Hollywood Donahoe

As a result of this post, I expect Koppen to ink an extension any day now.

Look, I'm like every fan - I love big splashes in free agency. When the Pats signed Colvin and Harrison on consecutive days in the '03 off-season, I went nuts. But at the same time, I recognize that the Patriots' front office has a very specific mode for evaluating players, both in terms of how they fit into the team concept, and how valuable they are in monetary terms. If there had been a "big splash" type player in the FA market who they felt could help the team and could be signed for a dollar amount close to their value assessment, I'm confident that they would've signed him. Evidently, there was not. In any case, I doubt that the Patriots are $13 million under the cap because Belichick and Pioli forgot to spend all the money available to them. If they're not using it, I assume there's a method behind the madness.

I don't recall saying that. I do recall noting, however, that the team shouldn't waste money on older, injury-prone, or marginal players. more expensive != best

Yes, you can. I don't know if the Patriots will make use of the methods, but it is a fairly standard process. You essentially write NLTBE incentives into contracts, and they count against the cap in the current year, and once they're not met, you're credited with that amount on the following year's cap. The thing is, none of those the guys are lighting it up for their new teams. McGinest is old, Vinatieri is proving to be too injury-prone for how how much money he's getting (recall that he had injury issues in his last few years with the Pats as well), Givens is already complaining about not getting the ball enough in Tennessee, and I don't care what Branch does, giving a 5'8" WR $13 million a year with a 1st rounder on the table would never be a good decision. No one's giving Rogers a look. The guy's a train wreck. Injury-prone + locker room cancer = avoid at all costs.

You're confusing two different Peyton Manning commercials. The one where he's inexplicably gunning for the EZ while leading 28-3 with time running out in the 4th quarter is for DirecTV. The one where he has black hair a full mustache is for Sprint. Not that I can blame you for mixing up Manning commercials, given how many of them he's in.

Just for the sake of accuracy, the actual ratio in week one was 8 (7 accepted, 1 declined) to 1.

Now I know you're just being a homer.

At least think your conspiracy theories out a bit better. How does the NFL become more profitable by helping a team that's won 3 of the past 5 Super Bowls? Competition and parity keep fans interested, not dynasties.

My rational-colored glasses are what allow me to see that all teams get calls that go for and against them every week, in startlingly equal amounts. Conspiracy theories are dumb.

You are viewing the situation through Bills-colored glasses. You hate the Patriots, so you project negative concepts - like cheating and getting unfair calls - onto them. Believe me, I sometimes do the same thing to the Colts and Steelers. But then I step back and realize that it's beyond foolish to believe that bad calls are anything but instances of innocent official error.

Thank you, and the same to you. I'm not afraid to admit that I underestimated the Bills. No matter how the season ends for them, they clearly are a team on the rise. I consider that a falsehood. The Patriots are like any team. Sometimes they get the calls, sometimes they get screwed. Fabricating conspiracy theories is only fit for those with a loser's mentality.

That particular penalty is the product of delusional minds.

I think that was the "no launching yourself at a defenseless receiver" penalty.

The Sportsbash is the best of a weak group. Mike and Mike are okay. Herd has always been annoying and schticky. Dan Patrick is insufferable now that half the show is about Olbermann's politics. Gamenight and All Night I hardly ever listen to.

I'm not sure what to think. The Patriots' running game looked unstoppable against Buffalo and the Jets, and then gets shut down by Denver (although Dillon was injured early on). Receivers still aren't getting open consistently, and Brady is still missing people left and right. The offense, needless to say, is an enigma. The defense has been decent to okay, except for the fact that they give up WAY TOO MANY big plays in the passing game. The Cotchery and Coles TDs against the Jets, the two Walker TDs against Denver - it's a consistent problem. On defense, I like the Pats' chances to neutralize Rudi Johnson, at least for the most part, but the Bengal passing game scares the hell out of me, as it should the Pats' coaches. If the secondary misses to many tackles of Chad Johnson, Chris Henry, or Houshmandzadeh, they'll be in for a long afternoon. The Cinci defense is weaker than the Denver D, so if the Pats' offense ever had an opportunity to wake up, it's this week. I just don't know what to expect, since the offense is so inconsistent. Sometimes it looks great, and other times, every aspect - running, passing, playcalling, execution - looks pathetic.

I'm sorry to say that I kind of agree. The only way the Patriots win on Sunday is they get so unbelievably pissed off after watching the Denver game film that it lights a serious fire under them. Belichick is a good motivator, so there's a chance that such a thing does happen, but if not...

I'm usually loathe to compliment a Bill, but I was STUNNED at how quickly Parrish accelerated on his TD against the Jets. Slip screens, end arounds, quick slants, whatever. That guy should be getting the ball! I hope the Pats have fixed their tackling issues by the next time they play Buffalo.

I hate to be the one doing all the work in this conversation, but a google search of "2006 mock draft" led me to this page: http://www.fftoolbox.com/nfl_draft/2006_mockdrafts.cfm To save you the trouble of reading the link, it shows the top 4 of a bunch of different mock drafts. Williams is in the top 4 in virtually all of them. Anyone following the draft in even a cursory fashion had heard of him.

You need to follow the draft more closely, then. Virtually every pre-draft mock had Williams going #2 to the Saints after Bush went #1 to Houston.

Gramatica?

It's obviously a combination of "dunce" and "douche."

I'd call them a terribly inconsistent team at this point, rather than one that isn't very good.

In fairness to the fans, the Pats have played two unbelievably sh------- first halves at home.

This ref who's doing all the talking is horrible. He doesn't know what hell is happening, ever.