Karma's a ... Well, The Patriots Know What It Is

When looking at the greatest 4th quarters of all time, the 4th quarter of the Patriots-Giants Super Bowl will have to be considered.

We all saw something inexplicable, incredible and possibly supernatural when Eli Manning completed a spellbinding drive with a TD pass to Plaxico Burress with 35 seconds remaining. The Tyree catch in and of itself is an immortal highlight-reel play.

But most important, I believe, is that we all bore witness to a team that fell from its lofty heights.

The Patriots probably entered this game believing they were going to win - I really believed they would win. All week, experts and media were asking, "Does another championship make the Patriots the greatest dynasty ever? Will the 2007 Patriots be remembered as the greatest team ever? Is Tom Brady the greatest quarterback ever? Is Bill Belichick the greatest coach ever?" Really, it appears these conversations were best saved until after the game.

I see a team brought down by self-confidence, a team that believed they were more unique and more special than any other team in the NFL. I see a team that was all too willing to believe that Bill Belichick was something more than a football coach and that Tom Brady was something more than a quarterback. As it turned out, Belichick was a coach who couldn't wait one second to leave the field before the game was over and Brady was a quarterback who threw erratically most of the night.

It was a team not worthy of perfection: Their players would love to talk about "humble pie" and only caring about championships, but they also seemed to care about talking to the press and receiving adoration for their achievements and how special they were. All the talk about not getting respect and using negative press as motivation served to mask the fact that a team can only pretend to be the underdog as long as they actually are the underdog. When everyone believed they would win, suddenly their philosophy seemed empty.

Now what will become of the franchise - a team that somehow swept steroid use (Rodney Harrison, that's you) and Spygate under the rug? For the NFL, the Patriots actually had to lose, because the league can't have a champion that is under scrutiny for cheating, especially cheating to win one of their Super Bowls. Things are only bound to get worse for the Pats, as their videotape controversy is likely re-examined and their players lose some faith in what seemed to be an ironclad ideology before one unlikely Giants drive.

In my opinion, it's a lesson, and hopefully one the Patriots learn well. Undefeated is over. Now what?

Photo Credits: Baltimore Sun

The Pats take down God

Today on Monday Night Football, those of you who watched the Ravens-Patriots games witnessed the least-clutch football game in all of world history.

God (or gods, as some might prefer) was willing the Patriots to lose.

If you don't believe, consider this:

- God's linebacker was leading the Raven's defense.

- God healed Willis McGahee's knee and made him the best running back in the NFL, nothing short of miraculous. Seriously, have you seen the video?

- God made Kyle Boller good.

- The most important evidence: The wind was consistently hovering around 25 mph, taking away the deep ball, the most important and dangerous aspect of the Patriots' offense. Their longest pass was to Lawrence Maroney on a screen play.

So the Ravens were up, 24-20, with literally 1:30 to go. It was 4th and 1 and the Pats hurried up for a quarterback sneak. The Raven's D-line came through with a tackle for a loss and a turnover ... or at least they would have...

No, Rex Ryan called a timeout a split second before the play went off. What ensued was a QB scramble and conversion, a series of silly penalties and a JABAR GAFFNEY (!!!) touchdown.

Absolutely sickening. The Ravens just answered the question, "How can you make a bad season even worse?" By beating the best team in the NFL for 59 minutes and having the game IN THE BAG and LOSING.

The final proof that God was trying to beat the Pats? The last play was a Hail Mary... that was caught! Mark Clayton caught a 52-yard prayer by Boller 3 friggin' yards away from the end zone and was immediately tackled.

Belichick wins again. God hits the showers and gets ready for next week.