News

This article appears courtesy of The Boston Globe

By Nick Cafardo
Globe Staff

You can't say it's a schedule sponsored by Hostess (as in cupcakes), but for a team trying to get back to the Super Bowl, the Patriots, who have suffered huge personnel losses this offseason, have to be tickled with the slate of games the NFL presented them yesterday.

The Patriots open against the chaotic Buffalo Bills at home Sept. 10 and are at the rebuilding New York Jets the following week, and end the regular season with a Dec. 31 game at Tennessee, which finished 4-12 last season.

Six of the 13 teams the Patriots face failed to win more than five games a year ago, and their 2006 opponents' combined record was 103-105.

If the Patriots had to suffer the player losses they did -- most notably free agents David Givens, Adam Vinatieri, and Willie McGinest -- this might have been the year to do it.

That said, there appear to be rough patches. The Patriots face the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last season, the Denver Broncos, in a prime-time game at Gillette Stadium Sept. 24. That starts a run of three tough ones before the bye. After the Broncos, the Patriots travel to Cincinnati then host what by all accounts is an improved Miami team, including new quarterback Daunte Culpepper.

New England also hosts Indianapolis, which defeated the Patriots, 40-21, last season, and Vinatieri Nov. 5, as the game's best clutch kicker returns to Foxborough.

The Patriots play three consecutive games against NFC North opponents -- at Packers, vs. Bears, and vs. Lions -- from Nov. 19-Dec. 3, before heading to Miami for a game Dec. 10. The Houston Texans will be in town Dec. 17 with former Bills receiver Eric Moulds (and possibly projected No. 1 overall pick Reggie Bush). On Dec. 24, the Patriots will play what will likely be a meaningful conference game at Jacksonville, then will end the regular season against Givens and the Titans.

While Vinatieri's return to Foxborough, the Denver rematch, the Miami games, and Bill Belichick's battles against new Jets coach Eric Mangini, should be compelling, the release of the schedule provided dates for other games that should generate national interest:

1. The first meeting between Terrell Owens and the Dallas Cowboys and Owens's former team, the Eagles, is set for Oct. 8 in Philadelphia. The Philly fans, perhaps the toughest in the NFL, will no doubt have a few choice words for the player who has possibly become the most hated in the city's history. The second meeting will be Christmas Day in Dallas, and one would have to think the game will mean something in the NFC East standings.

2. Peyton Manning and the Colts face brother Eli Manning and the Giants in Week 1 at the Meadowlands. Peyton Manning is still the more accomplished player and the Colts appear to be the better team.

3. Scheduling for seven of the final eight weeks of the schedule will be adjusted to ensure the best games are played on NBC's 'Sunday Night Football."

4. Any game the Super Bowl champion Steelers are involved in will be newsworthy. They open on Thursday night, Sept. 7, at home against the Dolphins. The Steelers have been hit with two notable free agent losses in receiver Antwaan Randle El and defensive end Kimo von Oelhoffen, but coach Bill Cowher is a master at replacing personnel. The Steelers have three tough games right off the bat: vs. Miami, at Jacksonville Sept. 18 (Monday night), and vs. the Bengals Sept. 24, so their mettle and willingness to defend their title will be tested quickly. Pittsburgh will have to contend with Baltimore, Cleveland, and Cincinnati within their division, as well as Atlanta, Tampa Bay, Kansas City, and San Diego outside of it. Their only layup game appears to be Nov. 12 against New Orleans at home, but who knows what kind of impact a new quarterback (Drew Brees) and new coach (Sean Payton) will have on the Saints. A rematch of the AFC Championship game -- Steelers vs. Broncos -- takes place Nov. 5 in Pittsburgh.

5. Feel like you did nothing but watch Brett Favre on television last season? Well, if he returns to the Packers, you'll see him a lot again. It doesn't matter that Green Bay won just four games last season and fired its coach. The Packers will appear in prime time three times during the regular season -- at Philadelphia Oct. 2, at Seattle (and former Green Bay coach Mike Holmgren) Nov. 27, and vs. the Vikings Dec. 21. The Raiders get four prime-time games and open the exhibition slate in prime time in the Hall of Fame game Aug. 6 against the Eagles. Guess the Silver and Black with Randy Moss sells. You can also watch Art Shell's return to NFL coaching with the Raiders Sept. 11 at 10:15 p.m. against San Diego.

6. It's only a football game but given the plight of Hurricane Katrina victims and the uprooting of thousands of families, the sight of the Saints playing at the Louisiana Superdome for the first time since the devastation will make for an emotional night Sept. 25 against the Atlanta Falcons.

7. Culpepper plays his former team, the Vikings, in Miami Nov. 19.

8. If the Texans make Bush the No. 1 pick, he's scheduled to make his debut Sept. 10 at home against Philadelphia.

9. The offseason grudge match between the Vikings and Seahawks, who fought each other for guard Steve Hutchinson and receiver Nate Burleson, plays out on the field in Seattle Oct. 22.

10. Cowboys-Giants games always provide great drama, with Bill Parcells and former assistant Tom Coughlin consistently having their teams ready to go. The first meeting this season will be Monday night, Oct. 23, in Dallas.