of those losses. Both the Cowboys and Colts would still be undefeated if not for these New England Patriots. So when people try to point out to you that New England hasn’t beaten anyone, and they’re just getting fat on the weak AFC East, let them know that while this team may be beating up on lesser opponents some weeks, when it comes time to get up for a big game, they’re delivering.

You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on November 5, 2007 - Post a comment

Hall of Famers Debate Big Game

ESPN has a great write-up right now in which four Hall of Fame quarterbacks take on the Manning v Brady debate.  Warren Moon, Jim Kelly, Brian Griese and Steve Young all weigh in on this long-standing debate.  Ever since around 2004, when Brady started setting singular records while Brady was busy quietly winning Super Bowl MVPs, men have gathered in groups to argue the merit of each eventual hall of famer.  However, this season has basically turned the entire debate on its ear.  With Manning getting his Super Bowl ring and toning down the gaudy numbers, it seems now that Brady is the QB with the ax to grind.

I hate to sound like I’m oversimplifying this discussion, but if Brady continues to roll on his way to obliterating all of Manning’s records, doesn’t that render this whole point moot?  Right now Manning has one Super Bowl and all the records.  If Brady keeps up at this pace, he’ll have at least three Super Bowls and all the records.  Peyton will have one Super Bowl and second place.  Brady has done more with less his whole career.  He’s had to put up with this type of talk all his career, and he’s out to shut everyone up this year.  I have a feeling the Pats are going to blow out the Colts this Sunday.  Call it a hunch.

You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on November 2, 2007 - Post a comment

Vote on the Big Game

In case you just can’t get enough of the Pats/Colts running dialogue in the sports media, ESPN.com has made it possible for fans to weigh in with their own opinions.  You too can vote on all manner of things and different aspects and story lines within this much-anticipated clash of the titans. I won’t detail all of them here, but suffice to say ESPN.com thought of nearly everything, and it’s a really fun to vote and then see how your opinion matches with the rest of Sports Nation.  There are some really interesting questions and even more interesting answers.  It’s a great quiz, all told.

I’m geeked to the gills for this game, can you tell?  I’m so into it.  I can’t wait to see this game.  I haven’t been this excited for a football game since I used to get totally charged about the Niners/Cowboys games back in the day with my family in Texas.  Those games were amazing, pitting amazing quarterbacks and skill players, offensive lines and defensive schemes against one another.  You truly get the feeling, with this game, that it will have that something more that you  usually don’t see until the playoffs.  This game may actually transcend football and become one of the greatest single regular season games in the history of sport.  I, for one, can’t wait.

You can get get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on November 1, 2007 - Post a comment


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