New England Patriots 2009 Preview

New England Patriots 2009 Preview

You should never count out the Patroits, even without Tom Brady. The Patriots managed to go 11-5 last year and just missed the playoffs for the first time since 2002. It’s very rare to see a team with 11 wins not make the playoffs but if that’s considered a bad year than getting Tom Brady back with the mastermind Bill Belichick on the sidelines, making it to the Super Bowl is not a long shot by any means.
Offseason Transactions
The biggest moves happened off the field, as VP of Player Personnel Scott Pioli left for Kansas City and traded for quarterback Matt Cassel after his solid season filling in for Brady. The Patriots also lost offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who left to coach in Denver. On the field, linebacker Mike Vrabel joins Cassel in Kansas City, and corner Ellis Hobbs was traded to Philadelphia. Losing Jabar Gaffney was offset with the acquisition of Joey Galloway, and the same goes for Shawn Springs, who replaces Ellis Hobbs. Finally, another veteran, Fred Taylor was brought in from Jacksonville, and Rodney Harrison retired after an injury-plagued last couple of seasons.

Offense
Where to start? Brady is back, and we all know what he did the last time he was healthy: shattered a bunch of passing records and won the MVP award. Randy Moss and Wes Welker both had 1,000-yard seasons, and they’re joined by the veteran Galloway, who still has enough speed to stretch a defense. The Patriots are insanely deep at running back, and Taylor will challenge Laurence Maroney for the starting job. You can also bet that the offensive line, led by left tackle Matt Light, will be extra diligent in protecting Brady this year. It’s essential to their Super Bowl odds. But history has shown that the recovery from such a knee injury does take time to regain mobility and people are hold their breath just a little in New England.
Defense
The Patriots were 10th in defense last year, and Brandon Merriweather will do just fine in replacing Harrison as he was second on the team in tackles and first in picks. Springs was brought in for depth, but he could very well start over Jonathan Wilhite at the corner. Jerod Mayo led the team in tackles and is a Defensive Player of the Year candidate, but Tedy Bruschi is still the heart and soul of the defense. Up front, Vince Wilfork spent the summer trying to get a new contract, but he says he’s focused on football. How the big guy does up front will affect so much of how New England’s defense will do, especially in such a heavy running style division.
Outlook
Odds makers have the Patriots favored to win the AFC East, the AFC and the Super Bowl. Amazing what one player coming back can do for a team, However, a lot of the credit has to go to Belichick, who can get players to listen better than anyone in the game (see Moss, Randy). Even with all the off-field changes, Belichick still rules this team with an iron fist, and it’s worked out pretty well in the past. One possible problem: the Patriots have the third-toughest schedule in the league, and they’ll also head to London on October 25th to face Tampa Bay. Still, if their star players stay healthy, Belichick will be on top of his game, and a trip to the AFC championship game is the least of their expectations. New England has an excellent chance to bounce back to the power house 16-0 team, although this league rarely see dynasties anymore and some may question if this team is overrated because of the all the previous years success

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