Many NFL coaches fear the Patriots because they can win in so many ways. Brady is the only star on offense and defense is loaded. One more Super Bowl win and this team is a dynasty. Colts are the only AFC team capable of that this year. Titans and Dolphins lost their star on offense. Chiefs are one dimensional.

By september of 2005, there will be 3 championship banners at gillette stadium.

whoever said that the patriots werent favored to win that superbowl BEFORE the season is clueless. they had 7-1 odds the summer before the season started...the highest odds of any team. get a clue

cant *&^%$ stand em

This team is the biggest fluke of them all. They are such a joke. I agree with what others said about the weak schedules being a factor in their victories. Same with the two Super Bowls. Weak scheduling caused them to go on a roll while only beating one good team (my Indianapolis Colts), and hence won the superbowl. The Patriots are overrated, they'll suck this year, wait and see.

how is it possible that the pats are ranked lower then the titans?!!! it just doesnt make sense

Yeah, they had a weak schedule that first superbowl win, but this year they played 9 games, and won, against teams with 10 or more wins at the end of the season. They beat the 2 co-MVP's - twice. They will have Ty Law this year, he's under contract. If he throws this season then he's cutting his own throat, everyone will blame it on his being old and they won't pay the cash he's looking for. The Patriots have the best overall team, that's all there is to that.

look for the patriots to fall off again in the following season especially without ty law. somehow i can see this team lacking leadership even with tom brady who is talented but definitely not the top qb. and for everyone who says he looks like joe montana, get your own opinion everywhere on the media they've been saying that tom brady looks like tom brady.

ooo i hate them they suck no offence ok d but i hate them

I'm going to come to Chauncey's defense on this one. He wrote his comment in September, before the season got underway. He was not alone with his opinion - many football experts predicted that the Patriots would not even make the playoffs this past year. Secondly, when the Patriots won the Super Bowl 2 seasons ago Chauncey's right when he said that they had an easy schedule because they were a weak team the season before. Granted, any wild card that wins a Super Bowl has to really come together in the playoffs and the quarterback must prove to be a leader, however they weren't a powerhouse division winner like the Cowboys or 49'ers of the nineties. These teams each put together some solid seasons even though they had the toughest schedules in the league. Lastly I think Brady is one of the better quarterbacks in the league but not the best - Co-MVP's McNair and Manning are more talented and explosive.

Gee I wonder if the reason why Tara Reid was hitting on Tom Brady had something to do with the fact that he won a Super Bowl. Still, Brady deserves credit with pushing aside the overrated Drew Bledsoe and turning a decent team into a pretty damn good one. It looks like they're resembling the team that won the Super Bowl again, although they won't go that far this year. I expect 11-5 or 10-6 and probably the AFC East crown, and they will possibly win their first playoff game and make it to the AFC title game. That's where the ride should end, but this is a tough defensive team that knows how to win and doesn't make to many mistakes.

My screen name says it all! They showed what teamwork is all about when they won the Superbowl; they were introduced as a team and that is how they play.

Rating football teams seems like a pointless exercise. But I've been a Pats fan since I could crawl.

Great team with a great coach and a great owner!

looking like the SB team....a fluke...

I just gave them an extra star for that draft. Never mind who they actually picked this year, but Scott Pioli used a reusable franchise label on a free agent to wheedle a third round pick out of nothing. Then the Pats traded a three for a two next year. Then they manufactured another free second round pick and drafted a low first round player (on most draft boards) with that pick. So, why didn't they just steal the number one guy in the whole draft? Wait, that's coming next year! . . . Ty Warren was a reach. In Ty's defense, he has something that DeWayne doesn't have: reach. Ty is close to six foot five with long arms; Short DeWayne has stubby little arms and legs. A sack is a six yard loss, but a pass tipped straight up in the air at the goal line can cost seven points potentially lost for the offense and another seven for the defensive touchdown. For example, do you remember the Super Bowl interception against the Rams that got called back? That was a 14 point shift.

They're better than the Whine-ami Dolfarts

Today's Pats play gutsy, tough defensive football and bring the game back to it's roots. Although Drew Bledsoe won the SB as a backup, I'm glad he was there to get a ring. He took such a godawful beating back there during the Pete Carroll days, I'm surprised he's still able to play. A much better football team than they used to be.

During the 2001 season, I never saw a team play with more heart during the playoffs (except for the 1996 Jaguars, God Bless Them). Tom Brady is good, but plays in spurts. It's no surprise that they didn't live up to their expectations last season, and with Miami, Buffalo, and the Jets all on the upswing, the stagnant Patriots are going to slup it out for last place in the AFC EAST.

MAN I CAN'T STAND THESE GUYS. THEY ARE NOT THAT GOOD PEOPLE. THEY SNUCK UP ON EVERYONE 2001. I MEAN LOOK AT IT, A 70 YEAR OLD MAN CAN SNEAK UP ON TYSON AND TAKE HIM OUT IF HE DOES IT RIGHT

A freak SB win, they're dropping back to where they belong now.

I think the Pats are a pretty good team, but not good enough to be at #4. So even though i'd normally give 'em a 4, i'm giving them one star to put them back down a little. Oh, and I hope that punk Brady re-sets the record for sacks taken next year.

Pats rule! All you detractors didn't take long to jump off the bandwagon. I was in attendance to the least attended game in Pats history, 1000 against the Jets in a snowstorm. On the flip side, I was there for the AFC Championship in 97 and the Snow Bowl in 02. I'll be there no matter what and I wish all you fairweather fans would stay home so I wouldn't have to put up with you getting sick the three times a year you drink. GO PATS!!!!

Antwain Smith is the future for New England. Their defensive secondary is 2nd to none and the inside containment is too much for most offenses. The run defense lacks but the offense makes up for it!

nice loss!

Tom Brady just having a bad year. Dont worry tom there is always next year. Hey if he can win a superbowl when your a rookie and win it like that, expect greatness. Go UofM!!

They showed last year what teamwork can do. They have no major stars, and proved to eveyrone you don't need one to win it all. Great teammwork, great coaching, great year. And whoever said the Rams were paid to lost the superbowl should be shot, do you seriously think that is what happened?

I have respect for this team. They fought and scratched to get where they got during 2001.

there aren't enough stars here - I give them a 10~

9-11. The RAMS were paid to lose the SUPERBOWL. PATRIOT MY ASS!

their fans are idiots

Luckiest team ever. I can't believe they beat the 3 best teams in succession last season. I think there was some sort of fix involved....hhahahaha, but anyway, I can't wait til the Steelers go up there and give them a house warming party for their new stadium.....

What can you say about the Super Bowl champions? I'd like to point out what someone else posted here a few *years* ago. The guy gave them one star. "This year anyway. An offensive line who can't block, an immobile QB, and an underachieving defense is not a recipe for success.". Look at the Pats now. They have a great offensive line. An immobile QB? Well, Tom is like Drew in that respect, but he can run around a bit...lol. But the part that really got to me was the underachieving defense bit. I'm sure that was true then. I just love our defense now. Ty Law and Lawyer Milloy are playing better than ever and we've got a *rookie* named Richard Seymour who's turning heads. Willie McGinest and Otis Smith, our veterans, play with more guts and fire than most younger players. This *comment* is already taking too long, but I just wanted to put my two cents in. I enjoyed reading old comments and I've loved watch this team morph into a defensive superpower with Bill Belichick at the helm.

Super Bowl champs, and they earned it!

They won, and they are good!

It was great to seem them beat the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI !!

better than the rams. hahahahahahahahahahahaha

they should win the super bowl

they should win the superbowl. so they get 5 stars!!!!!!

They were terrible this past season, but they're still my team no matter what!!!!!

This year anyway. An offensive line who can't block, an immobile QB, and an underachieving defense is not a recipe for success.

Have you seen this team this year?

New England made an executive decision when they acquired Drew Bledsoe. Although the team lost Curtis Martin (whom they should have kept), Bledsoe still gives the team an offensive attack that cannot be overlooked by any opponent.

CAN'T UNDERSTAND THIER PROBLEM. HAVE A GOOD QB COULD IT BE A PROBLEM AMONG SOME OF THE PLAYERS?

fantastic!!!!!!!

Hate most Boston teams - but i kind of have a soft spot for the Pats. i don't know why really. Bledsoe is having a great year.

I love em

They could go ALL THE WAY!

Great qb but weak running game. Ty law having an off year, along with the reat of the 2ndry.