When Litigation Runs Wild

Ok, I dislike the Patriots as much as a lot of people. Well, maybe it's more like hate. Though, I grew up as a Dolphins fan, so I have to hate them(the same goes for the Jets and Bills). However, I don't think that I hate them enough to support what Willie Gary is proposing.

Oh, you don't know who Willie Gary is?

Well, you're probably in the majority because until the other day I didn't know who he was either and I'm actually a football fan. Willie Gary is a former St. Louis Rams safety who played in Super Bowl XXXVI. You know, the one where the Pats alledgedly taped the Rams final walkthrough and then won 20-17. Gary has joined a class action lawsuit against the Pats, and believes that the Rams players from that Super Bowl team are entitled to $25,000 each due to the difference in compensation between the winning and losing teams and $125,000 each due to not winning a ring. The total would amount to $6.75 million.

Like I said, I hate the Patriots, but this seems sort of "sore loserish" to me. The Rams were heavy favorites to win, but lost on a last second field goal. I'm sure for guys like Gary, who never made it to the superstar level, losing the Super Bowl is something that he'll never forget. However, the tapes in question better show some very damning evidence of the Patriots staff "cheating", or else Gary will also be remembered as the guy who could never get over losing the big game.

Cris Collinsworth And His Rabid Support Of The Patriots

For some reason, I've come to dislike Cris Collinsworth. I'm not exactly how it happened, but I do know that everything he says seems to agitate me. Which is a bit weird since he's a former Gator. Last night, however was probably one of the most difficult things I've had to sit through regarding Collinsworth and his assinine assertions.

"This New England Patriots team is the best I've ever seen" is pretty close to what Collinsworth said last night. Yes, this year's Pats team has started out quite well, but consider this, Collinsworth is 48 years old. That means he's seen a lot of football teams. Including the undefeated '72 Dolphins, the '85 Bears(which scored the 2nd most points that season and allowed the fewest), the '96 Packers(#1 ranked offense and defense in terms of points) and there are a lot more that I could add to the list.

Collinsworth also got all hot and bothered over the point totals from New England's first six games. For the record, they are 38, 38, 38, 34, 34, 48(average 38.3 pts). If those numbers excite Collinsworth, then maybe he should watch a replay of the Vikings from 1998 when they scored 31, 38, 29, 31, 37 and 41(average 34.5 pts) en route to setting the league record of 556 points scored. And if he really wants some stimulation, then he should check out the Rams' 2000 season when they scored 41, 37, 41, 41, 57 and 45(average 43.6 pts) through their first six games. Though, he might want to lay down some plastic for that if he thinks New England's offense is prolific.

Like I stated, I have no problem giving the Patriots credit for their fast start and their 6-0 record. Yes, Dallas was supposed to be New England's first big test, but having the 24th ranked pass defense wasn't going to provide much of test. Especially against a strong New England passing attack. The Dolphins in week 7 provide a stronger pass defense than that. No, their biggest test will probably be against Pittsburgh in week 14 when they face a defense currently ranked 2nd against the run and 4th against the pass. Indy in week 9 should put up a good fight because they can score points, but their 13th ranked rush defense could be a liability.

Should New England fail to score 30+ points, and/or lose a few games it will be interesting to hear what Collinsworth says. Before he gets too hyped about this year's Pats he might want to remember what happened to those '98 Vikings and '00 Rams.