Forget the past.
Forget the snow game, the Adam Vinatieri kick, the intentional safety, the second Adam Vinatieri kick, the 21-game winning streak, the third championship, the screw-job in Denver, the comeback in San Diego, and the meltdown in Indianapolis. Forget them all.
As incredible, euphoric, shocking, and gut-wrenching as those moments were, they belong to the history books now. The first chapter of the rise and fall of Tom Brady's New England Patriots has been written, proof-read, and published. There's no time for correction. There's no time for reflection. The only thing we can do now is begin chapter two.
If the first part of Tom Brady's story was that of the typical underdog who rises above the odds to achieve unexpected success, this second act will likely mirror the tales of Luke Skywalker, Neo, and Captain Jack Sparrow, who return from defeat more powerful than ever and leave no opponent standing in their wake. As those of you who are familiar with my Patriots articles know, I'm notorious for pulling out the "no respect" card. However, there will be absolutely none of that this year. 2007 is the first season ever where the New England Patriots are receiving nothing but reverence.
In back-to-back miracle seasons, Tom Brady led his team to the brink of a title with a receiving corps Bill Belichick found inside a Cracker Jack box. Now that he's surrounded by his best supporting cast ever, nobody can predict how high this team's ceiling is. Just take a look at the incredibly roster the Patriots are putting on the field!
Matt Light, Dan Koppen, and Logan Mankins form the core of the offensive line. Randy Moss, Donte' Stallworth, and Wes Welker headline the wide receivers. Laurence Maroney, Sammy Morris, and Kevin Faulk are responsible for the ground game. Richard Seymour, Vince Wilfork, and Ty Warren anchor the D-Line. Adalius Thomas adds a knock-out punch to the linebacker corps which already includes Tedy Bruschi, Roosevelt Colvin, and Mike Vrabel. Asante Samuel, last season's interception leader, will rejoin Randall Gay, Eugene Wilson, and Miami stand-out Brandon Meriweather in the secondary And let's not forget that two hall-of-famers will be returning from injury in Junior Seau and Rodney Harrison.
No, it's not a replica Pro-Bowl roster, but ever single name on that list demands respect. Together they form an overwhelming force of excellence like the NFL has never seen. After watching this team try to squeak by the past two seasons with a mediocre team and forfeit two wide-open Super Bowls in the process, I personally can't wait to see these new Patriots come out and dominate. But I'll leave my sentiments at that, because I'm forgetting the past. This season, this squad isn't about our collapse against the Colts. It's not about the past two season. It's not even about our three title runs.
It's. About. Now.
This team, right here, right now has an amazing opportunity to win Super Bowl XLII. And that's all that matters. Every time the New England Patriots run onto the field, hoisting the Lombardi trophy should be their only goal. There's no revenge to be sought, no agenda to chase after. There's only football games to be won. If the Patriots can maintain that tunnel vision and sharpen their killer instinct, there's no reason they should do anything but just that. When San Diego rolls into Foxboro Week 2, or when the Patriots return to the RCA Dome in Week 9, the fights and failures of last January will be the last things on their mind. That page has been turned, and another chapter is being written. The day is about to break upon a new dynasty.
And the New England Patriots, their eyes fixed on the horizon, are ready to seize it.
Pre-Season Predictions:
Now it's time for one of my favorite annual DeROK.Net moments: my pre-season playoff predictions. As always, the goal is to be an elusive 12 for 12 when selecting this year's playoff participants. The best I've ever done is 8 for 12 and the worst is 4 out of 12. These past two years have been extremely mediocre at 6-6, but I have a feeling this will be the year that break above .500 for the first time in three seasons. I'm not sure if that's a credit to me, or the fact that the Pats, Colts, Chargers, and Bears are three gimmee picks and I only have to go 3 for 8 the rest of the way to come out ahead. Anyway, enough rambling. Onto the predictions...
NFC NORTH:
1. Bears
2. Lions
3. Packers
4. Vikings
I can't imagine the Bears not taking the North, so this becomes a race for second place. My ties to Minnesota always make me over estimate the Vikings, but I'm not falling into that trap any longer. The Lions wide receivers should be good enough to get this team to a 6-10 finish, which could make them the runner-up.
NFC SOUTH:
1. Panthers
2. Saints
3. Buccaneers
4. Falcons
The Saints are the easy pick, but I can't ever count out the Panthers after the heart they showed in Super Bowl XXXVIII. I'm well aware that's poor reasoning four years after the fact, but the same eight teams aren't going to win the divisions and this coup seems as likely as any.
NFC EAST:
1. Cowboys
2. Eagles
3. Redskins
4. Giants
It's going to be a tight contest at the top of the NFC East. The question you have to ask yourself is whether it's more likely that Tony Romo is a one-year wonder or that Donovan McNabb will get hurt. One's possible and the other is a near-guarantee. I'm going with the Boys.
NFC WEST:
1. 49ers
2. Seahawks
3. Rams
4. Cardinals
Yes, the 49ers are the trendy sleeper pick, which is a complete oxymoron. Everything inside of me says to do what I did to the trendy Cardinals last year and avoid them like the plague. However, I had the Niners pegged for a return to the playoffs back in December, and I'm holding firm on my long-term forecast.
NFC SEEDING:
1. Bears
2. Panthers
3. Cowboys
4. 49ers
5. Saints
6. Eagles
The Bears have six incredibly easy division games, so that should catapult them to the top seed. The way I seeded the rest was that Carolina would have to be pretty good to get ahead of New Orleans - better than Dallas would have to be to overcome Philly. And the 49ers will probably be squeaking in at 9-7.
AFC NORTH:
1. Ravens
2. Bengals
3. Steelers
4. Browns
Baltimore lost Adalius Thomas to the Patriots, but they did gain Willis McGahee. I'm not sold on the Bengals having their heads on straight, which is why I'm reluctant to hand them the division. Pittsburgh hasn't been an elite team since the Patriots handed Rothlisberger his first loss, despite somehow capturing a Super Bowl, and now they've lost Bill Cowher. And the Browns are the Browns.
AFC SOUTH:
1. Colts
2. Jaguars
3. Titans
4. Texans
As much as I despise them, I can't deny that the Colts are the real deal. It's tempting to pick the Titans as a sleeper team, but after their classless display in Week 17 last season, they can go without the playoffs this year. Just like they did when the Patriots pounded them into the ground and crushed Cinderella's glass slipper that same week.
AFC EAST:
1. Patriots
2. Jets
3. Dolphins
4. Bills
I respect the Jets, but I just don't see them having a better record than the Patriots. They could definitely be a playoff contender though. Miami and Buffalo aren't going anywhere.
AFC WEST:
1. Chargers
2. Broncos
3. Chiefs
4. Raiders
San Diego is giving no indications that they won't take the division again this year. The Broncos will once again be one of those teams who are right on the playoff brink. Between them, the Bengals, and the Jets, picking the two wild card teams won't be easy.
AFC SEEDING:
1. Patriots
2. Colts
3. San Diego
4. Ravens
5. Broncos
6. Bengals
I think the Patriots are going to be superb this year, and I'd be surprised with anything worse than 14-2. The Colts have lost players, while the Chargers have stood pat. I'm putting Indy second only because the Bolts have to play Denver twice. The Bengals might actually win their division, so I'm going to put them in. Sorry Jets fans, I think you'll barely miss out.
Observations:
Returning playoff teams from last season - 8: Bears, Cowboys, Eagles, Saints, Patriots, Colts, Chargers, Ravens
Non-returning playoff teams from last season - 4: Giants, Seahawks, Chiefs, Jets
New playoff teams - 4: Panthers, 49ers, Broncos, Bengals
I've broken my rule that no more than seven teams can return from last year's playoffs. However, the NFL has been so insane lately, strictly following any type of rule isn't likely to help you make the right choice anyway. I've made my decision and I'm going with those eight. If anything, my first swaps would be the Jets for the Bengals and the Seahawks for the Niners which would give me 10 out of 12 teams returning. So I'm not that overboard exceeding the limit by one.
NFC PLAYOFFS:
Wildcard Round:
Cowboys over Eagles, Saints over 49ers
Divisional Round:
Bears over Saints, Panthers over Cowboys
NFC Championship:
Tough, tough call. Do I want to make the easy pick and set up a Super Bowl XX rematch, or go out on a limb and predict a repeat of XXXVIII?
I'm not feeling brave. Bears over Panthers
AFC PLAYOFFS:
Wildcard Round:
Chargers over Bengals, Ravens over Broncos
Divisional Round:
Patriots over Ravens, Chargers over Colts
AFC Championship:
I could have focused on the past and force a revenge game with the Colts , but I'm going with the more likely scenario...
Patriots over Chargers
SUPERBOWL XLII:
Patriots over Bears
Getting things right the second time around...
