The New England Patriots' best linebacker and one of their strongest leaders has a torn bicep and will likely miss the entire 1999 season. Their most productive running back from a year ago is lost for at least 1999 with a career-threatening knee injury.

Even without Ted Johnson and Robert Edwards, Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe sees his team as a true contender in the AFC.

	Bledsoe says he will be "shocked" if the Patriots aren't a playoff team in 1999.

"I don't think anyone is hitting the panic button out here or anything," Bledsoe told Gary Miller recently on ESPN's Up Close. "I think we are on the right track to building a strong franchise for many years to come."

Bledsoe also talked about the opening-day game against former coach Bill Parcells and the New York Jets and fellow Washington State product Ryan Leaf.

The following is an edited transcript of Bledsoe's Sept. 8 interview.

Miller: You're going up against Bill Parcells and the Jets this Sunday. Here we are, calling it Tuna Bowl V. As much as you would like to downplay it, this has got to be a special time, especially because it's the opener and the Jets are the favorites now.

Bledsoe: Right, it's a unique situation, where the old coach leaves and doesn't go too far away. Obviously, we had some success here when Bill was here, and it's still a little bit different this week than it is for a normal week because you're playing your old coach and because of the proximity.

Miller: How about the fact that they (the Jets) have been crowned the favorites, at least by the prognosticators, those of us in the media? Do the players feel that way, that the Jets are the team to beat?

Bledsoe: Sure, they were the champions last year and until somebody knocks them off, they are the team to beat. Hopefully, this week we can go down there and accomplish that, and give ourselves a little head start and get back to the top of our division.

Miller: It's just the opening game, you have 15 more after that, but how huge is this game, in the Meadowlands, to set a tone for the season?

Bledsoe: Well, it's big if we can go down there and come away with a victory. It will be a huge step for us. We'll go down there to their home, in a hostile environment, and try and knock off the team to beat. It would be a division win for us, it would be a big jump start. It's only one game but it would be a big jump start for us.

Miller: What about this, Tuna Bowl V? The Jets swept New England last year, he has won three out of four against the team that he came from to coach the Jets. What about the rivalry?

Bledsoe: Well, I think it's a good thing, I really do. It would be a better thing if we could win a few games against him. I think the rivalry is good for football, and I think it's good for the NFL. It brings some attention to New England and to the Jets whenever we play each other, so I think it's a good thing.

Miller: How much different is it for you, Drew, to prepare for a guy who knows you that well?

Bledsoe: Well, I think now with the time that has gone by, I don't think it is a big advantage for them or for us, because the teams that we play twice a year, they know us pretty well and we know them pretty well. I don't know if it's that big an advantage really for either team anymore.

Miller: Terry Glenn is the established star in the wide receiver corps along with Ben Coates. But what about Tony Simmons, the second-year player, Shawn Jefferson, Vincent Brisby, who has been favorite of yours over the years. How much are these guys are going to factor into the passing game?

Bledsoe: We really have five guys. I think probably our receiving corps is the biggest strength on our team. We have five guys that can come in and play and we don't miss a beat. With Terry Glenn and Shawn Jefferson and Tony Simmons, these are all fast guys that can get deep on anybody. Troy Brown is the guy that comes in and makes first downs for us and does a great job getting open in the middle, and then Vincent Brisby is a guy I have thrown touchdowns to over the years. Really, we have five guys that can come in and play. It's a great luxury for me.

Miller: Well, you already throw a lot. But the big knock is that you lost Curtis Martin to free agency, Robert Edwards went down with a freak accident. You talk about bad luck for the Patriots. He's sitting there at the Pro Bowl and his career is in jeopardy now. What was it like when you heard about losing a guy, off of a great year he had ?

Bledsoe: It was really disappointing. It's a situation where we asked "why does it have to happen to this guy?" He does everything. Works hard and he is a great guy. Does everything we would ask of him and then he gets hurt in this freak thing. So I just felt really bad, for Robert first of all, and second of all, it did set our team back. I think that we now have a couple of guys, and Kevin Faulk, that we drafted and then we picked up Terry Allen. I think that those two guys will come in and do a very good job for us in the running game. The big thing was that I just felt terrible for Robert when that happened.

Miller: Kevin Faulk is a little undersized guy with a lot of speed, but you get Terry Allen, who is a great goal line guy who does have a lot of injury history of his own. How do you feel this running game is going to complement you?

Bledsoe: Well, I think it's going to shape up all right. We haven't seen much of Terry Allen yet but he is a guy who has proved himself time and again in the league. He's a very hard nosed guy who will stick it up there and get you the tough yards. Then we bring Kevin in off the bench, and he's a shiftier guy. I think it will give us a nice one-two punch, and it will also allow Kevin to be a kick returner for us. I think we are a little bit leery of putting him out there and having him take the extra hits as a kick returner if he was going to be our featured back. Now we have two guys that are legitimate every down backs. I think we can use him and Kevin in more situations.

Miller: Drew, the Colts have upgraded with Edgerrin James, well that's hard to say because Marshall Faulk was so good, but at least they have gotten some youth and James has looked fantastic in the pre-season. Peyton Manning is now in his second year, he's got that much more experience. You guys have been picked fourth and even fifth in the AFC East -- not that far removed from a Super Bowl. How does that feel under your skin?

Bledsoe: Well, it bugs me and it bugs everybody on the team that that's where we are picked. I think that's partially because of the strength of our division. Our division is very, very tough, with four teams qualifying for the playoffs last year and the Colts are getting better. There is really nothing we can do about that, other than going out and trying to prove them wrong. If we can win this game this week, that will be a big step forward for us to that end.

Miller: We talked a lot about the offense and the huge injury to Robert Edwards. How about Teddy Johnson on defense, losing the middle and one of the hearts of your linebacking corps?

Bledsoe: That's tough. Ted is a great friend. Ted's the kind of guy that if I was going to tell my kids this is how you prepare to be a football, I'd point to Ted Johnson. He works harder than anybody I know. Two years in a row, to have the same injury, is just disheartening for him and it's really just disheartening for him and our team because he really is a heart soul type of guy for that defense.

Miller: Do you thin Andy Katzenmoyer is ready to step in and have an impact in his first year?

Bledsoe: We'll find out. Andy is a hugely talented player. But those are some great shoes to fill. To try to step in and replace Ted Johnson is a huge void to fill but we are going to ask him to it. He's going to have to step in and play and play well for us to win.

"It bugs me and it bugs everybody on the team that that's where we are picked. I think that's partially because of the strength of our division. Our division is very, very tough, with four teams qualifying for the playoffs last year and the Colts are getting better. There is really nothing we can do about that, other than going out and trying to prove them wrong." -- Drew Bledsoe

(2nd segment)

Miller: Drew, one of the biggest differences this year is that John Elway is not around. How different is it going to be, to see him just on Coors commercials, not on the field defending those two-time Super Bowl rings?

Bledsoe: You know, it is going to be different, he was one of my heroes growing up. I think he was drafted when I was 11 years old and was just becoming a football fan, so it's gonna be really strange to see the Denver Broncos take the field without John Elway leading them out there.

Miller: A lot of people say that this has knocked Denver down, how do you see their chances this year?

Bledsoe: Well, it's tough. You just don't bring somebody in and replace John Elway, and those are some of the biggest shoes to fill that there ever will be, and at the same time he wasn't the only reason they won. He was a big reason that they won, but he wasn't the only reason, and they obviously have some very talented players and a very good football team. So I think they're still going to be very solid, but it is very hard for somebody to come in and try to replace John Elway.

Miller: He is a guy who had such a legacy, he had that Wild West swagger about him and those late game rallies were one of them, but this is something you've been known for over the years, and I think that two games really defined you. What did those games mean to you personally? I know from an outsiders point of view, rallying against the Dolphins, finding out that you had a broken finger and playing with a pin in it, and then beating Buffalo. What have those games done for the assessment of your career so far?

Bledsoe: I have always felt that I'm pretty good in those situations. I believe that, late in the game, I can bring our team back and win, and it was just a lot of fun to go out and do that and do it twice in a row and do it in big games and do it in our home stadium. It was a lot of fun, it was fun to be a part of it and I feel fortunate to be in that situation and come out on top. I enjoyed the heck out of those situations!

Miller: Speaking of fortunate, when you look at the tapes of the controversial interference call on Terry Glenn (in the Buffalo game), what do you see in the film?

Bledsoe: It was interference man! It was as clear as day, the guy shoved him no question about it, great call! (smiling)

Miller: When Buffalo didn't come out for the extra point, could you understand how they felt?

Bledsoe: My opinion on the whole thing is this, and it has been proved true over the course of six years, those things they even out. If you play long enough and you play hard enough those things even out. Some calls are going to go against you and some calls are going to go for you, and there were some calls in that particular game that went against us that we didn't like. It just so happened in that situation that a call went against them and they didn't like it, and for whatever reason, they elected not to come out for the extra point.

Miller: Are you glad to see instant replay?

Bledsoe: Personally, I was a little disappointed to see instant replay. I think it takes some of the human element out of the game. I think that human error is always involved in sports and I think that was part of it. The referees, first of all, are the very best in the world at what they do. I think it is going to delay the game in certain situations, and personally, I was against it and that is what we have now and hopefully it works for us.

Miller: You're entering your seventh season, what does change year to year? What is different or better? What do you know better this time around?

Bledsoe: Well, I think it is a progression, and hopefully, I will continue to improve and continue to understand more as I grow as a quarterback. I remember in my rookie year, Phil Simms told me that he didn't feel like he understood things completely until his 11th season in the league, and that was tough to hear as a rookie. You learn more and more every year. You see more, and I feel like now in most situations I know what is happening to me from a defensive standpoint. There is maybe 1% of the time where I have to come off the field and say "what happened there?" and I didn't know what happened. My rookie year, it was maybe even flip-flop, where 10% of the time I knew what was going on and the other 90% I was just winging it. As you progress and you see more and more on the field you begin to understand more.

Miller: As a rookie you had the lowest quarterback rating in the league. What did that do to your self-confidence?

Bledsoe: I came in and I was fortunate, I had some guys who gave me some good advice. I talked to Troy Aikman, Warren Moon and Steve Young and the biggest thing they said was "Be patient, this thing isn't going to happen overnight". Peyton (Manning) had the best season as a rookie quarterback, I think, in history and there are very few quarterbacks that have clear sailing from the start. I knew it was going to be a struggle and I knew it was going to be hard my first year, my first couple of years. Fortunately I had some perspective and was able to get through the tough times.

Miller: So you guys aren't afraid to share secrets and see each other improve and excel, even at each other's expense some given Sunday?

Bledsoe: No, no I think most of the quarterbacks, at least the good ones, aren't afraid to share information. They know that having more quality quarterbacks in the league is good for the league as a whole and good for the position as well. I haven't come across any guys who have been standoffish about trying to help out another quarterback.

(Third Segment)

Miller: Drew, (San Diego quarterback) Ryan Leaf had a chance to be just like you, to be #1 overall and it was between him and Peyton Manning. Things really have not worked out with him. How much have you had a chance to talk to him and the struggles he's had?

Bledsoe: I really feel bad for Ryan. He came into a situation and had a tough year and then compounded things with some off the field troubles. I have only talked to him a couple of times and kind of stayed away from giving him a bunch of advice unless he asks for it. It's hard enough to play this position in the NFL even when you have everybody on your side; then to have a couple of things happen to him where all of a sudden he has a lot of people against him, it just makes it a lot more difficult.

Miller: I know how you feel about not giving advice unless somebody asks for it, but is it your impression that he is interested in learning from somebody who has been around and who's had to deal with some things might be able to help him?

Bledsoe: I think so, I think he is probably open to some advice, but there again, it is going to have to be something that he decides that he is going to change, and he is going to have to seek that out himself. Until he decides that it is important to him to conduct himself properly off the field, then it doesn't really do him any good to give him advice.

Miller: One of the things Pete Carroll said about you was "I think he has the ultimate amount of pressure on him" this year. Do you feel that way?

Bledsoe: That is the way this position is. When you're a quarterback in the NFL and you throw the ball as much as we do, yes, there is a lot of pressure on the quarterback to perform. I think our team is good enough right now that if I play well, then I think we can win any game. We are also not good enough to overcome a bad game by me. There is a lot of pressure there, and that is why I play the position, and that is why I enjoy playing football. I like having that pressure and I like having it all riding on my shoulders. If I play well, we win, if I play poorly we don't win; sometimes it is just that simple.

Miller: If you don't win, the thought is that Carroll might not be around. Have you noticed a change this year?

Bledsoe: Training camp was tough this year. We didn't have any days off, we were doing two-a-days just about every day and he worked us pretty hard. I don't think anyone is hitting the panic button out here or anything. I think Pete is doing a very good job coaching this team. I think we are on the right track to building a strong franchise for many years to come, but I think Pete is doing a very good job with this team.

Miller: So you're confident this team is going to be a playoff team this year?

Bledsoe: I would be shocked if we weren't a playoff team this year. I think we have a chance to win the division if we play well and stay healthy. If we didn't make the playoffs this year, I would be shocked!