The over/under for the Patriots is 10 1/2.  The Patriots are 17-2 to win the Super Bowl and 4-1 to win the AFC.

The Patriots should easily win more than 11 games, so I see money to be made there.  I also see them getting home field advantage in the AFC, so the Super Bowl and AFC Championship both look like sound investments.

The offense and defense looked like they were playing a World League team Saturday night, that’s how bad of a mis-match the game was.  The offense controlled the ball for 36:08 of the game and rang up 170 yards rushing and 294 net yards passing.  Tom Brady looked good as usual, completing 17 of 30 passes for 231 yards and a TD.  Matt Cassel completed 7 of 8 passes for 63 yards.

Patrick Cobbs rushed 13 times for 92 yards (7.1 ypc) and 2 TDs.  Kevin Faulk ran six times for 38 yards.  Corey Dillon ran 5 times for 12 yards and caught 1 pass for 39 yards.  Laurence Maroney carried the ball 4 times for 12 yards and a TD.

TE Ben Watson was the leading receiver for the Pats, catching 8 passes for 97 yards (12.1 avg) and a TD.  Troy Brown caught 4 passes for 64 yards.  Reche Caldwell caught 3 passes for 28 yards.

The defense looked great on Saturday night.  The Pats held the Skins to 74 yards (4.1 ypc) rushing.  The Redskins only threw for 80 net yards and only completed 48.5% of their passes.

Coach Belichick hates the pre-season, rarely letting starters get any significant playing time.  QB Matt Cassel has stepped out of Tom Brady’s shadow this August and has been putting up huge numbers.  Cassel has completed 27 of 46 passes (58.7%) and has thrown for 421 yards with 3 TDs and no pick-offs.  Cassel has also rushed 11 times for 63 yards (5.7 ypc).  Belichick is showing alot of faith in Cassel as his back-up.  Cassel hadn’t started a game since high school when the Patriots drafted him last year.  Now that’s what you call scouting!

Rookie RB Laurence Maroney is tearing it up in the pre-season.  He has rushed for 94 yards on 15 carries (6.3 ypc) and has been just as good as advertised.  Maroney will back-up Dillon to start the year, but he might push him for the job during the season.

Rookie TE/FB Garrett Mills has looked good in the pre-season, catching 7 passes for 88 yards (12.6 avg).  Mills should be one of the many, many targets for Tom Brady this season.

The Patriots are looking awesome on offense in the pre-season.  The Pats are averaging 159.5 yards rushing per game and 4.6 yards per carry.  The Pats are also averaging 287.0 yards passing per game and completing 64.3% of their passes. 

The Patriots defense is having problems stopping the run, giving up 125.5 yards per game and 5.5 yards per carry.  Those numbers are part of the reason the Pats signed Junior Seau.  The Pats defense against the pass has been outstanding!  The Pats are giving up only 161.5 yards passing per game and only letting the opposition complete 46.9% of their passes.

The Patriots looked like the three-time World Champions on Saturday night.  The Patriots controlled possession of the football for 42:16 of the game.  They rushed 39 times for 157 yards, and completed 29 of 40 passes for a net of 329 yards passing.  The Patriots used 16 different receivers in the game.  Rookie kicker Stephen Gostkowski made all three of his field-goal attempts and all three of his extra points.

Tom Brady looked good completing 15 of 20 passes for 149 yards.  Matt Cassel (”Mr. August”) completed 14 of 20 passes for 192 yards with 2 TDs, he also rushed five times for 31 yards. 

Corey Dillon got alot of work, rushing 10 times for 26 yards and a TD.  Laurence Maroney played well again rushing 6 times for 28 yards.  Heath Evans also had a good game, rushing 5 times for 28 yards and catching 2 passes for 14 yards and a TD.

Ben Watson was the Patriots leading receiver catching 4 passes for 40 yards. 

The Pats defense was dominating when on the field.  The Cards were held to 55 yards rushing on 13 carries and only completed 11 of 28 passes for 96 yards.