started for the Patriots' defense?

Yes. Clarified it.

Looks like Bellichek is positioning this team for the future with thoughts that the offensive firepower will bail out the D short term. Interesting approach.

I don't see them making the championship game and anyone who proclaims them superbowl favorites is smoking something.

About a month ago, I listed three players that will make us a 14-2 team with a bye and sick-nice odds to make the Bowl.

I think I said Mayo, Wilhite and Merriweather.

If I didn't, I just did.

That's like saying Bruschi, Law and Harrison in 2003.

Total stud freaks.

I preempted their mediocrity last year, this year I'm amped like three grams and a motel room.

It will be interesting to see what happens to that defense. All the championship players are now gone. That's a hard dynamic to replicate.

How many starters from the Colts starting SB D are gone? 5 of 11? That's the NFL.

3 big differences:

1. It's been a year longer for the Colts, and STILL they've got 6 starters from that team. The Pats were in the SB just a year and a half ago, and have four players.

2. The Pats were built on defense. The defense was the central cornerstone of the team. They've turned over their more important unit.

3. The Colts' signature players (Freeney, Mathis, Sanders) are all still around. Indy lost corners and LBs (which are always revolving door in their system). NE lost all the signature players of their defense of their defense.

Also started in the 2003 Superbowl six years ago.

The other two were small corners, one of whom was pretty nice, the other was/is a clown.

Teams get younger bro.

We still have Big Vince and Ty Warren, both elite first round talent.

Jerod Mayo, sixth overall.

Merriweather from THE U, first round guy.

We raped the raiders for a nice pass rusher in Derrick Burgess. We drafted Ron Brace, an ANIMAL from Boston College and we have a dime package full of young, athletic SEC thugs who can run and cover.

I bet we're near the top in sack totals this year league wide.

This team is loaded.

Known as Adalius Thomas.

I suspect that the NE defense will probably be good to great. BB has earned the benefit of the doubt when it comes to putting great defenses on the field regardless of who's playing. I certainly hope that NE pays a "price" for the loss of their core LB's and secondary and Pass rusher but that's just my own blind optimism coming through I'm sure.

You guys are killing me with the waiting on the predictions. Damn Demond's clumsy laptop handling!!!

I don't have a problem with someone defending the Pats. They've proven the don't go down easily.

I do have a problem with Marshall Faulk claiming that Jacksonville "shut the window on the Colts" two years ago. That's right, Marshall, when the Colts won 13 games, the division, and swept the Jags...

He went on to say the Colts are "in shambles". Dumbest segment I've ever heard.

But it was sooooo dumb I didn't even want to glorify it by mentioning it. I long ago lost much affection for Faulk. He did some amazing thing as a Colt but he's burned about every bridge he could since... His comments on NFLN were beyond absurd. I'm fine with people coming up with arguments of why the Colts might regress. But to say some mythical window is closed is just ignorant. At this point everyone just wants the window to close and keeps hoping that if they say it long enough it might finally happen. It will happen one day but barring major injuries to key people it's still several years away. That doesn't mean they'll make the playoffs every year but as long as PM is behind center this team is in the hunt.

Marshall usually shows the Colts some love, or at least Peyton. But he definitely has a grudge against Bill Polian.

Of course it no worse than Ask Vic insisting for five years that the Colts were doomed only to see his own team's window open and close twice in that same time span.

Give me a couple of hours for the predictions. I had a full work morning. They should be up later today.

Faulk last week on one of the player "roundtables" on NFLN, said what every Colts fan believes, that Manning is the better QB, and that when the Pats won Super Bowls, it was when Brady was a game manager and the defense was great. I still prefer him and Dieon and Warren to any of the other hacks on NFLN, like good ol' Solly Wilcots