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Pats will have to fight to stay on top By Greg Garber ESPN.com |
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Maybe it's because of that little paragraph in the NFL Rulebook formerly known as the Tuck Rule. Or perhaps it's because the offense scored only three touchdowns in its three playoff games. Or maybe it's simply because they have a starting safety named Tebucky. In any case, the New England Patriots have had an unusual championship offseason, fending off criticism from all quarters - particularly St. Louis, Pittsburgh and Oakland. "Hey," says Patriots guard Joe Andruzzi, "who's got the ring?" This hasn't prevented people from calling last season's 11-5 turnaround from 5-11 a house of cards. Never mind that the Patriots won their last nine straight games and that they came to define the word "team" with close victories over teams that appeared to have more talent.
New England beat the Raiders 16-13 in overtime in the divisional playoff, then squeezed past the Steelers 24-17 in the AFC Championship and beat the Rams 20-17 on Adam Vinatieri's 48-yard field goal as time (sort of) ran out. "They can say we got lucky on this call or that call -- you can say whatever you want," Vinatieri said. "But, bottom line, we beat three pretty dang good teams and a team may be able to get lucky once -- but three times?" But what about this season? The fearless forecasters believe the Patriots will follow the recent trend of Super Bowl champions and fall of the table. Let us remind you:
So how will it go for the Patriots? Well, for starters, the complacency that seemed to afflict their predecessors seems to be missing -- which is not a small factor. Because no one seems to respect them, they come into the season with something to prove. No one has more to prove than quarterback Tom Brady, who despite keeping Drew Bledsoe chained to the bench and winning the Super Bowl MVP award, is already hearing some cat-calls in New England. The first-place schedule is, admittedly, daunting. The Sept. 9 opener against the Steelers on Monday night is at home, where the Patriots will christen Gillette Stadium. There are tough road games at Chicago, Oakland and Tennessee and visits from Denver and Green Bay. And with the departure of the Indianapolis Colts to the AFC South go two more winnable games. The Patriots will field a team very similar to last year's championship squad. The defense will be formidable; head coach Bill Belichick was so confident in his defense that he drafted receivers with his first two picks: tight end Daniel Graham and wide receiver Deion Branch. If training camp attitude is any indicator, the Patriots won't be sloppy and cocky. Maybe it's because Belichick gave the players t-shirts listing the current AFC East standings: each team is 0-0. The Vince Lombardi Trophy has been hidden away in Foxboro, Mass., and not a single Super Bowl ring has been seen on a player's finger. "That's our attitude," said linebacker Tedy Bruschi. "We got the jewelry, the ring on our fingers. And we got a nice box for it. "We've sort of closed the box -- and now we're moving on." Greg Garber is a senior writer for ESPN.com. |
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