The New Patriot Act

by Mike Prince

It’s called taking the best team, and making them even better.

Will the Patriots ever lose another game in this decade? Debatable.

Can the Patriots even get better than they are now? Yes they can. And yes they will.

Will the Patriots be better than they are now, next season? Absolutely.

Does anyone have the right to guarantee a win over the Patriots? Absolutely not. Not for a very long time.


Bill Belichick and the Patriots might be in the preliminary stages of a super dynasty

The thing about the Patriots is that they are already better than what they put out on the field every weekend, but no one cares to realize it. The Patriots have arguably one of the best offenses in the history of the National Football League. And it isn’t even all that it may be in the next couple years.

I have two names to prove my theory: Chad Jackson and Darren McFadden.

Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Donte’ Stallworth, Jabar Gaffney and Ben Watson. And even veteran Kyle Brady, who was once a top-10 pick in the NFL draft, Troy Brown who was once one of the best receivers in the league, and the well-sized Kelly Washington. This is the wide receiving corp. that the New England Patriots currently have, not to mention they have three-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Tom Brady throwing the ball in their direction.

With an offense that could run over the ’85 Bears or the ’00 Ravens, they really don’t need any more help. Thing is though, they have it right there waiting for them if they need to start beating teams by more than an average of 22 points a game.

People look at the current Patriots offense and they forget about the fact that they have a first-round pick in the backfield that is only 22 years old, and an offensive line that, at the end of the game, still keeps Tom Brady famous for having the cleanest jersey on the field.

Add this to the equation: A wide receiver that is younger than Lawrence Maroney, and was good enough to be the second-highest drafted receiver in the league only a year ago.

Chad Jackson.

A 6’1”, 215-pound starting wide receiver out of the University of Florida, who was rated as the top wide receiver coming out of college in 2006. The Patriots are 13-0, score an average of nearly 40 points a game, and doing it all without this guy even on the field to show off his talent and score even more points for the current Super Bowl favorites.

The team is unstoppable. And things are only getting worse for the rest of the NFL.
When the 2008 season starts, and the Super Bowl rings are being handed out to the te
am, the Patriots are going to have the same team on the field as they do this year – only add Chad Jackson and a first first-round draft pick to the mix.

Didn’t the Patriots get their first pick taken away from them by the league, you may ask? Yeah, they did, but the 49ers decided to take their first round pick in 2008 and basically gift wrap it for New England like an early Christmas gift with a nice little card reading, “Please take this and make your team even more dominating.”

The 49ers then decided to have one of the worst seasons possible and, if all goes to plan, will finish with the second worst record in the league, giving the Patriots the opportunity to take almost anyone they want in the draft.

If he’s available, the Patriots (if their organization is as smart as everyone thinks they are) won’t take a page from the Houston Texans drafting theory that states, “we already have a running back, so let’s pass up on one of the most talented players ever to come out of college for a player that might help our team out,” ala Mario Williams for Reggie Bush.

So, you take the 2007 New England Patriots and start the 2008 season with the same guys on the field. Then you add Chad Jackson as a third receiver and the multi-talented Darren McFadden in the backfield, and you have an offense that could probably beat the NFC’s starting Pro Bowl defense in Honolulu a week after possibly running all over the NFC champions a week before.

McFadden is the ideal running back. He’s 6’2”, 210 pounds, has 4.5 or better speed, can cut like LT, run over defenses like Emmitt, and put up almost 200 yards in a win over the number-one team in the nation, putting him right back up in the Heisman race.

And we’re not even talking just a dynasty for the next couple years (besides the three rings that are already on Brady and Belichick’s fingers from before). With McFadden and the rest of the team, the future looks bright for the Patriots for a very long time. Putting Maroney and McFadden in the backfield gives them a two-headed monster. It gives each player half the playing time that a normal running back would have starting on any other team, not to mention that with the passing game, they won’t even be needed as much as a normal running back would.

A running back’s career tends to be the shortest of any position player in the NFL. When coming back from injuries, players are always asked if they’re 100 percent. Well the theory on running backs is that “after your first carry, you’re never 100% again,” according to all-time great Emmitt Smith.

With McFadden and Maroney sharing carries in the backfield, their careers could be that much better, with each of their bodies carrying half the load. Take Brian Westbrook, who has 30-40 touches a game, and put him up against another player that only has about 15-20 touches a game, and see whose career lasts longer. It is a prime position for a team to be in. Some teams make deals to win immediately. Some teams build for the future.

The Patriots have the chance to do both. And with their management and coaching staff, it will happen.

New England’s destiny is basically in its own hands. And that may be the scariest thing to think of if you are a fan, player or coach of any other of the 31 teams in the National Football League.
So, is anyone against a fantasy draft? Split up all the players. Give every team a clean slate and new opportunity. Make things “fair.”

Ricky Williams may not be too happy relying on a team other than Miami picking him up and offering him a contract to his liking.

I doubt any other Dolphin player or fan would have a problem with this, though.