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Belichick makes Pats dynasty 

Paper Champ

Geronimo Rodriguez

Before the season began, those who passionately follow the gridiron world might have wondered which team would pound out a couple of championships to become the NFL's next dynasty.

After getting a flash of Janet Jackson during Sunday's Super Bowl XXXVIII, the world watched the New England Patriots reveal their strength, sucking dry one of the league's sharpest teams and giving birth to a new dynasty.

Yes, the NFL has a new baby, and Bill Belichick is the daddy.

Having won two of the last three Super Bowls, including Sunday's 32-29 triumph against the Carolina Panthers at Reliant Stadium, Belichick's style -- which is a mix of smashmouth football and the West Coast offense monster that Patriots' quarterback Tom Brady plays to perfection -- is the latest football fashion. Other teams might try to emulate this blend, but the likes of Brady or kicker Adam Vinatieri, the guy with the toe of steel, might be hard to come by.

And after sifting through the NFL Draft to find such talents who do get past the first and second rounds, the teams that want to slap their opponents silly will have to conjure up master game plans week after week. The Pats' offensive genius Charlie Weis and defensive guru Romeo Crennel deserve some of the plaudits for forming one of the best overall teams in recent history, and Belichick doesn't seem like a guy who'll let his team self-destruct after a few setbacks.

If its defense failed during its mind-blowing 15-0 winning streak, the Patriots' offense was there to kill the opposition with an overdose of short passes. And when Brady and company couldn't find the end zone, the defense, led by a number of players, stood rock-solid -- just flash back to its goal line stand against Indianapolis in Week 13.

In other words, the Patriots, who finished the regular season with a 14-2 record and took care of business by tying up the Tennessee Titans and corralling the Indianapolis Colts, are a different kind of dynasty. Belichick has survived any collapse that comes with having to breast-feed a talented yet grouchy football star. He's also dealt with the blow that the salary cap laid on his team -- the Pats were pressed to release Lawyer Milloy, one of their star defenders, at the beginning of the season. 

So two -- and counting -- Super Bowl trophies, and no problems.

What's next for the NFL champs? It seems the only thing left for the AFC bully to do is to continue sweeping past the likes of Charmin-soft Miami and Indianapolis, only to clean its cleats with the defenseless Kansas City Chiefs.

Until teams become more well-rounded opponents, New England will feast on its oppositions' flaws, dancing toward another winning season and earning a ticket to the Super Bowls to come.

Rodriguez writes about the NFL for The Daily Cougar. Send comments to dcsports@mail.uh.edu.