We Are Fortunate Indeed!

[PatsBoy12]

I know that I've posted this in many threads today, but I feel it's one of those things that nobody is really talking about amid all the excitement over winning the AFCCG and a trip to Indy. How incredible was it to see BJGE tap the MHK patch after scoring his TD? I mean, it's the AFCCG and you just scored a touchdown on a team that generally doesn't allow them. And yet you're thinking about MHK at that precise moment. They're playing for their organization and not just themselves.

In this generation of ME and after watching how locker rooms get divided (think NY Jets), it's just so amazing to see the kind of quality guys the Patriots have in the locker room. It's a group of guys that only think and talk team. And when you watch what Ellis did, you know it's not just talk with these guys in the press conferences and interviews. They live by it, they play by it, and something tells me they might even be willing to die by it.

Let's not forget how a few years ago (2009), Adalius Thomas and Shawn Springs and a few other malcontents opposed the team first mentality. Remember how they almost destroyed that locker room. BB quickly solved the problem. Remember why guys like Spikes and Cunningham (though ineffective on the field) were drafted . . . they were captains in college. Guys, we have a locker room full of team-first guys. We are lucky that we root for this kind of coach and team. Jets fans everywhere are getting a lesson in why we have been atop the division for so long and why our coach IS better than theirs. I would like to see the results of the poll where Rex got more votes in regards to who do more players want to play for. I'm willing to bet the outcome would be slightly different.

The last part of this article sums it up best:
http://www.patspulpit.com/2012/1/23/2726722/the-redeem-team-cannot-be-stopped#storyjump

There is one more step to go. The Patriots have a chance to fix everything that has gone wrong over the past few years and can make everything right with one successful 60 minute performance.

This is the team to do it because the 2011 New England Patriots are playing for one another. They're playing for Dan Koppen, lost at the beginning of the season. They're playing for Andre Carter, the Patriots best defensive player on a forgettable defense, who was lost at the end of the season.

They're playing for Brian Waters, one of the best guards in the history of the game, who just wants to end his career on a positive note. They're playing for Chad Ochocinco, one of the best receivers of the past decade; a player who bought into the system and is giving the team everything he has, even if it doesn't seem like enough. They're playing for Marcus Cannon, the rookie who beat cancer and came back to the field to help the team to victory.

They're playing for the 53 active players. They're playing for the 12 players on the injured reserve. They're playing for the 8 players on the practice squad.

They're playing for Bob Kraft and his departed Myra, for whom this season is dedicated.

They're playing for each other. One game at a time. And they cannot be stopped.