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A goal line stand keeps the Patriots ahead of the Indianapolis Colts.
NFL Quarterly Report
Now that we're officially 3/4th's of the way through the NFL regular season, I'd like to do a brief re-cap of the past twelve weeks, before going on to make my final regular season predictions. The first four weeks seemed completely dismal for the Patriots. First, there was the Week 1 debacle against the Buffalo Bills and Lawyer Milloy. But the Pats recovered and won the next two. However, after another dismal game against Washington by Tom Brady and a huge pile of injuries, it seemed like the Pats were all set for another repeat of last season. But then something so unexpected happened, it can only be compared with the miracle Super Bowl season. Once again, Bill Belichick managed to pull together a bunch of cast-offs, rookies, and mis-fits and have them play some amazing football. Weeks 5-8 brought four victories. The first being a huge upset over Tennessee, and the most memorable being the overtime thriller against Miami. And that's where we left the Pats off at the Mid-Season Report. As great as those four weeks were, they've been totally eclipsed by the past four. I'm having trouble deciding which victory I enjoyed the most. Monday Night in Denver, giving away the saftey, and scoring the game winning touchdown in the final minute? The shut-out we handed to Bill Parcells and the Cowboys? How about the overtime game against the Texans that lasted almost five quarters? But I'm going to have to go with last week's game against the Colts.
The Patriots have rattled off eight straight victories and have a 10-2 record which no other team has had in franchise history. Throughout those eight weeks there have been four times in which I have given up all hope of pulling out any kind of a victory. I had resigned myself to the fact that we'd blown it. The first being Miami's 35-yard field goal attempt in overtime, which they miraculously missed. The second was when we were pinned at our own end-zone in Denver, right before Belichick brilliantly gave up the saftey to get field position. Then there was when we punted and gave Houston the ball at our 35 in overtime, only to end up nailing them for a five yard loss on the possession. And finally, when the Colts had 1st and Goal on the 2 yard line down four with a minute left in the game, and we ended up stuffing them four straight times to keep the lead.
You can call us lucky if you want to, cause you're probably right. With the way the league is now, you don't get to 10-2 without catching a couple of breaks. But out of those four nail-biters, I can honestly say the only one we didn't deserve was the one against Miami. I'm not sure how the next four weeks will go for us, it's a crazy league. But I do know this: The New England Patriots have finally proved that they weren't a fluke in 2001. This is a team founded on a offense that will never say die, and a defense that will dig in and shut any team down when it really counts. We've gone 6-0 against teams with winning records, and nobody in the league is even close to that. And these aren't your measly 7-5 Vikings, we're talking the 9-3 Colts, Titans, and Eagles. And the best part about it is that I honestly believe we've yet to play our best football. We appear to be hitting our stride at just the right time. And that can only mean one thing... Check the predictions to find out!
Predictions:
NFC NORTH:
1. Packers - I'm going back to the pack. I shouldn't have left in the first place. But a 6-0 start is hard to beat.
2. Vikings - Yet following it up with a 1-5 spurt makes it a lot easier.
3. Bears - Two games out of first place... Could it happen? Nope.
4. Lions - Looks like it's last place for the Lions again.
NFC SOUTH:
1. Panthers - It's pretty much set in stone.
2. Saints - This team either starts hot and fades, or starts horrible and turns it on too late.
3. Buccaneers - Hey, they're making the 2002 Patriots look like overachievers.
4. Falcons - No Vick = No Shot.
NFC EAST:
1. Eagles - You have to hand it to them. They pulled it out.
2. Cowboys - Now that they've started playing the real teams, it's great to see the 'Boys fold.
3. Redskins - Spurrier is awful.
4. Giants - But not as awful as the G-Men. Is any team a bigger disappointment? Was this really my pre-season Super Bowl Pick?
NFC WEST:
1. Rams - Could there be a Super Bowl XXXVI rematch brewing?
2. Seahawks - Another example of how easy schedules can make a team look a lot better than they actually are.
3. 49ers - Still don't have it where it counts.
4. Cardinals - What's there to write about?
NFC SEEDING:
1. Eagles
2. Rams
3. Panthers
4. Packers
5. Seahawks
6. Cowboys
AFC NORTH:
1. Bengals - Can you feel it? The Bungles almost have a Patriotesque feeling about them!
2. Ravens - They are finally putting up points. I don't see it lasting.
3. Browns - It's a toss-up between the bottom two, but I'm going with Cleveland at the three spot because...
4. Steelers - It means that this division will have completely flipped from last season. 1st place team in 4th, 2nd place team in 3rd, etc.
AFC SOUTH:
1. Titans - You knew Steve McNair was getting hurt. It was just a matter of when.
2. Colts - That loss to the Pats has gotta sting!
3. Texans - If the division weren't so top-heavy, they might have been able to make a playoff run next year.
4. Jaguars - Getting better, but does it really matter?
AFC EAST:
1. Patriots - 10-2 is Amazing!
2. Dolphins - It's December! Time for the fish to do their annual freeze.
3. Jets - The Jets are a force to be reckoned with. The Week 16 matchup for the Pats will be no piece of cake.
4. Bills - Nothing would make me happier than a 31-0 New England victory over the Bills in Week 17. Well, maybe a Super Bowl...
AFC WEST:
1. Chiefs - They have yet to play a really good team this year. The one team that's halfway decent that they played, they ended up losing to. Yet everyone thinks they're unstoppable. It ticks me off.
2. Broncos - Every year they start off great and then completely implode.
3. Raiders - The dumbest team in the league! I love it!
4. Chargers - Almost beat the Chiefs. Further proof that KC is a phony.
AFC SEEDING:
1. Chiefs
2. Patriots
3. Titans
4. Bengals
5. Colts
6. Dolphins
NFC PLAYOFFS:
Wild Card - Cowboys over Panthers, Packers over Seahawks
Divisional - Eagles over Cowboys, Rams over Packers
NFC Championship - Eagles over Rams
AFC PLAYOFFS:
Wild Card - Titans over Dolphins, Colts over Bengals.
Divisional - Chiefs over Colts, Titans over Patriots????????????????????????
AFC Championship - Chiefs over Titans
SUPERBOWL XXXVIII:
Chiefs over Eagles
There's always a reason. I just can't tell you what that reason is.
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