Physical has been the word of the week here in Foxboro.
It has been used by nearly every Patriots player and coach to describe the Jacksonville Jaguars, their playoff opponents this Saturday night.
"It's a good challenge," Patriots right tackle Nick Kaczur told reporters this week. "Offensive linemen definitely like to stand up physically against other people."
Pro Bowl guard Logan Mankins took the discussion a step further, though, in a story on The Sporting News website.
"No matter how tough they think they are, we're going to try to be just as tough ... or tougher."
The Hartford Courant, meantime, separates some myths from facts about this year's Patriots team. For example, the defense is too old to win it all.
"If this is an old defense, I'll take old any day," S Rodney Harrison said. "I always say, 'Youth is overrated.' You can run fast, but if you don't know where you're going, guess what? You're just running in circles.
"We heard that stuff. But we don't care. Junior is 38. He hasn't missed a practice. Tedy Bruschi, Vrabel, Adalius Thomas, myself. Call us what you want. But you still have to play us."
Some in the media have been predicting that the Jaguars will upset the Pats this weekend. Sports Illustrated doesn't appear to be one of those voices, however.
"Sometime in the last month it became popular in wiseguy circles to single out the Jaguars as the team that would ultimately terminate the Patriots' run at perfection," the author writes.
"But I think that's unlikely, for two reasons. One, the Patriots have been waiting for January for two months. Sixteen-and-oh is nice, but postseason performance is why guys here get paid.
"Two, after covering Jacksonville's desperate 31-29 victory over Pittsburgh last Saturday night at Heinz Field, I don't think the Jaguars are quite the same team that won six of their last seven games that really counted (excluding the season-ending submission to Houston)."
QUICK HITS
If there is a way to beat the undefeated Pats, the Chicago Sun-Times offers its best guess as to how. Five guesses, to be precise.
Interested in more numbers to prove the Pats' point? Check out the Dallas Morning News, which has rankings of each playoff team at each position.
Though They haven't won it all yet, but that's not stopping the debate.
Out on the West Coast, the Mercury News is asking which team is the best of all time: the '84 Forty-Niners or the '07 Patriots?
