After the mess of last week-"Cameragate"as the wags have dubbed it-the Patriots needed a night like last night against the Chargers. Everyone and their mother has weighed in on the Patriots since the taping scandal and it seemed nearly unanimous that the Pats must have cheated in pretty much every game under Belichick. Throw out the three Super Bowls, the great seasons, it's all a sham.
Give me a break. Last night proved more than any words I could come up with that the Patriots are a great team-cheating or no cheating. They completely dominated what is supposed to be one of the best teams in the league. 38-14 Patriots was the final score and it could have been worse. It was 24-0 at halftime. The Chargers were motivated from last season's early exit in the playoffs and supposedly were going to take care of unfinished business with the Pats. Uh ok. They showed that they're light years away from being at New England's level. Philip Rivers looked Rex Grossman-like with a terrible INT on his first attempt. LT was completly contained. Merriman got his obligatory two sacks but other than that and a little dancing, he was non-existent. The only real threat seemed to be Antonio Gates. The best tight end in football is San Diego's only real receiving threat and he made a great stretch for a TD.
The hypocrisy of a team like the Chargers and particularly a Grade A scumbag like Merriman was on display as he danced (which he said he won't do anymore) after getting a sack. The score at the time? 17-0 Patriots. He just doesn't get it. The Bolts made it 24-7 and recovered the ensuing kickoff from the Pats, they looked poised to make a game of it. After causing the fumble, San Diego's Kasim Osgood posed on the bench like he'd just won the Super Bowl. What a loser. Don't get me wrong, I'm not Mr. Old School NFL who hates celebrations of any kind. I just feel like you have to pick your spots. Pats linebacker Rossevelt Colvin for example seemed to do this perfectly last night. He was all over the place with a fumble caused, INT, 2 sacks and 5 tackles. His dancing heated up as the game went on. Makes sense, no?
Bigger picture, the Pats look unstoppable. They started the game and ran seven straight passing plays. It culminated with a beautiful Brady-to-Moss hookup. Before the Chargers knew it, the scoreboard read 17-0. Then another new Pats player-linebacker Adalius Thomas turned in the play of the game as he intercepted Rivers and sprinted 60+ yards for the touchdown, making it 24-0 going into the half. It was one of the best halves of football I've ever seen and against a very good team no less.
Last year, Brady didn't have enough weapons in the passing game and they still came so close to the Super Bowl (which they would have won). Now they have an overabundance of talent. Kelly Washington plays special teams and Donte' Stallworth catches two passes in a game, welcome to the 2007 New England Patriots. Moss is obviously Brady's first option and Wes Welker (a younger, white Troy Brown) is 1B. These guys have looked like video game players in the first two weeks. Keep in mind that the Jets and especially Chargers secondaries are pretty bad but you still have to be impressed with the Pats receivers.
With back-to-back incredible performances, it's hard not to be drinking the Pats Kool-Aid. They don't even have Harrison or Seymour and they look unbeatable. The AFC East is still dog shit: Buffalo, Miami and the Jets are all 0-2. Still, this is the NFL in 2007. Nobody will go undefeated. The Pats still have some tough games: at the Cowboys, at the Colts, at the Ravens and vs. the Steelers. Lets not forget that Miami has really played them tough in recent years. The Bills seem to excel in Foxboro and the Jets will certainly be tougher the second time around. Even with the success the Pats have had in recent years, these two wins have been a completely different animal. Usually, New England would outlast/outsmart/out execute teams. Now, it appears like they can hang 30+ on anybody. It should be a long and memorable season.
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