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Almost Perfect Practice Makes....

When Bill Belichick says he likes something related to football, I snap to attention. He's not known for blabbing trade secrets.

Accordingly, when Belichick pretty much gushed about how much he loved the joint practices the Patriots were holding with the Saints last week before their exhibition game (the same joint practices held with the Falcons this week before Thursday's game), I immediately assumed the following: Belichick had figured out a way to get more out of those sessions than other people. The Pats' coach WANTS to be tight-lipped, but when it comes to football theory, he can't help himself. The love of the subject takes command.

And without getting into specifics, because I only scanned parts of the first half of both games, it was obvious, even to a scanner, that the Pats, Falcons and Saints were far more organized than is customary for early exhibition games, which traditionally resemble the First Battle of Bull Run, and that the Pats were way more organized than their opponents. Given the chance to have practices which more closely resembled actual football combat, Belichick, as might be expected, made the most of it.

If there is a 2011 NFL season, I predict the Patriots will have a much harder time finding training camp dance partners.

posted by Michael Gee @ 8:59 AM