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You've heard pundits across the nation report that Tom Brady and the New England Patriots are not happy with each other; the relationship is on rocky ground. They surmise the end of an era, the fall of the mighty.

To hear Bill Belichick, you'd think that the face of the franchise just might be as expendable as any other player on the roster. And then again, Belichick made it very clear that there is no quarterback controversy in New England.

While it is true that even the great one knows that he has to earn his place on this team every week, it is just as true that it would take a colossal collapse such as has never been seen (at least since the days of Tony Eason and Steve Grogan) in Foxboro, MA to even begin to hint that Mr. Brady and Mr. Belichick can't work things out.

Keep in mind that there is a lot of money tied up in the QB position right now. Brady signed an extension last year that makes him the odds-on starter for the duration of that deal. That means that no one else will usurp his throne until 2017, or an unlikely trend in the wrong direction for the two-time MVP.

Given the fact that Brady has conceded that he would quit when he sucks, the ball is squarely in his court to make that call for himself. There is no outward indication that Belichick, or any other member of team management, has any intention to hasten that decision. Besides, finding the consumate heir to the master QB will not be a task to be taken lightly.

While it easy to be critical of Tom's performances early this season, and couple those with some sub-par numbers in 2013, and suddenly the man who led his beloved Patriots to three Super Bowl championships, and two more appearances, is getting too old and has lost his touch.

But let's keep all this in perspective; the team has been in turmoil for a number of reasons over the past two years. Both the offense and defense have been devastated by defection and decimated by damage, with very little competent compensation in the draft or free agency.

Who can blame Brady for some frustration and drop in performance? Well, it could be said that he took it unnecessarily hard and personally, but this is his team and he should take it personally. At one time, he had one of the best receiving duos in football at his disposal. He also has been the beneficiary of incredible protection in seasons past.

But, through thick and thin, for better, for worse, in sickness and in health, and all that stuff... Belichick and Brady just go together in Foxboro. BB counts on the work ethic that defines Brady the man and QB; Brady is truly a product of the system that comes from the mind of the genius. It is a perfect marrriage!

You've heard pundits across the nation report that Tom Brady and the New England Patriots are not happy with each other; the relationship is on rocky ground. They surmise the end of an era, the fall of the mighty.

To hear Bill Belichick, you'd think that the face of the franchise just might be as expendable as any other player on the roster. And then again, Belichick made it very clear that there is no quarterback controversy in New England.

While it is true that even the great one knows that he has to earn his place on this team every week, it is just as true that it would take a colossal collapse such as has never been seen (at least since the days of Tony Eason and Steve Grogan) in Foxboro, MA to even begin to hint that Mr. Brady and Mr. Belichick can't work things out.

Keep in mind that there is a lot of money tied up in the QB position right now. Brady signed an extension last year that makes him the odds-on starter for the duration of that deal. That means that no one else will usurp his throne until 2017, or an unlikely trend in the wrong direction for the two-time MVP.

Given the fact that Brady has conceded that he would quit when he sucks, the ball is squarely in his court to make that call for himself. There is no outward indication that Belichick, or any other member of team management, has any intention to hasten that decision. Besides, finding the consumate heir to the master QB will not be a task to be taken lightly.

While it easy to be critical of Tom's performances early this season, and couple those with some sub-par numbers in 2013, and suddenly the man who led his beloved Patriots to three Super Bowl championships, and two more appearances, is getting too old and has lost his touch.

But let's keep all this in perspective; the team has been in turmoil for a number of reasons over the past two years. Both the offense and defense have been devastated by defection and decimated by damage, with very little competent compensation in the draft or free agency.

Who can blame Brady for some frustration and drop in performance? Well, it could be said that he took it unnecessarily hard and personally, but this is his team and he should take it personally. At one time, he had one of the best receiving duos in football at his disposal. He also has been the beneficiary of incredible protection in seasons past.

But, through thick and thin, for better, for worse, in sickness and in health, and all that stuff... Belichick and Brady just go together in Foxboro. BB counts on the work ethic that defines Brady the man and QB; Brady is truly a product of the system that comes from the mind of the genius. It is a perfect marrriage!

The New England Patriots silenced their critics and in a big way by defeating The Cincinnati Bengals 41-17 on Sunday night. As bad as the Patriots have been in the first four weeks of this season, the complete opposite happened in this game. New England came into this game with one of the worst offenses in the league and Cincinnati was really supposed to have an easy time of it. Many of the critics expected a game like the week before when the Patriots got blown out by the Kansas City Chiefs 41-14 on Monday night.

It was a very rough week after that loss and the media had a field day questioning Belichick’s coaching decisions and, questioning Brady’s status as an elite quarterback. So bad was the Medias scrutiny that even the national stage got involved with reports that Brady was unhappy with his personnel, and unhappy that the patriots were basically leaving him out to dry. The offensive line took the brunt of the criticism by not giving Brady enough time to throw, which in turn gave Brady his worst start the beginning of the season for a long time. Everything was put under a microscope, the quarterback, the coaching, the offensive coordinator, the defense, and the overall play calling by the Patriot coaching Staff, including Belichick himself.

But all that scrutiny was silenced and it all started right away in the first quarter. The Patriots, especially Tom Brady, came out fired up and Brady and the offense scored two touchdowns in their first two possessions. Clearly this was a different team than in the first four weeks. They were completing passes, the running game was going, and things seemed to really be gelling for the Patriots.  Even Brady himself got two first downs, one running on a pass play, and one on a quarterback sneak.

Ridley scored on a one yard touchdown run and Tim Wright, who was picked up in a trade for Logan Mankins to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, scored on a 17 yard pass play from Tom Brady, and picked up the Patriots second score of the game. Gostkowski added two field goals in the second quarter and the Patriots were up 20-3 after the first half.

In the second half the Bengals scored a touchdown with 11:32 left in the third, to come within ten points. But that’s as close they would get and at 6:11 tom Brady threw a sixteen yard pass to Gronkowski making the score 27-10. On the ensuing kickoff the Bengals fumbled the ball on the nine yard line and Kyle Arrington recovered it, and ran in for the touch down score making it 34-10 after the extra point.

Cincinnati did manage to score another touchdown before the end of the third quarter. Andy Dalton threw a 17 yard touchdown to A.J. Green, after Darrelle Revis , who had been covering him the whole night, went out on an injury play. Andy Dalton quickly took advantage of this, because Revis, up to this point had shut down A.J. green, Cincinnati’s top receiver. That would be all the scoring in the game for the Bengals and the Patriots added 3 more field goals in the fourth quarter winning 41-17.

It was quite a comeback win considering how bad the Monday night game was. And it just shows the resiliency of this team. The local Boston media was extremely rough after the Kansas City loss. And there was more mud slinging going on than at a monster truck rally. It was really strange listening to local sports radio on Monday morning. They were clamoring, retracting stories, stumbling, and putting foots in their mouth. Nobody knew what to do, because they probably had all their headlines written for the next day. They expected the Patriots to roll over and just get beat down by the undefeated Cincinnati Bengals. So they could continue their tirade from the previous weeks before.

We should give credit to Belichick once again for proving the critics wrong. And we should give extra credit to Tom Brady to come out and play the game that he did, because Brady bore the brunt of all the criticism in the previous weeks. To come out and play a game like that after all that’s happened was just truly amazing. I’m not sure most guys, even NFL quarterbacks, could handle that kind of pressure. But Brady did that and more proving his critics wrong once again.

The New England Patriots silenced their critics and in a big way by defeating The Cincinnati Bengals 41-17 on Sunday night. As bad as the Patriots have been in the first four weeks of this season, the complete opposite happened in this game. New England came into this game with one of the worst offenses in the league and Cincinnati was really supposed to have an easy time of it. Many of the critics expected a game like the week before when the Patriots got blown out by the Kansas City Chiefs 41-14 on Monday night.

It was a very rough week after that loss and the media had a field day questioning Belichick’s coaching decisions and, questioning Brady’s status as an elite quarterback. So bad was the Medias scrutiny that even the national stage got involved with reports that Brady was unhappy with his personnel, and unhappy that the patriots were basically leaving him out to dry. The offensive line took the brunt of the criticism by not giving Brady enough time to throw, which in turn gave Brady his worst start the beginning of the season for a long time. Everything was put under a microscope, the quarterback, the coaching, the offensive coordinator, the defense, and the overall play calling by the Patriot coaching Staff, including Belichick himself.

But all that scrutiny was silenced and it all started right away in the first quarter. The Patriots, especially Tom Brady, came out fired up and Brady and the offense scored two touchdowns in their first two possessions. Clearly this was a different team than in the first four weeks. They were completing passes, the running game was going, and things seemed to really be gelling for the Patriots.  Even Brady himself got two first downs, one running on a pass play, and one on a quarterback sneak.

Ridley scored on a one yard touchdown run and Tim Wright, who was picked up in a trade for Logan Mankins to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, scored on a 17 yard pass play from Tom Brady, and picked up the Patriots second score of the game. Gostkowski added two field goals in the second quarter and the Patriots were up 20-3 after the first half.

In the second half the Bengals scored a touchdown with 11:32 left in the third, to come within ten points. But that’s as close they would get and at 6:11 tom Brady threw a sixteen yard pass to Gronkowski making the score 27-10. On the ensuing kickoff the Bengals fumbled the ball on the nine yard line and Kyle Arrington recovered it, and ran in for the touch down score making it 34-10 after the extra point.

Cincinnati did manage to score another touchdown before the end of the third quarter. Andy Dalton threw a 17 yard touchdown to A.J. Green, after Darrelle Revis , who had been covering him the whole night, went out on an injury play. Andy Dalton quickly took advantage of this, because Revis, up to this point had shut down A.J. green, Cincinnati’s top receiver. That would be all the scoring in the game for the Bengals and the Patriots added 3 more field goals in the fourth quarter winning 41-17.

It was quite a comeback win considering how bad the Monday night game was. And it just shows the resiliency of this team. The local Boston media was extremely rough after the Kansas City loss. And there was more mud slinging going on than at a monster truck rally. It was really strange listening to local sports radio on Monday morning. They were clamoring, retracting stories, stumbling, and putting foots in their mouth. Nobody knew what to do, because they probably had all their headlines written for the next day. They expected the Patriots to roll over and just get beat down by the undefeated Cincinnati Bengals. So they could continue their tirade from the previous weeks before.

We should give credit to Belichick once again for proving the critics wrong. And we should give extra credit to Tom Brady to come out and play the game that he did, because Brady bore the brunt of all the criticism in the previous weeks. To come out and play a game like that after all that’s happened was just truly amazing. I’m not sure most guys, even NFL quarterbacks, could handle that kind of pressure. But Brady did that and more proving his critics wrong once again.

Growing up in the Bay Area, Tom Brady idolized 49ers QB Joe Montana throughout his young life.  After leaving the University of Michigan and being drafted by the New England Patriots, not even Brady himself could have predicted his career would be so similar to Montana's especially at age 37.  In the twilight of both incredible careers, Brady and Montana had less than stellar years statistically, however, more than just age played a part.   

It's not surprising that Brady's statitstics are beginning to wane at 37, so did Montana's.  In 1993, Montana had a 84.8 QB rating, a 60.7% completion percentage, and 3.6% TD percentage (that's 3.6 TDs per 100 pass attempts).  This year, Brady has a 83.1 QB rating, a 60.4% completion percentage, and a 3.5% TD percentage.  Montana averaged 194 yards passing per game in 1993 and Brady now averages 198 per game in 2014. 

Not only did Montana struggle, but so did his support staff.  The Chiefs brought in RB Marcus Allen, but the running game was still a weakness as is with the 2014 Patriots running game.  In '93, the Chiefs had the 20th ranked rushing offense averaging 103 rushing yards per game.  Today, the Patriots running game is ranked 21st with a mere 97.5 yards per game on the ground.  Without a running game, statistic success for a QB is a near impossiblity as is the case with these two legends.

Disappointing defenses are another parallel with these two QBs.  Kansas City had the 14th ranked defense in 1993.  New England's defense is ranked 15th in the league even with the addition of players like Darrell Revis.  Both teams were 14th in the league is points per game allowed, the Patriots 22.3 and the Chiefs 18.8.

After last Monday night's 41-14 drubbing at the hands of, ironically, the Kansas City Chiefs, people seem to think that Hall of Fame QBs aren't allowed to have rotten games every now and then.  Montana certainly had his share at age 37.  In '93 the Chiefs played the Minnesota Vikings in a game that had playoff implications and Montana had a terrible showing.  He went 17-24 for 121 yards with two interceptions and when the game was out of reach Montana was benched and Dave Kreig came in and went 6-9 for 68 yards and a TD.  The Chiefs lost 30-10.  Monday night, Brady faced a near identical fate going 14-23 with 159 yards and 2 interceptions and when the game was out of reach he was benched and Jimmy Garrapolo came in and went 6-7 for 70 yards and a TD, spooky.

The good news for Brady is that if he continues this current 1993 Montana-like parallel, the future looks bright.  Despite his struggle, Montana still lead his team to an 11-5 record and took the Kansas City Chiefs to the AFC Championship game before losing to Buffalo Bills.  The bad news if, of course, that Montana only played one more year following that season, but don't tell Brady that.

Growing up in the Bay Area, Tom Brady idolized 49ers QB Joe Montana throughout his young life.  After leaving the University of Michigan and being drafted by the New England Patriots, not even Brady himself could have predicted his career would be so similar to Montana's especially at age 37.  In the twilight of both incredible careers, Brady and Montana had less than stellar years statistically, however, more than just age played a part.   

It's not surprising that Brady's statitstics are beginning to wane at 37, so did Montana's.  In 1993, Montana had a 84.8 QB rating, a 60.7% completion percentage, and 3.6% TD percentage (that's 3.6 TDs per 100 pass attempts).  This year, Brady has a 83.1 QB rating, a 60.4% completion percentage, and a 3.5% TD percentage.  Montana averaged 194 yards passing per game in 1993 and Brady now averages 198 per game in 2014. 

Not only did Montana struggle, but so did his support staff.  The Chiefs brought in RB Marcus Allen, but the running game was still a weakness as is with the 2014 Patriots running game.  In '93, the Chiefs had the 20th ranked rushing offense averaging 103 rushing yards per game.  Today, the Patriots running game is ranked 21st with a mere 97.5 yards per game on the ground.  Without a running game, statistic success for a QB is a near impossiblity as is the case with these two legends.

Disappointing defenses are another parallel with these two QBs.  Kansas City had the 14th ranked defense in 1993.  New England's defense is ranked 15th in the league even with the addition of players like Darrell Revis.  Both teams were 14th in the league is points per game allowed, the Patriots 22.3 and the Chiefs 18.8.

After last Monday night's 41-14 drubbing at the hands of, ironically, the Kansas City Chiefs, people seem to think that Hall of Fame QBs aren't allowed to have rotten games every now and then.  Montana certainly had his share at age 37.  In '93 the Chiefs played the Minnesota Vikings in a game that had playoff implications and Montana had a terrible showing.  He went 17-24 for 121 yards with two interceptions and when the game was out of reach Montana was benched and Dave Kreig came in and went 6-9 for 68 yards and a TD.  The Chiefs lost 30-10.  Monday night, Brady faced a near identical fate going 14-23 with 159 yards and 2 interceptions and when the game was out of reach he was benched and Jimmy Garrapolo came in and went 6-7 for 70 yards and a TD, spooky.

The good news for Brady is that if he continues this current 1993 Montana-like parallel, the future looks bright.  Despite his struggle, Montana still lead his team to an 11-5 record and took the Kansas City Chiefs to the AFC Championship game before losing to Buffalo Bills.  The bad news if, of course, that Montana only played one more year following that season, but don't tell Brady that.

Do I dare say it? Is the beginning of the end of the Brady, Belicheck tandem?

They are arguably one of the best quarterback/coach tandems in the history of the NFL. But one has to wonder and one thing has always remained. Many players have come and gone, but the mainstay has always been Brady and Belicheck. And it's always ok as long as we have Brady and Belicheck. Well that’s what we say in New England anyways.

After 4 weeks New England is 2-2. You may think to yourself, what’s the big deal, no time to panic and the season’s still early, right?  Well the real panic started with Tom Brady himself, after a win nonetheless against the Minnesota Vikings. After a convincing win, Brady seemed upset that the offense didn’t do more and seemed distraught during the press conference. But the real problems started in week one against the Miami Dolphins, and if you want to delve even deeper it really started in the pre season.

You see New England drafted a quarterback this year in the draft, which raised a lot of eyebrows. His name is Jimmy Garoppolo. Garoppolo was drafted in the second round, 62^nd overall in this year’s draft. They already had a backup to Brady, in Ryan Mallett who was only drafted in 2011. But New England near the end of the pre-season decided to trade Mallett to the Houston Texans, and promote Garoppolo to Brady’s backup. So a quarterback who just gets drafted ends up being Brady’s backup. This is kind of strange if you ask me. Obviously they’ve seen something in Garoppolo to make this move.

Ok, this is Tom Brady we are talking about. Is New England thinking of a future without Tom Brady? I say yes and they have to. Let’s look at the facts. Brady is 37 years old, pretty much near the end of his career and the Patriots are obviously looking towards the future when Brady can no longer play, or should I say when the Patriots decide to trade him. Did I just say that, and will the Patriots ever trade Tom Brady? Who would ever think such a thing?

We all would like to think Tom Brady would stay in New England until he retires and that might be the case. But the fact is and the reality is that they could very well try to make a deal for him. Even Joe Montana got traded after his great career, so don’t think for one second it couldn’t happen to Brady. When it comes right down to it, a football team is a business. I know we don’t like to think like that , but the writing is on the wall. And if a team isn’t winning they don’t make money and when they are losing revenue, changes take place no matter what the cost even if they are the New England Patriots.

It's no secret the Patriots offense is a mess right now, starting right in week one. After a great first half putting up 20 points, New England put up a goose egg in the second half and Miami scored 23 unanswered points winning 33-20. In week two the Patriots won 30-7 against the Minnesota Vikings, but Matt Cassel gave up 4 interceptions, and the defense scored on a blocked field goal attempt. Pretty much the defense won this game, scoring a touchdown and putting the Patriots in great field position to score their two touchdowns of the game. The offense only managed 2 field goals in the second half.

In week three the Raiders came into Foxboro, and again Brady and the offense sputtered only putting up 19 points. But the Raiders only scored 3 field goals and the Patriots won 16-9. Week Four against Kansas City was probably one of the worst games the Patriots played in recent memory. The Patriots had no answer offensively or defensively for that matter and were down 17 points after the first half. The second half was no better, and the Patriots lost 41-14. The second Patriot touchdown came with 7:33 left in the game after Belicheck sat Brady and put Garoppolo in. Garoppolo was 6/7 with 90 yards.

So Brady sat and his replacement was put in. In all fairness the game was out of reach anyways. This is important. I have seen Brady come out of games when they are winning big, but I don’t think I have ever seen Brady get benched when they were losing. The biggest complaint so far this year has been the offensive line. Brady is a sitting duck out there and there is no protection. Brady has no time to throw the ball and has been sacked 9 times already this year.

Ok is it time to panic? I don’t think so, not yet, but the real test comes this week when the Patriots take on the Bengals at home on Sunday night. This will be the best team they have faced so far and while many questions remain this will be their biggest game to date.

Do I dare say it? Is the beginning of the end of the Brady, Belicheck tandem?

They are arguably one of the best quarterback/coach tandems in the history of the NFL. But one has to wonder and one thing has always remained. Many players have come and gone, but the mainstay has always been Brady and Belicheck. And it's always ok as long as we have Brady and Belicheck. Well that’s what we say in New England anyways.

After 4 weeks New England is 2-2. You may think to yourself, what’s the big deal, no time to panic and the season’s still early, right?  Well the real panic started with Tom Brady himself, after a win nonetheless against the Minnesota Vikings. After a convincing win, Brady seemed upset that the offense didn’t do more and seemed distraught during the press conference. But the real problems started in week one against the Miami Dolphins, and if you want to delve even deeper it really started in the pre season.

You see New England drafted a quarterback this year in the draft, which raised a lot of eyebrows. His name is Jimmy Garoppolo. Garoppolo was drafted in the second round, 62^nd overall in this year’s draft. They already had a backup to Brady, in Ryan Mallett who was only drafted in 2011. But New England near the end of the pre-season decided to trade Mallett to the Houston Texans, and promote Garoppolo to Brady’s backup. So a quarterback who just gets drafted ends up being Brady’s backup. This is kind of strange if you ask me. Obviously they’ve seen something in Garoppolo to make this move.

Ok, this is Tom Brady we are talking about. Is New England thinking of a future without Tom Brady? I say yes and they have to. Let’s look at the facts. Brady is 37 years old, pretty much near the end of his career and the Patriots are obviously looking towards the future when Brady can no longer play, or should I say when the Patriots decide to trade him. Did I just say that, and will the Patriots ever trade Tom Brady? Who would ever think such a thing?

We all would like to think Tom Brady would stay in New England until he retires and that might be the case. But the fact is and the reality is that they could very well try to make a deal for him. Even Joe Montana got traded after his great career, so don’t think for one second it couldn’t happen to Brady. When it comes right down to it, a football team is a business. I know we don’t like to think like that , but the writing is on the wall. And if a team isn’t winning they don’t make money and when they are losing revenue, changes take place no matter what the cost even if they are the New England Patriots.

It's no secret the Patriots offense is a mess right now, starting right in week one. After a great first half putting up 20 points, New England put up a goose egg in the second half and Miami scored 23 unanswered points winning 33-20. In week two the Patriots won 30-7 against the Minnesota Vikings, but Matt Cassel gave up 4 interceptions, and the defense scored on a blocked field goal attempt. Pretty much the defense won this game, scoring a touchdown and putting the Patriots in great field position to score their two touchdowns of the game. The offense only managed 2 field goals in the second half.

In week three the Raiders came into Foxboro, and again Brady and the offense sputtered only putting up 19 points. But the Raiders only scored 3 field goals and the Patriots won 16-9. Week Four against Kansas City was probably one of the worst games the Patriots played in recent memory. The Patriots had no answer offensively or defensively for that matter and were down 17 points after the first half. The second half was no better, and the Patriots lost 41-14. The second Patriot touchdown came with 7:33 left in the game after Belicheck sat Brady and put Garoppolo in. Garoppolo was 6/7 with 90 yards.

So Brady sat and his replacement was put in. In all fairness the game was out of reach anyways. This is important. I have seen Brady come out of games when they are winning big, but I don’t think I have ever seen Brady get benched when they were losing. The biggest complaint so far this year has been the offensive line. Brady is a sitting duck out there and there is no protection. Brady has no time to throw the ball and has been sacked 9 times already this year.

Ok is it time to panic? I don’t think so, not yet, but the real test comes this week when the Patriots take on the Bengals at home on Sunday night. This will be the best team they have faced so far and while many questions remain this will be their biggest game to date.

Do you play Fantasy Football? If the answer is yes, this week is the most exciting opportunity in the history of the game. Win a MILLION DOLLARS playing Fantasy Football this week only! Go to www.FFChamps.com/million and get in on the action. 

If you haven’t signed up to play our weekly fantasy football game this week, don’t worry there is still time. Just go to www.FFCHAMPS.COM/MILLION to sign up. There are good value plays out there to choose from, but one player I’m not picking is New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Here are 5 reasons why:

1. He has been playing awful this year. In the first 4 weeks of the season he has scored 12.26, 9.96, 12.66 and last night he scored only 7.36 points. Which is an average of 10.6 points a game. Scoring that low points a week won’t win you a million dollars. 

2. The Patriots are playing the the Cincinnati Bengals this week. The Bengals have been playing great so far this year. Some even have them as their AFC favorites. The Bengals are the 3rd toughest defense on opposing quarterback.

3. Brady is worth too much money this week. With a price tag of $6,600, there are better options to choose from that are cheaper and could get you more points. Like Kirk Cousins who is worth $6,500. He is playing the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks can give up some points to the opposing quarterbacks. Here are some more cheap options you can pick, Austin Davis ($5,600 versus the Philadelphia Eagles), Ryan Fitzpatrick ($5,500 versus the Dallas Cowboys) and Brian Hoyer ($5,200 versus the Tennessee Titans).

4. You can never trust Bill Belichick. He is known to bench players whenever he wants. Belichick could get tired of Tom Brady and decide its time to give Jimmy Garoppolo a shot at Quarterback.

5. Do I even need 5 reasons why to not start Tom Brady this week? The 4 reasons I just listed are enough to show why Tom Brady won’t win you a million dollars this week.

Coming into the season, two of the more trendy picks to represent their respective conferences in the Super Bowl were the New England Patriots and New Orleans Saints.  This was largely due to the reputation and ability of their quarterbacks, two of the finest of this generation to play the position.  Tom Brady and Drew Brees are widely considered among the three or four best quarterbacks in the NFL right now, as both were voted in the top ten by fellow players according to the NFL Network rankings along with Peyton Manning.  Both have won Super Bowl MVPs, made countless Pro Bowls and Brady has two regular season MVPs as well, while Brees has thrown for 5,000 yards an unprecedented four straight seasons.  Aaron Rodgers is the fourth quarterback often included in conversations about the best, but he is still in the prime of his career at age 30.  Brady, Brees and Manning have continued to produce well into their thirties, leading many to wonder how long they can keep it going. 

Quarterbacking legends of the past were clearly on the downside of their careers at comparable ages, but new rules are seemingly added every year to protect quarterbacks and help offenses, so the shelf-life of great quarterbacks is definitely on the rise.  But early in the 2014 season, Brady and Brees in particular have struggled to live up to the lofty expectations they have built for themselves with their exceptional play over the years.  While many of their team’s problems could be attributed to shaky defensive play and subpar supporting casts, it is reasonable to start wondering whether this is the season where Brady and Brees finally begin to show their age.  Manning is several years older than both, but he has reinvented himself to a degree in his twilight years in Denver as a precision passer with less reliance on his diminishing arm strength.  The Broncos have won consistently since he arrived and do not appear to be slowing down in 2014.  But Manning is also surrounded with dynamic weapons on offense while Brady and Brees are lacking the same surrounding skill position talent outside of their superstar tight ends. 

Since the sample size after four games is probably too small to judge each quarterback by their individual numbers, it would be more beneficial to look at the team outlooks for the remainder of the season.  Both the Patriots and Saints play in very winnable divisions, so a turnaround could potentially happen for both.  The Patriots have basically owned the AFC East since 2001, mainly due to the shoddy quarterback play in the rest of the division.  The exceptions would be 2002 when New England’s dynasty was in its infancy, and 2008, when Brady tore his ACL in Week 1 and Chad Pennington was the MVP runner-up for the surprising Miami Dolphins.  The lack of competition and quarterbacks in the division seems to be ongoing, as the Bills just benched E.J. Manuel for journeyman Kyle Orton, the Jets are close to doing the same with Geno Smith, and the Dolphins started a controversy of their own by refusing to name Ryan Tannehill as the starter before their Week 4 matchup.  So the Patriots should be safe to win the division again in 2014.  Success in the playoffs, however, is a different story. 

Since 2004, the Patriots have been average at best in the postseason.  Their record is 9-8 and Brady has not performed well in most of the elimination games.  Combine that with the fact that rookie second round draft pick Jimmy Garoppolo looked impressive in both the preseason and in relief on Monday, and the Patriots might be a Brady injury away from a new quarterback for the next decade.  It happened to Bledsoe, it happened to Montana, it happened to Manning, why not Brady?  While it is always easy to blame the quarterback for a team’s misfortunes, the Patriots have had numerous key injuries over the years that decimated Brady’s supporting cast.  Last year, numerous defensive players were lost early in the season, and Rob Gronkowski tore his ACL in December, so he was working with a patchwork group.  This season, the defense is healthy again and added Darrelle Revis, but the offensive line has been ravaged by injuries and ineffectiveness, which has clearly affected Brady.  New England coach Bill Belichick knows how much of his career success is tied to Brady, but he is not one for sentimentality.  He will put the players on the field that give him the best chance to win, so even Brady could become expendable in the near future.

The Saints on the other hand, are one game behind the Falcons and Panthers in the NFC South, and both have formidable quarterbacks that have had success in recent years.  The Bucs also showed substantial improvement this past week since Mike Glennon took over the starting job, so they cannot be counted out yet either.  Both divisions could possibly be won with only nine or ten victories, but that would hardly match the expectations for the Patriots and Saints before the season.  The Saints in particular, are not nearly the same team on the road that they are in the Superdome.  Although they did win a game at Philly last year, it was the first career playoff start for Nick Foles, so that is more likely the exception than the rule.  Perhaps more importantly, last season the Saints played great on defense in Rob Ryan’s first year as coordinator.  Thus far this season, they have yet to force a turnover and have been exposed in three of their four games.  Brees, however, is a deity in New Orleans.  For a city that had never won a playoff game until he arrived, he led them to a first round bye and home playoff win in his first season.  By his fourth, they were undefeated through December and won the first championship in New Orleans sports history, and he was named Super Bowl MVP.  And although his turnover rate has increased in recent years and his playoff performances have been spotty since 2009, he is less likely than Brady to be replaced anytime soon. 

While both Brady and Brees have begun a noticeable decline, neither can be written off quite yet.  As the young star quarterbacks like Russell Wilson, Andrew Luck and Cam Newton continue their rise into the elite category, they need to prove they can consistently beat the best.  Wilson has done that countless times now, but he is surrounded by arguably the most talented team in the NFL in Seattle.  Luck and Newton have shown flashes, but have not yet displayed the consistency required to reach the level of Brady and Brees.  All are almost equally required to provide otherworldly performances to lead their teams to victory, and often do.  Whereas quarterbacks like Matt Ryan, Matthew Stafford and Jay Cutler have superstar receivers and other weapons to lean on which takes the pressure off. 

Brady in particular, has been left with a pretty bare cupboard the last few years, as Randy Moss and Wes Welker have been traded or signed elsewhere and their replacements have not produced at the same levels.  Brees had the same receivers for many years in New Orleans and made it work, and now he has Jimmy Graham and 2014 first round pick Brandin Cooks at his disposal, so at least the Saints are trying to maintain their offensive explosiveness unlike the Pats.  I don’t see Brees’ numbers falling off anytime soon in Sean Payton’s offense, but a couple of losing seasons could mean the end of the road for Payton and the aging Brees.  And if the defense does not improve, that could happen by the end of 2015.  Football is a results business, and it would not shock me to see both Tom Brady and Drew Brees in different uniforms before their careers are over.

Do you play Fantasy Football? If the answer is yes, this week is the most exciting opportunity in the history of the game. Win a MILLION DOLLARS playing Fantasy Football this week only! Go to www.FFChamps.com/million and get in on the action. 

If you haven’t signed up to play our weekly fantasy football game this week, don’t worry there is still time. Just go to www.FFCHAMPS.COM/MILLION to sign up. There are good value plays out there to choose from, but one player I’m not picking is New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Here are 5 reasons why:

1. He has been playing awful this year. In the first 4 weeks of the season he has scored 12.26, 9.96, 12.66 and last night he scored only 7.36 points. Which is an average of 10.6 points a game. Scoring that low points a week won’t win you a million dollars. 

2. The Patriots are playing the the Cincinnati Bengals this week. The Bengals have been playing great so far this year. Some even have them as their AFC favorites. The Bengals are the 3rd toughest defense on opposing quarterback.

3. Brady is worth too much money this week. With a price tag of $6,600, there are better options to choose from that are cheaper and could get you more points. Like Kirk Cousins who is worth $6,500. He is playing the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks can give up some points to the opposing quarterbacks. Here are some more cheap options you can pick, Austin Davis ($5,600 versus the Philadelphia Eagles), Ryan Fitzpatrick ($5,500 versus the Dallas Cowboys) and Brian Hoyer ($5,200 versus the Tennessee Titans).

4. You can never trust Bill Belichick. He is known to bench players whenever he wants. Belichick could get tired of Tom Brady and decide its time to give Jimmy Garoppolo a shot at Quarterback.

5. Do I even need 5 reasons why to not start Tom Brady this week? The 4 reasons I just listed are enough to show why Tom Brady won’t win you a million dollars this week.

Coming into the season, two of the more trendy picks to represent their respective conferences in the Super Bowl were the New England Patriots and New Orleans Saints.  This was largely due to the reputation and ability of their quarterbacks, two of the finest of this generation to play the position.  Tom Brady and Drew Brees are widely considered among the three or four best quarterbacks in the NFL right now, as both were voted in the top ten by fellow players according to the NFL Network rankings along with Peyton Manning.  Both have won Super Bowl MVPs, made countless Pro Bowls and Brady has two regular season MVPs as well, while Brees has thrown for 5,000 yards an unprecedented four straight seasons.  Aaron Rodgers is the fourth quarterback often included in conversations about the best, but he is still in the prime of his career at age 30.  Brady, Brees and Manning have continued to produce well into their thirties, leading many to wonder how long they can keep it going. 

Quarterbacking legends of the past were clearly on the downside of their careers at comparable ages, but new rules are seemingly added every year to protect quarterbacks and help offenses, so the shelf-life of great quarterbacks is definitely on the rise.  But early in the 2014 season, Brady and Brees in particular have struggled to live up to the lofty expectations they have built for themselves with their exceptional play over the years.  While many of their team’s problems could be attributed to shaky defensive play and subpar supporting casts, it is reasonable to start wondering whether this is the season where Brady and Brees finally begin to show their age.  Manning is several years older than both, but he has reinvented himself to a degree in his twilight years in Denver as a precision passer with less reliance on his diminishing arm strength.  The Broncos have won consistently since he arrived and do not appear to be slowing down in 2014.  But Manning is also surrounded with dynamic weapons on offense while Brady and Brees are lacking the same surrounding skill position talent outside of their superstar tight ends. 

Since the sample size after four games is probably too small to judge each quarterback by their individual numbers, it would be more beneficial to look at the team outlooks for the remainder of the season.  Both the Patriots and Saints play in very winnable divisions, so a turnaround could potentially happen for both.  The Patriots have basically owned the AFC East since 2001, mainly due to the shoddy quarterback play in the rest of the division.  The exceptions would be 2002 when New England’s dynasty was in its infancy, and 2008, when Brady tore his ACL in Week 1 and Chad Pennington was the MVP runner-up for the surprising Miami Dolphins.  The lack of competition and quarterbacks in the division seems to be ongoing, as the Bills just benched E.J. Manuel for journeyman Kyle Orton, the Jets are close to doing the same with Geno Smith, and the Dolphins started a controversy of their own by refusing to name Ryan Tannehill as the starter before their Week 4 matchup.  So the Patriots should be safe to win the division again in 2014.  Success in the playoffs, however, is a different story. 

Since 2004, the Patriots have been average at best in the postseason.  Their record is 9-8 and Brady has not performed well in most of the elimination games.  Combine that with the fact that rookie second round draft pick Jimmy Garoppolo looked impressive in both the preseason and in relief on Monday, and the Patriots might be a Brady injury away from a new quarterback for the next decade.  It happened to Bledsoe, it happened to Montana, it happened to Manning, why not Brady?  While it is always easy to blame the quarterback for a team’s misfortunes, the Patriots have had numerous key injuries over the years that decimated Brady’s supporting cast.  Last year, numerous defensive players were lost early in the season, and Rob Gronkowski tore his ACL in December, so he was working with a patchwork group.  This season, the defense is healthy again and added Darrelle Revis, but the offensive line has been ravaged by injuries and ineffectiveness, which has clearly affected Brady.  New England coach Bill Belichick knows how much of his career success is tied to Brady, but he is not one for sentimentality.  He will put the players on the field that give him the best chance to win, so even Brady could become expendable in the near future.

The Saints on the other hand, are one game behind the Falcons and Panthers in the NFC South, and both have formidable quarterbacks that have had success in recent years.  The Bucs also showed substantial improvement this past week since Mike Glennon took over the starting job, so they cannot be counted out yet either.  Both divisions could possibly be won with only nine or ten victories, but that would hardly match the expectations for the Patriots and Saints before the season.  The Saints in particular, are not nearly the same team on the road that they are in the Superdome.  Although they did win a game at Philly last year, it was the first career playoff start for Nick Foles, so that is more likely the exception than the rule.  Perhaps more importantly, last season the Saints played great on defense in Rob Ryan’s first year as coordinator.  Thus far this season, they have yet to force a turnover and have been exposed in three of their four games.  Brees, however, is a deity in New Orleans.  For a city that had never won a playoff game until he arrived, he led them to a first round bye and home playoff win in his first season.  By his fourth, they were undefeated through December and won the first championship in New Orleans sports history, and he was named Super Bowl MVP.  And although his turnover rate has increased in recent years and his playoff performances have been spotty since 2009, he is less likely than Brady to be replaced anytime soon. 

While both Brady and Brees have begun a noticeable decline, neither can be written off quite yet.  As the young star quarterbacks like Russell Wilson, Andrew Luck and Cam Newton continue their rise into the elite category, they need to prove they can consistently beat the best.  Wilson has done that countless times now, but he is surrounded by arguably the most talented team in the NFL in Seattle.  Luck and Newton have shown flashes, but have not yet displayed the consistency required to reach the level of Brady and Brees.  All are almost equally required to provide otherworldly performances to lead their teams to victory, and often do.  Whereas quarterbacks like Matt Ryan, Matthew Stafford and Jay Cutler have superstar receivers and other weapons to lean on which takes the pressure off. 

Brady in particular, has been left with a pretty bare cupboard the last few years, as Randy Moss and Wes Welker have been traded or signed elsewhere and their replacements have not produced at the same levels.  Brees had the same receivers for many years in New Orleans and made it work, and now he has Jimmy Graham and 2014 first round pick Brandin Cooks at his disposal, so at least the Saints are trying to maintain their offensive explosiveness unlike the Pats.  I don’t see Brees’ numbers falling off anytime soon in Sean Payton’s offense, but a couple of losing seasons could mean the end of the road for Payton and the aging Brees.  And if the defense does not improve, that could happen by the end of 2015.  Football is a results business, and it would not shock me to see both Tom Brady and Drew Brees in different uniforms before their careers are over.