File this under: some people will never learn

Through the past seven years while the Patriots have won three Super Bowls and been the model franchise in the NFL, they have taken every tiny criticism against them and used it as rallying points. The no respect act gets tiresome but you certainly can't argue with the results. Make no mistake, this isn't high school football. Bulletin-board material doesn't win or lose the games since they're all highly-paid professionals but nobody takes more pleasure in opponent's absent-minded trash talk then the Pats.

Enter Anthony Smith, a second-year safety out of Syracuse, who is currently starting for the Steelers only because Troy Polamalu is out with an injury. For some reason (probably to get famous), Smith guaranteed a victory against New England last Tuesday. Therefore this game was won back on Tuesday. It was the perfect motivational tool the Patriots needed after coming out flat and barely surviving against the Eagles and Ravens the past two weeks. There would be no letdown yesterday at Gillette as the Pats picked up a well-deserved 34-13 thrashing of Pittsburgh.

Now the Patriots (13-0) only have three regular season games left in their quest for perfection and with this win they gave head coach Bill Belichick his 100th career victory. Pittsburgh (9-4) came out sharp as they held New England to a three-and-out on their first possession. Next, the Steelers went 59-yards in 15 plays (taking 8:14 off the clock) before stalling in the red zone and settling for a 23-yard field goal by Jeff Reed.

New England quickly responded as kick returner Chad Jackson (remember him?) returned the kickoff 39-yards to the Patriots 48. Tom Brady (32 of 46, 399 yards, 4 touchdowns) drove the team 52-yards in nine plays which ended with a four-yard pass to Randy Moss (7 catches, 135 yards, 2 touchdowns) in the back of the end zone. Need proof that the Pats relished Smith's wake up call? After the first TD, Brady sought out Smith and was jawing with him, something that Moss also did on multiple occasions.

After a Pittsburgh three-and-out, the Patriots caught the Steelers secondary off-guard as Brady hit Moss in stride on a perfect, play-action pass, 63-yards for another score at the start of the second quarter.

The Steelers are a solid team (probably the third-best in the AFC) and they didn't fold as they came back with a touchdown of their own. Running back Willie Parker was sprung for a 30-yard gain and later on the drive, Ben Roethlisberger (19 of 32, 187 yards, 1 touchdown) found backup running back Najah Davenport in the end zone for a 32-yard TD pass. Somehow, Davenport did a wheel route down to the goal-line and Patriots cornerback Ellis Hobbs couldn't get over quickly enough to fully cover him.

The Pats caught a huge break as they recovered their own punt after the next drive. They had first-and-10 at the Pittsburgh 34-yard line but could only gain four yards in three plays. Stephen Gostowski missed a 48-yard field goal as the Steelers dodged a big bullet.

Pittsburgh later added a 44-yard field goal by Reed on a drive where they converted twice on fourth down. Gostowski had a 42-yard kick with less than a minute before the half to give the Patriots a 17-13 lead.

The Steelers took the kickoff to start the second half but couldn't do anything after Parker gained 19-yards on the first play. It was an omen of things to come as they were shutout in the second half.

The Pats took over as Brady hit Moss (22 yards), Donte' Stallworth (9 yards) and Kyle Brady (7 yards) with passes before the play of the game. With 1st-and-10 at their own 44, Brady threw a lateral to Moss on the right. Moss fumbled the bad pass then tossed it back across the field to Brady. By that time, Jabar Gaffney (7 catches, 122 yards) was wide open down the field. Brady hit him just in time as he caught the 56-yard bomb in the end zone, right in front of our boy Smith.

The Pats stepped on the gas and went up 31-13 as Brady finished another drive with a two-yard pass to Welker. Wes had been held in check until then but he was on fire early in the fourth quarter as he caught five passes in a row at one point before Gostkowski notched a 28-yard field goal, the final score. At any level of football, have you ever seen five catches in a row on the same drive by one player? The Pats had broken the Steelers will.

The last signature moment of the game was provided by the Patriots defense as they stuffed the Steelers on a goal-line opportunity. For some reason, Pittsburgh chose to give a handoff to Hines Ward on fourth-and-goal from the 2. Pats safety Rodney Harrison (9 tackles, 2 assists) corralled Ward and also had a key deflection in the end zone on the preceding play: a fade to Santonio Holmes in the corner. It was a great game for Harrison, who had a tough season up until then. Since returning from the four game suspension, Rodney had looked a step slow. He's still the emotional leader on a gritty, veteran Patriots defense. Vince Wilfork (7 tackles, 1 sack) was another guy, who seemed to have his best game. He's usually battling multiple blockers in the trenches but he got some glory yesterday, even recording a sack of Big Ben in the third quarter. Vince fittingly celebrated with the Superman (thanks Soulja Boy) which finally made me realize that's what Moss has been doing all season after TD's.

Parker had 124 yards rushing but it didn't really matter as the Steelers passing game was never much of a factor. The Pats only ran nine times the whole game but that seemed to be a function of the game-plan. The Steelers came in with the top-ranked defense and the long ball was their obvious weakness in the secondary so the Pats went repeatedly for the kill with much success.
The numbers for the Pats are staggering. Brady has 45 TD's, four shy of Peyton Manning's record. Moss has 19 TD's, his personal best and a Pats record. He's three shy of the NFL record set by Jerry Rice. New England has 503 points (the 11th team in history to top 500), the record of 556 from the '98 Vikings is well within reach. Ditto for the touchdown record: the Pats have 65 and the '84 Dolphins had 70. Finally, Welker has 93 catches (4th best in Pats history) and is only eight behind Troy Brown's record.

The Jets (3-10) come to Gillette next Sunday and honestly, the Pats are going to bury them after all the Spygate drama from the season-opener. The Jets are a garbage team and New England could put up 50 or 60 next Sunday, look out.

Superman that Ho!

When all is said and done with the 2007-2008 NBA season, I have little doubt that Kevin Garnett won't win the MVP. The recognition is mostly a numbers award and while KG has done so much to turn the Celtics from laughingstock to title-contender, he's too unselfish to ever put up MVP numbers again (he did it in 2004 in Minnesota). Like we've seen locally with David Ortiz in 2005 and Tom Brady in 2004, just because they don't win the prize doesn't mean they aren't the best. You can have your LeBrons (who I love), Dwight Howards, Kobes and Steve Nashs (won two, should have been three already), I'll take Garnett any day of the week.

Last night, Boston (17-2) did enough to beat the Chicago Bulls (6-12) at the United Center, 92-81. Garnett led the way (16 points, 9 rebounds, 7 blocks, 3 assists) but he had plenty of help from Ray Allen (21 points), Rajon Rondo (18 points, 7 boards, 5 assists) and James Posey (11 points). Paul Pierce was just 1-of-8 from the floor but made all eight free throws to finish with 10 points. Crazier than that was Rondo, who was 9-of-13 from the floor.

The Bulls have been the league's biggest disappointment so far this season. A young team with a solid nucleus (Ben Gordon, Luol Deng, Kirk Hinrich), they simply haven't put it together for whatever reason.

Coming into last night, Chicago was the league's top rebounding team but the Celts beat them at their own game. Glen Davis was a beast under the hoop with eight points and 12 rebounds. Boston owned the glass (45-37) and shot 51.6% from the floor. These strong performances helped offset a night when Boston was uncharacteristically careless with the ball (17 turnovers).

The Celtics owned every quarter: 21-18, 26-25, 22-16 and 23-22. The Bulls shot a pitiful 3-for-16 from three-point land. Andres Nocioni led the way with 18 points while Hinrich (16 points, 6 assists), Deng (15 points, 7 rebounds), Gordon (13 points) and Joe Smith (10 points) all scored in double figures. Ben Wallace had eight points and 14 rebounds but he barely resembles the player with the Pistons, who won back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year awards. Why did the Bulls shell out that huge contract for him?

Boston has a few days off before hosting Sacramento on Wednesday. Without leading scorer Kevin Martin, the Kings will offer a very winnable game as the C's look to stay unbeaten at the Garden.

Sweet Sixteen

In your wildest dreams, did you ever expect the Celtics to start the '07-'08 season say 16-2? Me neither but we have to get used to the fact that the Celtics are a great team in a once again sub-par conference. The funny thing about this team is that we'll never really get a good read on them until their post-Christmas West Coast trip. The other main contenders in the East (outside of the C's) appear to be Detroit, Orlando and who else?

Last night, the Celtics took care of a depleted Raptors (10-10) team (minus Chris Bosh and Andreas Bargnani), 112-84 at the Garden. The 28-point victory tied a team-record against Toronto. This one was never close as the Celts were up by as much as 39.

Five Celtics were in double figures, led by Kevin Garnett (23 points, 6 rebounds), Paul Pierce (18 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds) and Ray Allen (13 points, 6 rebounds). Eddie House had 13 points and James Posey notched a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards. Most importantly, the big three got limited minutes which will come in handy as the team faces the Bulls in Chicago tonight.

In the win, Boston shot 52.7% and made nine 3-pointers plus 25-30 free throws. They also had 12 more rebounds than Toronto and 10 more assists, the numbers all pointed to a blowout.

Other bright spots in the win included Rajon Rondo (7 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds) and Tony Allen (9 points, 5 assists).

Tonight should be a test for the C's as the Bulls have underachieved all season but played well lately, winning three of their last four including an upset of Detroit last night.

The Best Team in the NBA Resides Where?

After last night's 113-103 win over the Philadelphia 76ers, your Boston Celtics (15-2) have the best record in the NBA. Detroit (13-5), Orlando (16-4), Phoenix (15-4) and San Antonio (16-3) are the other top contenders but for a brief moment, you can legitimately say the Celtics are the top dogs. Does this mean anything? Not really but after the nightmare of the last few seasons, this team's immediate success is nothing short of remarkable for a city that had gotten way familiar with losing seasons.

Philly (5-13) actually made this a contest for almost the whole game. The Sixers led 32-26 after one quarter and 57-52 at halftime. The alarming thing for the Celtics was that they've played such good defense in the beginning of the season and they made the Sixers look like the Warriors or Suns for the first half.

On queue, the C's defense came alive in the second half as they outscored the Sixers, 61-46. Two of Boston's big three played well: Kevin Garnett (22 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals) and Paul Pierce (22 points, 12 assists) led the way while teammate Ray Allen (12 points) shot 3 for 12.

One of the most surprising parts of this team thus far has been the supporting players. Nobody knew James Posey and Eddie House were this good, right? Posey (17 points, 5 rebounds) and House (15 points) consistently bring a great effort off the bench, making it easier for KG, Pierce and Allen to play their games without worrying about doing everything (like they had all been used to with their old teams). Tony Allen and Kendrick Perkins both scored eight while Rajon Rondo and Glen Davis notched six points.

Andre Miller (26 points, 12 assists) and Andre Iguodala (24 points) were impressive but the Sixers folded in the second half after playing probably their best half of the season.

The key for the C's was that they made 10 3-pointers (Philly had 4) while also making 12 more free throws (23-11). Boston made the tough shots and they also earned the points by getting to the line. Once Philly's shots stopped falling, they were done. Nobody outside of Iguodala and Miller can get to the hoop.

Boston hosts Toronto on Friday. It'll be the return battle after Boston stole that overtime win in Toronto the first week of the season. The Raptors will be without their best player Chris Bosh, who is injured.

Ravens Choke, Patriots Move to 12-0

For the second straight week, the Patriots let a bad team hang around (and lead in the second half) before eventually escaping with a heart-pounding win. This week's choke job was provided by the Baltimore Ravens (probably one of the most unlikable teams in professional sports and yes I know the Pats are near the top of that same list these days for many people). It was a boxing match all night as the team's traded body blows and the Pats looked to be on the ropes in the fourth quarter but just like A.J. Feeley and the Eagles last week, the Ravens led by bust QB Kyle Boller did just enough to lose, 27-24 at a fired up M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.

The Patriots (12-0) looked uncomfortable from the start as they had to settle for a field goal on their first possession as tight end Ben Watson had one touchdown catch deflected away by Ravens spiritual leader/middle linebacker, the insufferable Ray Lewis. Watson also dropped a sure touchdown on the same drive.

Surprisingly, the Ravens (4-8) marched down field on its first possession, topped off by a 4-yard pass from Boller to Derrick Mason. Baltimore added a field goal in the second quarter to go up 10-3.

As the Patriots advanced downfield later in the second quarter, they caught a huge break as Tom Brady was picked off by Ravens all-world safety Ed Reed. Reed returned it 32 yards into New England territory but he was hit by Kevin Faulk and stripped by Faulk, who recovered it for a crazy Pats first down. New England would go on to score on that second chance as Heath Evans bulldozed in from a yard out to tie it at 10 going into the half. That Faulk play (which was eerily reminiscent of Troy Brown's strip against the Chargers in last year's playoffs) was one of the key plays people will look back and most remember since the Pats somehow ended up winning this game.

Any thoughts of the Pats waking up at halftime and blowing out this terrible Ravens team were quickly put to bed as Baltimore came out and scored on its first drive of the second half. The Pats couldn't stop Ravens running back Willis McGahee (30 rushes, 138 yards; 4 catches, 21 yards) and that drive was when he really stepped up. He rumbled in from 17 yards to put Baltimore back on top, 17-10.

New England answered with a nice drive, capped off by a 3-yard touchdown from Brady to Moss. With that score, Brady became just the fourth QB (Kurt Warner, Peyton Manning, Dan Marino) to throw 40 touchdowns in a season. Moss also made some history as he tied Curtis Martin's Patriot record of 17 touchdowns for a receiver or running back.

The game entered the fourth quarter with the teams tied 17-17 and the Ravens clearly playing inspired ball. Boller hit tight end Daniel Wilcox for a 1-yard score to open the final quarter and the Ravens suddenly led 24-17.

The Pats moved the ball to the red zone on the next drive but stalled and Stephen Gostowski hit a 38-yard field goal to cut the lead to four.

After forcing two Baltimore three-and-outs, sandwiched around a Patriots punt, New England stepped up with the predictable but still damn exciting, 13-play, 73-yard drive that ended with Jabar Gaffney catching a 8-yard pass in the corner of the end zone. There were just 44 seconds left in the game when he caught the pass so the call for the instant replay came from the booth. Luckily, the catch was upheld and the Ravens got the ball back with under a minute left (and they had to score a touchdown).

On the game's final play, Boller completed a 52-yard hail mary to receiver Mark Clayton but he was stopped by a gang of Patriots at their 3-yard line. The Pats had escaped with another win that they probably didn't deserve.

The Pats final drive was absolutely nuts as they had three cracks at a fourth-down conversion. It was fourth-and-1 from the Baltimore 30 when Brady was stuffed on a sneak. The play didn't count though as the Ravens for some inexplicable reason, called a timeout right before the snap. Next, the Pats had a false start on Ross Hochstein that wiped out Evans being stopped once again on a run. Finally, on fourth-and-6, Brady had tons of time and ended up running 12 yards for the first down. Baltimore also got a 5-yard penalty on an illegal contact call. Later in the drive, the Ravens were flagged for defensive holding (5-yard penalty) which moved the ball to the 8 and set up Brady for that final dagger.

The Ravens showed their true colors after the final touchdown as Bart Scott (a Pro-Bowl player) got two penalties for unsportmanslike penalties. He was frustrated with all the calls against his team on the drive so he picked up a ref's flag and threw it into the stands in a WWE-like spectacle of stupidity. On the ensuing kickoff, the Pats kicked off from the Ravens 35-yard line (which I've never seen before).

Brady had his toughest night of the season by far, he was 18 of 38 for 257 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Moss (4 catches, 34 yards) outside of his TD and Wes Welker (3 catches, 18 yards) were pretty much non-existent. Dante' Stallworth (3 catches, 68 yards) and Laurence Maroney (13 rushes, 44 yards; 2 catches, 79 yards) helped fill the stat sheet.

Outside of McGahee, Mason (6 catches, 67 yards, 1 TD) was the only consistent weapon for the Ravens. Kyle Boller (15 of 23 for 210 yards, 2 TD's, 1 INT) played very well (especially for him) except for like Feeley, he made an awful decision when it mattered most. With the Ravens up 24-17 and deep in New England territory he threw a pick by the goal-line when there were three Patriots around one Baltimore receiver. Pats safety James Sanders returned that 43 yards and that's when Gostowski later hit the field goal to make it a four-point deficit.

The Patriots are the sixth team in history ('05 Colts, '98 Broncos, '85 Bears, '72 Dolphins and '34 Bears) to start 12-0. Still, there are lot of worrisome things with the Pats performances the last few weeks. They've held on and won both games which is a testament to how mentally strong they are (and conversely, how inexperienced/shitty the other team's QB's are) but it's clear that they can't keep this up in the playoffs. Playing like they did last week or last night against the Colts, Steelers, Jaguars or Cowboys won't get it done. Common sense said that after the game against the Eagles, the Patriots would come out and throttle the Ravens, who had nothing to play for but pride but that never materialized.

The Patriots defense has looked pretty poor these last two games and their running game has proven to be a real weakness. New England won't be able to pile up the early season ridiculous passing numbers in the playoffs. The postseason is dictated by defense and the running game, currently the Pats two biggest question marks.

The Steelers come to Gillette next Sunday for a 4:15 game. Outside of the Colts, the Steelers are the next best team in the AFC so they should provide a real test for a Patriots team that has to right itself before the games really start to mean something.

A 12:30pm start, Really?

The scheduling gurus for the NBA came up with a dozy for the Celtics and Cavaliers on Sunday as they forced the two teams (who both played away on Friday night) to tip-off at 12:30pm local time. With LeBron out (dislocated finger), the C's (14-2) and Cavs (9-9) obliged the zombie fans in attendance with a garbage game. Boston won 80-70 in a game that surely won't be on ESPN Classic anytime soon.

The Celtics are now 9-0 at the Garden and just three games away from tying the best franchise start at home (from '84-'85). It's a safe bet to say that without James, the Cavs are a fringe NBDL team. Ray Allen (20 points) led the way for the Celtics, who only had one other double-digit scorer, Rajon Rondo added 12. Kevin Garnett had nine points and eight boards while Paul Pierce managed just seven points. Big Baby Glen Davis had a nice game off the bench with nine points and seven boards before he fouled out. James Posey added seven points and Eddie House had six.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas led Cleveland with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Sasha Pavlovic (11 points) and Drew Gooden (10 points, 11 boards) were the other standouts.

Boston travels to Philly on Wednesday to take on the struggling Sixers.

Would They Have It Any Other Way?

There are a few things you can count on in life: death, taxes and Boston College football going to a second or third-tier bowl game. BC got their rematch with Virginia Tech in the ACC Championship but they fell in typical Eagles fashion, 30-16 on Saturday in Jacksonville.

BC (10-3) was up 10-0 and 16-7 but didn't score in the second half and saw the Hokies (11-2) reel off 23 straight points to send them to Miami for the Orange Bowl against Kansas. BC is relegated to the Champs Sports Bowl on Friday, Dec. 28 vs. 7-5 Michigan State. I could go on and on about what frauds BC are but I've been saying that for the last few months. I'd hate to be redundant. All you need to know is that a team that started 8-0 finished 2-3 against a pretty easy schedule. To quote former Cardinals coach Dennis Green, "they are who we thought they were."

Matt Ryan will be a solid NFL quarterback but his Heisman campaign is an afterthought. He probably won't even be invited to NYC. Florida QB Tim Tebow, Missouri QB Chase Daniel, Arkansas RB Darren McFadden, West Virginia QB Pat White and Hawaii QB Colt Brennan all have much better resumes and deserve the recognition over Ryan. Must be depressing too for the Superfans knowing that this was their one shot. Losing 22 seniors (including Ryan) who are so instrumental means that next season has rebuilding year written all over it. See you in Orlando.