Ice_Ice_Brady

It's just not fair to compare these players to the Patriots of old. I think that people see a 14-2 record and associate it with the veteran, know-how-to-win, disrespected teams of the early decade. Truth is, this team is nothing like those teams. They battled for field position, "settled" for long Vinatieri field goals, won games in the waning seconds, and enjoyed physical brawls. This team does what it can with the players it has: builds leads and closes teams out. Everyone predicted that it was anyone's game if the offense didn't set the tone early on. Nothing like the old championship teams.

So, let's look at this team versus a fair comparison, the 2009 Patriots.

At the end of last year, there were about 20 players who we wanted run out of town, and they were run out of town. We had a team that quit numerous times, stopped playing after three quarters, and couldn't win on the road. We had an offense that consisted of three players. Our defense was "led" by veterans like Adalius Thomas and Derrick Burgess.

This team showed a ton of heart. Despite all of the know-it-alls, they prepared extremely hard and maximized their talent for most of the season. They definitely pressed too hard in their loss to the Jets, and that was obvious, but it wasn't the result of a bunch of mercenaries trying to do their own thing- it was mostly overanalyzing the game (like Brady) and trying to step up but failing (Chung.)

I hope people don't forget just how bright the future is for this franchise. To have all of these players step up the way they did, this team far exceeded its expectations. Based on the character and growth of many young players, I expect next year we'll see them contending again.

I'm off the board for awhile now... will be back around the draft. It's been a pleasure this year, and lot to enjoy. For some reason, I just don't feel the agony of past years defeats. I'm really, really hopeful and proud of these guys.