On schedule

The NFL continues to pretend as if nothing's wrong (i.e. that the owners and players aren't locked in a fatal game of chicken) as we head through the offseason.

The draft is just a few days away and young players will don hats and shake hands in NYC with Mr. Clueless Commissioner -- but it's looking less and less like those drafted will be putting on anything more than a hat any time soon.

In keeping with the "what lockout?" theme, the league announced (to much fanfare) it's 2011 imaginary schedule. (Check out the great graphic on NFL.com) When the 2010 schedule came out this time last year, I optimistically predicted the Pats would finish 13-3. Even with Brady and Belichick at the helm, I felt I was being very optimistic. I wasn't. The Pats exceeded even the rosiest of opinions with a 14-2 record and one of the most entertaining regular seasons in memory. If there ever is a 2011 season, a look at the schedule shows it should be another fun one.

WEEK 1 @ Miami
A few years back those in charge of the NFL thought "What's better than one Monday night game to start the season?" Two of course. That was in the days when those running the league had nothing but great ideas. Oh, I miss those days. The Patriots will go to South Beach for the early game of the MNF double-header. Miami is a team in transition -- again. Under coach Tony Sparano the Fish have gone from surprise division winners to 7-9 and out of the playoffs in three years. But he's a good coach and the team was smart to stick with him. That said, the Pats should start off with a road win in the division against the offensively-challenged Dolphins.

WEEK 2 vs. San Diego
The home opener brings the first of the four AFC West opponents the Pats will play to Gillette. The Chargers were not able to make their late season run to the division title as they always seem to do, coming up just short at 9-7. But they are a tough team to beat and the Pats were lucky to get out of SD last year with an early-season win. The Pats have been great in home openers under Belichick and this one should be no different. Pats get off to a 2-0 start.

WEEK 3 @ Buffalo
Make that 3-0. There will be lots of talk about "trap games" leading up to this one. The Pats have not lost to the Bills since -- well, a long, long time. And they won't lose this one. The Bills may be improving slightly under second-year coach Chan Gailey, but they still have a long way to go. The fact that the game is in Week 3 and not Week 13 means the Pats won't have to worry about playing one of those 6-3 games in a blizzard. Maybe.

WEEK 4 @ Oakland
Ah, Al Davis and the Raiders. The Pats haven't played the Silver and Black since Matt Cassell was filling in for Brady. The Pats romped that time and I would expect the same. The Raiders made solid strides last year under coach Tom Cable which meant, of course, that Davis would fire him. He replaced him with Hue Jackson. If you look at his resume on NFL.com it says after every coaching statistic... No Stats Available. Nice going, Al. Pats get to 4-0.

WEEK 5 vs. NY Jets
OK, now the season really begins. Rematch time. A 4 p.m. game in early October in Foxborough. This is why me, Mark, Shep, Bergs, and Matt still love packing up our cars and going to the games. I can already smell the meat grilling. There's a good chance both teams will be 4-0 or 3-1 at this point and this will be a huge game in deciding who will win the AFC East, the goal that Rex Ryan has finally realized has to come before you can get to the Super Bowl. Since it's at Gillette I'm going with Brady and the Pats. That's right, I've got them at 5-0. It's only April. I'm just making this up. Who the heck knows what will happen.

WEEK 6 vs. Dallas
The last game before the much-needed bye brings Jerry Jones and his Cowboys to Gillette. It's always a circus when the team with the star on its helmet comes to town. Dallas can't be as bad as it looked at the start of last season. The team pulled it together a little after finally dumping Wade Philips. But are they better enough to come into Gillette on a Sunday afternoon and knock off the Pats? No.

WEEK 7 Bye
So that means I have the Pats coming into the bye at 6-0. It's not that much of a stretch. 4-2 seems worst-case scenario. The Pats are home for only three of the first seven weeks of the season. That's not so good when it comes to tailgating. There's nothing better than September and early October football at Gillette. Nothing better. But it is very good when it comes to the second half of the season. The Pats get to play five home games after the bye. That will mean a lot of tailgating in the cold. And hopefully a lot of victories.

WEEK 8 @ Pittsburgh
This Sunday afternoon game starts the heart of the schedule. Till the Pats get to Washington in Week 15 they will get no breathers. The Pats went into Pittsburgh last year and took it to the Steelers for the win that set the tone for the rest of the regular season. The Pats will have two weeks to get ready. Belichick's success rate after byes is outstanding. But I think Big Ben and the Steelers hand the Pats their first loss of the season.

WEEK 9 vs. NY Giants
The first real meeting between these two teams since that little Super Bowl in the winter of '08. Asante Samuel will not be on the field to miss easy game-clinching picks this time. Devin McCourty will be in his place. The Giants have been an up-and-down team since the Super Bowl but I expect them to be up again in 2011. Tom Coughlin still has the hearts and minds of his players. But I expect the Pats to get back on the winning track at home heading into the biggest road game in years.

WEEK 10 @ NY Jets
The Pats win this one. I already have a gut feeling about that. I don't know what will happen if they meet again in the playoffs, but I think Brady and the Pats are due to go into the Meadowlands and come away with a huge victory. They have come close the last few times. I think the Pats D will be able to shut down Sanchez and Co. and get the W. That would put the Pats at 8-1 and in total control of the AFC East. As it should be.

WEEK 11 vs. Kansas City
Love the Chiefs. I picked them to win the AFC West last year and although they almost choked and gave it away -- they didn't. And they should be even better in 2011. Although getting rid of Charlie Weiss was not so smart. I love the history of the Chiefs. The uniforms. The connection to the Pats. If the Pats don't win the Super Bowl in 2011 (or whenever the league plays again) then I'll be rooting for the Chiefs. But not on this day. Pats will beat New England West.

WEEK 12 @ Philadelphia
Andy Reid and the Eagles just keep on truckin. While the rest of the teams in the NFC East are up and down and up and down ... the Eagles just keep winning and making the playoffs. Where they just keep losing. If Michael Vick has managed to stay out of trouble by this time I think the Eagles hand the Pats their second loss of the season. It should be a hard-fought game and these two could meet again come February.

WEEK 13 vs. Indianapolis
The Colts again? Why don't they just move them back into the AFC East? Of course it's a Sunday night game so the whole country can root for good-guy Peyton against pretty boy Tom. It's the best rivalry in sports and, like last year, will be one of the best home games of the season. As long as the Pats win. The Colts are getting older while the Pats are getting younger. Pats 10-2.

WEEK 14 @ Washington
The Redskins are one of those teams that you really can't know anything about in April. They are likely to be a .500 team but might start to improve in coach Mike Shanahan's second season. Then again, Shanahan's first year was so full of turmoil and QB Donovan McNabb was so erratic that's it's hard to see them being anything but an easy late-season road win.

WEEK 15 @ Denver
The Pats won't go 14-2 in back-to-back seasons. The Broncos, who should be better this year, will make Denver once again a tough place for the Pats to win. A Pats loss in Week 15 will result in a slew of stories and sports blab radio talk about how they have lost three on the road, making them vulnerable come playoff time. All it will mean is the Pats will have to win their last two home games of the year to lock up the key first-round bye. That shouldn't be a problem.

WEEK 16 vs. Miami
The Pats finished out last season with back-to-back games against the Bills and the Dolphins. They play them again, this time in reverse order and this time both at home. It's a good way to finish. The Dolphins have had very little luck with late-season games in the cold of Gillette. This one should be no different. Unless Miami surprises and puts together a solid year, this will be a case of the Pats locking up a bye against an overmatched opponent and giving me and the gang a fun way to celebrate Christmas Eve.

WEEK 17 vs. Buffalo
See above. The Pats will close out at home against Buffalo and most of the talk will probably center on who Belichick will rest for the playoff run. The talk will also center on New Year's Day hangovers (Bloody Marys a must) and college bowl games. This will be a game where many tailgating regulars will want to give away their tickets. Not me. New Year's Day at Gillette sounds like a great way to kick off 2012.

So for the second year in a row I see the Pats -- optimistically -- coming in at 13-3 and winning their division and a first-round bye. That's what being a fan is all about. Optimism. The great thing about rooting for the Pats is that -- at least for the past decade plus -- that optimism is often rewarded.