We guess we have to face the facts that the Steamroller Pats of this past autumn were the aberration, not the norm. The M.O. for the first three championship teams was: keep it close, make the big plays and make the other guy NOT make them, then walk out with a win, and make sure the other guy walks out shaking his head and wondering if one or two plays would have made the difference.......

Ask Bill Belichick about last week's game, and you may as well be asking him about the Treaty of Ghent. Ask him about the 14-point-underdog Chargers, and you may as well be asking him about an All-Star team composed of the '85 Bears, '89 49ers and the Justice League of America. You know what you get from Coach Bill when you ask about football. But apparently, ask him about team fight songs and you hit......

Was there any doubt? The Patriots, good as they are, and now with the increased motivation of having the rest of the world hate them? Belichick, who is the smartest coach in the world anyway, now with the incentive to prove it? The wagons have been circled. You're either with us or against us. And the San Diego Chargers, who fancied themselves one of the elite teams in the NFL, got their butts handed to......

Your optimists can say that the Red Sox still have a decent lead in the AL East. That October is a foregone conclusion at Fenway. That Schilling is back and hitting his stride just at the right time. That's why optimists don't last long around here. Games like last night, when the Sox couldn't get ONE SINGLE measly solitary guy around to score against the Devil Rays, break their spirit. In the midst of first,......

The Bruins pounded the Tampa Bay Lightning 6-2 last night. Not only are the Bruins winning consistently, but they are getting closer to a playoff spot. A few weeks ago, this would have been inconceivable, but the Bruins continue to surprise. It's looking like Marco Sturm is close to re-signing, and Patrice Bergeron seems to be recovering from his injury. After a series of spankings, the Celtics played the LA Lakers last night, 122 to......

While we're waiting to see BU and BC face off in the Beanpot next Monday night, we gotta make do with what we have - the Bruins and the Celtics. Aw, that's not fair. The Bruins won one against the Washington Capitals last night in a shootout. It was the night of a thousand shootouts across the NHL (actually, five shootouts), and the Bruins enjoyed one of the victories. And who scored the winning goal?......

As if you couldn't already tell by the shouting in the bar or the shaking of the apartment building or your neighbors getting nutty in the street - the Patriots defeated the Chargers last night 24 to 21. Bostonist has long recaps for the Pats games, but this game was so miraculous that it deserves a little Redux. Judging by the pre-game stats and the power that is Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson, it......

Patriots 37, Jets 16: The Patriots trounced the Jets in the AFC Wild Card, but an even more interesting story emerged after the game. Pats coach Bill Belichick was so determined to give defeated Jets coach Eric Mangini a hug that he barreled his way through a horde of photographers, brutally shoving some poor guy out of the way, just to deliver that hug in person. Now, on to the Chargers, and LaDainian Tomlinson better......