I'm really pissed off. If one more person -- especially in my business of sports talk (are you listening, Big O?) -- states that it's too early to make a call on the Patriots, I'm going to throw up in my mouth.
My job is to say stuff that is thought-provoking, opinionated, compelling and -- hopefully -- entertaining.
One year ago, I said the Patriot music died in Kansas City. The offensive line was in shambles. Tom Brady was getting killed. The thought process behind my opinion was that after 15 years of outstanding line play under the tutelage of the legend, Dante Scarnecchia, I thought their line-of-scrimmage luck had run out. Hey, they'd had a good run. It happens.
And you know what? I WAS WRONG! (So were many others.) Bryan Stork, Dan Connelly and Ryan Wendell fixed things and the rest is history.
It doesn't bother me that I was wrong. It's my job to take the risk. Will they win? Won’t they win? Was he robbed? Is the rule stupid? Was it a bad signing? Etc, etc., etc.
We don't hold back. We give our opinion. THIS IS WHAT WE DO!
The problem with our industry we have become littered with fence-riders who are afraid to be wrong. Hey, if you don’t like being wrong and if you can’t handled being called out on social media . . . get another job!
New England Patriots
You think it bothers me when people say I'm a “lesbian professor” or “a fifty year old Harry Potter?” Hell no! It means you're paying attention, which is what I'm paid for: To get you to watch, listen or tweet me. Being right or wrong has nothing to do with it.
I don't get paid to say “It’s too early to tell.” Please. Gutless, gutless, gutless.
So . . .
I'm saying the Patriots will run the table to the Super Bowl.
No? Who's going to beat them? Peyton Manning? Nope, not anymore. Besides, I'll take Bill Belichick over Gary Kubiak any day of the week.
I'll also say the Pats win the whole damn thing this time. Yep, 19-0. Bill will have learned from his mistakes from the 2007 game in Arizona. Vince Wilfork told me the team was too tight. Too stressed and too exhausted from the undefeated hype. Not to mention the defense was aging before our eyes. Players wanted to play golf at their resort and Bill shut it down. They were going stir crazy. This time around Belichick will play it right and let the fellas tee ‘em to relax a bit.
So, there you have it. I 've looked at the evidence in front of me and made a call. It's what I'm paid to do. And you are damn lucky to have people like me.
Because if everyone wimped out with “It’s too early to tell,” you would be bored out of your mind.