As the Red Sox have continued to tumble further and further into the abyss of eternal mediocrity, fans throughout New England have been patiently waiting for a "messianic" day to arrive. On this day, the heartache will end, the suffering will cease, and Terry Glenn will be in Green Bay.
This day is today, and legions of fans will rejoice tonight as the Patriots open up the 2002 season against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday Night Football.
The quixotic frustrations of an entire generation of New Englanders were put to rest last year, when the Patriots stormed their way through a Cinderella season, en route to one of the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history - taking the "greatest show on turf"; the St. Louis Rams.
Tonight, in a rematch of last year's AFC Championship game, the defending Super Bowl Champions will take on Bill Cowher's Steelers, early favorites to finish atop the AFC this season.
In last year's game, played in Pittsburgh, the Pats emerged with a 24-17 victory, despite an injury that forced Pro-Bowl quarterback Tom Brady to leave the game. With Brady out, head coach Bill Belichick put the ball in the hands of Drew Bledsoe, who orchestrated a drive at the end of the game to secure the win.
This year, Bledsoe will be in Buffalo, and the game will be in New England, where the team will christen the plush, new Gillette Stadium. But despite these differences, the teams will look very much the same.
The only real difference for the Patriots will be on offense, where Belichick installed some bigger targets for Brady to throw to. Donald Hayes, a 6'4", 220 pound wide receiver towers over Troy Brown and David Patten, and should help Brady on passing downs. Tight ends Christian Fauria, Cam Cleeland and Daniel Graham will also provide Brady with different passing and blocking options.
The defense will be essentially unchanged, with Ty Law, Lawyer Milloy, and Tebucky Jones leading the secondary, and Tedy Bruschi at middle linebacker.
The Steelers roster will also be very much the same, except for a few minor changes, most notably the acquisitions of Antwaan Randle-El, a college quarterback turned pro wide receiver, and Terrence Mathis, a 35 year old veteran with 666 career receptions under his belt.
The teams will do battle with essentially unchanged rosters, in a different location, and in a new stadium which will hold even larger throngs of football starved fans. New England won the last meeting in Pittsburgh, and odds are good that it will win this one too.
For one thing, the Pats are opening the season at home. Cowher's record in opening games isn't good, and it's even worse when those openers are against the defending Super Bowl champions, in front of 100,000 fans who have spent the off season listening to nothing but disrespect for their team from everyone in Oakland, St. Louis, and yes, Pittsburgh.
True, the Steelers will be seeking revenge for a loss that they blame more on behemoth running back Jerome Bettis' groin injury than anything else, but the Patriots have something to prove. New England is out to prove that last year was not a flash in the pan.
For whatever reason, the Patriots have received little, if any respect from the rest of league despite its championship. This season, they are looking to prove the nay-sayers wrong. A team with something to prove can be a dangerous thing.
New England has put last season behind them, and seems to be focused entirely on this year. None of the players have been seen sporting a championship ring, and the Lombardi trophy has apparently been buried underneath Foxboro Stadium. They may have been winners last season, but right now they are tied with every other team for last place. A ring won't stop Bettis from plowing his way through two linebackers, and it won't stop Plaxico Burress from scoring touchdowns.
If nothing else, the Patriots need a win tonight more than the Steelers do. As the defending champs, New England has been slapped with a schedule that's uglier than Janet Reno in spandex. Next week the Pats will head to New York to take on the Jets in one of their six games against AFC East teams - any of which could be a post-season threat. The team will also face Green Bay, Denver, and Minnesota, and will travel to Chicago, Oakland, and Tennessee. Not exactly a friendly season.
While a loss in the opener would not be good for the Steelers either, Pittsburgh's schedule does not even compare to the rigorousness of New England's.
Look for the Pats, and especially Brady, to come out firing tonight. Belichick will likely have concocted some scheme to shut down Bettis and Kordell Stewart, but the Steelers should be ready to play. Expect a close, hard fought game, with New England coming out on top.
