Patriots... Just Might Go Undefeated After All

They locked up the AFC East before they even took the field, owing to a Buffalo loss, and two more wins and pretty much they're guaranteed home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. But I don't get the sense they're taking December off.

NFL films has highlights from the game (right sidebar video). Close, but I just never got the sense the Patriots were going to lose, despite trailing for most of the game. They just seem to determined and too confident and too good.

The other day I was in Waldgreen's and a fiftyish woman cashier was talking to her co-worker about all the controversy about the Pats running up the score on their mostly-hapless opponents. She got angry: "What about that Superbowl where Chicago embarrassed us? This is our year. Fuck them."

I didn't think they could do it... but now I think it's more likely than not that they will. They can't afford to take off so much time for their starters anyway; then they'd be rusty for the playoffs. It seems like what's driving these guys isn't a Super Bowl win, which one would have to say is very likely, but a perfect seasons. They only have to play Baltimore, Pittsburgh, the Jets, Miami, and then the Giants. Only Pittsburgh seems to have a reasonable chance at beating them. The Giants will probably have their wild-card spot locked up by then (or be eliminated from the playoffs altogether), and so will have no chance of improving their post-season position and thus nothing really much to play for.

Plus, they have Eli Manning for their quarterback, who threw four (well, three and three quarters) interceptions run back for touchdowns Sunday. He was easily the Vikings' most potent offensive weapon.

Keith Olbermann twisted a Tom Brady quote about seeing things, and learning things, in a game that one never sees in practice as calling his actual games mere "practices," which isn't what he said, and then darkly warned that defensive ends "diving at his knees" would keep in mind he'd called them practice opponents. Yet another bit of douchebaggery from the guy who brings his sportscasting to political commentary and now his hyperpartisan political commentary (with all its dark conspiracies) to sportscasting. Basically a Special Commentary telling Brady, "You, Sir, deserve a career-ending ACL injury because you said something I don't like. Or at least I'll pretend I didn't like it for purposes of shamming up a fake controversy about it."

What a dick.

posted by Ace at 04:27 PM

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