Patriots adding veterans in quest of another title

The newly-signed veterans also want their shot at an NFL championship.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
First, the New England Patriots signed Rosevelt Colvin, one of the NFL's better pass-rushing linebackers.
Then they picked up safety Rodney Harrison after he was cut by San Diego. Then, in quick succession came pass-catching fullback Larry Centers and massive defensive tackle Ted Washington.
Another veteran, guard Corbin Lacina, was cut.
Is there any better indication than picking up veterans that the Patriots are in a now-mode in quest of the NFL title they won two seasons ago?
And vice versa for the newly-signed players.
"As a senior citizen in the game, it's important for me to try to get on a winning team and make a run at it," said Centers, a 13-year veteran who spent much of his career with Arizona.
It won't be easy. The Patriots play in the AFC East, probably the most competitive division in the NFL.
Last season, they finished 9-7 along with the New York Jets and Miami, with Buffalo at 8-8. The Jets won the division on a tie-breaker the last day of the season and New England and Miami didn't even make the playoffs.
More of the same
It looked like more of the same this year -- with Buffalo improved -- until Chad Pennington, the Jets' quarterback, broke and dislocated his left wrist last.
That would seem to make New England the favorite, pressed by Miami, which picked up Harrison's ex-teammate, Junior Seau, in the Chargers' fire sale on veterans. Buffalo will challenge and the Jets should be competitive as long as 40-year-old Vinny Testaverde, Pennington's replacement, stays healthy.
The Patriots' problem this season should be the same as a year ago -- finding a running back to complement Tom Brady. Brady threw 601 passes a year ago, 37.5 a game, as Antowain Smith often struggled in the running game.
Still, New England's major problem was defense, something unheard of for a team coached by Bill Belichick, whose inventive schemes have won two Super Bowls.
That's where Colvin and Harrison come in.
Colvin had 101/2 sacks in each of his last two seasons with Chicago, and should have as many or more under Belichick, who sometimes plays as few as one down lineman with six LBs in passing situations. If there is one lineman, it's likely to be Richard Seymour, who in his third year is one of the NFL's best defensive front men even if he doesn't have the statistics to prove it.
Can stop the run
Harrison isn't a great cover guy, but can stop the run. The Patriots were second-worst in the NFL in yards allowed rushing last season. Rookies Ty Warren and Dan Klecko will have a hand in that, too.
Miami has had a bad habit over the decade, winning early and losing late.
This year, the optimism level in South Florida went up when the Dolphins traded for Seau, who at 34 is coming off two seasons filled with injuries. But the enthusiasm was way up last season when Ricky Williams arrived, and while Williams led the NFL in rushing, Miami missed the playoffs for the first time in six seasons.
That was due in part to the absence for six games of Jay Fiedler, who was 7-3 as a starter last year and is 29-13 for his career, a .690 percentage second only to Kurt Warner's .810 among active QBs.
When they lost Pennington, the Jets had yet another hole to fill. In the off-season, the loss of leading receiver Laveranues Coles to Washington capped the damage done by the Redskins, who also signed guard Randy Thomas, return man Chad Morton and kicker John Hall.
Curtis Conway was signed to replace Coles and team with Wayne Chrebet and an improved Santana Moss at wide receiver.
The West Coast offense is one Testaverde never quite fit as he heads for 40,000 career yards passing.
Buffalo improved last season from 3-13 to 8-8. The main reason was the acquisition of Drew Bledsoe, who lost his job in New England to Brady the year before. He threw for 4,359 yards and 24 touchdowns.
The Bills struggled on defense, so they shored it up by acquiring linebackers Takeo Spikes and Jeff Posey. Spikes would have been a Pro Bowler several times had he not been buried in Cincinnati, and Posey had a breakout season in Houston.
But teams that make dramatic moves often flatten out the next season. Bledsoe's two worst games last season were losses to New England.