Wild and crazy stuff

If you are a fan of the NFL the next two weekends are as good as it gets. Sure, championship weekend is a lot of fun with the best of the AFC and NFC squaring off and of course Super Bowl Sunday is a national holiday. But Wild Card weekend and the Divisional Round are the two best weekends of football. Two games Saturday. Two games Sunday. Grab a beer, some snacks, and your spot on the couch.

AFC



Cincinnati (10-6) at Houston (12-4): The Texans were the team to beat in the AFC for the first three months of the season. In December, they just turned into a beaten team. They lost three of their last four games and looked bad doing it. They were stomped by playoff team New England, Minnesota, and Indy. Can they pull it together for the playoffs? I think so, but the Bengals will certainly make it difficult for them. The Texans are 8th in the league in rushing yards and seventh in the league against the run. And they are solid in the passing game. All the talk is about Matt Schaub but he is not the key. Schaub will be lucky to get out of this game alive against the Cincy pass rush led by Geno Atkins and Michael Johnson. The key is Arian Foster. He is the best player on the field for either team (slight edge over A.J. Green). If Foster can dominate on the ground and make life easy for Schaub then Houston, with the home field, should be able to get the win. Cincy's best chance rests with Green. He's one of the top playmakers in the game. The Bengals need QB Andy Dalton and Green to have a huge game. That's going to be tough to do with J.J. Watt getting in the way. Texans 27, Bengals 24.






Indianapolis (11-5) at Baltimore (10-6): You couldn't write a script better than this. Colts coach Chuck Pagano, who missed most of the season being treated for leukemia, has returned to the sideline just in time for the playoffs. Playoffs? Playoffs? Yes, last year's worst team won a very surprising eleven games and is in the playoffs. And they are playing the Ravens in Baltimore. The team that Pagano was a defensive coach with for four years. And the Ravens' Ray Lewis, who is very close with Pagano, has announced that he will retire when the Ravens season ends. Talk about your story lines. The Ravens are like the Texans, they have stumbled towards the playoffs, losing four of their last five games. And their defense is no longer elite. Old and injured, but not elite. So the question is can the Colts led by rookie QB Andrew Luck and a young group of players go on the road and beat the veteran, this-might-be-our-last-chance Ravens? I don't think so. Ray Lewis won't be winning a title in his last game, but he won't be losing at home either. Ravens 23, Colts 17.

NFC





Minnesota (10-6) at Green Bay (11-5): This is the one man vs. the team game. Vikings running back Adrian Peterson came back from major knee surgery to post one of the greatest seasons in NFL history, coming up just nine yards short of the single-season record for yards rushing. He is the Vikings. Just like Aaron Rodgers is the Packers. It's a great running game vs. a great passing game. The difference is that Rodgers has a lot more help around him than Peterson. Jennings, Cobb, Jones, Nelson, Finley. And the Green Bay defense is better than the Minnesota defense. And the game is being played at Lambeau Field. The Pack won the title two years ago. They are still a serious contender. Packers 30, Vikings 20.




Seattle (11-5) at Washington (10-6): Two of the most exciting and surprising teams in the league meet up in the first round. It should be a great game. It's a rare thing when two rookie quarterbacks play each other in the playoffs. RG3 and Russell Wilson are rookies in name only. They are the "new breed" of quarterback that can run and throw on a dime. Of course there have always been quarterbacks like that (ever hear of Randall Cunningham) but that's OK. It makes for a good headline. All the attention will be on  the quarterbacks but it's the running backs that will decide the game. The two runners that I had on my fantasy team -- Seattle's beast Marshawn Lynch vs. Washington's beast Alfred Morris -- will set the tone early and often. It's a tough decision as to which back will prevail. I'll go with the home team again. Redskins 21, Seahawks 20.

Twelve for the tourney

Like most football fans, I enjoy the NFL rankings that are on most sports websites each week. The Pats always being near the top helps of course. But it's just one of the things about the NFL that makes it fun. Everyone has their opinion on who is the top team, who is the 15th best, and who is the worst. So who's No. 1? We'll find out for sure come the first Sunday in February. These are the twelve that have a shot at the title. The last time all twelve playoff teams had ten wins or more was 2005. That's another great thing about the NFL. The league is deep. All twelve teams really do have a shot.

1. New England Patriots (12-4): Yes. I'm a Pats fan. I'm biased. But be honest. If the Patriots and any of the other teams on this list both played their absolute best games, do you really think the Pats would lose? Well, I don't. The Denver Broncos, led by the elder Manning, are better statistically on defense and are pretty even on offense so they will get the nod on most rankings heading into the playoffs. Brady vs. Manning is a wash. But do the Broncos have Welker, Gronk, Hernandez, Lloyd, Ridley, Woody, Mankins, Big Vince, Mayo, Jones, Ninko, Spikes, and Hightower? No. And that's a deep list of playmakers. Oh, and the Pats have Bill Belichick coaching and the Broncos have John Fox.

2. Denver Broncos (13-3): So now it's the other Manning's turn again. Great. The return to form of one of the game's all-time best is one of the 2012 season's top stories. The Broncos were a pretty decent team last year, even with Tim Tebow at quarterback. With Peyton Manning, they are a true contender. After losing to the Pats in Week 5 to fall to 2-3 the Broncos have won eleven in a row. But only two of those teams (Cincy and Baltimore) were playoff teams. Still, eleven in a row is eleven in a row. And Denver has home field. That's huge because it's a very tough place to play. Young receivers Demayrius Thomas and Eric Decker have blossomed with Manning, each having more than 1,000 yards receiving. The defense has been good for a few years now.

3. San Francisco 49ers (11-4-1): I saw the Niners get pushed around by Seattle too. You know what? They won't be playing in Seattle if they meet in the playoffs. San Francisco had a few surprising struggles this year, particularly an 0-1-1 record against the St. Louis Rams. And they let the Patriots score 28 straight points against them. But they are the best running team in the league and the best team against the run. And they can play anywhere. Under coach Jim Harbaugh the Niners have become a smash-mouth throwback. Young QB Colin Kaepernick is the big question mark. Can he make the right decisions in a playoff game? If he can the Niners are going to the Super Bowl.

4. Atlanta Falcons (13-3): Can the Falcons get over the playoff hump? That's the question that will hover over this team while they enjoy their bye week. Matt Ryan and his team are 0-3 in the playoffs. But once again they have home-field advantage, although that doesn't really help you if you keep losing the first playoff game each year. Ryan has two great receivers in Julio Jones and Roddy White and he has veteran hall of fame tight end Tony Gonzalez. Running back Michael Turner had ten touchdowns but he wasn't the force he usually is. And the defense is average at best. But Atlanta is due to win a playoff game. Right?

5. Green Bay Packers (11-5): It would not surprise me at all to see Aaron Rodgers hoisting the trophy at the end again. The Packers won the title two years ago, went 15-1 last year, and if it wasn't for the fake refs would be enjoying a first-round bye. Green Bay's offense is like the Patriots. Rodgers has many weapons to throw too. Jennings. Cobb. Jones. Nelson. Finley. The defense is strong against the pass with linebackers A.J. Hawk and Clay Matthews leading the way. The Packers have a chip on their shoulder from their one-and-done last year. That won't happen this year.

6. Seattle Seahawks (11-5): I had Pete Carroll and his Seahawks ranked near the bottom before the season started. Mostly out of spite. And also because I didnt know that he had built one of the best secondaries in the game. And in today's pass-happy NFL, if you can stop the pass you can win. Often. And if you can run the ball you can win even more. The Seahawks, behind the beast Marshawn Lynch, can run the ball right down your throat. If rookie QB Russell Wilson can make plays then this is a dangerous team. The big question is can they win on the road.

7. Houston Texans (12-4): The enigma of the twelve. The top team in the AFC for most of the year got whacked by the Patriots on a Sunday night game and never really recovered, losing three of their last four. But there's a reason the Texans were dominant for most of the season. Arian Foster on offense and J.J. Watt on defense. When you have two playmakers like that you are good. Add solid QB Matt Schaub and veteran wide receiver Andre Johnson and you have a balanced attack. The problem for Houston is they are not that good against the pass and when you have Tom Brady and Peyton Manning in your conference you probably aren't going to the Super Bowl.

8. Washington Redskins (10-6): I love this team. RG3. Alfred Morris. Pierre Garcon. They can beat you up. What don't I love about this team? Mike Shanahan. I know he has two rings, but he's crazy. If I'm a Skins fan I'm hoping Shanahan doesn't get too smart for his own good. Hand the ball to Alfred Morris and when the D fills the box to stop him let RG3 do his thing. The Skins D tightened up in the last month of the season. The Skins have the feel of this year's Giants. If they can win that first playoff game they could be tough to stop.

9. Baltimore Ravens (10-6): The Ravens, on the other hand, you want to play. They are a mess. Predictions are so often wrong that when you actually get one right it almost makes you feel like you know what your talking about. With five weeks to go in the season and the Ravens sitting at 10-2, I thought the Ravens would only win one more game and finish 11-5. I came pretty close. They finished 10-6. Even worse than I thought. But they are playing for Ray Lewis who announced this week he's retiring when the playoffs end. He'll be home for good pretty soon.

10. Indianapolis Colts (11-5): Did anybody see this coming? Did any "expert" predict the Colts to win more than five or six games this year? I doubt it. The Colts have been one of the best stories of the season. Their first-year coach Chuck Pagano missed most of the season as he was being treated for leukemia but the team rallied around him and play way over its head. Most of that was because top pick Andrew Luck showed why he was the top pick. But that's really where the positive news ends. The Colts are the only playoff team that allowed more points than it allowed (30). Not even the Vikings did that. The Colts are the Cinderella story coming into the playoffs. It's almost midnight.

11. Cincinnati Bengals (10-6): Maybe Marv Lewis isn't that bad of a coach after all. Maybe he just needed some players who had more talent than mouth. Like AJ Green. The guy is a beast. The Pats don't have anyone who can cover him. The Bengals also have old friend BenJarvus. Bennie's streak without a fumble ended this year but his streak of playing solid ball did not. Oh, and they led the  league in sacks for most of the year. You really don't want  to play them. But the Bengals under Lewis have a history of losing games they should win.

12. Minnesota Vikings (10-6): Two words: Adrian Peterson. That's what the Vikings are all about. If you can stop the league's comeback player of the year then the Vikes have zero chance. Their quarterback is Christian Ponder. No. Really. And Ponder doesn't have any real receiving threats. Minnesota is next to last in the league in passing and mediocre in all phases of defense. I'm not even sure how they won ten games and made the playoffs. I think the Bears, Cowboys, and Giants are all better than the Vikings. Minnesota will be joining them on the sidelines very soon.

Dishonorable mention: The New York Giants are not in the playoffs! The New York Giants are not in the playoffs! Man it feels good to write that. The defending champs were looking good at 6-2 but they fell apart in the second half of the season to finish 9-7. Eli Manning hit the wall and Tom Coughlin's team looked disorganized and had too many turnovers, drops, and plain old sloppy play. The Giants are not in the playoffs!

Broken clutch

WEEK 6
Pats' ball with about seven minutes to play up by six (or three or five or whatever). A time-consuming drive by the offense right here that ends with points puts you in a great position to win. What happens? The offense usually gets a first down ,, maybe two ... but then punts, eating up almost no time.

Pats' somewhat shaky defense comes on to the field with five minutes to go. They need a stop here. What happens? Defense does its job and everyone breathes a sigh of relief. A big sigh of relief.

Brady and the unstoppable offense get the ball back ... this time with just about four minutes to play. The offense doesn't even need to score here. Just a few first downs and Brady can take a knee. What happens? Three-and-out. That's what.

Uh oh. Defense comes back out on the field with about two-and-one-half minutes left. Up by less than a touchdown. Can they make one more stop and win the game? What happens? Well, you know what happens. The opposing QB leads his team pretty-easily down the field as the Pats' secondary runs around looking lost. Game over.

That was the scenario that played out yesterday for the Pats in Seattle. Just like it was earlier in the year against the Ravens and in last year's Super Bowl and the game against the Giants before that and the ...

Brady said after the Sunday night loss to the Ravens "We need to start winning close games." Yesterday was a great chance to start doing that. Instead, it was just another great game wasted. It was a great game. Just like the Ravens game was ... and the Super Bowl ... and the ...

The 3-3 Pats have lost three games by a total of just four points. For comparison, the Pats' next opponent the Jets, also 3-3, lost one game by 34 points. The record is .500 but the Patriots are clearly better than that.  Just like the 5-1 Ravens are clearly not that good. But the Ravens have been able to do something the Pats haven't ... win close games. Maybe even steal a few. That's what teams that get a first-round bye do to get to 13-3 or 14-2. And that's what teams that win Super Bowls do.

As good as the Pats are, until they can start closing out tight games they are not going to take that next step.

They might not get a chance this weekend against the Jets. I think the Pats run all over them. (Although I thought they would beat Seattle, too). But there'll be another game soon where the Pats have the ball and the lead with seven minutes to play. That would be a good time for one of the best offenses to put together one of those 14-play touchdown drives that it does so easily in the first three quarters of the game.

For Pete's sake

TALES FROM THE TAILGATE
Pats 26, Dolphins 23 (11/23/'98): The history books say Pete Carroll lost his job as the Pats' coach after the 1999 season. Not true. Carroll lost his job in November a year earlier. I know. I was there. It was one of the wildest days on the aluminum benches of Foxboro Stadium that I can remember.

The 5-5 Patriots, coached by pumped and jacked Carroll, and the 7-3 Dolphins, coached by two-time Super Bowl winner Jimmy Johnson, faced off on a fairly mild late November night. It was Year Two under Carroll and things were clearly trending in the wrong direction. The Pats started off 4-1 but were a very undisciplined team and limped into the game against Miami looking dead. We could see the foundation that Bill Parcells had built slowly being eroded like a beach cliff under a Cape home. But on this night (and then the following Sunday) Drew Bledsoe almost single-handedly put the team back on solid ground.

We tailgated in nearly 50 degree temperatures, eating, drinking, and mocking Carroll's style of coaching. All rah-rah. Perfect for college. But it very rarely works in the NFL. You either have a dour tactician (Landry, Noll, Belichick) or an in-your-face motivator (Lombardi, Parcells, Cowher) at the helm of the best teams. Cheerleaders as coaches don't usually work out. And when a cheerleader replaces a motivator it usually spells disaster because the players are so glad the guy yelling at them is gone that they ease up and lose their edge. That was the '98 Patriots.

Besides our coach, the other topic of conversation that night was the announcement earlier that week that Robert Kraft had a tentative deal to move the team to Hartford. Hartford! In Connecticut! There was even talk they would change their team colors to match that of the NHL's Hartford Whalers. Green and white. Uh, those are Jets colors. Our team was sliding back into irrelevance and our franchise was moving to Connecticut. We were not in a very good mood as Brendan grilled up some tuna steaks in honor of the Dolphins. (You can't legally buy dolphin.)

Miami was led by Dan Marino nearing the end of his Hall of Fame career and coached by Johnson who spent most of the game pleading with the refs for penalties while Carroll stood around looking mostly lost. It was a back-and-forth affair. Bledsoe connected with tight end Ben Coates for a touchdown early in the game. In my book, the Bledsoe-to-Coates connection is still the all-time best passing tandem in the team's history. Coates would pull in nine passes for nearly 80 yards. But it was Bledsoe that was the story of this game. Hell, he was the story of that whole year. In the midst of a season where the team was disintegrating under Carroll, Bledsoe held things together by throwing for more than 3,600 yards, 20 TDs, and an 80.0 passer rating. Of course he threw many killer picks, but that was Drew.

Miami took a 23-19 lead with just over three minutes to go in the game. Bledsoe led the Pats from deep in their own end to almost midfield at the two minute warning. On a second-down play Bledsoe dropped back to throw and on his follow-through hit his passing hand on a defender's helmet. The Pats took a timeout and he came over to the sideline holding his hand and started to make some practice tosses to test it out. At the same time backup QB Scott Zolak (yes, that one) started warming up. "Zolak's coming in," Mark said with a tone of dread. "We're moving to Hartford and Zolak's coming in. The Parcells magic is officially gone."

But Zolak did not come in. Bledsoe, even though he would later be diagnosed with a broken finger, came back onto the field. And then took another timeout. He burned two timeouts without ever taking a snap with 1:42 to go in the game. He came over to the sideline and took some more practice tosses. He returned to the field, with only one more timeout to waste, and on 2nd-and-10 air-mailed a pass over Terry Glenn's head. He shook his hand some more and started to walk off the field as if he was coming out of the game. But again he stayed in and threw a pass to Coates for a short gain. Fourth-and-six and the Pats have to go for it. Carroll started signalling vehemently for a timeout. The players clearly saw him but ignored him and lined up to run a play.

Bledsoe hit Shawn Jefferson on a curl for a first down with 34 seconds to play. The crowd went nuts and Carroll shrugged and laughed as everyone in the stadium realized Bledsoe has just ignored his head coach. It was at that moment that Pete Carroll was no longer the head coach of the team. And everyone knew it.

On the next play, in the face of a corner blitz, Bledsoe let one rip into the left corner of the end zone that landed right in Jefferson's hands for a touchdown with 30 seconds left for the amazing victory. The stadium went into a state of delirium. Moving to Hartford? Not tonight! Beating Miami on a last second play. It was one of the best moments at the old stadium.

Bledsoe, broken finger and all, led the Pats on an amazing 26-play, 84-yard game winning drive. He finished with 423 yards passing. And as the game ended he ran around the field, responding to the roar of the crowd, pumping his fists and soaking in the moment. The next week, also at home, he played the entire game against the Bills with his broken finger taped to his other fingers, and again led the team to a last-second come from behind win, this time hitting Coates for a touchdown with no time left on the clock. He had many, many great moments as the Pats QB. But those two games in '98 were the two most amazing back-to-back victories that old Foxboro Stadium ever saw.

Bledsoe's career, and the team's fortunes, began to slide from that point as the Pats finished 9-7 that year and then 8-8 the next. Among all the sins of Carroll's years here, the biggest one is his ruining of Bledsoe. Parcells was tough on Bledsoe and that's what he needed. It motivated him. Carroll coddled him and his skills eroded. He was never Baryshnikov, but his footwork just got worse and worse until he become the most stationary target in the game. And then he took a hit by Mo Lewis that changed his -- and the team's -- fortunes. He left the field and Brady came on ... and hasn't left since.

There were a lot of stories in the media this week giving Carroll some credit for the success that Belichick has brought. There's probably some truth in that. But not much. Carroll's a good guy. I'm not sure why anyone wouldn't root for him. He did a great job with USC ... except for all the NCAA rule violations that took away most of his wins after he left. He is a very good defensive coach, as the Pats will find out today when they go to Seattle. But I still don't think he's a good NFL head coach. Sure, the Seahawks are getting better. But his first two seasons as head coach have ended 7-9 and 7-9. I'd be surprised if their record is any better than 8-8 this year. But my guess is that Pete Carroll would be pretty pumped and jacked if the Seahawks finished 8-8. That's his way.

Communication breakdown

Well ... it has sure hit the fan now.

If you foolishly stayed up late last night to watch all of the Seahawks-Packers game like I did then you saw the NFL's fake refs implode on national television. You think the officiating in the Pats-Ravens game was bad? Around midnight last night the fake refs took a big road victory away from the Pack and handed it to Pete Carroll and his Seahawks. The final play of the game -- a Hail Mary by Seattle -- was intercepted by Green Bay's M.D. Jennings in the corner of the end zone. Anyone but the most diehard Seattle fans (and the NFL) looking at the video below would have to agree with that. Seattle receiver Golden Tate gets an arm in there and claws away at the ball but it's clear who has "possession" and who doesn't.

It was even clear to one of the two refs on the field who made the call. The other ref, the one who signaled touchdown but really had no idea what had just happened, takes a look at his fellow fake ref and sees him starting to put his arms up so he too throws his arms up ... to signal touchdown. Problem is that the other ref was raising his arms to signal ... an interception and a touchback. Ooops. The two officials never talked to each other before making a signal as the regular officials would have. And after they made different calls they just stood there. Lost. The head ref, the man in the white hat, is no where to be found for a long time, thus allowing mass confusion to ensue. It was a mess. And it was all caused because there was no communication between the officials.

And that's where the real problem with the fake refs comes in. All refs -- real or fake -- make bad calls. It's just going to happen. Even to the best of refs. They have to make hundreds of split second decisions each weekend. But what the real refs do is prevent a game that is played on the edge of chaos from actually devolving into that chaos. And that's no easy feat.

Simply put .... the real refs, most of them in their 50s and 60s, manage to maintain total control and authority over giant athletes who are playing a ferocious game in an almost-out-of-control state of mind. Guys like Ed Hochuli never look confused. They are always in command and always communicating with their fellow officials. Everyone knows who is in charge. That's why the regular refs are a very important part of the game.

The fake refs have totally lost control of that game. ESPN's Gregg Easterbrook writes a good piece about this. The Pats-Ravens game had more skirmishes and pushing contests after the play than you normally see in a month of football. The regular refs know how to take control in those situations ... toss a lot of flags high in the air so all the players can see them and get in their faces. The fake refs mostly just stand there looking like I would ... lost in a scrum of NFL players.

Packer Greg Jennings was asked about the rough play after the game last night. The veteran wide receiver said he had never played in an NFL game where players were just taking shots at each other and the refs were doing nothing about it. The only way to make the players think twice about unloading on someone is to keep control of the game. The fake refs can't seem to do that. Someone is going to get hurt. And then the NFL will have a real problem.

My favorite Martin

The NFL is handing out a few more yellow Hall of Fame jackets this weekend. Some greats of the game will be entering Canton. Willie Roaf. Chris Doleman. Cortez Kennedy. Dermontti Dawson. I'm not convinced Dawson is a hall of famer but the NFL has always inducted more players than the other pro sports halls. That should mean a few guys from the Pats dynasty get in. At least they better.

One guy going in the hall this year was not a part of the dynasty but is one of the all-time great Patriots. Curtis Martin. The greatest runner the team has ever had. If only for a few years. There aren't too many warm memories from tailgating in the '90s, but what few there are mostly involve Curtis Martin. No. 28.

Martin was drafted by Bill Parcells and the Pats in the third round of the 1995 draft. Martin would have been a sure top five pick but after putting up 250 yards against Texas in the opening game of his senior year at Pitt, he sprained his ankle and missed the rest of the season. His draft stock plummeted. And he fell right into the waiting arms of Parcells. It's not Brady in the sixth round, but it's close.

I remember going to the first game of Martin's rookie year at the old Foxboro Stadium against the Browns. Expectations for the team were high after making the playoffs in Parcell's second year as coach. A real running game was the biggest need. A few minutes into the season Martin showed that need had been filled. Martin took the hand off and cut to his left. The outside was closed off so he cut back against the grain -- the move that would become his trademark -- and raced 30 yards on his first carry. Then, with time running out, he took the ball at the Cleveland one-yard line and soared over the pile for the game winner. It was a beautiful late summer day in the mid 60s and I remember the post-game tailgate as being one of the best ever. We had Parcells. Bledsoe. And now Curtis Martin. There were a lot of smiles that day.

Of course Parcells, Bledsoe, and Martin proceeded to lose six of the next seven games and the smiles were gone. In fact there was a moment in the parking lot after a tough loss to New Orleans late in the year where I stood slumped against my red Chrysler Reliant wagon (Yes. I was one of the guys who believed in Lee Iacocca). Mark still calls it my low point of nearly 30 years of tailgating. But Martin was not the reason. He broke 100 yards nine times in his rookie year and led the AFC in rushing yards with nearly 1,500. Rookie of the year. Pro bowler. Future of the franchise.

Things got even better in Martin's second year. Although not right away. The Pats lost their first two games to division rivals Miami and Buffalo (turning the ball over six times) and suddenly the great Bill Parcells wasn't looking so great. And then Martin took over. He scored three touchdowns (one rushing, two receiving) to spark the team to a 31-0 win over Arizona. The Pats would only lose three more times that year as Martin rolled up 17 touchdowns and the Pats made the playoffs at 11-5. Then they had their first ever home playoff game. The Fog Game. One of the greatest days of football in the town that Kraft built. There were a lot of moments in the team's 28-3 domination of the hated Steelers. But none bigger than Martin's 78-yard touchdown dash through the fog. He added a 23-yarder to seal the game away in the fourth quarter and finished with 166 yards on the ground. A team record. The Pats looked unstoppable.

A few weeks later they would lose a heartbreaking Super Bowl to Favre and the Packers and a few days after that Parcells was on his way to coach the Jets. Martin stayed another year with the Pats but as soon as his contract was up he joined the Tuna in New York. Martin and I have one thing in common ... that I know of -- a love of Bill Parcells. Martin says the coach is his mentor and one of the biggest influences in his life. When Parcells left the Pats after the Super Bowl loss, it was only a matter of time till Martin followed.

Martin continued to build a hall of fame resume playing for the Jets. But Parcells, as he does, bailed on Gang Green after a few seasons and Martin spent the rest of his career playing for mediocre teams in the Meadowlands. But he never quit no matter how bad the Jets got. That's what made him a hall of famer. It wasn't his speed or shiftiness. It was his toughness, dedication, class, determination. Losing Martin to New York hurt much less after Belichick bolted the Jets and came to Foxborough to build a dynasty. But it's hard not to wonder what Martin could have done with the Pats.

Check out the highlights below. They are all from just one game in 1995 against the Steelers, the best defense in the league that year. The Steelers won the game, but the Pats' rookie put on a show rushing for 120 yards on 20 carries and catching eight passes from Bledsoe for another 62 yards and a touchdown. It was a hall of fame performance. One of many.

Drew!

TALES FROM THE TAILGATE
Pats 26, Dolphins 23 (11/23/'98): Everyone, me included, has been raving about Tom Brady's 517 yards passing in the opener against Miami last Monday. Was it the greatest game ever by a Pats quarterback? Statistically, yes. But there have been so many great games by Pats QBs. Of course many of them by #12 in the last decade. But before there was Brady there was Jim Plunkett. And one of my all-time favorites, Steve Grogan. Even pretty-boy Tony Eason had some great games. (No. Not Scott Zolak).

But the Pats quarterback who may have the longest list of great games? Drew Bledsoe.

He was the embodiment of the "franchise quarterback." Big. Strong. Gun for an arm. Great college quarterback. I'll be heading to Gillette with some of my tailgating group this afternoon for Bledsoe's induction into the Pats Hall of Fame. A great start to a great weekend of football. I can't wait to hear all the fans shouting "Dreeeeewwwwww!" He sure deserves the honor. I hope they have a video highlight package of his best moments as a Patriot. There were some great ones.

The great shootout game against Warren Moon and the Vikes. The Fog Bowl against the Steelers. And of course when he replaced an injured Brady in the AFC title game against the Steelers.  So many great games for #11. But my favorite Bledsoe moment is also one of my favorite Tales from the Tailgate.

The Pats #1 draft pick in 1993 is one of the players most instrumental in turning the franchise around. Like Tom Brady. Ty Law. Tedy Bruschi. Bledsoe deserves as much credit as anyone. He didn't win a Super Bowl as a starter but he jump-started a franchise with some of the most amazing passing performances of the past two decades. He was that good. And he was that tough. I was a Brady guy early on. Mostly because you could tell he had that undefinable quality that all great players have. His abilities have improved each year, but from the beginning you could see he was hard to rattle and had the knack for making the big play. Just like the quarterback who came before him. Bledsoe hard to rattle? Tough? As tough as they come. It may be hard to remember now after the way his Pats career ended, but on back-to-back weekends in November '98 he led the team to two miraculous victories. In the second of those games (against the Bills) he did it while playing with a broken finger on his passing hand.

The first of those games was a Monday nighter against Miami at Foxboro Stadium. Pete Carroll was in his second (and thankfully next-to-last) season as head coach. The Pats started off 4-1 but limped into the game against the Dolphins at 5-5. We could see the foundation that Bill Parcells had built slowly being eroded like a beach cliff under a Cape home. But for two nights Bledsoe almost single-handedly put the team back on solid ground.

We tailgated on a crisp winter night, eating, drinking, and mocking Carroll's "pumped and jacked" mentality to coaching. All rah-rah. Perfect for college. But it very rarely works in the NFL. You either have a dour tactician (Landry, Noll, Belichick) or an in-your-face motivator (Lombardi, Parcells, Cowher) at the helm of the best teams. Cheerleaders as coaches don't usually work out. And when a cheerleader replaces a motivator it usually spells disaster because the players are so glad the guy yelling at them is gone that they ease up and lose their edge. That was the '98 Patriots.

Besides our coach, the other topic of conversation that night was the announcement earlier that month that Robert Kraft had a tentative deal to move the team to Hartford. Hartford! In Connecticut! There was even talk they would change their team colors to match that of the NHL's Hartford Whalers. Green and white. Uh, those are Jets colors. Our team was sliding back into irrelevance and our franchise was moving to Connecticut. We were not in a very good mood as Brendan grilled up some tuna steaks in honor of the Dolphins. (You can't legally buy dolphin.)

Miami was 7-3 and led by Dan Marino nearing the end of his career and coached by Jimmy Johnson who spent most of the game pleading with the refs for penalties. It was a back-and-forth affair. Bledsoe connected with tight end Ben Coates for a touchdown early in the game. In my book, the Bledsoe-to-Coates connection is still the all-time best passing tandem in the team's history. Coates would pull in nine passes for nearly 80 yards. But it was Bledsoe that was the story of this game. Hell, he was the story of that whole year. In the midst of a season where the team was disintegrating, Bledsoe held things together by throwing for more than 3,600 yards, 20 TDs, and an 80.0 passer rating. Of course he threw many killer picks, but that was Drew. I've wondered how Tom Brady would do playing on a team like the '98 Pats. Someday I might find out. If he plays like Bledsoe did that year then that's a hell of an effort.

Miami took a 23-19 lead with just over three minutes to go in the game. Bledsoe led the Pats from deep in their own end to almost midfield at the two minute warning. On a second-down play Bledsoe dropped back to throw and on his follow through hit his passing hand on a defender's helmet. The Pats took a timeout and he came over to the sideline holding his hand and started to make some practice tosses to test it out. At the same time backup QB Scott Zolak (yes, that one) started warming up. "Zolak's coming in," Mark said. "We're moving to Hartford and Zolak's coming in. The Parcells magic is officially gone."

But Zolak did not come in. Bledsoe, even though he would later be diagnosed with a broken finger, came back onto the field. And then took another timeout. He burned two timeouts without ever taking a snap with 1:42 to go in the game. He came over to the sideline and took some more practice tosses. He returned to the field, with only one more timeout to waste, and on 2nd-and-10 airmailed a pass over Terry Glenn's head. He shook his hand some more and started to walk off the field as if he was coming out of the game. But again he stayed in and threw a pass to Coates for a short gain. Fourth-and-six and the Pats have to go for it. Carroll started signalling vehemently for a timeout. The players clearly saw him but ignored him and lined up to run a play. (Yes, Carroll was toast as the coach right then and there.) Bledsoe hit Shawn Jefferson on a curl for a first down with 34 seconds to play. On the next play, in the face of a corner blitz, Bledsoe let one rip into the left corner of the end zone that landed right in Jefferson's hands for a touchdown with 30 seconds left for the amazing victory. The crowd went nuts. Moving to Hartford? Not tonight!

Bledsoe, broken finger and all, led the Pats on an amazing 26-play, 84-yard game winning drive. He finished with 423 yards passing. And as the game ended he ran around the field, responding to the roar of the crowd, pumping his fists and soaking in the moment. The next week, also at home, he played the entire game against the Bills with his broken finger taped to his other fingers, and again led the team to a last-second come from behind win, this time hitting Coates for a touchdown with no time left on the clock. He had many, many great moments as the Pats QB. But those two games in '98 were the two most amazing back-to-back victories that old Foxboro Stadium ever saw.

Bledsoe's career, and the team's fortunes, began to slide from that point as the Pats finished 9-7 that year and then 8-8 the next. Among all the sins of Carroll's years here, the biggest one is his ruining of Bledsoe. Parcells was tough on Bledsoe and that's what he needed. It motivated him. Carroll coddled him and his skills eroded. He was never Baryshnikov, but his footwork just got worse and worse until he become the most stationary target in the game. And then he took a hit by Mo Lewis that changed his -- and once again the team's -- fortunes. He left the field and Brady came on ... and hasn't left since.

That's the other thing that Drew Bledsoe had. Class. When he was getting the crap kicked out of him playing for a mediocre team he took his lumps, kept his mouth shut, and kept coming out every Sunday battling his hardest. When he lost his job to a young QB who would soon prove to be among the best, Bledsoe kept his mouth shut, helped Brady get better, and by not stirring up a controversy played a key role in the first Super Bowl run.

I have a bulletin board in the basement with lots of ticket stubs, pins, stickers, etc. from all the Pats games. In the middle is the cover of the 1994 Globe's NFL preview with a photo of Bledsoe under the headline "A new era is dawning." A lot of things have come and gone from that bulletin board, but the faded picture of No. 11 still hangs right where I put it almost 20 years ago.

Opening thoughts

I work Tuesday through Saturday, which means I miss a lot of good college football. But it also means that on Mondays after a Pats victory I get to enjoy a day of watching all the highlights, coaches' press conferences, post-game reviews, and analysis on the NFL Network, ESPN, and ESPN News. When the Pats lose I'm a little more productive on Mondays.

It was an entertaining first week (thanks mostly to Wes Welker). Pete Carroll was beyond pumped and jacked as his Seahawks stunned the Niners 31-6. I'll say one thing for Carroll, he doesn't change. He wears his enthusiasm on his sleeve whether he's in New England, Southern California, or the great Northwest. His jumping around is fun to watch. It's just not a smart use of a coach's time to be running around high-fiving players and fist-pumping. He should keep his focus on the game. San Fran's Mike Singletary never loses his focus. In classic Singletary fashion, in his Monday press conference he thanked Carroll and the Seahawks for the stomping. "Tell Pete Carroll thank you very much for kicking our ass," Singletary said. "It was good medicine, and we're going to take it."

FOSTER: 42.30 fantasy points.

Speaking of ass kickings, Peyton Manning and the Colts' luck finally ran out against the Houston Texans. The Colts have stolen a few wins away from Houston the past few years. But this time, behind running back Arian Foster, the Texans jumped all over Indy early and often. Foster ran for 231 yards and three touchdowns. (I started him over Shonn Greene on my fantasy team -- if I could only be that smart all the time). The Network's Mike Lombardi found a silver lining for Indianapolis. "The Colts will bounce back and now they don't have to worry about the perfect season anymore." A perfect season? It's only fhe first week. Why would they already be worrying about that? Oh, right. They are the Colts.

The Patriots were the other easy winner of the day. My favorite play of the game: Pats opening drive, the offense faces a 2nd-and-five from the Cincy 8-yard line. They line up with Faulk in the backfield and Moss alone on the right. On the left, Welker lines up a few yards from the sideline with Rob Gronkowski just to his left and Alge Crumpler a step in front of him. Brady took the snap and chucked a quick pass to Welker who tucked himself in behind the twin towers of Gronk and Alge. They slammed the two defenders easily out of the way allowing Welker to scoot almost untouched into the end zone. The three new tight ends didn't take long to show the kind of impact they can have.

A key part of the success of the play was Moss, all alone on the right side, attracting the attention of four of the seven defensive backs/linebackers. A good example of the value of Moss even when he's not the focus of the play.

The Steelers survived the first of four games without Big Ben. If they are 3-1 or better when he gets back then they are a serious contender. The Skins won their first game under coach Mike Shanahan thanks mostly to Cowboys coach Wade Phillips. The Cowboys called a pitch-out play with four seconds left in the half and the ball inside their own 30. A fumble later the Skins scored an easy TD that proved the difference in the game. I don't get Jerry Jones's devotion to Phillips but I kind of respect it.

The Jaguars, Giants, Titans, Pack, and Lions also posted big opening victories. What? The Lions didn't win? How's that possible? Right. They got robbed.

The silver and blue finally won a road game after 21 straight defeats when receiver Calvin Johnson caught what looked like a winning TD pass only to have the refs rule that he didn't maintain control of the ball. Check the video below. He catches the ball, takes two steps as he goes to the ground, rolls halfway over (still with control of the ball), and as he goes to get up he puts the ball on the ground and drops it there to go celebrate. If it looks like a touchdown and smells like a touchdown ...

But the NFL's czar of officiating, Mike Pereira. said that the rule was properly interpreted and the touchdown correctly disallowed.

The rule says: "If a player goes to the ground in the act of catching a pass (with or without contact by an opponent), he must maintain control of the ball after he touches the ground, whether in the field of play or the end zone. If he loses control of the ball, and the ball touches the ground before he regains control, the pass is incomplete. If he regains control prior to the ball touching the ground, the pass is complete."

So Johnson caught the ball, went to the ground, maintained control of the ball after touching the ground, and only lost the ball as he was getting back up off the ground. Yet the play was called correctly.

Huh. I guess now not only do you have to catch the ball and land on the ground for it to be a touchdown -- you also have to get up, shower, get in your Mercedes, and drive home all while maintaining possession of the ball.

Detroit, a team that needs every win it can get, should be 1-0. Haven't Lions fans suffered enough?

The forgotten man

TALES FROM THE TAILGATE
Pats 26, Dolphins 23 (11/23/'98): You can chart the ups and downs of NFL franchises since 1970 by looking at the schedule of each season's Monday Night Football games.

The Steelers and the Cowboys have rarely disappeared from the Monday night roster for more than a season, a testament to just how few bad stretches both franchises have had. Teams such as the Lions and the Seahawks, on the other hand, have had long periods out of view of the MNF cameras. Check out the early '70s and you'll see the Len Dawson-led Kansas City Chiefs played on Monday night ten times in the first seven years of MNF. In this decade the Chiefs players haven't had to get off their couch on a Monday night in five years. The Patriots, in their early years of bumbling, stumbling franchise, only made a few MNF visits but this decade it seems a month doesn't go by without Brady and the Pats stepping into the Monday night spotlight. I'm sure fans around the rest of the NFL feel the Pats are playing almost every Monday night.

This week's battle against the Saints is the latest in a decade of big Monday night games the team has played. Like the game in New Orleans, most of them have been on the road. The Patriots are 3-1 at home on Monday nights this decade. Not a lot of tailgating memories to go along with those games. But as we get ready for a match-up of two great quarterbacks -- Brady vs. Brees on Monday night -- it reminds me of my favorite MNF tailgating memory. Involving another great quarterback who is now the forgotten man.

Drew Bledsoe.

The Pats #1 draft pick in 1993 is one of the players most instrumental in turning the franchise around. Like Tom Brady. Ty Law. Tedy Bruschi. Bledsoe deserves as much credit as anyone. He didn't win a Super Bowl as a starter but he jump-started a franchise with some of the most amazing passing performances of the past two decades. He was that good. And he was that tough. I was a Brady guy early on. Mostly because you could tell he had that undefinable quality that all great players have. His abilities have improved each year, but from the beginning you could see he was hard to rattle and had the knack for making the big play. Just like the quarterback who came before him. Bledsoe hard to rattle? Tough? As tough as they come. It may be hard to remember now after the way his Pats career ended, but on back-to-back weekends in November '98 he led the team to two miraculous victories. In the second of those games (against the Bills) he did it while playing with a broken finger on his passing hand.

The first of those games was a Monday nighter against Miami at Foxboro Stadium. Pete Carroll was in his second (and thankfully next-to-last) season as head coach. The Pats started off 4-1 but limped into the game against the Dolphins at 5-5. We could see the foundation that Bill Parcells had built slowly being eroded like a beach cliff under a Cape home. But for two nights Bledsoe almost single-handedly put the team back on solid ground.

We tailgated on a crisp winter night, eating, drinking, and mocking Carroll's "pumped and jacked" mentality to coaching. All rah-rah. Perfect for college. But it very rarely works in the NFL. You either have a dour tactician (Landry, Noll, Belichick) or an in-your-face motivator (Lombardi, Parcells, Cowher) at the helm of the best teams. Cheerleaders as coaches don't usually work out. And when a cheerleader replaces a motivator it usually spells disaster because the players are so glad the guy yelling at them is gone that they ease up and lose their edge. That was the '98 Patriots.

Besides our coach, the other topic of conversation that night was the announcement earlier that month that Robert Kraft had a tentative deal to move the team to Hartford. Hartford! In Connecticut! There was even talk they would change their team colors to match that of the NHL's Hartford Whalers. Green and white. Uh, those are Jets colors. Our team was sliding back into irrelevance and our franchise was moving to Connecticut. We were not in a very good mood as Brendan grilled up some tuna steaks in honor of the Dolphins. (You can't legally buy dolphin.)

Miami was 7-3 and led by Dan Marino nearing the end of his career and coached by Jimmy Johnson who spent most of the game pleading with the refs for penalties. It was a back-and-forth affair. Bledsoe connected with tight end Ben Coates for a touchdown early in the game. In my book, the Bledsoe-to-Coates connection is still the all-time best passing tandem in the team's history. Coates would pull in nine passes for nearly 80 yards. But it was Bledsoe that was the story of this game. Hell, he was the story of that whole year. In the midst of a season where the team was disintegrating, Bledsoe held things together by throwing for more than 3,600 yards, 20 TDs, and an 80.0 passer rating. Of course he threw many killer picks, but that was Drew. I've wondered how Tom Brady would do playing on a team like the '98 Pats. Someday I might find out. If he plays like Bledsoe did that year then that's a hell of an effort.

Miami took a 23-19 lead with just over three minutes to go in the game. Bledsoe led the Pats from deep in their own end to almost midfield at the two minute warning. On a second-down play Bledsoe dropped back to throw and on his follow through hit his passing hand on a defender's helmet. The Pats took a timeout and he came over to the sideline holding his hand and started to make some practice tosses to test it out. At the same time backup QB Scott Zolak (yes, that one) started warming up. "Zolak's coming in," Mark said. "We're moving to Hartford and Zolak's coming in. The Parcells magic is officially gone."

But Zolak did not come in. Bledsoe, even though he would later be diagnosed with a broken finger, came back onto the field. And then took another timeout. He burned two timeouts without ever taking a snap with 1:42 to go in the game. He came over to the sideline and took some more practice tosses. He returned to the field, with only one more timeout to waste, and on 2nd-and-10 airmailed a pass over Terry Glenn's head. He shook his hand some more and started to walk off the field as if he was coming out of the game. But again he stayed in and threw a pass to Coates for a short gain. Fourth-and-six and the Pats have to go for it. Carroll started signalling vehemently for a timeout. The players clearly saw him but ignored him and lined up to run a play. (Yes, Carroll was toast as the coach right then and there.) Bledsoe hit Shawn Jefferson on a curl for a first down with 34 seconds to play. On the next play, in the face of a corner blitz, Bledsoe let one rip into the left corner of the end zone that landed right in Jefferson's hands for a touchdown with 30 seconds left for the amazing victory. The crowd went nuts. Moving to Hartford? Not tonight!

Bledsoe, broken finger and all, led the Pats on a 26-play, 84-yard game winning drive. He finished with 423 yards passing. And as the game ended he ran around the field, responding to the roar of the crowd, pumping his fists and soaking in the moment. The next week, also at home, he played the entire game against the Bills with his broken finger taped to his other fingers, and again led the team to a last-second come from behind win, this time hitting Coates for a touchdown with no time left on the clock. He had many, many great moments as the Pats QB. The record-setter against the Vikings that turned their '96 season around. The AFC championship later that year. The AFC title game in '01 where he came in for an injured Brady and put one final shining moment on a great career with the team. But those two games in '98 were the two most amazing back-to-back victories that old Foxboro Stadium ever saw.

Bledsoe's career, and the team's fortunes, began to slide from that point as the Pats finished 9-7 that year and then 8-8 the next. Among all the sins of Carroll's years here, the biggest one is his ruining of Bledsoe. Parcells was tough on Bledsoe and that's what he needed. It motivated him. Carroll coddled him and his skills eroded. He was never Baryshnikov, but his footwork just got worse and worse until he become the most stationary target in the game. And then he took a hit by Mo Lewis that changed his -- and once again the team's -- fortunes. He left the field and Brady came on ... and hasn't left since.

That's the other thing that Drew Bledsoe had. Class. When he was getting the crap kicked out of him playing for a mediocre team he took his lumps, kept his mouth shut, and kept coming out every Sunday battling his hardest. When he lost his job to a young QB who would soon prove to be among the best, Bledsoe kept his mouth shut, helped Brady get better, and by not stirring up a controversy played a key role in the first Super Bowl run.

I have a bulletin board in the basement with lots of ticket stubs, pins, stickers, etc. from all the Pats games. In the middle is the cover of the 1994 Globe's NFL preview with a photo of Bledsoe under the headline "A new era is dawning." A lot of things have come and gone from that bulletin board, but the faded picture of No. 11 still hangs right where I put it 15 years ago.

An overseas call

The Patriots play ambassadors of the NFL this weekend. Oh, and have a must-win game.

Robert Kraft got the call from the league during the offseason and of course said "Yes, we would be honored to represent the NFL in London." That was the correct answer. But now reality sets in and the importance of a regular season game far outweighs the plan for global domination of the sporting dollar. The Pats really need to put this game in the W column and if traveling to jolly old England to play in Wembley Stadium in any way hurts their chances to beat a hapless Tampa Bay team ... well, that's a problem.

The Patriots are 0-2 on the road so far this season and eventually, if you have plans of winning that fourth Super Bowl you've been battling for the last four years, you have to start winning road games. A trip to the sunny climes of Tampa and the winless Bucs would have almost guaranteed the team's first road win. A detour to London and Wembley, the home of soccer, changes the odds just a bit. To say the least.

After the Pats destruction of the Oilers/Titans in the snow last week, it seems safe to predict the Pats will come away with a win and go to 5-2 heading into their bye week. A trip to London hopefully turns out well. But a trip to Tampa would have almost certainly been a good thing for the Patriots ... and me. If the game was being played in Florida there's a good chance I would be sitting in the Bucs stadium come kickoff. Much like in 1997 when I flew down to visit my friend Brendan who worked for the Associated Press in Miami. Although it wasn't in Foxborough, it is one of my favorite "tales from the tailgate"... Florida style.

The Patriots played Tampa on November 16th in 1997, Pete Carroll's first year in the impossible task of replacing Bill Parcells. They were defending AFC champs. Drew Bledsoe. Curtis Martin before he left to join the Tuna. The Pats won their first four games under Carroll (I couldn't believe it either, but they really did. I checked). But they were sitting at 6-4 as they came into Tampa. The Buccaneers were 7-3 and playing some serious Tony Dungy defense. Nonetheless, I was feeling pretty confident.

I left Logan Airport Friday evening in the middle of a blizzard. I arrived a few hours later in Miami and soon found myself sitting in shorts and a T-shirt at a bar along a canal drinking a beer while large boats (yachts I think they call them) pulled up to the dock and let the beautiful people spill out one-by-one. This was my first trip to Miami. I felt like I had landed in Oz. Brendan, who is the type of person who knows his new town like the back of his hand in about a week, took me on a whirlwind tour of South Beach and the rest of Miami on Saturday. The next day, game day, we made the drive from Miami to Tampa along "Alligator Alley." We weren't exactly sober but I was not imagining the gators hanging on the side of the road. When Brendan asked if I needed to stop to go the bathroom, even though the answer was yes, the answer was no. Do you see the gators out there?

We drove into the city and found a parking spot in a lot near the old Tampa stadium known as Houlihan's Stadium. Named after Hot Lips Houlihan? I don't know. This was one year before Raymond James Stadium and the pirate ship with the canons that fire when the Bucs score a TD. The new stadium (much like Gillette a few years later) was rising up right beside the old one. The old stadium, kind of shaped like a giant saddle, was a heck of a place to watch a game. Brendan and I wandered around the Tampa-style tailgates looking for free food and beer. We found lots of beer. And at our last stop some interesting food.

"You ever had gator?" asked this rather large dude in a sherbet orange Bucs jersey and a cowboy hat in a Florida drawl. "Uh, no I said." Brendan had of course.

"Well you can't come all the way down to Florida and not have gator,'' he laughed as he cut me a piece. I took a bite of the chewy meat. It was good, tasting mostly of the spices he had cooked it in. "Where do you get alligator?" I asked.

The cowboy hat guy looked at me seriously and said "You drove here through alligator alley, right?" I told him we did. "You saw those gators on the side of the road?" he continued. I told him we did. "That's where we get 'em. On the way to the game we just grab one and cook it up," he said proudly. All his tailgating friends nodded and smiled.

Wow I thought. That's crazy. I took another bite. Wow. They get it on the side of the road? After a minute or two cowboy hat guy and his friends couldn't hold it in any longer and fell over each other laughing. Turns out in Florida you can just buy gator meat at the store. Yes. He got me good. We hung out with them till game time and then headed to our seats. It was about 80 degrees. It was mid-November. We were having a great time. Brendan and I were ready for the game. We even had on Pats jerseys. In 1997 the Pats had won exactly zero Super Bowls. You could wear your Flying Elvis or Pat Patriot jerseys to any stadium (except NY of course) without any problem. People mostly felt sorry for you because you rooted for one of the saddest franchises ever. Three Super Bowls later and they mostly want to get in your face. Now you wear your Pats jersey into enemy territory at your own risk.

We struck up some good-natured conversations with the Tampa fans around us, telling them their Dungy defense hadn't seen anything like Bledsoe and the Pats offense. I was feeling pretty confident. The Bucs scored the first 27 points. The Pats had three turnovers early in the game. Bledsoe was awful and didn't even throw for 100 yards. It was ugly. A preview as to what the Pete Carrol tenure would become. And the insults rained down on me and Brendan. But we continued to stay cool with the beverages and didn't let the ridicule bother us. As we left the stadium after the 27-7 thrashing, Bucs fans were thanking us for our team being so bad and inviting us to come back soon.

As we headed to the car we bumped into the cowboy hat guy. "Hey!" he shouted. "You were right. Your team is pretty darn good. About as good as a gator picked up off the side of the road!" Brendan and I headed out to eat away the loss at a local restaurant. "So what do you think of South Florida," he asked after our team got crushed. "Best trip I've ever had," I answered. "Best trip ever."

I might have had another one if the Pats and Bucs weren't moving the game to London. Instead I'll watch it from the couch. It's a huge game. A loss would mean they have to be perfect in the difficult four-game stretch that comes after the bye. A stretch of: home against Miami and the wildcat, at the Colts, home against the Jets, and at the Saints. That's the regular season right there. So a win against the Bucs means the Pats can go 2-2 in that stretch and be in good shape to win the division. Go 3-1 or better and they are a top three team in the league. A loss, in England, against the Bucs, means they have to go 3-1 or better in that stretch. You have to beat the teams you should beat. That, old chap, is what makes a game in London against a winless team a must win.

It's not easy being Green

Week 2 approaches and it's the renewal of the AFC East Holy War. Pats against the Jets. When I was a kid in the '70s, the war was with the Dolphins. That continued through the mid '80s, culminating in the '86 AFC Championship Game in Miami where the Pats exorcised all the Shula demons. But now it's the Jets. It's their last season at the Meadowlands in Jersey. Beating the Jets in the Meadowlands is the highlight of any regular season. OK, maybe a win in Denver is better. But that's only happened once in my lifetime so I don't expect it. But a win in the Meadowlands, that I look forward to every season. It doesn't always happen, but it often seems to happen at the right time.

The first road win against the Jets that I really remember is the playoff game in '86. It was the first of three straight road playoff victories (an NFL first) that, even though it led to the smackdown at the hands of the Bears in the Super Bowl, are still three of the greatest weekends I can remember. I can still see Andre Tippett slamming Ken O'Brien into the turf time and time again. But the Pats got whacked in the Super Bowl. That was always the thing about the Pats and the Jets rivalry. It was shared misery. Other than Broadway Joe's title in '67, the Jets and the Pats mirrored each other in futility and frustration.

That changed when Bill Parcells arrived and turned the Pats into a real NFL team. It was extra sweet to have Parcells be the one to do that because he was the man who led the NY Football Giants to two titles. We got the New York guy. The Big Tuna. The Jets floundered around with coaches like Coslet, Carroll, and Kotite while the Patriots headed to the Super Bowl. The two teams were going in opposite directions. And then, after losing the Super Bowl, Parcells decided to bolt the Pats. To the Jets. There was the Tuna in front of a Gang Green curtain with the hideous '90s Jets logo. He made his famous "Groceries" speech. The NFL version of Nixon's "Checkers" speech. "If they want you to cook the dinner, they at least ought to let you shop for some of the groceries," he said. Then he flashed his "you guys don't know shit" grin at the media -- which I usually loved. Not this time.

And to make matters worse Mr. Kraft made one of his few big misteps during his ownership. Hiring Pete Carroll. Oh sure. He's currently the king of college football, winning national title after national title with USC. But as a pro coach he was in over his head. He was bad with the Jets and worse with the Patriots. I think he single-handedly ruined Drew Bledsoe's career. Then Parcells started raiding the Pats roster, signing the best running back ever to play for the Pats: Curtis Martin. The team slowly declined under Carroll while the Jets got back to the playoffs under Parcells. The Big Tuna quickly grew tired of coaching again and decided to turn the reins over to his longtime protege Bill Belichick. And then the rivalry got really strange.

Let's see if I can recap this quickly: Belichick took the Jets job. Then next day he changed his mind and resigned as the "HC of the NYJ." Then the Pats sent the Jets a first-round pick for the rights to make Belichick their head coach. He then donned his grey hoodie and led the franchise to three titles in four years while the Jets fell to the basement. Then the Jets hired Belichick protege Eric Mangini. Then Mangini ratted on his old boss about that little video business Belichick had going on the side. And the hatred between the two franchises was cemented forever.

So now we head to Week 2 of the 2009 season and the Jets new coach Rex Ryan has decided to elevate the game to playoff importance level. Week 2. Ryan is a great addition to the rivalry. The perfect replacement to Mangini. He's calling Jets fans and leaving voice messages telling them to amp it up in the stands. Gotta love that. It's the last trip into the swamps of Jersey (barring a playoff game). It's always a fun time. The Pats have been mostly having their way with the Jets in recent years. It's going to take more than a Week 2 win by Ryan's Jets to change that.