11-5

I need to find out how many times a team with an 11-5 record hasn't made the playoffs in the NFL. It can't possibly be that many though.

After what I thought would be a season to not even bother watching after Brady went down only 8 minutes into the first game, I could not be happier for Matt Cassel. The only reason I could be happier for him, of course, would be if the Patriots were in the playoffs this season, but with that aside, I am very pleased with the high school turned pro QB. He certainly had big shoes to fill, and what I respect about him the most is that he didn't try to mimic Brady; instead he took what knowledge he learned and became his own identity.

At least this playoff season will be relaxing for all New England fans, right? : /

Down But Not Out

We all know that this city is a sucker for the underdog. We feed off of the drive that leads to the winning touchdown. We pride ourselves in being the comeback kid.

Colvin summed up the Patriots' fortune the best. “In the middle of the third quarter, I said ‘Junior, what were you doing a week ago?’ He said he was in Fiji, and I was in Missouri City. Now we’re out here playing professional football again. It’s crazy.” Of course it's crazy! These two weren't even playing the game a week ago and in Sunday's win, the two defensemen were 49% of the defensive snaps against Seattle.

The truth that comes with the Pats' most recent victory, however, is that if they win their next 3 games, they still might not make the playoffs. Currently, the team is in a 3-way tie for first in the AFC East. Unfortunately, New England has no real control over their season's destiny. If the Dolphins or Jets both finish their seasons with records of 11-5, which is also the best the Patriots can do at this point, Miami or New York would still win the division over New England. In the last week of the regular season, the Jets will host the Dolphins. Now clearly both teams can't win, so here are the possibilities:

- If the Jets win, it would make them 5-1 in the division, which would still be better than the Patriots' division record of 4-2.

- If the Dolphins win, their record would be 4-2 in the division, same as New England's. Miami and New England would also be 10-2 against common opponents, but Miami would edge past the Patriots by being 8-4 in conference games. The Patriots won't finish better than 7-5.

- Their only hope is gaining possession of one of the two wild-card slots, which is still pretty complicated and relies on the Colts losing 2 of their remaining 3 games since Indianapolis beat New England during the regular season.

Of course the Coach Belichick let the press know how he really feels about the remainder of their season:

"All I know is that there are a lot of teams in contention," said Belichick yesterday. "So right now we're worried about Oakland. We'll win as many games as we can. I'm sure if we qualify somebody will let us know."

Photo courtesy: Matthew J. Lee, Boston Globe

No Blood, No Foul

I'll never forget when my 7th grade science teacher, Ms. Busby, told me that she didn't understand why I always had random bruises on my body during basketball season. She said that basketball wasn't a contact sport, especially for young ladies.

This picture is for her.

Credit: AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac

Focus on the Positive

I don't want to talk about the terrible game the Patriots played this past Sunday. I don't want to listen to all the Cassel haters screaming "I told you so", and I certainly don't want to hear that we don't have a chance of making the playoffs with 4 games still left in the season.

Instead, I've chosen to only focus on the positive things happening in Beantown recently:

- The Patriots just signed Roosevelt Colvin for a one-year contract after he left New England at the end of the 2007 season for the Texans, who ended up cutting him at the end of training camp. It's the latest "prodigal son" story in Boston, but we'll take any help we can get. With Adalius Thomas absent and Pierre Woods getting knocked out this past Sunday against the Steelers, Colvin will hopefully smoothly fall back in line with Belichick's system and fill in the outside linebacker position.

- Dustin Pedroia, the 2008 AL MVP, has been signed for a 6-year $40.5 million contract with the Red Sox as of this morning. Securing the beloved second baseman's position is a very smart move considering in only his sophomore year as a major leaguer, Pedroia led the AL in hits (213), runs (118) and doubles (54), and also won the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards, becoming just the eighth player in league history to take all three honors in one season as reported in the Boston Globe.

- Tearing up the NBA, Paul Pierce and the defending World Champion Celtics have won 9 straight and seem to be in cruise control mode. Pierce is playing like he's a kid on the blacktop again. On Monday night, he scored 24 points in 33 minutes and 26 seconds!

- I have to admit that I've never followed the Bruins or been excited for their upcoming season the way I do with the Red Sox and Patriots. The only time we talk about the Bruins in my parent's house is when my Dad says, "When I was your age, Boston was a hockey town. Bobby Orr walked on water," etc, etc...I have to give the team props though for having such a stellar start to their season. The B's are in 1st place right now, tied with the Rangers with 36 points, and 3 games in hand. Even Tedy Bruschi came out and showed his support for the Bruins on November 6th! As Katherine Tappen said on her blog on NESN.com, "Isn't this fun?". I couldn't agree with her more.