Fear Not Patriots Fans, We Shall Pillage Again

A It took me nearly a day to gather the courage to write about the Pats' Sunday dismemberment at the hands of the Tampa Bay Bucs. There wasn't much pretty about preseason game number two. Brandon Meriweather sustained what appeared to be a significant leg injury early on, and this when they already have Antwan Spann (who? Exactly) starting at safety. If Meriweather is out for any length of time John Lynch is about to be a starter after just one practice. Matt Cassel was just okay. Kevin O'Connell still looks a couple years away. Matt Gutierrez didn't touch the field, presumably still suffering from a "bruise". Yes, a bruise. Is this a sign that the Hoodied One has gotten liberal with sitting guys out due to minor injuries? A A With nearly a quarter of the team sitting out with some kind of boo boo,A I sure the hell hope so. Starting Right Guard (and usual third stringer) Billy Yates was helped off the field with an arm injury. Does that take us down to lucky Right Guard number four on the depth chart? Um, scary. Yet as I sit here twenty-four hours later, I'm reminded that there's still three weeks until the opening game, and that is plenty of time for all the walking wounded to heal. Maybe not all of them. But definitely some of them. And I'd much rather them be cautious now. We've seen guys start off with something minor that turns into something major because they came back too quick.As for the first defense and their inability to tackle or stop the run? Nothing we haven't see before. And let's be realistic. This was not the first team Patriots defense, playing with a game plan for a real win.A This was vanilla Pats D, with rookies (Wheatley and Mayo) and backups (Spann and Woods) all over the field, versus Jon "Game Plan Like It's The Super Bowl' Gruden and Brian "See, I Really Was Better Than Brady" Griese. So let's look at the positives, Jerod Mayo again looked pretty solid. He made some rookie mistakes but I get the feeling he's not the kind of guy that makes the same mistake twice. Shawn Crable also had a couple flashes, defeating two blocks on the goaline to stop the running back for a loss as well as a strip sack. These two young linebackers look like they could be ready to contribute immediately.And Terrence Wheatley does not look out of place. The offense will be fine once Brady comes back. The line will block harder and who knows, we might even see Russ Hochstein or Stephen Neal back out there. AlmostA definitelyA we'll see Matt Light. Chad Jackson's at least going to end up the fourth wide receiver. Once the season starts there will be less pressure on him and he'll be able to fly under the radar, which will hopefully translate into results. Ultimately the Pats have built their dynasty despite losses to injury. Take a look at the starting secondary in Super Bowl 39 for proof of that. ESPN and Marshall Faulk might be ready to put another nail in the Patriots alleged coffin, but they are only fooling themselves. Just wait till the games actually count.