Brady Back, but Patriots Still Not Complete

On Saturday, I saw this man, Jesus Christ. Today, Patriots fans will see their savior, Tom Brady, take the field with the team for the first time since his knee injury.

According to all reports, Brady’s recovery following surgery to repair his ACL and MCL is on schedule. Naturally Tom Terrific is hungry to go all out and go above and beyond. Thankfully the coaching and training staff will hold him back when necessary.

Everyone expects Brady to be fully recovered and able to play at his previous level of excellence. With those beliefs, the expectations are through the roof.

ESPN revealed their NFL Power Rankings for 2009. Super Bowl Champions Pittsburgh is the top seed. New England is second.

Receiver Randy Moss believes the offense could be even better than 2007’s record-breaking unit because the offense will have another year in the system and Brady’s return makes completes the offense.

I’m as excited as the next guy to see what Brady and the Patriots will do this season. And while I believe New England is a legitimate Super Bowl contender, I look at the Pats with some concerns.

The defense looks only slightly better on paper. The secondary is a young unit that got younger and less experienced following the trade of CB Ellis Hobbs. While the additions of free agent cornerbacks Leigh Bodden and Shawn Springs more than makes up for the lack of experience, The question is how much does Springs have left? He was released by Washington in the off-season. Are the Redskins right in believing Springs is done, or is Shawn still effective?

Besides the two veterans New England also drafted CB Darius Butler and safety Patrick Chung. The return of CB Terrence Wheatley from a season-ending wrist injury also makes the battle in the secondary interesting.

This is a secondary that ranked 31^st in the league last year with 27 touchdown passes allowed and just 15 interceptions. It’s a problem that goes back to 2007. People were mesmerized by the Brady-to-Moss air show but practically ignored Philadelphia’s 28 points, Baltimore’s 24 (with an offense led by Kyle Boller), or the New York Giants’ season-ending 35.

Without question the secondary play must improve if the Patriots expect to be legitimate. They will have to stand up on their own because front seven help might be spotty at best.

As I’ve said ad nauseum, the Pats don’t have an outside linebacker starter opposite of Adalius Thomas. New England had a meddling 31 sacks, and that was with Mike Vrabel, who was traded this off-season. Either someone on the roster steps up (among Pierre Woods, Tully Banta-Cain, Shawn Crable, Vince Redd, or Angelo Craig), New England completes a trade (with Oakland’s Derrick Burgess a current possibility), or the Patriots wait for teams to make cuts (Dallas’ Greg Ellis will be available if the Cowboys are unable to trade the 11-year veteran).

If the pass rush can’t apply consistent pressure, the secondary will be exposed by QBs with all day in the pocket. No secondary can withstand a weekly onslaught like that.

The defense shouldn’t depend on the offense to bail them out, although Brady and company can do so.

Brady might need some playing time to regain his rhythm and to gain confidence in his rebuilt left knee. As he feels his way back to form, his best assistant will be the running game.

It’s an aspect of the offense that didn’t get enough credit last year. But even with 24 man games lost due to injury at the running back position, the Patriots still had the sixth-ranked rushing offense. If Laurence Maroney and Sammy Morris stay healthy, they are joined by Fred Taylor and have depth provided by BenJarvus Green-Ellis. Add third down back Kevin Faulk and the Pats have a rotation that enables them to run all day long if needed.

And when Brady drops back to pass, he has some new targets. WR Joey Galloway was signed to be another deep threat to compliment Moss. Before Galloway came on board, the Pats traded for Greg Lewis to fill the possession receiver spot since Jabar Gaffney signed with Denver.

If the receivers can’t get open, Brady might be able to count on the new tight ends. Chris Baker was added as a free agent from the rival New York Jets, and Alex Smith became expendable in Tampa Bay after the Buccaneers traded for Kellen Winslow. Smith was acquired via trade after the draft.

Certainly I expect another strong season by the Patriots, but I’m trying not to get caught up in the Brady is Back hype. New England won eleven games last year with Tom. At least that many wins is possible against a tougher schedule.

But I’m not rushing to name the Patriots the class of the league. Brady doesn’t play outside linebacker too.