Team with no stars.

Indeed. The New England Patriots are a team that have managed to win two Super Bowls in the past three years seemingly with no clear superstar. No one, to steal the limelight. Instead, every player, at every position has shined at what he does best.

In a day of football, where teams are recognized as belonging to Quarterbacks or wide receivers, it is refreshing to find a team that belongs to all that play for that team.

Every team in the NFL has it’s list of superstars, the people that come to the forefront of ones thoughts when they think about a team, but with the New England Patriots, the team as a whole comes to mind.

But to the ranks of the Patriots we have added some unique and highly coveted talents. By far, the biggest would be the addition of running back Corey Dillon. His seven years with the Cincinnati Bengals have proved that he can do great things even when the team as a whole is incapable of doing so. He has been elected to the Pro Bowl some three times, and has managed to string together 1,000 rushing yards seasons magically.

And now, he is with a team that clearly has been looking for such a talent since the departure of Curtis Martin. The reputation and identity of the New England Patriots had become one of screens, and the dink-and-dunk passes. Antowain Smith provided some relief with his brief stay, and Kevin Faulk has been productive throughout his tenure as a Patriot. And, oh, there’s also Michael Cloud.

From the first pre-season game on August 13th against the Philadelphia Eagles, it is good to see that this years Pats are on the right track with the right talent and, most importantly, the right attitude. After winning their first Super Bowl championship 3 years ago, great things were expected the following year and they faltered. Let’s hope for better things in 2004.

Corey Dillon was explosive in his brief outing of the first quarter, Tom Brady proved to be as effective as ever. With the wealth of wide receivers, ranging from the dependable Troy Brown to Deion Branch, David Patten, David Givens, Ricky Bryant, and company, Brady should have more than enough targets to spread the ball around and head down field.

Here’s hoping for an exciting and successful year!

Cheers

Send this post to: