AFC East Preview/New England Patriots

Projected 53 man roster

12 Tom Brady QB 31 6-4 225 10 Michigan
16 Andrew Walter QB 27 6-6 230 4 Idaho State
5 Kevin O'Connell QB 24 6-5 230 2 San Diego State

33 Kevin Faulk RB 33 5-8 202 11 Louisiana State
42 BenJarvus Green-Ellis RB 24 5-11 215 2 Mississippi
39 Laurence Maroney RB 24 5-11 220 4 Minnesota
34 Sammy Morris RB 32 6-0 220 10 Texas Tech
21 Fred Taylor RB 33 6-1 228 12 Florida

13 Joey Galloway WR 37 5-11 197 15 Ohio State
17 Greg Lewis WR 29 6-0 185 7 Illinois
81 Randy Moss WR 32 6-4 210 12 Marshall
18 Matt Slater WR 23 6-0 200 2 UCLA
83 Wes Welker WR 28 5-9 185 6 Texas Tech

87 Chris Baker TE 29 6-3 258 8 Michigan State
81 Alex Smith TE 27 6-4 258 5 Stanford
84 Benjamin Watson TE 28 6-3 255 6 Georgia

45 Nathan Hodel C/LS 31 6-2 238 8 Illinois
60 Al Johnson C 30 6-5 305 7 Wisconsin
67 Dan Koppen C 29 6-2 296 7 Boston College
71 Russ Hochstein G 31 6-4 305 9 Nebraska
70 Logan Mankins G 27 6-4 310 5 Fresno State
61 Stephen Neal G 32 6-4 305 8 Cal State-Bakersfield
68 Ryan O'Callaghan G 26 6-7 330 4 California
77 Nick Kaczur OT 30 6-4 315 5 Toledo
72 Matt Light OT 31 6-4 305 9 Purdue
76 Sebastian Vollmer OT 25 6-8 315 R Houston
Defense
NO. NAME POS AGE HT WT EXP COLLEGE
97 Jarvis Green DE 30 6-3 285 8 Louisiana State
93 Richard Seymour DE 29 6-6 310 9 Georgia
94 Ty Warren DE 28 6-5 300 7 Texas A&M
99 Mike Wright DE 27 6-4 295 5 Cincinnati
60 Ron Brace DT 22 6-3 330 R Boston College
91 Myron Pryor DT 23 6-1 310 R Kentucky
90 Le Kevin Smith DT 27 6-3 308 4 Nebraska
75 Vince Wilfork DT 27 6-2 325 6 Miami (Fla.)

95 Tully Banta-Cain LB 28 6-2 250 7 California
54 Tedy Bruschi LB 36 6-1 247 14 Arizona
59 Gary Guyton LB 23 6-3 245 2 Georgia Tech
47 Paris Lenon LB 31 6-2 235 8 Richmond
51 Jerod Mayo LB 23 6-1 245 2 Tennessee
49 Vince Redd LB 23 6-6 260 2 Liberty
96 Adalius Thomas LB 31 6-2 270 10 Southern Mississippi
58 Pierre Woods LB 27 6-5 255 4 Michigan

23 Leigh Bodden CB 27 6-1 193 7 Duquesne
27 Darius Butler CB 23 5-10 185 R Connecticut
29 Shawn Springs CB 34 6-0 204 13 Ohio State
22 Terrence Wheatley CB 24 5-9 185 2 Colorado
24 Jonathan Wilhite CB 25 5-11 185 2 Auburn

25 Patrick Chung S 21 5-11 212 R Oregon
43 Brandon McGowan S 25 5-11 210 5 Maine
31 Brandon Meriweather S 25 5-11 200 3 Miami (Fla.)
36 James Sanders S 25 5-10 210 5 Fresno State

Special Teams
NO. NAME POS AGE HT WT EXP COLLEGE
3 Stephen Gostkowski PK 25 6-1 215 4 Memphis
6 Chris Hanson P 32 6-2 202 11 Marshall

Position Battles

Tom Brady is healthy and back at QB,which could be trouble for the rest of the league. Kevin O'Connell will likely beat out Andrew Walter for the backup job.

Coach Belichik likes to go with the hot RB, so it's hard to say how things will work out in the backfield. RB Kevin Faulk is an under-rated player and an excellent pass catcher out of the backfield and could end up seeing a lot of time. However, ex-Jaguar Fred Taylor and RB Sammy Morris will also get their share of playing time as well, and if RB Laurence Maroney can stay healthy, he will likely see some playing time as well. Ben-Jarvus Green Ellis could possibly see playing time at FB as well, since there is currently no true FB on the roster.

It's hard to get any better than Randy Moss and Wes Welker at WR. Ex-Buc Joey Galloway should be the 3rd WR, with ex-Eagle Greg Lewis seeing time in the 4th WR slot. He could have had competition from rookie Brandon Tate, but Tate is likely out until a least week 7 while recovering from major knee surgery. This could open the door for Matt Salter as the 5th WR, but WR Sam Aiken could steal this spot with a good preseason.

Ben Watson will likely get pressured by ex-Jet Chris Baker for his starting job,with ex-Buc Alex Smith competing against David Thomas for the 3rd TE job.

The offensive will again likely consist of Dan Koppen at C,Logan Mankins and Stephen Neal at G, and Matt Light and Nick Kaczur at T. Kaczur could be pressured by rookie Sebastian Volmer for his job however. Al Johnson should man the backup C position with Nathan Hodel as the long snapper. G Russ Hochstein could possibly challenge Neal for a starting job as well. Ryan O'Callaghan's versatility to play anywhere on the line could win him a roster spot over Billy Yates and rookie G Rich Ohrenberger.

DE's Richard Seymour and Ty Warren both can also play DT, and will see plenty of playing time along with DE Jarvis Green. DE Mike Wright will also backup at all DL positions. Vince Wilfork should start at NT, with rookie Ron Brace likely seeing playing time as well. DT's LeKevin Smith and rookie Myron Pryor will compete with rookie DT Daryl Richard for the backup roles.

LB Adalius Thomas is healthy again and will start along with Jerrod Mayo and Paris Lenon. Tedy Bruschi will likely also start in the 3-4 defense, but the battle for playing time will be vicious after that with Tully Banta-Cain,Gary Guyton,Pierre Woods,and Vince Redd all in the mix.

Leigh Bodden should get the starting nod at one CB, while rookie Darius Butler should be good enough to start on the other side. Ex-Redskin Shawn Springs will likely man the nickelback role, with Jonathon Wilhite competing with Terrence Wheatley for playing time as a possible dime back. If Wheatley does not perform up to his potential however, Mike Richardson could steal his roster spot.

Brandon Meriweather should start at safety, with James Sanders competing against rookie Patrick Chung for the other safety job. Ex-Bear Brandon McGowan will be competing against S's Tank Williams and Herana Daze-Jones for a backup job and place on the final roster.

P Chris Hanson will get competition from Tom Malone for punting duties.

Schedule

1 Mon, Sep 14 Buffalo 7:00 PM
2 Sun, Sep 20 @ NY Jets 1:00 PM
3 Sun, Sep 27 Atlanta 1:00 PM
4 Sun, Oct 4 Baltimore 1:00 PM
5 Sun, Oct 11 @ Denver 4:15 PM
6 Sun, Oct 18 Tennessee 4:15 PM
7 Sun, Oct 25 @ Tampa Bay 1:00 PM
8 BYE WEEK
9 Sun, Nov 8 Miami 1:00 PM
10 Sun, Nov 15 @ Indianapolis 8:20 PM
11 Sun, Nov 22 NY Jets 4:15 PM
12 Mon, Nov 30 @ New Orleans 8:30 PM
13 Sun, Dec 6 @ Miami 8:20 PM
14 Sun, Dec 13 Carolina 1:00 PM
15 Sun, Dec 20 @ Buffalo 1:00 PM
16 Sun, Dec 27 Jacksonville 1:00 PM
17 Sun, Jan 3 @ Houston 1:00 PM

Preseason Preview

Could the Patriots make history and again go undefeated? If QB Tom Brady can stay healthy, you certainly have to consider it a possibility. Brady still has the weapons to make this a practically unstoppable offense, including an offensive line that is still very good. However, don't expect O'Connell or Walter to make out as well as Matt Cassell should Brady again go down.The RB by committee approach seems to work for the Pats, and with Kevin Faulk,Fred Taylor, Sammy Morris and Laurence Maroney, it's no secret as to why. Anyone of them can have a big game on any given Sunday, and just makes this offense even harder to defend. WR's Randy Moss and Wes Welker are two of the deadliest receivers in the game, and Joey Galloway gives them a 3rd WR who can stretch the defense as well. Throw in ex-Eagle Greg Lewis as the no.4 WR, and TE's Ben Watson,Chris Baker, and Alex Smith, and this offense could possibly even be better than the one we saw two years ago. They still have Pro Bowl caliber Dan Koppen, Logan Mankins and Matt Light on the offensive line as well, and also have depth there should anyone get injured. Throw in the fact that besides the Dolphins and the Titans they don't have to face another likely top 10 defense, and the Pats could again be scary.
On defense, this team could be even better than the one that lost to the Giants in the Super Bowl two years ago. Richard Seymour,Jarvis Green,Ty Warren, and Vince Wilfork are all more than capable on the d-line, and rookie DT Ron Brace may also prove to be a talent. An injury here could hurt a little though, as Mike Wright may not be the same caliber as these guys, but is still a capable backup. Their LB's are outstanding though, and with Thomas,Mayo,Bruschi and Lenon it will be tough for any opposing offense to get going consistently. They also have capable backups here and depth is something you need in today's NFL. Leigh Bodden is under-rated at CB,and rookie Darius Butler may have a shot at defensive rookie of the year when this season is said and done. Shawn Springs provides solid depth, and with S Brandon Meriweather seemingly getting better all the time, and the addition of Patrick Chung to put pressure on starting S James Sanders, this defense could be a top 10 defense this season as well.
K Stephen Gostkowski has proven to be productive and efficient, while P Chris Hanson remains an adequate punter. Welker is a decent punt returner. Faulk, or maybe even Galloway,Wheatley or Butler could handle kick return duties, although this is one area that they could actually improve.
As much as I hate admitting it, the Patriots should again rule the AFC East and if they lose any games it would be a little shock to me. They don't play a lot of great defenses, and even if the offense has a bad day, the defense will be able to carry them against the teams they have to play this season. I have to say that this is my pick for the Super Bowl champion in 2009.

Fantasy outlook

QB Tom Brady will be a valuable starter, and could be considered a first round pick,and no worse than early second round as well as the first QB chosen.
RB Kevin Faulk is my favorite choice at RB this year and a good late round pick, but I wouldn't suggest taking any of their RB's as a reliable starter.
RB's Fred Taylor and Sammy Morris may also have some value late, but again, don't count on any of these guys for consistent numbers.
WR Randy Moss should put up big numbers again this season, and I wouldn't rule out the possibility of him being a first round pick as well.
WR Wes Welker is a nice 2nd WR, especially in PPR leagues, where he may even be valued as a no.1 WR.
Possible Sleepers: RB Laurence Maroney,WR Joey Galloway