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Did I suddenly become Rip Van Winkle? How could I have missed the New England Patriots winning Super Bowl XLII?
But wait. I just checked my schedule, and unless my eyes are playing tricks on me, it’s only May 7 and the regular season is still four months away.
If that’s the case, then why the hell is virtually every football writer, website, and newspaper handing the Lombardi Trophy to the Patriots?
Offseason additions of Adalius Thomas, Tory James, Donte Stallworth, Wes Walker and Randy Moss have strengthened the Patriots. No doubt about that. On paper, New England is one of the favorites. But games are not won on paper. They are earned on the field.
How can anyone in their right mind target New England for the Super Bowl when training camp hasn’t started yet?
Have people suddenly forgotten that San Diego is teeming with talent and that Philip Rivers is another year older and probably wiser? Let’s not forget about Indianapolis either. The defending champions got even stronger on offense with the addition of Anthony Gonzalez in the slot and Tony Ugoh is a sure thing at tackle.
The Colts lost both corners in free agency, but Tony Dungy’s Cover 2 scheme doesn’t need big covering corners and youngsters Marlin Jackson, Kelvin Hayden and Tim Jennings should be able to adequately replace Nick Harper and Jason David. And let’s not forget Peyton Manning, Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne.
In the NFC, Philadelphia and New Orleans have gotten stronger, Matt Hasselbeck and Shaun Alexander are healthy for Seattle and Chicago still has that tough defense.
There are too many variables to start making Super Bowl predictions at this point. The main wounded. Every year some big name players go down during the long grind of training camp and preseason. Who’s to say that won’t happen to New England?
Every team has question marks and the Pats are no different. Will Randy Moss behave himself? Can the key players stay healthy? Can Laurence Maroney take the knocks of a full season as the number one running back? Can an aging defense be as good as it has been, even with the addition of Thomas?
The deal with Moss was good. He’s worth a fourth-round pick, but he’s a one-dimensional wide receiver who will need Welker and Stallworth to pick off Moss’s defenders to give Randy one-on-one chances.
It seems like a lot of the media picks the Pats just because of the Moss deal. My question to them is: how many Super Bowl rings does Randy Moss have? Wide receivers don’t win Super Bowls. Strong defense and an effective running game are needed.
New England is getting old on the defensive end (Tedy Bruschi, Mike Vrabel, Rodney Harrison) and Maroney got a lot of help from Corey Dillon last season. The jury is still out on his ability to be a standout runner.
The Patriots are good and have a chance to go all the way, but it’s too early to start making Super Bowl predictions.