Magical Land of New England....... For Now

You have to give it up to New England. When has there ever been a city where EVERY single sports team has been so good? Never might cover that answer. Everything seems set up for perhaps the best year for a single city in the history of history. The Celtics are 24-3, the pats are undefeated, and both are challenging for the best single season ever had in terms of victories and other stats by any team. O, before we forget those Red Sox happen to be the World Series Champs. What could go wrong?



The first sign came with Boston College. BC was undefeated poised to be in the BCS championship game, even if they lost one of their final five games. They possessed an extremely good QB, perhaps the best seen in Boston College sports since some guy named Doug Flutie. But alas, BC fell, and fell hard. 2-3 hard. A record thats is unacceptable in any conference, even the SEC or PAC-10, let alone in the Big East. Now they are playing in a bowl, but a meganingless bowl, played even before the New Year has passed.



Now let us look at the remaining teams, with the patriots up first since their season is closer to finishing. True, their 15-0 season has been historic, and they have areally good shot at being the first team in the history of the NFL to go 16-0. Granted they have a all-world Q in Tom Brady and a WR core that is probably the best ever assembeled. But there is indeed a blueprinted, revealed by Jimmie Johnson, that shows potential. The Ravens, the same team that gave the Dolphins their first win, came eve so close to defeating the Patriots. How did tehy do it? Pressure on Tom Brady and iwth a solid running game. the Jags and the Colts both possess the ability to duplicate that style and thus have the potential to defeat the pats. They are both physical in the front [Especially now with the lack of the more finesse but al-world DE Dwight Freeney] and quick and physical in the Secondary. They have the ability to shut down the run and to keep up with Randy Moss and the rest of the wide reievers. Yes, the Colts did defeat to the Patriots, but who wouldnt with Ryan Morehead as their second WR. Even if Marvin Harrison is not fully healed and fully himself, the development to Anthony Gonzalez should be more than enough to supply Peyton Manning with a solid target on top of the Pro Bowler Reggie Wayne. As for the Jags, they possess a QB that makes LESS mistakes than Brady, and the best running tandem in the NFL. With the older front seven of the pats, their running game night indeed end up being the Kryptonite to the Pats. So dont make plans for the Super Bowl parade yet New England. I doubt that would be wise.



Next, let us examine the Boston Celtics. They have the best trio in the NBA today with one of the most versatile playes in KG, one of the better scorers in Paul Pierce as well as perhaps the best pure shooter in Ray Allen. They have a great offense yet also possess an incedibly good defense and have an amazing muti digit point differential. But they have yet to beat a healthy San Antonio Spurs or their own nemesis in the weakly east (Where Atlanta is in the fourth Seed), The Detroit Pistons. I doubt that unless the Pistons collapse again, as they did to LeBron last year, taht Boston would even make it to play for the NBA Championship let alone win it. Now assuming that they make it such point, there existsno guarentee that they can defeat the team coming out of the west. San Antonio looks like a better version of Detroit, with more shooters and possesses the defensive prowess to slow the Big 3 and make Paul Pierce go into the Simmons defined Hero Complex thus causing all kinds of problems for Boston. Another team, that can defeat the Celts in the rejuvinated Lakers, especially with the gargantuan improvement with Andrew Bynum. Sunday marks a big mathc between these two long time rivals and may be a guage for how things may transpire.



But for now, I wouldnt buy copious amounts of Champagne if I were one of the Boston teams.