Letters to the Editor
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Pats' (and others') schedule--the final word
Saying "You can't call schedule toughness based on how it ended up working out" isn't quite accurate. Maybe you can't call "they were handed an easy schedule", but you have every right to call, "the teams they're facing have turned out to be chumps, so their success and score differential should be evaluated accordingly."
It doesn't mean the Pats aren't an excellent team--they are. And so are the Cowboys, who've also had a pretty easy schedule so far. (As a Cowboys fan, I enjoyed that drubbing of the Rams but also knew it meant absolutely nothing and was just more filler before the Pats game.)
But it's pretty clear that the collective sports-writing world wants someone to get excited about. We all want awesomeness and high-caliber teams to marvel at. Remember all the predictions of how great the Panthers would be last year? That was pre-emptive excitement, and I didn't buy it. Not that these Pats are those Panthers, by a long shot, but until the going gets tough--and that starts in Dallas on Oct. 14--we can only speculate. I have a feeling that game will legitimize both teams, and yet let neither walk away with the halo they've been wearing so far this year.
What's been the clearest signal to me about the leading teams this year is how they've aced the psychological tests. Patriots-Jets, Cowboys-Giants, Packers-Chargers--these were all games that could have easily psyched out the winning teams. (Especially Dallas, who in years past have had a weakness for losing to their division rivals.) But they did what they needed to do, they didn't break rhythm, and now they have a lot of momentum while other teams are still scrambling to find an identity. That's going to keep paying off as the season wears on.
On a related note, if the Cowboys can defend against the big pass play, I think they'll beat New England. If they can't, they'll be playing catch-up and the Pats have a big advantage.