SportsNetUSA Blogs

I apologize for not having any entries lately.  After last night I decided to write a short one.  I feel very confident that there can be no argument here.  I also want to dispel the rumor that I had sent a text to some of my teammates at SportsNetUSA.net, stating that I was done and was retiring from blogging.  I am due for some surgery this fall but expect to make a full recovery.  Okay, I am straying far from the point.

After watching the Hall of Fame Game, it is safe to say, the season is over!  I expect there will be little argument because it was pretty clear the Dallas Cowboys will be NFL Champs this coming February or  has the season been extended to March?  The Cowboys have it all now.  Great starting talent on both sides of the ball.  They have pretty good depth and the Super Bowl in their home stadium.  They have great assistant coaches and they have a great, okay make that a good….all right they have a somewhat good head coach.

So let me know all of you in the NFC, which of you will be playing for second place?  Over in the weaker league, which of you will choose to get whipped in the Super Bowl?  Those of you that are behind the San Diego Chargers I want to remind you that Norv Turner is still your head coach.  So take it from me now and save yourself a lot of hours on Sundays, it is over.  If you insist on watching pro football anyway then help save yourself many headaches and frustration and lower your expectations.  There is only one way this season can end.  The Dallas Cowboys are the Super Bowl Champions, print the caps and shirts now!

Well, so much for Peyton Manning being called the greatest ever.  I hope you were not near that bandwagon when people began leaping off with three minutes to go in the game.  Tracy Porter picked off Manning and sealed the victory and maybe two quarterback’s legacies.  You all know that Porter picked off Brett Favre in the NFC Championship and got a pick six against Manning.  The talk is that Manning is a great regular season quarterback but his record is only 9-9 in postseason play.  I do not know nor care what others try to make his legacy stand as a quarterback.  I do know that he will always be the all time favorite son in New Orleans.  Peyton was born there and went to high school there and there will be Saints fans always grateful that he helped deliver a Super Bowl victory to the former Aints.  There is already talk that this young Saints team could be on its way to a mini dynasty.  Drew Brees may play another five years or more. 

According to some you may as well find a spot in Canton for Sean Payton as he becomes the latest genius head coach.  It is too early for that but let’s give Sean his due, he coached a heck of a game and it was obvious he came to win.  So much for the Colts staying in the same hotel and all of that they have been there before advantage.  Payton was aggressive and Coach Caldwell too conservative for my taste.  The Colts will deny but the two games they gave away instead of trying to go undefeated sent a bad precedent.

I thought the turning point came in the first half when the Colts held on fourth down on their goal line.  Instead of picking up a first down and running out the clock they turned the ball back to the Saints which led to a field goal and cut the lead to 10-6 at halftime.  In the first half Garrett Hartley was huge in keeping New Orleans in the game.  Marques Colston could not be covered in the first half either.  Pierre Thomas definitely made a name for himself and demonstrated why Reggie Bush is mostly a special teams player and situational back

So at halftime the Colts had to believe they would go in and make adjustments and take control in the second half. There is not much to say about the halftime fireworks show.  I am racking my brain trying to figure out which rock act from the sixties or seventies is still left out there. Back to the game; Sean Payton stunned the world with his successful onside kick and then I think we knew we were in for a game.  I did not understand the field goal attempt by the Colts and Matt Stover.  Stover had not had a field goal over fifty yards since, well since he was well under the forty-two plus years he is now.  He did get a Super Bowl record being the oldest player to ever play in a Super Bowl.  This was the point where I felt the Saints were going to win the game.  Congratulations to the Saints and their fans.  This is another thing I never thought I would live long enough to see.  My whole life I only remember one person ever admitting he was a Saints fan.  So Justin, if you are out there somewhere, enjoy.

What a playoff run for the Saints.  They beat three Super Bowl winning quarterbacks in a row, Warner, Favre and Manning.  Drew Brees completed an astounding 72% of his passes with eight touchdowns and zero interceptions while racking up 732 yards.  Brees won the Super Bowl MVP award and gave himself a huge boost towards a Hall of Fame career if he continues for three or four years at this pace.  He already has 30,646 passing yards, 202-110 touchdowns to interceptions. He came to the Saints in 2006 and his lowest touchdown total is 26.  Funny how life works out sometime.  It seems like the Chargers had decided Drew was not their quarterback of the future and he basically held the job until Phillip Rivers was ready to go.  In the past a top quarterback would not pick New Orleans as the place to go as a free agent.  Yet, Brees does and has the good fortune to hook up with Sean Payton and also the good fortune to not play for Norv Turner.  The Chargers are set to sink with Norv.  He has a 90-98-1 record in 12 years as a head coach and has four teams in the playoffs in those twelve years.  The Chargers fired Marty Schottenheimer because he could not win in the playoffs.  Norv Turner is 3-3 in the playoffs and is rewarded with a contract extension.  Yes sir, life can be interesting.  Have fun Drew and no one would blame you if you were to say, I told you so.

To be honest I was waiting for some of my fellow friends on SportsNetUSA.net to blog first.  I was hoping that someone would write in and smash Brett Favre and then I could respond.  So far it has not happened.  The week after the NFL championships is usually a slow sports week.  This week has been no exception and already I want to scream.  It has me thinking I want to find a classical music station and stop listening to so much sports talk.  I would like to take a look back and a quick look forward to the Super Bowl.  Somewhere another tradition has bit the dust with the Super Bowl now in February instead of January.  Just think if they go to an eighteen game schedule maybe we can get the Super Bowl pushed to March and keep the draft in April and cut down the months in which there is no NFL.

Did you ever really worry when the Colts fell behind the Jets?  I never once believed in that game that the Jets were going to win.  The Jets are what they are, an up and coming team.  The Colts are already there.  The Colts have become the model organization in football.  It helps when you have guys like Dungy, Manning and Polian.  I am happy they are in and I believe they will beat the Saints.  I just want to see a good game because like last week I have no hatred for either team.  Normally I like to be really for or really against a team but not in this one.

I was very happy for the Saints and the city of New Orleans to beat the Vikings.  It is nice to see long suffering franchises win sometimes.  The Saints defense was something to watch and what a whipping they put on Favre.  Turnovers were the difference.  I do not see them getting to Peyton like they did Brett.  If the Saints win the Super Bowl that would be fine with me too.

I have no interest in the Pro Bowl at all.  Do not care when they play it or where they play it.  It is a useless exhibition and a waste of time.  Of course I believe every professional All Star game in any sport is a waste.  I have some ideas on what would make the game more interesting but don’t want to go into that now.

This brings me to the past week and all of the nonsense about legacy and who is the greatest.  I must learn to change the channel when this kind of talk comes up.  Where does Peyton Manning rank with the all time greatest quarterbacks?  What will Peyton’s legacy be if he wins or if he loses?  Brett Favre has all kinds of records but he is not among the all time quarterbacks because he has only one ring and he always throws an interception in the crucial moment of a game. Give me some Bach or Beethoven right about now.

Remember when the standard was if you won a Super Bowl?  Well now a quarterback or coach has to win more than one or they cannot be called great.  That is garbage.  Where did all of this legacy stuff come from?  The greatest of all time talk is comparable to me to which came first the chicken or the egg?  It is useless and yet I cannot stop listening or getting ticked off.  Peyton Manning will, if he stays healthy, pass most of Favre’s records.  He is and has been a great quarterback for some time now.  He will be a great quarterback if the Colts lose.  Favre is a great quarterback despite the interception and the Vikings loss.  Did I mention the greatest back in the league kept putting the ball on the carpet in that game?  Remember in the NBA playoffs last year and I railed against the “what is Kobe’s legacy if he loses?”  Kobe haters were chomping at the bit to say, see he never won one without Shaq.  I heard a guy say that he was not sure how to rate Montana because Joe had Jerry Rice and great players around him!  What!  Shut off your mike since I can’t seem to change the station.

That is what we have to look forward to now.  Grainy films of Joe in the Super Bowl and HD pictures of the current greatest of all time, Manning.  You know if Peyton wasn’t tall, athletic, blessed with a strong throwing arm, a dad named Archie, football smart, had great coaching, have a great offensive line, have a great game plan, play in today’s pass happy game, never have a major injury, get to run the no-huddle, play in an indoor stadium and have great receivers….if he didn’t have all of that, I am not sure I could call him great.  I know this is not grammatically correct but I hope the point is made.  Chicken or the egg, Manning or Montana, enough, stop it.  Now, how about some music!

This is a great weekend for the NFL.  I really like all four teams that are left with three teams I expected and one surprise.  Last week I admitted I was a lifelong Cowboy fan and I still am.  They stunk and were defeated by a superior Viking team.  Usually as a fan I personally like to cheer against teams as well as for teams.  In these two championship games there is not a team I dislike.  The Washington Redskins are a team that I will usually root against.  I used to root against the Raiders but they have been so bad that I actually feel sorry for the team and their fans.  It is bad when at the end of the season your most hyped player is your punter Shane Lechler!  This year I like all four teams so I am having trouble deciding which match up I would like to see in the Super Bowl.
 
Let’s start with the AFC first.  I am on record as I said when the season began that I like Rex Ryan as a coach.  He has breathed some fresh air into the league and does not always resort to using pat coaching answers.  Coaches usually say how good the opposition is and boy we are lucky to be on the same field with them.  We have a lot of things to work on and, well you know how they talk.  How many coaches have you heard say, I think we should be favored to win the Super Bowl!  Rex said it even though his team was lucky to make the playoffs.  I also like Mark Sanchez and I normally like to root for a California connection.  You had to love the dig he threw at Pete Carroll and Pete’s choice to go back to the NFL.  That was classic and I am happy that it has worked out for him.  I did not expect the Jets to be here.  Did the Chargers really give Norv Turner a contract extension?
 
I like the Colts and love Peyton Manning.  I was for him a few years back when they won the Super Bowl, as he and Tony Dungy both were able to shed the “Can’t win the Big One” label.  There was so much uncertainty coming into this season and then Peyton wins his fourth MVP.  I love Dallas Clark who is from Iowa and amazing.  Dallas may be headed to the Hall of Fame.  I will root for a player like Pierre Garcon from Division III Mount Union College.  Finally there is Austin Collie, a rookie from BYU and Oak Ridge High School in Northern California.  I have to root for this player and he even took two years off to go on a mission!  How many players are there that would take two years off and maybe lose a shot to play in the NFL?  I like both teams but I will be going for the Colts in this one.  The great thing is that if the Jets got in that makes for great story lines as well.
 
Over in the NFC we have the two best teams in the conference meeting up.  I have supported Brett Favre before the season began.  I have been amused this week in the way the talk has changed.  The Favre only came back to stick it to the Packers has given way to he came back to win the Super Bowl.  Do you wish sportscasters would admit when they were wrong?  I know that I do.  No big deal, if you were wrong so what.  Most of these guys now are raving about what a season Brett has had.  I have not heard that he will throw a pick and lose the game.  I have not heard that he cannot make it a full season.  He has had a memorable season and who knows about next year.  The Vikings have never won a Super Bowl and they have great fans that deserve one.
 
What is not to like about the Saints?  This franchise has never even been to the Super Bowl even though they have hosted it numerous times.  The Super Dome has been home to some of the biggest sporting events of all time.  These fans are hungry and they deserve to have their team as in the Super Bowl as well.  I loved Drew Brees at Purdue and with the Chargers.  What he has done in New Orleans is stunning.  Sean Payton was an assistant with the Dallas Cowboys and it was my hope that he would be the head coach there.  The timing was not quite right.  So I guess I do not have to say how much I like Payton.  If Reggie Bush has another game this week like last the Saints will win.  Where has that Reggie Bush been?  I thought that Reggie would be an all time great running back.  Is last week the game that maybe brings him back?  This one is tough but I will be pulling a little bit more for the Saints.  Enjoy this weekend because sometimes one or both of these games are better than the Super Bowl.

It has been a while my friends, but I have returned just in time for the NFL’s Second Season. I have to right? As always, four Wild Card Weekend games on the docket and three of them were actually played last week…well…kind of. Let us now take a look into the not-so-distant future and see what we have in store for Saturday and Sunday. And don’t worry, my full playoff prediction will come at the end, but let’s get to round one…..

AFC Wild Card Game #1

New York Jets at Cincinnati Bengals
Paul Brown Stadium Cincinnati, OH (Saturday January 9)

So we saw this game take place last week. At least we saw one team show up. You can say all you want about the Bengals actually trying to win the game at the Meadowlands on Sunday night, but c’mon…really guys? Carson Palmer went 1-11 with an interception. Plus, I scored as many points as the Bengals did and I watched the whole game from the comfort of my own workplace. Simply put, the Jets HAD to win to get in, the Bengals phoned it in to not get hurt. So for both teams, mission: accomplished. This Saturday, the whole environment will change. The game is in Cincinnati and the Bengals offense (especially Carson Palmer) will be ready to go. Palmer hasn’t played a playoff game since the Steelers took him out on the first play from scrimmage in the postseason a few years back, his only playoff appearance. He’ll be sharp and the Jets defense will run around trying to catch Bengal ball-carriers all day.

Prediction: Bengals 24, Jets 17
Key Factor: Cedric Benson (RB-CIN): With a lot to prove in the national spotlight, Ced helps out the Bengal passing attack by forcing the Jets to respect the run.

AFC Wild Card Game #2
Baltimore Ravens at New England Patriots
Gillette Stadium Foxborough, MA (Sunday January 10)

This game will be closer than most will expect. The Ravens half-backed in to the playoffs (like the Jets) and it took an 8-point victory over the Raiders to get them there. Foxboro is a tough place to go in Winter and the Patriots finished the season 8-0 at Gillette. the Ravens’ defense is still good and their offense has gotten much better in the passing game and with Offensive Rookie of the Year Ray Rice. The difference here is that no matter how bad the odds are stacked against New England, the Patriots always seem to win early-round games. Look for this week to be no different in a semi-low scoring affair.

Prediction: New England 20, Baltimore 16
Key Factor: Julian Edelman (WR-NE): With Wes Welker out for the Pats, Edelman will have to fill the role of “Go-to Receiver” when the Patriots are faced with 3rd and medium distances to go. Keeping drives alive are key to New England’s success.

NFC Wild Card Game #1
Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys
Cowboys Stadium Irving, TX (Saturday January 9)

Talk about a let down. One game to clinch a home date with the ‘Boys and the NFC East title and “BAM”- it all goes away in the blink of an eye. If the Eagles were content on letting Dallas beat them up like that with a lot on the line (and trust me, a home playoff game and a division title is a lot) then what might happen come Saturday night in “Big D?” I picked the Cowboys to be my sleeper team of the playoffs and with the way the defense has been clicking, I have no reason to believe otherwise in this game. Jay Ratliff was named to the Pro Bowl for a reason. He will get to Donovan McNabb in this game…maybe more than once. As for Philly, they better bring their “A” game and they need big plays from their wide receivers on offense. Donovan can’t carry a team the way he used to. This one could be a shootout if both teams are at their best.

Prediction: Dallas 31, Philadelphia 21
Key Factor: David Beuhler (K-DAL): Strange pick you say? Not quite my friends. The Eagles kick returners were amongst the best in the league in getting their team short fields. This pick could have easily been the entire special teams unit for Dallas, but Jerry Jones drafted the former USC kicker to drive the ball deep. The longer the field for the Eagles, the more chances the Cowboys defense will have to stop them.

NFC Wild Card Game #2

Green Bay Packers at Arizona Cardinals
University of Phoenix Stadium

This is the most difficult game to predict this weekend. Green Bay destroyed Arizona in the final game of the regular season, but the Cardinals seemed to back off because this game was going to happen on Sunday no matter what happened. They knew it’d be two weeks in a row against one another and the Cardinals didn’t want to showcase all of their weapons. Bad news for Arizona: looks like Anquan Boldin won’t play. Good news for Arizona: He missed their entire playoff run to the Super Bowl and only played in the Super Bowl. More bad news for Arizona: That was the only game they lost last postseason. Maybe they should keep him out…I’m just sayin’. Aaron Rodgers passed for over 4,000 yards. The Packers’ offense is good. The Cardinals’ defense is slipping a bit down the stretch. It should be a good one in the desert. Stay tuned.

Prediction: Green Bay 30, Arizona 24
Key Factor: Charles Woodson (CB-GB): Surprised by this pick? I didn’t think so. If Chuck can catch one or two of Kurt Warner’s pass attempts, he’ll probably run at least one back. If that happens, game over.

So there you go…a little analysis to get you ready for the first round of the playoffs. It’s gonna be fun, you can count on that. And real quick…here’s a lottery style ‘Quick Pick” for the rest of the playoffs before I have to analyze match-ups that I did NOT predict would happen.

Divisional Round Predictions:

AFC
San Diego over New England
Indianapolis over Cincinnati

NFC
Green Bay over New Orleans
Minnesota over Dallas

AFC Championship
San Diego over Indianapolis

NFC Championship
Green Bay over Minnesota

Super Bowl XLIV
San Diego over Green Bay

Yup…I actually said it.

Questions? Comments? Concerns? Complaints? You know what to do.

Until next time…..

As this year ends and I look forward to the New Year, I just hope that some of my holiday wishes come true.  Maybe the BCS will really understand that no matter what you (the BCS) do there is going to be many of us that will argue that your system is flawed and you should have left well enough alone. No playoff system, no computers judging teams, no strength of schedule, no more ranking all off the who, what, where of football. Let us go back to 7 to 8 traditional bowl games on New Year day and let us the FAN argue who should be number ONE (#1).

HEY NFL-the SUPER BOWL is about FOOTBALL, not the so-called build up that lets us the fan down because the hype is bigger than the game.  For all us hockey fans, I think all games should be played outside, it would shorten the season and hockey would only be played where hockey should be played, where it is freezing.

Not Below Average, I am sorry that is what I thought the N.B.A. initials stood for but I guess not, as this will be another year of sub par teams having a chance to call themselves WORLD CHAMPIONS. So may we have two divisions, those who can and those who cannot and the cannots are the NON-WORLD CHAMPIONS.

And let us call March Madness what it is: the madness of coaches and fans whose teams are left out of the elite group that is selected to play for an NCAA Championship.  Another tournament where we the fan can see a non-deserving team being crowned the best in the NCAA. HYPE-HYPE-HYPE. Plus if we are going to call it MARCH MADNESS let us put an equal sense of MADNESS for the MEN and the WOMEN, because some of us are FANS of both. EQUALITY!

Please someone shorten the season, Mike is eating too many post-game meals. Just how much baseball can we watch in sub zero winter gear? Mike looks horrible in a down filled jacket (he looks like an apple that should be dipped in caramel). Baseball is the game of spring, summer, and autumn, not the game of “it was a Cold Day at Lambeau field”.  Before I let you go baseball, how many bad teams do we have to watch? I feel as if you are taking on the NBA’s business plan. “psssst…hockey tried it and it does not work”.  Dump some clubs. Less teams, fewer games, more interest, and hey the season is shortened.

Watch out for that can, step over that person I think he is sleeping, for the rest of you NASCAR yahoos, please realize that there are other drivers out there that are not called “Junior”, I understand that fans love their heroes but NASCAR exist outside of the Confederate south. Wake up, you’re going to have an educated female driver on Junior’s teams, so understand that it is 2009 and fixing a flat is not done with bubble gum and you blowing on the tire stem  (The previous statement was not aimed at any NASCAR fans associated with SportsNetUSA.net).

Fore, or in the case of playing golf with any of us at SportsNetUSA.net, it is seven or eight. I will be the first to say-Michelle you may be on your way and that is good for the LPGA and that the shortened season will be good for women’s golf because then everyone will play. But please ladies stop hugging after you lose or play rotten, be like the rest of us ACT like YOU want to WIN. As a fan of the LPGA it drives me crazy that you just accept defeat as ho hum. As for the men, who cares? There are just too many mediocre millionaires, MEN SHOULD HAVE TO CUT THEIR GOLF PURSES SO THEY WORK FOR A LIVING.

Last but not least, could just once, or maybe even more than once, could a team WE broadcast for WIN an OVERTIME GAME, yes we are not just broadcasters we are FANS.

That’s it- Happy holidays from SPORTSNETUSA.NET and thank you all for listening to High School football, Fullerton College Football, Golden West Football, Sacramento City College Football, Anaheim Jr. Ducks Ice Hockey, Vanguard University Basketball and of course High School Sports Zone, Friday Night Mics and (New Notes! on 90.1 FM KBPK) have a great sports NEW YEAR

I did not watch the entire Patriots-Saints match up but I did see enough.  I saw enough to know that the Patriots dynasty as we have come to know it can be closed.  New England will probably make the playoffs this year but they will not win the Super Bowl and the aura has dimmed.  Bill Belichick is a great coach but it is no longer a given he is the best coach on the field.  I do not understand how the negatives never seem to stick to this coach and this team.  The NFL caught them cheating and fined for it.  Were they called cheaters?  No, most people I know shrugged and said, well all teams do that.  Really?  All teams secretly record the other teams and the NFL only picks out the marquee team to fine?  Sorry, I never bought that. 

The year the Colts won the Super Bowl they actually trailed the Patriots 21-6 at halftime before rallying to win.  Were the Patriots charged with being a team that could not close the deal?  Most people I know said well you can’t win them all.  The Patriots go undefeated and go to the Super Bowl against the Giants.  The Patriots are huge favorites against a Giants team that rallied to make the playoffs.  The so-called greatest quarterback and the best offense ever scores fourteen points and lose.  Did people then call the Patriots chokers?  No, it became more about the Giants winning than it was about the Patriots choking.  This coach and his team are like Teflon; nothing bad sticks to them.  I even heard before the Saints game that Brady was back to being Brady.  I heard that the genius Belichick would scheme and stop the Saints dead.  The Saints pounded them 38-17 and outplayed the Patriots in all aspects.  Now I hear that the defensive genius Belichick does not trust his defense and now must gamble on offense.  If he is a genius why not just fix the defense?  Belichick is a great coach but hold the genius talk please.

During the undefeated season and before the Super Bowl loss, the word genius was in front of Bill Belichick’s name always.  Many pundits claimed he was the greatest coach in the history of the NFL.  Why is it that his first head coaching stint in Cleveland is never mentioned?  Bill was 36-44 with the Browns and had only one winning season there.  He followed Pete Carroll at New England and lost his first year before winning three Super Bowls.  The genius took the so-called best quarterback of all time in the sixth round.  It took an injury to Drew Bledsoe before Brady got to play and then Bill really became a genius.  I am not one of those old guys that think all the players and coaches back in my day were the best.  I believe that overall there is stronger coaching and better athletes today.  I do not think there is much of a point in comparing coaches and players of different generations.  That is like comparing apples to a cross of an  apple and an orange.  The cross may look like an apple but it is still something different. 

Is Bill better than Lombardi?  Vince took a down franchise and turned them into champions.  He won championships before there were Super Bowls.  Is he better than the winning-est coach in history, Don Shula?  Don had success with the Colts and then took an expansion franchise in the Dolphins.  He won Super Bowls and had an undefeated season.  Is he better than Landry, Walsh and Chuck Noll.  I am saying let’s not be prisoner of our times and label someone a genius or the best ever.  The same can be said for Tom Brady, the greatest ever?  Is he better than Elway, Starr, Staubach, Graham, Bradshaw and Montana?  You can go back even further to Sammy Baugh and Sid Luckman.  The game and the rules were so much different then.

Years ago the defenses were dominating the NFL.  Fans always want to see more offense so rules were changed to open up the game.  Lineman could use their hands and receivers could only be hit five yards off the line of scrimmage.  Who knows if Jerry Rice would have all of the receiving records if he could have been pounded all over the field.  Rice would have been great in any generation and that is my definition of great.  I believe great coaches and athletes would find a way to be great in any era.  However, ask Lynn Swann if he would have liked to played the Raiders under today’s rules.  Players like Jack Tatum, George Atkinson and Mel Blount used to be merciless in smacking guys around.

The Patriots demise is because of loss of talent. Here is a list of players that are gone:  Teddy Brushi from Roseville High School in Nor Cal, Willie McGinest from USC and Long Beach Poly, Jr Redmond from Carson High School in LA, Adam Vinatieri, Deion Branch, Troy Brown, Mike Vrabel, Richard Seymour, Ty Law, Corey Dillon, David Givens, Chritian Fauria and Rodney Harrison.  That is way too much talent to be without.  They have also lost talented assistant coaches.  Assistant coaches do not get enough credit.  Most fans overlook the impact assistants have on their teams.  Gone are Charlie Weis, Romeo Crennel, Eric Mangini and Josh McDaniels.  Tom Landry had on his staff at one point: Gene Stallings who won a National Championship at Alamba, Dan Reeves took two teams to the Super Bowl and Mike Ditka won one with the Bears.  Landry lost those three guys and the team began to slide.  The Patriots also lost their president of player personnel, Scott Pioli.  

Brady and Belichick may be able to rebuild but the odds are neither will win another Super Bowl.  So let’s call them very good, excellent and even great.  Spare me the title of genius or best of all time.  The Patriots as we knew them are over.