Give the Patriots their due respect

Picked to finish dead last in their division -- so what?\nOpened season with two losses -- no problem.\nLost $100 million quarterback -- big deal.\nNo matter what happens in Sunday's game against the St. Louis Rams, the New England Patriots can stand tall. They are the image of persistence. No matter what the "experts" thought of them, no matter what happened to them, they have not stopped believing.\nThe coaches kept faith in their system. The players kept faith in the coaches, and most importantly, they continued to fight. In sports, we constantly see teams lower their heads when they are down. We see players grow frustrated and pursue personal success because team success seems impossible.\nBut not in New England.\nThe Patriots had a path, and they stuck to it. Credit goes to head coach Bill Belichick.\nInstead of wavering and second guessing himself, he made decisions quickly. His dedication to these difficult decisions led to confidence from his players. When Belichick declared backup quarterback Tom Brady the starter when Drew Bledsoe returned from his injury, that was it. There was no discussion, there was no wondering. That was left to the media.\nCredit goes to the players, too. Not often do professional athletes simply accept being benched, especially when they have been starting for years. Bledsoe understood that if the team wanted to win, they had to stay focused on what was working. He knew that his return would confuse teammates and upset a pattern that had put the Patriots onto a winning trend.\nBut Bledsoe did not stop with simply accepting his backup role. He embraced it. He has become the best backup quarterback in the National Football League. He encouraged his replacement and stayed focused on the playbook, rather than moping his way along the sidelines.\nAnd it paid off. When Tom Brady injured his left leg during a rushed drive at the end of the first half Sunday, Bledsoe calmly re-entered the offense, completed the drive and went on to lead his team to victory.\nBledsoe did not need to panic. He did not need to prove to the world that he is a great quarterback. He was able to walk in the huddle already having the respect of his teammates because he put the team ahead of himself throughout the season.\nThis commitment, this confidence is why the Patriots are in the Super Bowl -- not their execution. Sure, there have been exceptional plays that have led to victories for the Patriots, but they have all come in stride.\nThe Patriots did not get to this point on the talent of their offense, like St. Louis. Nor have they gotten here with the grit of their defense, like Baltimore last year. Instead, they beautifully combined their resources, knowing that together with offense, defense and special teams they will outperform their opponents.\nThis confidence has gotten them to the Super Bowl, and it has come from the top of the organization all the way down.\nIf they pull off an upset in New Orleans and defeat the heavily favored Rams, New England will surprise millions of people. But there will be one group of people who won't be surprised -- the one group of people who knew from the very beginning that they could end the season as champions -- themselves.