Yes, Patriots, You Should Be Proud of Your Effort

Buried in an article on Boston.com about the NFL season going to a 17 or 18 game schedule were some tasty nuggets about the Patriots "undefeated season" championship rings. Let's take a look and just be a prick, shall we?

There was the journey toward a 16-0 regular season and the AFC championship, then the bitter ending of a crushing defeat in Super Bowl XLII. When top Patriots officials gathered this offseason, they pondered the best way to celebrate a season that had such exhilarating highs and one crushing low.

I will never get tired of knowing the arrogant, haughty, Belichick-led Patriots had their season crushed all while their mouth-breathing fans were drawing up "19-0" placards (well, those who could count to 19). And, really, why would you "celebrate" a failed season at all? Ask any player, and they'll tell you winning it all is the reason for playing.

In the end, after declaring the season the fourth-greatest achievement in team history, they elected to have a private ceremony to commemorate it last Monday at Gillette Stadium.

Oh? Why private? Don't you think the Southies would love to come out in droves to "celebrate" the...um...fourth-greatest achievement in team history?

Owner Robert Kraft and team president Jonathan Kraft presented the players with rings. On one side of the ring, it reads "16-0 -- perfect season." On the other, it reads "18-1, AFC Championship."

I love this. Love love love it. Championship rings for the losing team in the Super Bowl. Now, before you write to correct me -- yes, I realize the loser often does have a ring made up. Sadly, Tom Jackson of ESPN wears one of his because his Broncos never won it all. But that's just it -- Tom's teams were never really expected to roll through the Super Bowl and so he proudly wears his AFC title ring from whenever it was. But really, does anyone else? I mean, I'm sure the third-stringers who are now financial analysis do... but any members of that Pats team? And who's going to want to trumpet their "perfect season," when, you know... it wasn't perfect? Isn't that kind of false advertising? If you're going to say it's a perfect season and make things up, why not just go the whole way and put "Super Bowl Champions" on the side since you all decided you were the champs ahead of time anyway? Or is it a truth and lies ring? On one side is the 16-0 record and on the other is their (actual) 18-1 record? Fun.

In addition, a banner was made to commemorate the season, and it was unveiled at the ceremony, with Kraft pulling a rope as it came down from the ceiling. It will be displayed at Gillette Stadium, next to the team's Super Bowl banners.

Yes, what better way to commemorate the biggest disappointment this group of players has ever felt? Let's hang a banner showing them how close they came to being the greatest team ever and holding that mantle, probably forever. This would be like the Seattle Mariners hanging a banner after winning 116 games in 2001 but losing to the Yankees in the playoffs. Or the 2004 Yankees hanging a banner to commemorate that they almost got to the World Series with a 3-0 ALCS lead before blowing it. Why would you do that? To remind yourself that you choked?

"I think there were two things going on from last year - and one was that it was an extraordinary year that I don't think we got to savor and enjoy," Kraft said. "We accomplished something special as a team and organization last year, under tremendous scrutiny, more scrutiny than any team has ever been under.

Because you cheated.

"We went 16-0, we won 18 straight games, and then the 19th game ended so abruptly that all of us have had a sick feeling in our stomach.

Because you choked.

"I think in 10-15 years from now, when people look back and start to realize what happened here, it probably will never happen again.

No, I think there will be AFC champs who lose the Super Bowl to an underdog again.

I can't say it won't, but you have to have a confluence of so many things coming together. We wanted to congratulate the team and the coaches for what they accomplished."

Losing the Super Bowl as a heavy favorite? Not getting the job done?

Added coach Bill Belichick, "It was a very special and historic year, and I want them to look back with pride when they look at the ring and remember the week-to-week approach.

Look at the ring.... in their dresser. Or under a footstool. Because nobody's going to be wearing them. And if they do, they deserve to be mocked.

"When you're in a season, you're always moving on to the next game, the next challenge, and because there is always something ahead, you never look back. I thought it was a good time to talk about it and acknowledge it, and also talk about how I appreciated their approach and superior performance they gave throughout the year."

Superior until the end, that is.

Patriots Get The Pick Of The Schedule

Tim brought to our attention that the Patriots have a really ridiculous schedule next year. I guess the league really, really, really wants them to go undefeated all the way through the Super Bowl.

When Tim said the Patriots "have the weakest schedule" in the league, I assumed this was a Tim-like exaggeration. (Not sure if you know this, but Tim is prone to exaggerate sometimes.)

So I looked at the schedules and who they're playing and, well, it's kind of ridiculous.

The Patriots do indeed have the easiest schedule when you look at their opponents 2007 records. Yes, yes, I know the NFL is a league when things can turn around quickly, but still. One of the big ways the NFL got known as a league with parity was that they always gave teams an appropriate schedule that reflected the kind of year they'd just had. If you went 3-13, you got a "3-13 schedule," which meant you got a lot of weak teams and you didn't have to face more than one powerhouse. If you went...oh....I don't know.... 16-and-freaking-0, you would likely have a schedule that would make you cry. All good teams, lots of marquee matchups, many prime time games, etc.

But no. Now the NFL has given Steelers the toughest schedule, followed by the Colts, Jags, Vikes, Ravens, Bengals, Texans, Browns and Lions.

Wait, the Vikings, Ravens, Texans, Browns and Lions all get top-ten schedules?

Meanwhile, the Patriots opponents this coming season had a .387 winning percentage in 2007 and a combined 99-157 record. Solid.

Roger Goodell and Bob Kraft put the finishing touches on the Patriots 2008 "schedule."

Cover up? Who? Me? No. Come on!

Sen. Arlen Specter said on Wednesday that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told him that the New England Patriots had been spying on rival teams since 2000 when Bill Belichick took over as head coach.

Since 2000? Can it really be a dynasty if one of its key foundations is that of cheating? What happens to those Super Bowls that were won in that time frame?

"There's no doubt it had an impact on the games," Specter added. "It is hard to tell what games were involved with the destruction of the notes and the tapes. No really valid reason was given for the destruction of the notes and the tapes."

Um, isn't that reason obvious? The NFL is completely covering up the entire situation because this is a nightmare scenario for the biggest cash cow in professional sports. Why would they possibly destroy the tapes so quickly? So that no one else can find out the truth of what's going on, that's why.

Is video taping defensive play calling cheating? Yes. What's worse though, the cheating or the cover up that's going on in the league office? I'd definitely have to say that the cover up is far worse than the actual act.

The tapes needed to be made public so that the Patriots can truly get the punishment that they deserve. Instead, the NFL brushed everything under the rug as fast as possible so that they could protect their precious image. Suck it NFL!

Goodell needs to be fined about $10 million for his role in this. Belichick should be fired for his part. Robert Kraft should be fined $100 million. The Patriots should lose an entire draft, not just one pick. Basically, send that organization back to the stone age. They've gotten to where they are now based on cheating, and what the NFL is telling us is that it's great.

Breaking news! This just in. In describing the Patriots and "Spy-Gate," NFL tells ESPN, "Good for them!"

Oh, because of this run you've made $1 Billion, but we'll fine you $19. Great! What kind of a freaking stance is that? Be a man and bring the pain. The Patriots have made a fortune because of this run. They've made this run in part because of cheating. Therefore, as punishment for the cheating, they really need to be hit where it hurts. In the gonads. Err... I mean, in the pocketbook and in the draft.

SUCK IT NFL! SUCK IT PATRIOTS!

18-1

New England Patriots: Most points scored in NFL history. Largest margin of victory in NFL history. Only second team to have undefeated regular season in Super Bowl era. Tom Brady -- 50 TD passes, number 1 all time. Randy Moss -- 23 TDs, number 1 all time.

Super Bowl XLII Champions: New York Giants.

Yes, everyone -- all you front-running New England fans, arrogant Bill Simmons (42-17, Pats, eh, Bill?), and fat-ass, pontificating Chris Berman and all the rest of the jackholes on ESPN who picked blowouts for the Pats -- that's right, the Giants beat the New England Patriots tonight. And I admit, I still cannot believe it. I watched every second and I, like many, knew that they had a shot if they kept it close throughout the game. I said to our guests at our home tonight, "I just hope they're not down 21-3 after a quarter." And there they were, holding the Pats to their lowest point total of the season. The mighty, mighty Patriots.

Who do you give credit to? You give it to the entire New York Giants team. It took what it had to take tonight -- a complete team effort. I said before the game that the Giants needed to be perfect and the Pats needed to have an off game. I think I was wrong. The Giants were not perfect. They made some mistakes. A botched snap. A critical pass interference penalty by Antonio Pierce in the second quarter. A terrible interception in the red zone where rookie Steve Smith juggled a ball into the Pats hands.

But the Pats were beatable tonight. And why? Credit the Giants defense for being beyond stout throughout this game. They came in knowing they had to play the game of their lives. They knew they were one blown coverage away from beating the Pats in late December. So let's be perfect this time, they must have said. And they damn near were. Aside from Pierce's pass interference penalty, I can't think of another mistake -- even a slightly missed assignment -- that the defense made all night. And that's amazing. They sacked Tom Brady five times. FIVE. He was sacked only once in their Dec 29 game and only something like 12 or 13 times all season. Nobody gets to Handsome Tom.

Do you know when I began to believe this game was not going to be just like every other Pats playoff game? Late in the first half, when the Giants forced a fumble to halt the Patriots drive, the fumble was caused by a sack of Terrific Tom Brady. And after the play, it was clear how hard Brady had been hit and even one of his linemen was getting up slowly and limping off the field. And I thought to myself, this is about when Rocky begins turning the tide. He uppercuts the champ hard and makes him bleed. And the champ isn't necessarily losing yet, but they're stunned and not looking like themselves. And the door is open a crack and the challenger has to push their way through. And they did.

Hey, how about Plaxico saying the Giants were going to win, 23-17, earlier in the week? Tom Brady then laughed -- laughed -- when told that and said, "Oh, is Plax playing defense?" He thought the idea of the Pats only scoring 17 points was a silly concept. Hmmm, what do you think of 14, Tom?



Some more thoughts on the classy Patriots.... how about that last one second of play? Belichick is clearly told at midfield by the officials that the game is not over and that the Giants have the ball with one second left on the clock. But Bill Belichick isn't interested in the Giants having the ball -- now that his team has lost the game, he's outta there! Belichick, Brady and many other Patriots were already up the tunnel and weren't out there for the final play of the game. And do you know who I do respect on the Pats? Teddy Buschi, for one, who was out there for the final play and who was signaling for his defensive teammates to come out there and line up for the Giants last snap. And whomever else on the Pats D that was out there at the end -- I'm impressed by those guys and genuinely appreciate their sportsmanlike nature of letting the Giants have that feeling of the final kneeldown. Please see Boilerdowd's suggestion down below about sending a videotape to the Classy Bill Belichick.

Unexpected heros: Well, as I said, this was a total team effort but David Tyree and Justin Tuck stand out for me. Sure, Strahan and Osi are the mack daddies on this defense, but Justin Tuck nailed Brady a couple of times and was a huge difference-maker. As for Tyree, he caught the TD that the Giants scored to go up 10-7 and then he also caught the desperation heave from Manning on the last drive... it was third and long and Manning escaped pressure from multiple Patriots D-linemen and chucked it downfield, and it was David Tyree who managed to haul it in. And that, coupled with Kevin Boss' 45-yard catch earlier in the quarter, might be the biggest catches in the Giants season. I'm not sure there were many bigger ones in their history. Perhaps Mark Ingrams long catch and run on third down against the Bills in Super Bowl XXV, for those that remember. That's where those two catches by Boss and Tyree rank.

How pleased must Goodell have been to be presenting that trophy to the Giants and not the Pats? Who wants to present a trophy to a bunch of cheaters, anyway?

Where do the Pats go from here? How bad does it hurt to go 18-0 and then lose? How hard will it be for Belichick to get these guys to buy in to his system next year? Those guys can say they buy in, but won't they be thinking, "hey, this didn't work last year"? The Pats will now be remembered as the 16-0 team that couldn't win it all. And they will live in infamy, no matter what happens in their future. They're now just like the 2004 Yankees that blew a 3-0 lead in the ALCS. A great team with a huge advantage who.... blew it. Deal with it, Boston.

My last thought for the evening... on an evening of many dissheveled thoughts.... but let's all shut the hell up about Eli Manning. He's the man. This kid is all of 26 years old and he's been in the playoffs every year he's been a full-time starter. Do you realize this? And now he's a Super Bowl champion. And a Super Bowl MVP. It's done, he's the man. He's lived up to his potential. I don't want to hear any more about comparing him to Phillip Rivers or his brother or anyone else. He won the Super Bowl. This wasn't like Big Ben's Steelers winning despite Ben's awful play. Manning was terrific, especially in the fourth quarter, and was deserving of the MVP. He was clutch, he was a champion and there's nothing else to say. Phil Simms, Jeff Hostetler, Eli Manning. Those are the Giants QBs who have won Super Bowls.

I've been a Giants fan my whole life. And not even I expected this for the 2007 season, especially after an 0-2 start and the team looking like crap. But then it all began to truly come together. The Giants went on a 11-game winning streak away from Giants Stadium. They blossomed. We watched Eli grow up before our eyes... like, truly, we saw him go from the kid nobody could ever count on all the way up the spectrum to a Super Bowl MVP, clutch, champion.

And hey, Tiki, how do you like Eli's leadership now?

Doubly Super Boobs

As punishment for a missed week of side-boobs, which there was surprisingly little uproar over I might add, we've been forced to double our efforts. We've scoured the very best tubes of this here Interweb to find these fine examples of the female form.

So let us begin our punishment. Now, you may (or more likely may not) be asking yourself "Self, how is this punishment?" Well, let me tell you... I don't like watermelon. There I said it. This is not so much about boobage as it is a clear frontal assault on my visceral dislike for melons of the water variety.




















On with the punishment! Here we have a fine example of those pesky bikinis that are always fouling things up. Thanks to loyal pointer-outer D for this terrible terrible bikini.



















This picture clearly shows us why LSU wins national championships. They have proper motivation. Unfortunately our Boilers are surrounded by women in 18 layers of parka right about now.
















I think we can all agree on one thing. We don't like the Patriots. However, they do have cheerleaders, so our punishment in this area is that we cannot dislike EVERYTHING about the Patriots. Unfortunately for Giants fans, there are no cheerboobs to root for on your own sideline.

















Here again, a pesky bikini gets in the way. It appears that even she, the un-named wearer of said bikini, dislikes it. Those damn knots though...





















Double Sideboob Friday is a production of Boiled Sports and runs just this one Friday in this space. If you are a supermodel and would like to move to Cleveland, I might be able to help you. You can reach me at BoiledSports@gmail.com. Go Giants!

Not So Positive (Baby Boilers and other thoughts)

Can we call it a trend when it happens twice? I don't know...but we can call it bothersome, disturbing and upsetting. Much like in the Clemson game, Purdue had the home Tigers on the ropes in Missouri on Saturday afternoon. And despite a 10-point lead with a little over 7:00 left, our Boilers managed to lose going away.

I know, I know the Baby Boilers are young and extremely young. But, I have to pin quite a bit of this loss on the coach that I like quite a bit, Painter. With a comfortable lead, Purdue went into its "Prevent" offense and seemed to believe that not even attempting to shoot was better than an outside shot. I do understand that Mizzou's zone was tough for Purdue to handle, but I also know that if Missouri has three defender's above 18 feet, there's space down low...Instead of passing with the purpose to set up entry to the lane, Purdue seemed to be passing as if it was UNC playing the old four-corners offense in 1985.

Hummel & Martin fouled out and Calasan seemed to never get on track...Plus, JaJuan Johnson looked completely confused at times and doesn't seem to be able to rebound even when "battling" with a smaller shooting forward. It'll be nice when he gains a pound or two; until then Purdue really has very little presence in the lane.

I am hopeful for the future, but I'm also not blind...Purdue under Painter simply doesn't win games on the road; and to be a good team, you simply must be able to win away from home. As optimistic as I am about what can be, I'm pretty sure now that it's going to be at least another season before Purdue can be considered a contender for the Big Ten title. For this young Purdue team there is much yet to learn and the conference schedule will be here very soon.

Up next, following a finals week break, Purdue faces Louisville in The Wooden Tradition...Purdue's timing is pretty poor as Louisville is coming off of a loss and will be playing to prove something. I still think the NCAA tournament is possible, but Purdue MUST have a quality win or two in the pre-conference season to make the dance later this year.

Shocking!
Model citizen, Jamal Tinsley joined Selwyn Lymon in the long list of athletes who have become helpless, innocent victims to violent attacks. Tinsley, who was out with his entourage at around 3:00 am at a strip club got into an argument that later turned into gun play in downtown Indy. A Pacers' trainer was hit in the elbow by shots intended for Tinsley...and Tinsley's Rolls Royce looked like Suge Knights' BMW in Las Vegas a few years ago.

I'm positive that most Pacers fans will have no problem forgetting about this or any of the other incidents involving Tinsley in the past few seasons. Way to keep it real, Jamal!

Refreshing!
I'm not a big fan of awards shows, even sports award shows, but I watched the last ten minutes of the Heisman show on Saturday night...I'm glad I did. I had never heard Tim Tebow speak before that night, but I like what I heard. My perception of him is that he seemed like a kid who was really excited to win the award and completely gracious to have done so as well (so excited that he repeated his "thank yous" twice).

As a Christian, some of the thanking God by athletes seems shallow and trendy to me, but the mention of Jesus Christ holds more weight as it's not generic and it's much more intentional. I don't know, and probably never will know Tebow, but I like the fact that he claims Christ and seems to be humble enough to give Him credit for his physical gifts. Clearly, Tebow's unusual mix of size and speed coupled with his ability to prepare and think the game has made him a special player.

Amazing!
I'm currently watching the Colts beat a deflated and let-down Ravents team 44-13 in the fourth quarter. I'm shocked and perplexed by much that I'm witnessing. How and why do the Colts have so many second-stringers in the game? At the beginning of the fourth quarter Manning left the game, Sorgi came in and so did a bunch of guys who I honestly didn't know were even on the roster...both offensively and defensively.

How can the Colts call themselves competitors? The truest of all competitors, Tom Brady and his wise and fantastically-brilliant coach have told us that if a team is driven to be excellent, they must attempt to score a touchdown every time they have the ball and must never let off the pressure defensively. Clearly, Dungy, Manning and the Colts don't have what it takes to win a championship.


You stay classy, New England.

Manning should be ashamed of himself for not striving for more v. Baltimore...And Dungy Stinks.

It Could Be a Long Year...

Our Boilers faced off against a guy named David Lipscomb on Tuesday night...and much like Gardner-Webb, David is a good basketball player. Granted, he hadn't won any games prior to last night (and still hasn't), but he held the lead for about 36 minutes of the contest. It could be the fact that he knew he'd be facing a young Boiler team that he could take advantage of or that GBI called this game a glorified scrimmage and he didn't like that. Regardless, it was a bit of a dogfight. One one hand, I'm awfully happy that Purdue could play a close game and pull off the win, on the other, I'm pretty disappointed that this was a close one. But I guess if you're going to be involved in close games, it's impressive, especially for a young team to shake off the bad stuff to get the "W". Purdue at one point late in the game was shooting a frigid 16% from three-point land. Special thanks to Big Ten Network for putting the game on the E-Interwebnet...It was great watching the game with audio and video not in sync as well as well as getting the opportunity to watch it on a 4-inch screen.

Here are my thoughts on the gentlemen on the court.

Martin and Hummel are both very good...they are great team players as they rebound, pass and play defense well. Moore looked good at times, but I think it's fair to say he's no Eric Gordon, at this point (by the way, that dude is ridiculously good...cheating rules!). Chris Kramer plays as if he's trying to end his life. While I really like guys who hustle, he seems to needlessly throw himself onto the court. In all seriousness, he's going to only have a two-three-year career if he keeps playing as he is. All that said, I think it's especially good for the Freshman to see that type of effort. Keaton Grant looked rusty for much of the game, but hit arguably the biggest shot of the contest in the form of a three pointer with not much time left. Johnson desperately needs to drink protein shakes and eat steak. Dude is just so slight that he can't hold his ground at this point. I am stoked to see Calasan playing in the next game.

Other Sports Notes
-Nick Saban is hilarious and crazy. If you haven't had a chance to catch it, watch Sports Center and witness his Tuesday press conference tirade. I loved it. The media guy who asked the question had no clue what he was walking into.

-Suck it, Patriots. Tom Brady admitted on a radio show that the Pats goal each game is to blow out each of their opponents. I hope they get their wish in all of their remaining games. In fact, I hope they score 100-points a game and Brady gets every record he's seeking. Then, I hope they lose their first playoff game by one point.

-Isaiah Thomas is the greatest basketball mind since Latrell Spreewell. His mastery of the game and the psychology behind the game is evident when you watch the Knicks play the game. Even fans in MSG chant his name- fire ISAIAH! fire ISAIAH! I say, Knicks, give him as long as he needs! He'll turn that thing around!

-Eric Gordon is not as good as advertised, he's better. I know I wrote about this above, but he really seems to be very, very good. I think he's averaging over 30 points as he can shoot from anywhere and finishes strong as well. It's a shame the Big Ten stinks and only allows Purdue to play IU once...in Bloomington no less. Thanks Delaney, you are one smart dude.

Guilty Until Proven Innocent

There's an old adage that states people who deceive always believe they're being deceived...It was proven Sunday night as Belichick, Kraft, Brady and other members of the Patriots accused the Colts of cheating in the form of illegal noise being pumped into the RCA dome.

The lil' babies complained that the stadium was too loud for their wittle ears and that the deafening noise couldn't possibly be attributed to humans alone. The NFL even looked into it for them...In the end, nothing more than a dome and 58,000 fans could be credited for the high decibels...no supplemental noise makers needed.

Uh-Oh: Could the Golden Boys Have Cheated, Too?

Looks like the Pats aren't the only ones who might be cheaters in the NFL. The feel-good Colts might also be to blame.

Just like in baseball and auto racing, where the old adage goes, "If you ain't cheatin', you ain't tryin'," it looks like the Colts are the latest to get called out for trying something that's a bit below-board.

Whether or not there's truth to it remains to be seen, but the Colts right now stand accused of piping in extra crowd noise for Sunday's showdown with the Patriots.

What's interesting to me is why a team would think this would really help. This is what makes me think this is either unlikely to be true or, if it is true, is the product of someone aside from the football operations (i.e., the sound team at the Hoosier/RCA/Whatever Dome). I mean, isn't it likely the Pats have played in pretty loud places before?

Apparently, league officials were tipped off when the crowd noise got very loud in the dome.

"This game took place in Indianapolis," said Roger Godell in a prepared statement, "and everybody knows the Indiana crowds never really get loud so we knew something was amiss."*

Seriously, though, I think this is pretty funny and just adds to the brewing hate between these teams and fan bases.

*Statement may be fabricated -- please don't have me kneecapped, Commissioner Goodell.

Best Game Ever (Since Dallas v. NE)

In case you haven't guessed it, I thought the hype leading up to the Colts v. Pats game was ridiculous. While it is good to see two undefeated teams playing mid-way through the season, it is still mid-way through the season. Both teams really wanted to win and the game had some playoff-like intensity to it...but the playoffs it was not. One thing I really like and have liked about this series of games is how this is a true rivalry, and both sides seem to not like the other too much. There's note enough of that in sports, in my opinion.

Before I knew of the four starters that would be out for the Colts, I predicted a Colts loss...but losing four important parts of both the offense and defense did hurt the Colts, specifically their offense. To add insult to injury, Harrison's backup, Gonzalez was out for big chunks of the game (I'm not sure why). That left Aaron Moorehead taking the place of the future HOFer...quite a drop-off. All that said, the Colts can only blame themselves for losing. The defense that had been stout all day collapsed a bit in the end when given a chance to close it out and the usually clutch Manning coughed up the ball for his first fumble in Indianapolis since 2005.

I really do wish the Colts would have won because I hate the Patriots...but the cheating genius had clearly circled this game as he reacted as if he had earned his fifth Super Bowl ring as the clock hit 0:00. Harrison, Colvin & Brady all reacted similarly. I honestly didn't expect a team of former champions to react in such a way.

Congrats Patriots and her fans on this mid-season victory.

Here are the reasons I hate the Patriots:
-I lived in the Boston area for 2.5 years. That soured me greatly on the Pats. Ironically, that period of time really made me a Red Sox fan...probably because the Sox were pretty bad and their fans weren't horrible to deal with. Plus, as I've alluded to before, I've been a Colts fan since they moved to Indy...I didn't really have a baseball team to follow in Indy.

-Bad Winner, Worse Loser
Belichick is not only a proven cheater, he's also a complete ass. When he wins, he's smug, when he loses, he bristles and scowls. Plus, like most teams, the Patriots reflect their coach's attitude and outlook...much like the Manatee still exhibits Belichick-esque traits, his system roots itself in the team. All that said, I do think he might be one of the true geniuses of his sport...and you can't really argue with his teams' results (unless you're a Browns fan). [addendum: Belichick showed his class and furthered my argument by accusing Indianapolis and the Colts organization of cheating...following their victory at the RCA dome.]



















-El Debarge
The Drama Queen (I'm retiring a Charger...Look at me...oh wait, I just wanted the party, I'm a Patriot), Junior Seau, his circa 1984 jerry curl do along with his talk-well, play-OK antics seem to be a perfect fit for the Pats.

-Super-Fertile QB
Tom Brady, in my opinion, is the best quarterback in the league. I usually don't have any problem with him off of the field. I do though, have a problem with the fact that he's one of the faces of the league, seems to be ambiguously gay and at the same time impregnated two women last summer. ESPN keeps telling me he's a classy guy, I see it completely different.

-Second or Third-Chance Hoodlum
Randy Moss is a freakishly-good athlete and an amazingly talented receiver. But, he's a degenerate whose calling cards are running into meter maids and bitching on the sideline. I know, I know, he's been a great team mate and all-around great guy since coming to NE. Pats fan, keep believing that he's never going to go back to what he really is. All the Patriots have to do to avoid a tirade or meltdown is never lose again...seems easy enough.

I could go on, but I'm tired and a bubble bath, frosty Zima and Danielle Steele novel are calling my name. I'll close by saying, my hope is that the Pats win out and become the second NFL team to go undefeated...Then, I'd like to see the Colts come into Foxborough and silence the Chowds when the game is very important. One can dream. Until then, congrats Belichick, Brady et al on your Super Bowl 41.5 victory...Hope to see you in January!