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The death of Marquise Hill aside, the 2007 Patriots offseason has to be ranked as one of the most successful in NFL history. The unexpected signings of superstars such as Adalius Thomas, Randy Moss and Donte Stallworth along with role players like Kyle Brady and Sammy Morris - on paper anyway - make the Pats the team to beat in August.
The trouble of course is that they don't hand out hardware for being in first place at this time of the year. One ACL tear to #12 and it's "Wild Card or Bust" for the 2007 Patriots-----Wait, forget I said that. Negativity in these here parts when it comes to either the Patriots or Red Sox forever went out of my bay window in October 2004. This is the upcoming season of our lives and if you can't get up for this one maybe it's time to join the World Poker Tour.
Without question, Patriot Nation (present company included) has become accustomed to the lifestyle with which we have been living. "No way am I springing $25 for a Division Champs t-shirt again. What kind of fool does nflshop.com take me for?"
On a personal note, I'm throwing impartiality out the window this year. Forget those TV, radio and newspaper appearances that naturally tempered my enthusiasm over the last couple of years. I'm re-dedicating myself to this column over the course of this season. There are plenty of other places for some sense of neutrality. I would encourage you to take my lead.
Maybe some of my hunger is based on the way that things came unglued in the RCA Dome last January. Sure, Bill Belichick squeezed every ounce of effort out of his squad last season and came up just a bit short. To be honest, I was saddened by the loss but certainly not angry. How could you be? They were a team to be proud of.
But then there was an underwhelming Super Bowl XLI that demonstrated that the Pats would have danced in a cakewalk over the Bears in the rain in Miami. Then there's the Colts Super Bowl champion merchandise plastered all over the internet, the #$^&-eating grin of Peyton Manning at the ESPY's, and the dreaded knowledge that there are 3,843 Manning-based commercials waiting for us in the queue over the next few months. Indeed, it's time to settle the score with the Colts in 2007.
And then there is the issue of those annoying San Diego Chargers. Experts on all things class, winning football, and uniform changes, the boys from SoCal feel they have a score to settle of their own come September 23rd when they visit Foxboro. Personally, I'm looking forward to this streetfight a great deal more than the Colts tilt later in the season.
Perhaps the reason why sports holds such a revered place in our lives is the unpredictability of it all. Injuries, unexpected heroes, legs that suddenly have no tread left on the tire, and bizarre occurrences make this exercise a welcome departure from the more serious issues we all face in life.
So hop on board this season for the ride of your life. I'm going to do all I can to make sure that you have a blast.
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