Wandering Athol
Here kitty kitty...
Indy at home brings no fear to Pats fans who have been around for a few years. In fact, I would bet the Pats are itchin' to play the team that drubbed them in Foxboro, and see Peyton make his baby-face again. Denver at home is an entirely different story. Hence, I think the #4 seed is what the Pats would be better off with, hoping someone else takes out Denver before the Pats would have to play them (for reference, see Jacksonville circa 1996). Unfortunately, the #4 seed leaves out all-but-the-most-remote possibility of another home playoff game for the Pats. Looks like no win-wins this year. Hence, this will be a tougher run to the Super Bowl than the three previous.
That said, what exactly is different from a player-coach standpoint this year than last. One thing - Rodney Harrison. You can write all you want about Crennel and Weis being gone, but Belichick is the glue, and the players play, not the coaches. So, the secondary's worse. The linebackers are better with the T Johnson/Colvin tradeoff, now that Vrabel's been moved, and Bruschi's returned. The young D-line is a year older and wiser, maybe a push here. The offense is better now that it is finally healthy: with Brady having his best year yet, Dillon starting to return to form, Watson's emergence, and the O-line inexplicably playing better than I would've ever thought. Special teams are similar to last year. It's taken the whole year for this team to get healthy and gel and I expect BIG things from them in the playoffs.
Where does that leave the Pats? The whole team IMO opinion is on par AT THIS TIME with last year's - the offense is little better, and the defense is little worse. The Tampa game was not a fluke. Last year's team destroyed Pitt and Indy at home, and solidly defeated Phi in the SB. This year they've got one home game (most likely a win against any of Pit/KC/Jac), probably two away games (crossing my fingers they don't get Denver), and I'd take my chances on the money-line against anyone in the NFC. Anyway, with the momentum they've got, the veteran presence, and Belichick's wisdom, I think any team would be a fool not to consider the Pats (the Champs) the #1 contender for this year's SB. I do not know if they will win it all, but I do know they can, and it'll take a near-perfect game to knock them out.
That said, what exactly is different from a player-coach standpoint this year than last. One thing - Rodney Harrison. You can write all you want about Crennel and Weis being gone, but Belichick is the glue, and the players play, not the coaches. So, the secondary's worse. The linebackers are better with the T Johnson/Colvin tradeoff, now that Vrabel's been moved, and Bruschi's returned. The young D-line is a year older and wiser, maybe a push here. The offense is better now that it is finally healthy: with Brady having his best year yet, Dillon starting to return to form, Watson's emergence, and the O-line inexplicably playing better than I would've ever thought. Special teams are similar to last year. It's taken the whole year for this team to get healthy and gel and I expect BIG things from them in the playoffs.
Where does that leave the Pats? The whole team IMO opinion is on par AT THIS TIME with last year's - the offense is little better, and the defense is little worse. The Tampa game was not a fluke. Last year's team destroyed Pitt and Indy at home, and solidly defeated Phi in the SB. This year they've got one home game (most likely a win against any of Pit/KC/Jac), probably two away games (crossing my fingers they don't get Denver), and I'd take my chances on the money-line against anyone in the NFC. Anyway, with the momentum they've got, the veteran presence, and Belichick's wisdom, I think any team would be a fool not to consider the Pats (the Champs) the #1 contender for this year's SB. I do not know if they will win it all, but I do know they can, and it'll take a near-perfect game to knock them out.