<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (blackadder @ Feb 17 2008, 06:53 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Will anything less than a perfect season and winning Super Bowl 43 be considered a failure?</div> I don't think Patriot fans care as much about a perfect season. This year was definitely a bust but why would winning Superbowl 43 with a 12-4 record be failure?
winning a SB is not a faliure, no matter how you do it, they will strive for that any thing else is a bonus, if they go into SB 43 with an 18-0 record, the pressure will be sooo huge, itll be unbareable
I think it's a little too early to determine what the Patriots team goals should be. I think we need to watch to see how Spygate II pans out. If Goodell and Kraft fail to suppress the truth, then Goodell's hand may be forced into giving the Patriots and/or Belicheat a stiffer penalty such as a suspension for Belicheat. Now, I'm sure there is no way that Goodell will give Belicheat a year suspension, but giving Belicheat a six game suspension could affect the Patriots. Losing a few games during that suspension could give another AFC team a crack at taking the number one seed going into the playoffs. Another thing to watch for is injuries. The Patriots have played deep into the playoffs the last couple of years and I believe that usually catches up with a team sooner or later and causes them to have a season where they have a letdown. With the Patriots linebackers getting older and Samuel probably on his way out, the defense may be the unit where the cracks show first. On the other hand, the Pats offense (provided they resign Moss and Moss doesn't go to jail or get suspended) should be ready to roll and that will leave the Patriots the ability to concentrate on upgrading the defense. I have a lot of respect for the real mastermind of the Pats, Scott Pioli, so the Pats may end up in great shape. Since I brought it up, what about Randy Moss? I don't know if he can get jail time if found guilty of injuring the lady who had filed charges against him and preventing her from getting medical attention, but I would think that Goodell would have to suspend him. If the Pats franchise Moss only to lose him for some time, how would that hamper their passing attack? I think Brady is dangerous, with or without Moss, but is clearly more dangerous with him. Regardless, Randy should benefit from being under the Kraft/Belicheat umbrella when it comes to Roger the Dodger. Goodell has a tendancy to rule with a racist double standard when it comes to white coaches, like Belicheat, and black athletes, like Pacman Jones*, but Randy is a Patriot and being a Patriot has it's perks. *My intent is not to defend a punk like Pacman Jones, but the truth is that Jones didn't have a single conviction at the time of his suspension nor did his run-ins with the law have anything to do with cheating in the NFL and he was erased from the game by Goodell. Belicheat assaulted the integrity of the game and Goodell slapped him on the wrist. That's a double standard in the eyes of anyone with an ounce of objectivity.
