Congrats Patriots on 16-0

[Tokyo Slim]

Can anyone beat them? Are they going all the way?

If they do, are they the "best ever"?

 

[Baron]

They came through strong tonight. That was an impressive comeback.

They probably are the best ever, but it's hard to compare across eras. The '76 Steelers were an awesome team that didn't even win the Super Bowl because of injuries in the post season (I think both Franco Harris and Rocky Blier went down) but they had a ridiculous defense that year. The best 49er teams were incredible, as were those first two Cowboy teams in the early 90's.

 

[DNW]

I was at a bar in Boston tonight. Nobody ever lost hope in the Pats when they were down. At the end, they pulled through, like they always have. There's something magical about this team. They're firing on all 8 cylinders. Even if they don't win the big one, this is still a very successful season. Go Pats!

 

[Brian278]

If the Pats win the Superbowl, it's very difficult not to call them the best ever. 19-0 is a serious accomplishment in today's highly competitive NFL. I personally would rate them better than the '72 Dolphins and the '85 Bears. They played better competition and they didn't lose. They have to be the best team of all time.

 

[kwilkinson]

If they win the Superbowl, going 19-0, then they're the best team in history. If they don't win the Superbowl, then the 16 wins is a lot less meaningful and they are beneath the 72 dolphins, but alongside the 85 bears and 76 steelers.

 

[Stu]

Great performance this year. Very impressive. I was actually rooting for them to do it once they beat my Colts. The Brady-Manning debate is moot now, as far as I am concerned, but I still like my guy better. One thing that was interesting, was from the Eagles game on, save for the Dolphins game, every game was a battle. Just shows that no matter how great a team is, the Any Given Sunday cliche is true.

 

[Thracozaag]

I'm torn--on the one hand--am sick of that overrated '72 Dolphins team (which only beat 2 teams with a winning record that year) lording that record over everyone, yet on the other hand, I despise the Patriots. It's a tremendous accomplishment, obviously, Brady-Moss have been simply unreal.

koji

 

[mrpologuy]

I have been a big Pats fan and Tom Brady fan for years and was glad to see them go 16-0. He is a Michigan guy and I knew they would do it. Anything less than winning the Super Bowl is a huge disappointment. The teams they beat this season should be embarrassed that they could not come up with a game plan to beat them. Week after week, teams kept going down. The NFL is sorry if a team in this day and age can go undefeated. I am sure they will win the Super Bowl and when they do, I think Brady will be considered the greatest QB of all time.

 

[drizzt3117]

That sequence from Brady to Moss and the repeat, was ridiculous.

I think the Steelers game and Dolphins game after the Jets game were pretty easy.

 

[kwilkinson]

Originally Posted by Stu

Great performance this year. Very impressive. I was actually rooting for them to do it once they beat my Colts. The Brady-Manning debate is moot now, as far as I am concerned, but I still like my guy better. One thing that was interesting, was from the Eagles game on, save for the Dolphins game, every game was a battle. Just shows that no matter how great a team is, the Any Given Sunday cliche is true.

You can't say that a Brady/Manning debate is moot now. First off--- If Brady hadn't been playing in the 4th quarter of every game when they were up by 30 already, he'd have had less than 40 TD passes. Secondly, the Colts are going to stomp the Pats in the AFC Championship game on Jan 20 and nobody will remember the Pats for anything other than a string of wins that amounted to nothing.

 

[drizzt3117]

Originally Posted by kwilkinson

You can't say that a Brady/Manning debate is moot now. First off--- If Brady hadn't been playing in the 4th quarter of every game when they were up by 30 already, he'd have had less than 40 TD passes. Secondly, the Colts are going to stomp the Pats in the AFC Championship game on Jan 20 and nobody will remember the Pats for anything other than a string of wins that amounted to nothing.
Yeah, just like they stomped the Pats at home earlier this year...

Manning had nearly as many interceptions against San Diego as Brady had the entire season.

 

[kwilkinson]

Originally Posted by drizzt3117

Yeah, just like they stomped the Pats at home earlier this year...

Manning had nearly as many interceptions against San Diego as Brady had the entire season.

That's two games. I'll give you that the San Diego game was ridiculous, and that the Pats game we basically gave away, but given the fact of how many subs we've had to play due to injuries, I'd say that now that almost all the Colts are back save DF, we're going to be just fine and give the Pats a run for their money. Honestly, I'm not sure who's going to win, but I know it's going to be a hell of a game.

 

[Manny Calavera]

I'm pretty sure they're the best ever. You can't compare across eras as the NFL is so insanely competitive now. Even the worst teams have a few superstars on their roster.

 

[MilanoStyle]

16-0 is amzing .. like 72-10 set by 1996 the Bulls.

 

[drizzt3117]

Originally Posted by kwilkinson

That's two games. I'll give you that the San Diego game was ridiculous, and that the Pats game we basically gave away, but given the fact of how many subs we've had to play due to injuries, I'd say that now that almost all the Colts are back save DF, we're going to be just fine and give the Pats a run for their money. Honestly, I'm not sure who's going to win, but I know it's going to be a hell of a game.
I find it interesting that the Colts won the Super Bowl but had arguably an easier schedule than the Pats. They had to play Tenn and Jacksonville twice, but that's because they're in their division. The ten OOD games the Colts played were: New Orleans, Denver, Tampa, Kansas City, Atlanta, Carolina, NE, San Diego, and Baltimore, while the Pats played San Diego, Dallas, New York, Cincinnati, Indy, Washington, Philly, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Baltimore. The Colts played 7 teams with winning records as did NE, but four of the 7 teams the Colts played were in the AFC South, while none of the Pats opponents with 7 wins were in the AFC East. That doesn't seem to make a whole lot of sense, because the Super Bowl winning team is supposed to have the hardest schedule. NE has played and beaten four of the best teams in the NFL, and many of those wins were on the road. Indy has one good road win, the game against Jacksonville where Garrard was hurt early. One other point to note is that only four of the Patriots 16 games were games won be less than ten points, while the Colts had seven games closer than 10, not counting tonight's meaningless game against Tennessee which they may very well lose. So much for people saying they were playing close for most of the season. All of their close games came in the second half of the season but even then, they threw up blowouts against Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and Miami.