How to build a contender

[dcl]

The Pats need to figure out what side of the ball they can get very good at
real fast if they want to contend soon. I don't believe the concept that
defense neccesarily wins championships is all that valid any more. Nor does
Offense guarentee SB's. The recent champions show that having 1 very
dominant side of the ball (Off or Def) that can play both run AND pass very
well have been the winning formula.

Some people may look at the Ravens and say that D is what wins
championships. Lets not look at a single instance and make it a trend.
Remember, 1 year ago when we were thinking "OK, you get 4-5 real fast
recievers, have them run all over the field get a back who can run and catch
and score 45 points a game to win championships."

Look at the last few teams that have won SB's: the Ravens, Rams, Broncos and
GB and even go back to SF in '95. ( I would argue that the Cowboys of the
mid-90's were and will continue to be the last team with the ability to
dominate on both Off and Def due to thinning of talent and salary cap). All
of these teams, with the exception of the Ravens were Offensive-dominant.
The Ravens were, obviously, Defensive-dominant. However what all of these
offenses could due was run AND pass. The Ravens Defense could defend both
run AND pass. I think this is the formula to build a championship.

The Pats right now have so many holes to fill, it's difficult to see them
contending next year. I think as they flush out the mess that Petey and
Grier left behind and start to bring in actual NFL caliber players, they
need to begin to look at what side of the ball they can get real good in the
2 years.

-dclyons

[Mike & Susan Romano]

dcl wrote in message ...

This a very good post and it points out how foolish a lot of the pundits
are. Everyone seems to want to jump on a bandwagon and say that the only
way to win is this way or that way. In fact, there are probably a number of
different strategies you could use and in fact over the past several super
bowls, several have been. After the Rams won, the "experts" claimed
unstoppable offenses were the way to go. Now, with the Ravens, it is
impenetrable defenses. However, the Ravens have the first such defense
since the 85 Bears and I doubt most teams are in a position to replicate
that besides the Ravens. It seems to me that you try and bolster the side
of the ball that is your strength and do what you can to improve your
weaknesses.
MikeR

[Andrew Brecher]

I agree. You're not going to see teams any more that can dominate on
both sides of the ball. Super Bowl teams will be ones which are super
on one side of the ball and play sound fundamentals on the other side.
Look at the '99 Rams had a great offense and a defense that could cover
and tackle well, and the '00 Ravens had a great defense and an offense
that didn't turn the ball over.

-Andrew