New England

PLAY OF THE WEEK LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego at Kansas City -- Tomlinson had 154 total yards and a touchdown against the Chiefs earlier this season and accounted for two touchdowns in both meetings last season. QUARTERBACK STARTING NOD -- Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh vs. Cincinnati: Look for Roethlisberger to bounce back playing in better playing conditions and against the Bengals' defense. OTHER SOLID OPTIONS -- Derek Anderson, Cleveland; Kurt Warner, Arizona; Tom Brady, New England.

Even if you're the world's most cockeyed optimist, it's going to be a tough week around here. I mean, the Ravens are a double-double-digit underdog for Monday night's game against the New England Patriots at M&T Bank Stadium, and the other notable event in the region is the multination Mideast conference that will be held today in Annapolis. Wonder what kinds of odds I can get if I parlay a Ravens victory and lasting peace in the Middle East. (It's times like these I like to quote the Rev. Jim Ignatowski of Taxi, who once was asked the odds of randomly running into an old high school friend in a city of 8 million people.

ON RANDY MOSS GOING TO THE NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS WHATS'S THE OVER-UNDER ON GAMES BEFORE MOSS WHINES HE IS NOT GETTING THE BALL ENOUGH? I think Moss wants a ring, plain and simple, and that is why he was willing to restructure his contract and get paid less in order to get the chance. My compliments to New England for its outstanding offseason, but no one is going to lay down and die for them.

For the first time in their Indianapolis existence, the Colts will be playing the AFC championship game at the RCA Dome. But where tonight's game against the New England Patriots likely will be won or lost will be inside quarterback Peyton Manning's head. Whether it's trying to finally solve the Patriots in the playoffs or blocking out his other failed runs at a title, the pressure will be on the two-time Most Valuable Player to show he can produce when the stakes are at their highest.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- So, Tom Brady, what did the New York Jets do to frustrate you the last time you saw them? "You guys wouldn't even understand if I told you," the New England Patriots quarterback said with a smile last week. "They change it up [how their defense looks] a bunch. They are a multiple-front team, multiple blitzers, safeties, everyone's involved, corners, safeties, linebackers. They create a bunch of negative plays. That's really what they've done the last six or seven weeks since they played us. They have obviously been one of the best defensive teams the second half of the year [allowing an average of 12.7 points in their past eight games]

The playoffs went as expected, but if I played for the San Diego Chargers, I would be a little concerned. The New England Patriots have played well lately, and Tom Brady looked good Sunday - because he was given the time. New England might be a little light on talent, especially at wide receiver, but Patriots coach Bill Belichick schemes well. As for the Colts game, I've lost more respect for Kansas City Chiefs coach Herm Edwards. I'll give the Colts credit because they did play great run defense, and safety Bob Sanders makes a difference.

New York -- New York Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora found religion while talking about the New England Patriots' offense. Giants coach Tom Coughlin announced his intention Wednesday to play his starters tomorrow night against the undefeated Patriots, answering the long-pondered question of whether the Giants would play to win. The question Giants defensive players answered yesterday revolved around whether they actually can. Patriots@Giants Tomorrow,...

The New England Patriots seemed playoff-bound at midseason, then watched their postseason dreams crumble over the next six weeks. And quarterback Drew Bledsoe did not look far when asked about whom to blame.Bledsoe pointed the finger at himself.The quarterback is surrounded by other reasons the 7-8 Patriots have gone south and basically lost their way to the end zone.They have allowed 54 sacks, the most since Bledsoe took over behind center in 1993. Their running game has been sporadic at best.

In a year when anything goes, the best division race to watch is in the AFC East, where even the last-place New York Jets suddenly have designs on a postseason berth.After a 17-7 Week 11 win over the Buffalo Bills, Jets coach Bill Parcells didn't rule out a playoff run by his team. Don't count on it, though. The Jets have the hardest path to the postseason of any team in the division. They must play four of their last six on the road, and their remaining opponents have a combined record of 42-18 (.700)

EastThe Patriots have 24 players left on their roster from the Bill Parcells era. The Jets have just five former Patriots on theirs. But those diminished numbers won't lessen the significance of Tuna Bowl V at the Meadowlands today. Patriots coach Pete Carroll, 1-3 against the Jets since replacing Parcells two years ago, called it a "grudge" game last week. "I don't think it'll ever go away," Carroll said of the scrutiny he faces when he's up against Parcells, who is known as Tuna. "I don't think there's any way you can make it go away.

Here's what you need to know about Mark Clayton this week: The guy's not a basket case. He's not curled up in the fetal position at team meetings after dropping that pass in the final seconds of the Ravens' 27-21 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday. He's not going through the lunch line at the Castle worrying about dropping a dinner roll. "Mark's resilient," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said the other day about his veteran wide receiver. "Mark's tough. Mark's confident. He's made so many plays here in the past."

The Ravens lost to the New England Patriots on Sunday, but the opinion of the Ravens here hasn't diminished. In fact, it's improved because the Ravens showed they can compete with the Patriots, and can win the Super Bowl. I'll explain: It's still early in the season, and almost anything can happen because of injuries. But if the Ravens had cut down on some mistakes, and hadn't outsmarted themselves, they would have beaten the Patriots despite some poor officiating. You can attribute the loss to Chris Carr's fumbling the opening kickoff or Mark Clayton's dropping a pass late in the game or Cam Cameron's desire to throw more than run or the officiating, but that would be foolish.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The white pants Tom Brady wore were a little dirtier than the New England Patriots quarterback is probably accustomed to. That's because the Ravens accomplished what few defenses have done: Sack Brady. The defense sacked Brady three times (which tripled his sack total for the season), pressured him on numerous occasions and gave the offense a chance in what would eventually become a 27-21 loss to the Patriots at Gillette Stadium on Sunday. "I thought our guys rushed hard, and they picked up pressure," coach John Harbaugh said in his post-game comments.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - - Despite the loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday, the Ravens still made a statement. They might end up being the best team in the NFL when the season is over. But they have to learn how to run the football to overcome their own mistakes, give their defense a rest and keep the other team's top offensive players off the field. It's great to have one of the highest-scoring offenses in the league, and it's exciting to put up a record number of points. But right now, the Ravens don't know when to turn it on and off. And when you play a quality team like New England, you had better have this timing thing down.

You're a Raven and you walk onto the field at Gillette Stadium today and tell yourself: It's just another game. Then you look over at the New England Patriots sideline and see a grumpy-looking guy in a hoodie wearing a headset and staring at his play chart as if it holds the secrets to the universe - and maybe it does. Not far from him is the quarterback with the million-dollar arm and GQ looks and super-model wife and three Super Bowl rings stashed in a safe-deposit box somewhere. And all around you is a wall of noise, crazy beered-up fans shrieking so hard the veins pop out of their necks, telling you how much you stink and what they think of your mother and how their team is going to kick your butt and put you in the hospital, so get ready, loser.

Round 2 (At New York) 33. Detroit, Louis Delmas, db, Western Michigan. 34. New England (from Kansas City), Patrick Chung, db, Oregon. 35. St. Louis, James Laurinaitis, lb, Ohio State. 36. Cleveland, Brian Robiskie, wr, Ohio State. 37. Denver (from Seattle), Alphonso Smith, db, Wake Forest. 38. Cincinnati, Rey Maualuga, lb, Southern California. 39. Jacksonville, Eben Britton, ot, Arizona. 40. New England (from Oakland), Ron Brace, dt, Boston College. 41. New England (from Green Bay)

J ohn Harbaugh didn't know where to begin in talking about his team's turnaround from a year ago after the 11-5 Ravens clinched a playoff spot yesterday with a 27-7 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. But there are three major reasons. The biggest difference from a year ago is Harbaugh, who replaced Brian Billick as coach after a 5-11 season. Harbaugh put together a quality coaching staff, and the final piece was the development of rookie Joe Flacco, the franchise-changing quarterback that this team has coveted for so long.

Four games from the end of an improbable regular season - and possibly the start of what once was an even more unlikely postseason - the Ravens still have all playoff options in front of them. Division title? Still attainable. As it stands, the Ravens can erase a one-game deficit and Pittsburgh's tiebreaking edge in the AFC North by beating the Steelers on Dec. 14 at M&T Bank Stadium. That would open the door to a possible home game in January and perhaps even a first-round bye. Wild-card berth?

The Patriots will flirt with playoff contention sans Tom Brady but will fall short because he was just that important to their excellence last year. Remember, Bill Belichick wasn't a great head coach before Brady came along. In fact, he's 42-58 without his Hall of Famer behind center. That's not to say Belichick will fail to prepare his defense or to craft a workable offense around backup quarterback Matt Cassel. It's just that a great star and great coach often need each other. Just look at the Patriots on Sunday after Brady went out. They had to fight to hold off a Kansas City team that went 4-12 last year.

OK, so Matt Cassel, the Patriots' new No. 1 quarterback, hasn't started a game since Nov. 24, 1999 - in high school, when a gallon of gas was a buck 22. And Cassel's performance in the preseason was as close to a flat line as he could get without having a mirror stuck under his nose. But hit the playoff panic button? Hold your horses. It's still a team sport, and we're talking about New England, the land of Flutie Hail Mary's, Havlicek steals the ball and Dave Roberts steals second. While he's no Tom Brady (who is?