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With cameras rolling, Pats don't disappoint

(Sports Network) - In the wake of the New England Patriots cheating scandal last week, pundits emerged on all sides of the issue to both defend and condemn the team and its coaches. YouTube videos were crafted, past victims cried bloody murder, and babies wept.

And all the team did was win its game. Easily.

Without taking sides on the issue, we admire the way the Patriots went about dispatching the Chargers in a 38-14 win on Sunday night in the first meeting between the teams since New England knocked San Diego from the playoffs last season.

Of course, as one writer here pointed out, there may be no bigger coaching mismatch in the NFL than Bill Belichick vs. Norv Turner.

But if there was already pressure on the Patriots and their coaches this season to live up to the billing of AFC front-runner, that pressure more than doubled in the six days leading up to their second game of 2007.

For their part, team members handled it well, playing and winning the game for their embattled coach. Video of Tedy Bruschi, Tom Brady and others embracing Belichick as time wound down was touching, if not a little hammy.

As for the game itself, the Patriots dominated on both sides of the ball in a matchup of two teams regarded by most as locks to make the playoffs.

That the Patriots' win was overshadowed by discussion of the cheating scandal and the hardy penalty levied thereafter by Commissioner Goodell was inevitable.

That it was ignored almost completely in favor of Yellow journalism, in lieu of a conversation about X's and O's, and without perspective of the game's importance within the scope of the AFC hierarchy -- well, that's just inexcusable.

Consider that the Patriots led 24-0 at halftime after two offensive touchdowns (including a 23-yard TD reception by Randy Moss), one defensive score (Adalius Thomas' 65-yard interception return for a TD) and a field goal.

Regard the way they answered each San Diego touchdown in the second half with a touchdown of their own -- the last one basically a punch in the eye: Sammy Morris' three-yard TD run with 3:18 remaining and the Patriots already leading 31-14.

Notice that the New England defense limited LaDainian Tomlinson to just 43 yards on 18 rushing attempts, that it sacked Philip Rivers three times and intercepted him twice.

And consider that they did all of this as we watched, waiting for them to fail, waiting for the house of cards to crumble, for the pressure to become too much to bear.

Geology is the study of pressure and time, Red tells us in the Shawshank Redemption.

This team might just be a geologist's dream.

AND NOW, THE DELUGE

Of course, there is still the matter of the cheating scandal.

Pride goeth before destruction, the Bible tells us, and a haughty spirit before a fall. It's a warning against hubris written thousands of years ago, but easily applicable to modern life.

And it applies here.

The most galling and inexplicable aspect of the cheating scandal is that the Patriots really are one of the best teams in the NFL, if not the best. Their talent is overwhelming, the coaching staff among the best in the league, so there seems little reason to look for an extra edge.

Which is why so many writers last week compared the scandal to Watergate (giving us endless "CameraGate" parallels).

Don't expect this to go away anytime soon, either. Not only did the scandal open up the Patriots to criticism regarding last week's game, it cost the team a first-round draft pick and its head coach and owners a combined $750,000.

It opened the team up to speculation about the validity of past wins, seeded the NFL rumor clouds (They have a video library!) and set every investigative sports journalist in motion with one goal: uncover more.

The Boston Herald reported Monday that Jets coach Eric Mangini, a Belichick disciple, charged the Patriots with stealing his team's defensive signals last season as well.

"[T]hat incident -- as much as Mangini leaving for New York, trying to hire away Patriots assistants, or even going after receiver Deion Branch -- drove a permanent wedge between the two coaches and resulted in the frosty relationship that's gone downright cryogenic following this week's Camera-gate scandal," the newspaper reported.

And on and on...

SHOW OF SUPPORT

As all of this unfolded last week, there were reports that the Patriots had extended Belichick through the 2013 season. In a television interview with Al Michaels, team CEO Robert Kraft stopped short of confirming the extension.

But he didn't deny it.

"The coach and I have had a policy that we don't discuss his contract, but he's made great contributions to this franchise over the last seven years and myself, and all of our fans, truly appreciate his efforts," Kraft said.

He also expressed his disappointment with Belichick, while at the same time voicing his disagreement with the NFL's penalty.

"I must tell you, it was really disappointing, especially after such a great game. What made it particularly disheartening, in our group of companies, we hold people to very high standards and this isn't what we're about. I've discussed that with Coach Belichick," Kraft said.

He went on:

"Commissioner Goodell levied the highest penalty on anyone in the history of the NFL between the first-round draft choice and the financial penalty. He made his statement known. We accepted it. Coach Belichick apologized and from here on in, it will be handled as an internal, private Patriots matter.

[...]

"Whatever Coach Belichick wanted to accomplish to me now is really irrelevant. What's relevant is that Commissioner Goodell put out a very severe penalty and I must tell you I was quite upset and perturbed when I saw the penalty because I didn't think that the incident deserved this kind of punishment.

"Over the last couple of days I've been thinking about it and have cooled down, I realized he wasn't just sending a message to the New England Patriots, he was sending it to all 32 teams. In the end, Commissioner Goodell is the custodian of this game and the integrity of this game rests on his shoulders and he's sending a message to all teams. And I support that and I think so do the fans who emotionally get charged by us."

UP NEXT: HOSTING BUFFALO

The Pats have swept the Bills in each of the past three seasons, and there's no reason to believe they won't again this year.

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