I see 11-5 this year in a realistic look at this team

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Because of age,slower players and untested younger guys in our LB Corps I can see some problems in that area in the season,I can also see our secondary taking time to adjust and get in synch with each other if Asante leaves.

Those 2 areas seem to be our biggest challenges to being #1 in February although the OL and RB areas may take a bit longer to get an idea of where they lie in terms of being solid this year.

Everywhere else on this team appears to be already championship caliber and with good depth.

I look at 11-5 this season with losses to

At Jets - 1st game of the year I believe and Mangini will have his troops playing especially tough to beat,I think we lose in a squeaker,will be a great game however.

At Indy - Until we prove Indy is not as good as in recent years its tough to think we can end our losing streak to them yet until we do,as long as a guy named Manning is behind center,we are going to be in for a dogfight.

At Miami - What can you say here but no matter what crap team Miami has on the field they always find a way to beat us in Miami or make us work doubly hard to pull out a close win...Another loss down there is definately possible again.

At Baltimore - Tom has always had some problems in playing against a team with a all-pro safety and that defense is as good as it gets..However we should have a chance to win this because Baltimore's offense really is not very good but lets hope this is not one of Tom's 4 interception games he has at least once or twice a year.

At Cincinnati - Just basing this on the thought that Cincinnati's defense appears a bit better this year with some of their aquisitions and can't see them play any worse at home than they did against us last year,not likely to happen again,I could see us losing this one in a high scoring shootout,Then again we could just as easily win it too.

There you have it ,I think those 5 Games are the ones we need to worry about and where I think we will lose,most being close losses and all of those on the road - I see us undefeated at home this year - That makes us 11-5 and still division champs but no cakewalk by any means in the AFC.

16-0? Perfect Season? - Don't make me laugh guys

 

[PromisedLand]

I think the 2007 team, on paper, compares very favorable to the 2003 and 2004 teams which both went 14-2. And before you tell me how tough the schedule figures to be, let me remind you that those teams set records for most wins against playoff teams, that strength of schedule is based on LAST year's performance, and that past performance is no guarantee of future results.

I for one will be very surprised and disappointed if this team ONLY goes 11-5, and I think BB, RK, SP and TB will too.

(Remember not so long ago when 11-5 was our best record EVER? How times have changed!)

 

[zippo59]

If they go 11-5 and five then they are not and elite team.

I will be very suprised if they go 11-5.

 

[unoriginal]

11-5 is realisitc because that is the record that would guarantee us a playoff berth. Asking for anything more from the regular season would be raising expectations too high.

 

[makoute]

Not only that, but they are not going to the superbowl with an 11-5 regular season record. Not going to happen.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

If they go 11-5 and five then they are not and elite team.

I will be very surprised if they go 11-5.

I can see 12-4 but 11-5 looks more likely,The AFC looks tougher every year.

 

[QB12]

You've got to be kidding Patsfan.

QB12

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Not only that, but they are not going to the superbowl with an 11-5 regular season record. Not going to happen.

Was Pittsburgh not 11-5 (or 10-6) in 2005?,Was the Patriots not 11-5 in 2001? - nothing is definite

 

[makoute]

11-5 is realisitc because that is the record that would guarantee us a playoff berth. Asking for anything more from the regular season would be raising expectations too high.

Not at all, 11-5 means they're playing three games to make it to the super bowl instead of two home games. I expect super bowl with the pats just as I did when they traded for Dillon, with the addition of Moss I expect the same thing. 14-2 is the worse they should do. Because they that record would pretty much prove that they can dominate anyone at any time, anywhere.

 

[zippo59]

Was Pittsburgh not 11-5 (or 10-6) in 2005?,Was the Patriots not 11-5 in 2001? - nothing is definite

In both situations those teams did not have their starting quarterback for the entire season. So, maybe if you think Brady is going to get hurt then it is more understandable.

And 2001 was a miracle abd I don't think it would be wise on that happening again.

 

[mgcolby]

I'll give you Miami just because..

But Cincy isn't beating us!

The Jets won't beat us, they were coming off of a bye last year and add in the injuries and weather and they won by 3 when the Pats were also playing there worse ball. That is 2 wins this year.

Indy..Maybe but who is going to cover the Pats receivers? A few rookies and Bob Sanders? I doubt it! And if by some miracle they do shut down the passing game it will take at least a Nickel package, but more likely the Dime so who is going to come up and stuff Maroney?

Baltimore has no offense and it won't get better this year. They are one of the two teams that fall out of the playoff field this year IMO.

You leave out the Chargers and Steelers but toss in the Bengals and Jets? I think 13-3 / 14-2 is a realistic expectation but anything less than 12 is just being conservative (barring an injury to one key individual). You honestly think the Pats will go 3-5 on the road? They were 7-1 on the road last year, 8-2 if you include the playoffs. They will not have a losing road record.

I don't think they will go 16-0 but 11-5 kind of makes me chuckle.

 

[QuiGon]

16-0? Perfect Season? - Don't make me laugh guys

Good chance they'll be closer to 16-0 than they will to 11-5.

 

[BelichickFan]

11-5 is very conservative to me even with a toughish schedule on paper.

I see sweeps of Miami and Buffalo. That's 4-0. Cleveland is 5-0. Washington is 6-0.

To go 11-5 we'd be 5-5 in the rest. 13-3 AT WORST.

And, BTW, we're sweeping The Jest. That really makes it 8-0 and we'd have to be 3-5 in the others. Time to raise your expectations, boys.

 

[zippo59]

11-5 is very conservative to me even with a toughish schedule on paper.

I see sweeps of Miami and Buffalo. That's 4-0. Cleveland is 5-0. Washington is 6-0.

To go 11-5 we'd be 5-5 in the rest. 13-3 AT WORST.

And, BTW, we're sweeping The Jest. That really makes it 8-0 and we'd have to be 3-5 in the others. Time to raise your expectations, boys.

I think 13-3 is a good starting point barring a butt load of injuries and other unforseen occurances (like Belichick running away to become a Vegas showgirl).

 

[rusH1023]

I'd pay to see that. He does have a nice rack. And I'd say at worst, nothing less than 12-4.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

Guys I am sticking this one in my files,It will be interesting to see how we fare with the predictions at the end of the regular season in 8 months.

I would not bet against my 11-5 prediction - But thats just my opinion

 

[Ice Cold Bruschi]

instead of superbowl or bust I think first round bye or bust should be our motto right now, the first round bye was key in every year we went to the superbowl, anyone can beat a scrub wild card team at home, homefield is needed in the divisional round (and optimal in the ccg)

 

[patsox23]

I genuinely believe it's more likely the Patriots go 16-0 than 11-5. FIVE losses? WHERE????

 

[Tunescribe]

11-5 is very conservative to me even with a toughish schedule on paper.

I see sweeps of Miami and Buffalo. That's 4-0. Cleveland is 5-0. Washington is 6-0.

To go 11-5 we'd be 5-5 in the rest. 13-3 AT WORST.

And, BTW, we're sweeping The Jest. That really makes it 8-0 and we'd have to be 3-5 in the others. Time to raise your expectations, boys.

I agree with you, but amend that slightly to 12-4 at worst. I expect nothing short of a first-round playoff bye from this team; anything less than that would be a disappointment. This might be the first season ever that we sweep the division, although I could see one loss to the Jest.

 

[BrianPat]

Because of age,slower players and untested younger guys in our LB Corps I can see some problems in that area in the season,I can also see our secondary taking time to adjust and get in synch with each other if Asante leaves.

Those 2 areas seem to be our biggest challenges to being #1 in February although the OL and RB areas may take a bit longer to get an idea of where they lie in terms of being solid this year.

Everywhere else on this team appears to be already championship caliber and with good depth.

I look at 11-5 this season with losses to

At Jets - 1st game of the year I believe and Mangini will have his troops playing especially tough to beat,I think we lose in a squeaker,will be a great game however.

At Indy - Until we prove Indy is not as good as in recent years its tough to think we can end our losing streak to them yet until we do,as long as a guy named Manning is behind center,we are going to be in for a dogfight.

At Miami - What can you say here but no matter what crap team Miami has on the field they always find a way to beat us in Miami or make us work doubly hard to pull out a close win...Another loss down there is definately possible again.

At Baltimore - Tom has always had some problems in playing against a team with a all-pro safety and that defense is as good as it gets..However we should have a chance to win this because Baltimore's offense really is not very good but lets hope this is not one of Tom's 4 interception games he has at least once or twice a year.

At Cincinnati - Just basing this on the thought that Cincinnati's defense appears a bit better this year with some of their aquisitions and can't see them play any worse at home than they did against us last year,not likely to happen again,I could see us losing this one in a high scoring shootout,Then again we could just as easily win it too.

There you have it ,I think those 5 Games are the ones we need to worry about and where I think we will lose,most being close losses and all of those on the road - I see us undefeated at home this year - That makes us 11-5 and still division champs but no cakewalk by any means in the AFC.

16-0? Perfect Season? - Don't make me laugh guys

OK, going undefeated is a pipe dream AT THIS TIME. But I really think your assumptions about what's going to happen in those games is also a reach. There's a good chance most teams will be playing catch up and you can't do that with a running game unless you have Jim Brown or Bo Jackson. I think our pass defense will be better them some expect. Concerning our linebackers, let's remember Tedy B was having problems with a broken wrist all year. He just had it worked on again and the cast just came off. I've never thought of Tedy as being very fast, I thought of him as smart and knowing where to be to make the play. Also, the whole linebacker group went through changes during and after Jr came on board. Can you imagine having to adjust to the surprising contribution Jr played at the inside position after losing him in the Bears game, do you think his motor would have been running slower if we still had him during the AFC game ??? NOT. By adding AD's physical ability and his smarts to a linebacker group that has speed ( Colvin ) and smarts this group gets much better. Remember, if your in position as a inside linebacker, your already there to make the play when it comes your way. It's how to adjust to the blocking schemes used against you that determines how well your linebacker perform. In other words, how smart and prepared you are !

Now, the Pats offense !! This offense, if it gels, has a very good chance of going down as the greatest of all time. Passing - How do you defend against 2 fast/good longball receivers and a slot receiver that's just as dangerous. At the same time you have to worry about Ben Watson, Dave Thomas and then Faulk and Maroney coming out of the backfield for a screen pass with most of your defensive backfield 30 - 40 yards downfield covering Moss and Stallworth. Wes makes one good block and it's 15 yards easy. All this means it'll be very hard to defend the run unless you dominate the line of scrimmage, which can happen and will happen. But you'll need to do it on every play without stacking the box, which you can't do because of the long ball threat. Oh by the way, we have a great running back ;-)

Of course, there's the worse case, the one you outlined. Then again, anything can happen !! Moss could self destruct because of a bad call, Stallworth blows out his ankle and Tom Brady breaks a finger and they slide to an 8 and 8 season.

If they jell, avoid injuries and Moss keeps his cool, it's going to be priceless !!