Patriots Week 13: Border War continues

It was 2002, your Uncle Buck and the rest of the Chowdaheads were just about to leave for Atlantic City for Lio's bachelor party when UB was watching SportsCenter rank the top 10 rivalries in the NFL. Coming in at #10 was the New England Patriots and the New York Jets...At the time that was about right, it was a top 10 rivalry, and it got a little hotter after the Jets edged out the Pats for the AFC East that season...since then, however, it has been all Patriots with no real fireworks. This season could spark things up again, despite the Jets 2-9 record, as former pro bowl cornerback Ty Law is now with the J-E-T-S, JETS JETS JETS.

In New England Ty was the man...he made multiple pro bowls, and won 3 Super Bowls, including Super Bowl XXXVI, where he had a pick for a touchdown and could have been named MVP. Ty was also part of the AFC Championship team in 1996. After the 2003 Super Bowl season Ty went public after Belichick and the Patriots "disrespected" him by not offering him a long term deal for the big money he was used to under Bob Kraft. Ty went on ESPN and called Belichick a liar, trying to shoot his way out of town, thinking it wouldn't be that hard after the Pats had dumped Lawyer Milloy before the season started, rather than pay him. Instead Belichick and the Pats just kept their mouths shut and Ty returned to the roster for the 2004 season. After a 6-0 start, which capped off the 21 game winning streak, Law was injured for the season in a loss at Pittsburgh. Ty was with the team on his scooter for the Super Bowl, but was let go in the off season. Ty had a few parting shots after that, saying the Patriots should have released him earlier, and recently compared Herm Edwards to Bill Belichick on SportsCenter by saying Herm understands him better, then saying they are both great in their own ways...What a joke...

The old school "Border War" began when two time Super Bowl champion coach Bill Parcells took over for the Patriots in 1993. Parcells took the Pats from 1-15 before he arrived to AFC Champions in 1996.

During the off season Parcells and Pats owner Bob Kraft (the guy on the left, not the guy in the Pats outfit) butted heads, and Kraft forced the team to draft Wide Receiver Terry Glenn rather than a linebacker...by the end of the 96-97 season Parcells bolted for the New York Jets, who had also recently been 1-15. The move cost the Jets several draft picks, but the Patriots squandered them and declined all 3 years with new coach Pete Carroll, going 10-6, 9-7 and 8-8.

So with Parcells, who took Belichick (and about 10 players) with him to New York, leading the Jets, the two yearly matchups between New York and New England were dubbed the "Tuna Bowls" after Parcells' nickname "The Tuna". The Pats won the 1st "Tuna Bowl" in Foxboro in 1997 on a blocked field goal, followed by the game winner by Adam Vinatieri in OT. The next 4 were won by the Jets, before the Pats took the opener of the 1999 season.

The heat got turned up after the 1999 season when Parcells stepped down after an 8-8 season and named Belichick the new head coach. He stayed that way for a day, before stepping down as the "HC of the NYJ" and bolting for the Patriots, and Parcells' enemy Kraft. This time Belichick took several players with him, and Parcells and Jets fans were humiliated.

Five years later, Belichick and the Pats have 3 Super Bowl rings, while the Jets have one divisional title...So now that you know the back story, tune in to see how Sunday's game plays out...Will Ty Law make a difference? Or will Tom Brady and company make it 5 in a row against Gang Green?