Nothing Could Be Sweeter Than To Defeat Carolina By The Morning

Nothing could be sweeter, than to defeat Carolina by Monday Morning (December 14, 2009). Is this the impossible dream? I think not! If I were Bill Belichick, I would be reassessing my approach to the game. Maybe, just maybe, I would reign in my tendencies to gamble and start crunching the numbers.


Implementing my new, but not exactly revolutionary manifesto as Coach Belichick, I would start adopting a more conservative game plan. I would focus my thought processes upon the concept of scoring points. Any points I accrue are vital to my success and thus, I promise to kick field goals if I am within forty yards of the goal posts and it is fourth down and one yard or more to go, regardless of my opponent.



I will also grudgingly continue running the football, especially following a triumphant success in moving the ball on the ground against my opponent from my own twenty yard line to their goal line. I will not abandon the running game prematurely and I will utilize the remarkable new mental attitude of Lawrence Maroney to decimate my opponents with a bruising ground game. I now have Sammy Morris, Kevin Faulk and Ben Jarvis Green-Ellis to compliment the efforts of Maroney. Of more importance, I have an offensive line that is more than capable of forging a pathway for my running backs.


I understand that a consistent ground attack will keep my opponent's defense honest and will also facilitate a more relaxed and effective football game for my quarterback and his aerial attack. My quarterback will be more composed and feel less pressured because is receiving outstanding support from his running backs and offensive line.


I will not focus so much on the long ball, because I realize that hitting home runs just doesn't seem to be a consistent formula for success this year. If my opponent exhibits a blown coverage in the secondary, that of course constitutes an invitation for the long ball. Otherwise, I have to accept the reality that my opponents will cover Moss and Welker like glue.



However, I know that screens and quick slants have been always been our forte and therefore, I will be mixing these into our scheme throughout the game. When my opponent blitzes, I will utilize my arsenal of weapons to punish my opponent for such activity.


My defense will understand that pass rushing is a fundamental component of the game. We will not allow our opponent's quarterback to enjoy safe haven in the pocket for a time frame equal to, or exceeding three seconds.


I hate it when they shut down Moss and Welker, but I certainly do possess an array of other lethal weapons to unleash. I have Maroney, Faulk, Watson and Aiken as relief valves.



My team promises to refrain from committing silly penalties. Of more significance, my team's resolution (It isn't even New Years yet!) is to be penalty free in the forthcoming games (everyone is entitled to their own fantasy).


Well, there it is for all to see! Simple! The new manifesto is the missing link for Patriots success. We can all sleep tonight.


Now, it is time for a reality check! This is the NFL and nothing is quite black and white. Perhaps, this reality is the reason that Coach Belichick makes the big bucks. He is not always the wizard in the kingdom, but he has occupied the King's throne a sufficient number of times to warrant respect and reverence.



Who are the Panthers? The Carolina Panthers, as of week twelve statistics, are ranked 24th in points accrued; 22nd in yards accrued and 3rd in rushing yards gained. The Panthers are ranked number 13 in defense.


Deangelo Williams has 1022 yards to his credit and Jonathan Stewart has 664 yards. In terms of the aerial attack, Steve Smith is credited with 682 yards in receptions; Mushin Muhammad at 382 yards; Deangelo Williams at 234 yards and Dante Rosario at 276 yards.


Delhomme has accrued 2015 yards as quarterback and Moore is responsible for 224 yards. Delhomme's completion percentage is 55.5% and Moore's is 62.5%.


The Patriots line up as follows; the stats after twelve games indicate the Pats are 5th in points; 2nd in yards;2nd in pass yards and 16th in rushing yards. The Pats defense was ranked 11th in the NFL after twelve games.



After twelve games, Maroney has 560 yards and Kevin Faulk claims 229 yards. In the passing game, Moss claims 1058 in reception yardage; Welker has 1053; Kevin Faulk realizes 281 yards with Aiken at 310 and Watson at 321.



Twelve week stats also show Tom Brady with a total of 3,638 yards and a competion percentage of 65.7%.


As we head into week fourteen of the NFL season, from a strictly statistical analysis, you have to give the edge to the Pats. Despite agonizing and almost inexplicable losses, the Pats still remain in the hierarchy of achievement from a statistical vantage point. Now all we have to due is to affix big W's to the remainder of the schedule. I realize that this statement is subject to skepticism at this juncture .


Common sense dictates applying copious volumes of pressure on Delhomme and shutting down their running game. We should apply the same courtesy to Steve Smith and company that our opponents have applied to Wes Welker and Randy Moss. Sticking to these folks like glue seems like an appealing mantra for the Pats.


Did we discuss home field advantage? The game clincher is present and thus victory is assured. The Pats win 38-24. Nothing could be sweeter than to send Carolina home by the morning with a loss.

The Malaise Of The New England Patriots

On this sixth day of December, it is a sad day for those of us formally aligned with and identified as bona fide New England Patriots fans. A heartbreaking loss to the Miami Dolphins has perhaps defined the real parameters for success of this 2009 -2010 New England Patriots football team.

The lustre is gone, as continual losses on the road by the Patriots have dulled the once impenetrable shine affixed to the Patriots throughout this decade. The team seems to have not only lost direction, but its essence and soul are conspicuously absent. The hallmark of a Belichick football team is defense. The defense is the heartbeat and the epicenter from which all success emanates. Even with the presence of one of the greatest quarterbacks to play the game and a complimentary cadre of talented receivers and running backs, the defense remains the foundation for Super Bowl aspirations that begin in summer training camps.

The heartbeat of the New England Patriots is close to cardiac arest as a pattern of mediocre and very good opponent offenses ravage its fragile state, by moving at will and scoring points at the most opportune moments of their football contests against the fledgling New England defense. Not only is the heart of the team close to cardiac arrest, but the heart itself is hemorrhaging and no one seems to know how to stop the bleeding and keep the heart beating.

This team is a team that never had to question its character. This was a team that had more character and heart than the majority of their counterparts. This was a team that never quit. This was a team that always believed in itself and goals were attainable via a one game at a time mindset. The Patriots are a combination of players operating as a team, rather than an association of select, gifted , particular grandstanding athletes acting as a singular enterprise. The mantra was always the team psyche and not that of an individual player or two.

I verbalize "is" and "are" because these are perhaps in the wrong tense. Perhaps, a more viable anaylsis at this juncture would be to suggest that the aforementioned represents the past rather than the present. The competitive fire of the New England Patriots seems to be something less than eternal afterall. A kind of malaise seems to permeate this football team of late. Patriot pride seems has to have evaporated this season. Last season, even under duress and extreme challenges, the Patriots exhibited extreme pride and resolve in attaining a winning record. It was criminal to be shut out of the playoffs with 11 victories, but that only detracts from the true meaning of last season's real accomplishment. Without their team skipper and cheerleader at the helm, the Patriots fought hard and managed a winning season without their franchise quarterback. This reality is the epitome of heart and never saying die. What has happened to this football team?

Is it the loss of Seymour, Vrabel or perhaps Bruschi retiring? Is the impotence just a reality of free agency, multi-million dollar deals and maintaining the bottom line? Could it simply be that the New England Patriots are simply a second tiered team at this point and to expect improved performance is unfair to the management and players of this team?

Next week Carolina comes to town and the margin for error is simply non-existent. This football team simply has to win the remainder of its games to launch a realistic and viable bid into the post season scheme. However, if we prevail and reach the playoffs, are we really a championship caliber team?

The Patriots are a good football team, but superior teams in the NFL exist and I think our encounter with New Orleans and Indianapolis reinforces this hypothesis. Compounding this assertion is the ever present willingness of Coach Bilichick to gamble away fourth down decisions in a sometimes reckless manner. No doubt, hindsight is a wonderful tool and loses credibility when you are not the individual on the hot seat and making tough decisions in a limited time frame. However, one wonders whether deciding to take the field goal in the red zone of Miami would have been enough to win the game as we lost by one point. Instead of taking the field goal, we walked away with no points , by failing to convert on fourth down.

What has happened to the magic of Tom Brady's triumphant last minute marches down the field that culminate in an exhibition of choreographed cool, calm, victorious symphonies of athletic prowess, determination and ultimate victory? Perhaps, we expect too much from Mr. Brady week in and week out. Mr Brady is not flawless. He threw a potential game altering interception in the red zone that would have positioned us with a more comfortable nine point lead. He is human and we can cut him a break. Tom can't be perfect for every occasion.

However, I guess what I find alarming is how complacent he has become. You don't see that fire and the unmistakable glare of determination that has become the hallmark of Tom Brady. He appears almost robotic, detached and programmed,in post game interviews, as the repetitive mantra of we need to play better is presented.

In fairness to Tom, he needs help from his supporting cast and though Aiken completed an outstanding catch, he also failed to hang on to two pivotal catches in the game. Speaking of Tom, when are we going to give him a break and really develop our running game? It appears in recent games that as soon as we are rolling down the field with Maroney and company, we lose interest and focus exclusively on a passing attack, often to our detriment.

This is a team that has lost its identity. I hope we can reclaim it, because time is running out. The engine is most definitely not firing on all cyclinders, but in the mechanics of football, we have some of the best mechanics and trouble shooters in the game. Maybe it is time to change the oil. Perhaps Coach Bilichick has to start revamping stagnant game plans and wholly inadequate adjustments during the game. The Patriots have utilized no huddle offenses in the past. The Patriots have been more creative in their defensive schemes. We have to start putting pressure on the opposing quarterback!

This is a team that has always believed it could. It was simply the team that could, whether it was heralded as an underdog or a champion. All of sports is very much a mental exercise as well as a frenzy of physical activity and accomplishment. If the Patriots start really believing that they can, maybe, just maybe, they can build confidence and determination in the forthcoming games to launch a respectable showing and journey through the playoffs. Its time to start thinking and acting like winners, both on and off the football field! Lets go guys! Time is running out!

AFGHANISTAN AND U.S. FOREIGN POLICY

What do you think of President Obama's newly formulated troop surge strategy in Afghanistan? For yours truly, this strategy places this country once again, on the dangerous precipice of a protracted futile military campaign with little or no hope of success. A potential quagmire of a well intentioned Geo-political military campaign designed to bring Afghanistan into the fold of United States colonialism and puppet regimes. Under the guise of eradicating terrorism and fighting them over there, instead of on the streets of New York, the newly designed troop surge represents the underpinning of United States foreign policy.

The current leadership of Afghanistan is tainted with charges of corruption and its ability to effectively govern is suspect. One has to wonder if any new regime of governance will be effective, as this country is not systemically designed for a U.S. endorsed and controlled pseudo-democratic government scheme.

The concept of colonialism and puppet regimes is hardly a new phenomenon and not necessarily always a negative and disdainful undertaking. Colonialism and puppet regimes are rich in history and prevalent since the dawn of mankind. From before and after The Great Roman Empire, states have attempted to inflict their ideology and will upon other states. The historically accurate resultant reality has almost always been miserable failure and carnage as the Colonial Empire fails to effectively implement its grand design.

Sometimes, a clear line of demarcation is present and the options and course of action are undeniably clear to nations. No dispute can exist as to the legitimacy of intervention in World War II. Hitler and his Nazi regime were clearly a menace to all of Europe, Africa and the Americas. Intervention by the United States undeniably thwarted Hitler's maniacal design for world domination and a master race.

In Korea the United Nations (including the United States) stopped the 'red menace' from spreading to the heartland of America( Eisenhower's so called domino theory). Although this military campaign resulted in a stalemate at the 38th parallel, The North Koreans with Chinese assistance failed to claim the south as their territory. A costly maintenance of the 38th parallel stalemate was then initiated and maintained by the United States.


In Vietnam, The United States attempted once again to quarantine the Red Menace by denying North Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh access to the south. As in Korea, a campaign of containment became the focus of United States policy . We could not allow the south to fall to communism and the concept of "killing a Commy for Mommy" was alive and well.

In Vietnam, we under estimated our adversary. Although President Johnson and Washington bureaucrats should never have prosecuted such a conflict unless they were willing to let the military hierarchy effectively engage and defeat the enemy, the jury is still out as to whether the Vietnam Conflict would have ever resulted in a favorable outcome for the United States. This conflict was marred by President Johnson's Cold War considerations of drawing the Russians or Chinese into the conflict, resulting in a new World War. Thus, United States strategy and ability to prosecute a successful military campaign was hindered from the onset by additional considerations and worries. Essentially, U.S. foreign policy was doomed to failure upon arrival of the first U.S military advisers arriving in South Vietnam.

History repeats itself and as the adage goes, if you don't learn the lessons from the past, you are bound to repeat them and so we come full circle back to Afghanistan. Can we really prosecute an effective military campaign against the Taliban in Afghanistan? How can we truly accomplish the "mission" as long as the Taliban seeks refuge in Pakistan?

Engaging in guerrilla warfare in Vietnam proved unnervingly challenging, foreign and frustrating for the boots on the ground at the time. The terrain of Afghanistan is equally hostile and unforgiving. The Taliban seek refuge in their conduit of caves and the safe haven of Pakistan.

In Vietnam, the North Vietnamese would seek refuge in Cambodia and Laos. Any proactive intervention in this regard was secretive and conducted covertly by the CIA, since the aforementioned countries were neutrals in the conflict.

Similarities exist in this instance with Afghanistan. Taliban seek refuge in neutral Pakistan. For public relations on the national stage, Pakistan announces its increased vigilance in eradicating the Taliban presence from its borders, but such declarations are comically devoid of profound sincerity. The Taliban control regions of Pakistan and not the Pakistani Army. Of additional significance, Pakistan walks a tight rope as it dances with the United States and attempts to maintain harmony in the Islamic universe.

How can we forever alter the violence and rid Afghanistan of the Taliban, as long as Pakistan is a safe haven? Is it realistic to think of this conflict as a war of attrition?

With vast numbers of dedicated and radical members of Islam throughout the world, it is difficult to believe that we could prevail in a war of attrition. Are we underestimating the resolve of our enemy. The Russians certainly did, with disastrous results.

Is an exit strategy, incorporating the training and utilization of a viable Afghan army a realistic concept? In Vietnam, the buzz word became "Vietnamization." As I recall, this strategy was a glaring failure.

We lost many so many kids in Vietnam. Young men who never had an opportunity in life to raise families and grow old. A mere thirty something years after the Vietnam debacle, we count Vietnam as among one of our friends and a trading partner. Hindsight is always easy. However, if only we could turn back the clock and alter history. I would certainly enjoy the prospect of altering history and bringing those young American kids and innocent Vietnamese caught in the crossfire back to life.

Currently, The United States is losing young men in Afghanistan. Although some are older and this is a voluntary army, it does not diminish the profound loss of each and every soldier. History is being written. I hope and pray that the American public will not experience "Groundhog Day" in Afghanistan.