This certainly doesn't qualify as a King rip, or even an insult to intelligence like Gosselin's hatchet job, just more of a tortured, overthought what I think I think (and I need to just make a call and file my column because all this thinking has made my head hurt).
The logic is faulty, so in the end he threw a dart. Better at them than us given his pre season track record.
"So the easy, and logical, thing to say is New England has loaded up where it was weak and will get over the Colt hump this year."
This is Peter's way of telling us he's too savvy to fall for something that obvious. So he'll proceed to talk himself out of it.
"One problem. I still don't know if the Patriots' defense can get off the field in key spots. I know they allowed the second-fewest points in the league last year (14.8 per game), but they allowed 65 in two games to the Colts -- and were absolutely terrible in the second half of the AFC title game. Thirty-two points, 311 yards ... in one half. They melted. And that's what I kept coming back to. As I sit here the first week of June, I'm unconvinced they have the linebacking backbone to hold Peyton Manning to enough three-and-outs in the second half of a big game."
Of course even if they don't, that begs the question - do they now not likely have the offense to keep Manning off the field enough and score enough to make that a moot point? You know what they say about the best defense being a good offense...
"The Colts? I hate how much they've lost on defense. I know what you're saying -- without Nick Harper and Jason David, they're going to be too thin to withstand the bombs thrown at them. But Tony Dungy tells me Manning has lost absolutely nothing of his Jeteresque drive to be great day in and day out. I just think, as they did last year, Dungy and defensive coordinator Ron Meeks will figure out how to be scrappy on defense. They could really use Corey Simon's contribution, though no one knows yet if that will happen."
LOL Moreso than us with Rodney, the Indy D is a one trick pony - and that pony is more often than not lame at a very early stage in his career. What Meeks and Dungy got away with last year was playing Sanders sparingly - just against us and in the playoffs. And still he had another off season surgery. Sooner or later they will lose one too many games without the dimimutive Safety on the active roster or he will get hurt and the most inopportune time. We Pat's fans know this from experience with impact safeties.
I wonder if Peter asked BB about Tommy's drive what the response would be... Problem is, as was the case with us in 2002, it's the drive in the other 51 compounded by lack of infusion of hungry veteran ringless talent that will trip you up on the road to a repeat, let alone a dynasty. That and the weight of the bullseye.
Anyone who is still contemplating Corey Simon's contribution in 2007 is just grasping at straws to make their selection appear remotely plausable.