Shots Heard 'Round The Web - Links for 9/8/08

No New Knee News Now - Belichick will hold his press conference today at 3pm

Week 1 Game Analysis

Mike Reiss offers his Game Notes with his usual expert analysis.  Play of the game:  Deltha O'Neal's rundown of Darling leading to that last minute, 5-play goal line stance?  or Cassel's 4 minute 51 second, 10 play, 98-yard touchdown drive? 

Reiss feels the key stat of Cassel's play yesterday was:  Zero Interceptions

NFL Game Center offers stats from yesterday's game for each player on both teams, with video highlights and analysis.

The Kansas City Star feels that the Patriot's long pass play was what hurt them the most.  Cassel to Moss for 51 yards from the Patriots' own 1 yard line.  Herm Edwards wanted to force the Patriots to have to punt into the stiff wind.  Guess he should have focused more on third down, than planning for the 4th.

Dan Ventura of the Herald says the Patriots saved their best play for last.

Karen Guregian gives her take on the events of yesterday with player quotes.

You Gotta Be Kidding Me Category

New York fans cheer Brady's injury.  Shouldn't surprise me, but it does.

Dave Goldberg, AP writer, comments on Belichick's "moderately flippant attitude about Tom Brady's left knee injury," and speculates it's a ploy to make the Jets plan for both quarterbacks.  Huh?  How dumb does he think the Jets are?

Effects of Brady injury on the AFC:  Fallout, domino effect, power shifts, and further speculation.

• Tony Massarotti intimates that the Patriots' "enormous void at quarterback could unmask or further elevate one of the great coaches in NFL history."  Then asks, "Does Bill Belichick need Tom Brady more than Tom Brady needs Bill Belichick?"

• Vic Carucci of NFL.com predicts a definite shift of power in the AFC with this extreme assessment:

I don't care if the Pats won their opener against Kansas City with Matt Cassel playing quarterback most of the way. Without Brady, the Patriots no longer are the Patriots. They don't dominate. They don't intimidate. They don't score at will or do the things that demand comparisons to the greatest teams in league history.

• Ron Borges of WEEI.com surprisingly cuts the Patriots a little slack and sees the whole team as greater than solely it's star quarterback.  All is not lost, he writes,  "that is something only time and Matt Cassel will make clear."
• Bob Glauber of Newsday says this makes the entire Patriots' season questionable, in which recovery might be impossible.
• Peter King of SI demotes Patriots down to number 6 in his Fine Fifteen rankings.
• Patriots are bringing in Chris Simms and Tim Rattay for a look today, according to WEEI radio.
• ESPN's Tim Graham reports on how Brady's injury may be a disaster for one team, the other 31 teams aren't too broken up about it and in fact a few are downright ecstatic.  He puts the Chargers at the top of the new Brady-less AFC.
• The New York Times feels if Brady is out for the season, or misses any significant time, the Patriots could struggle just to win the A.F.C. East.