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[SIZE=+2]Spy controversy galvanizes Patriots
[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]11:55 AM CDT on Thursday, October 11, 2007
[/SIZE]
http://www.***BANNED-URL***/sharedcontent/dws/img/standing/sports/columnists/mugs/mug_abreer.jpg
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FOXBORO, Mass. – The Patriots were already going to be among the NFL's elite.
The last thing the rest of the league needed to do was dump a can of gasoline on the fire.
But, believe it or not, that's just what happened when accusations of Bill Belichick's staff stealing signals surfaced in early September. Where some thought those might provide a distraction, or work to drive wedges between coaches and players, the reality is that Spy-gate did little more than galvanize a team that didn't need much help being great.
Suddenly, all the hosannas and well-wishes sent to a loaded roster in the preseason had devolved into a cavalcade of criticism. Just as quickly as all marveled at the off-season augmenting of a team that was coming off a last-minute loss in the AFC title game, every Patriots accomplishment, both of the present and the entire Belichick era, was called into question.
And so it was that after New England flattened the Chargers, 38-14, in the first game after the story broke, an angry tenor permeated the Patriots' locker room.
"I got something to say to all the players in the league who wanted to comment on this," said captain Tedy Bruschi. "I saw some of the stuff they were saying. If you were on past teams and you got doubts, you got all these hypotheticals, I got a hypothetical for you:
"Let's get all the players that played with us and bring them back. And let's bring all the players that you had and bring them on your team. And let's play again. We would win again. Period."
Through all of their Super Bowl years, the Patriots played with a similar chip on their shoulder. But that one was different, concerning a perceived – and it was certainly a ridiculous perception at times – lack of respect accorded their team.
After acquiring the talent the Patriots did, names like Randy Moss, Adalius Thomas and Wes Welker, even this team knew that rallying cry was no longer applicable. And clearly, the team spent the preseason trying to dispel the notion that it could dominate the league simply by rolling the footballs out of the closet.
What the camera fiasco gave the Patriots was a legitimate reason to grow another chip on their collective shoulders. So they'll show no mercy. They scored a touchdown on a fourth down late in the San Diego game, went for it on another such fourth down against Cleveland, and have shown little hesitancy to pour it on for posterity's sake.
This is what the Cowboys are up against Sunday. And really, there's enough blame for that to go around.
[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]11:55 AM CDT on Thursday, October 11, 2007
[/SIZE]
http://www.***BANNED-URL***/sharedcontent/dws/img/standing/sports/columnists/mugs/mug_abreer.jpg
• E-mail
FOXBORO, Mass. – The Patriots were already going to be among the NFL's elite.
The last thing the rest of the league needed to do was dump a can of gasoline on the fire.
But, believe it or not, that's just what happened when accusations of Bill Belichick's staff stealing signals surfaced in early September. Where some thought those might provide a distraction, or work to drive wedges between coaches and players, the reality is that Spy-gate did little more than galvanize a team that didn't need much help being great.
Suddenly, all the hosannas and well-wishes sent to a loaded roster in the preseason had devolved into a cavalcade of criticism. Just as quickly as all marveled at the off-season augmenting of a team that was coming off a last-minute loss in the AFC title game, every Patriots accomplishment, both of the present and the entire Belichick era, was called into question.
And so it was that after New England flattened the Chargers, 38-14, in the first game after the story broke, an angry tenor permeated the Patriots' locker room.
"I got something to say to all the players in the league who wanted to comment on this," said captain Tedy Bruschi. "I saw some of the stuff they were saying. If you were on past teams and you got doubts, you got all these hypotheticals, I got a hypothetical for you:
"Let's get all the players that played with us and bring them back. And let's bring all the players that you had and bring them on your team. And let's play again. We would win again. Period."
Through all of their Super Bowl years, the Patriots played with a similar chip on their shoulder. But that one was different, concerning a perceived – and it was certainly a ridiculous perception at times – lack of respect accorded their team.
After acquiring the talent the Patriots did, names like Randy Moss, Adalius Thomas and Wes Welker, even this team knew that rallying cry was no longer applicable. And clearly, the team spent the preseason trying to dispel the notion that it could dominate the league simply by rolling the footballs out of the closet.
What the camera fiasco gave the Patriots was a legitimate reason to grow another chip on their collective shoulders. So they'll show no mercy. They scored a touchdown on a fourth down late in the San Diego game, went for it on another such fourth down against Cleveland, and have shown little hesitancy to pour it on for posterity's sake.
This is what the Cowboys are up against Sunday. And really, there's enough blame for that to go around.
