The New England Patriots were crushed by the Ravens today, and I have come to the sad conclusion that Bill Belichick has lost his mojo.

I am not jumping to that conclusion--I believe it started 2 years ago.

It is easy to be an armchair shrink and analyze the man, so I will do just that. When Eric Mangini ratted out the signal video-taping to NFL, resulting in a huge personal fine for Belichick and a draft pick loss for the team, I think the great man went just a little nuts to show that he could still win. We saw the F U Touchdowns, but the Patriots will forever be the team that got so close to 19-0 but could not convert.

This year, Belichick traded Seymour for a draft pick 2 years in the future. The season opener was a big warning, but we were still "in Bill we trust" mode. We lost to New York and Denver, and then came the infamous 4th and 2. That loss against the Colts was a clear and present signal (regardless of what the statistical pundits say), and the number of points we gave up in the 4th quarter was a sure sign that this team, and this coach, will not reach the superbowl this year.

Don't get me wrong--Belichick is still a great coach and he will win more rings for New England. It is just that he needs to get his Mojo back.

I don't typically get excited about sports articles, but this is porbably one of the best I have read. Judging by the comments, lots of other readers also agree.

Tony "Mazz" Massarotti of Boston Globe talks to Red Sox captain and catcher Jason Varitek, who explains the craft of the artilery he catches.

One example: Why John Lester had problems with lefties. Great, great article.

For the most part, Lester operates with five pitches -- a changeup, curveball, and fastball, the latter of which can come in the form of a two-seamer, four-seamer, or cutter, all of which move differently. In Lester's case, because he is lefthanded, the two-seamer breaks in on a lefthanded batter, the cutter breaks in on a righthanded batter, and the four-seamer crosses the plate in what is closest to a straight line (but with the greatest velocity).

Generally speaking, Lester's bread-and-butter pitch is the cutter, a pitch he can throw in the low 90s and with sharp, aggressive movement in on righthanded batters. With that pitch alone, he can make righties extremely defensive. (For hitters, hard inside pitches are often the most uncomfortable.) Lester's problems earlier this season came when he was unable to control the inside of the plate against lefties, which is to say he had trouble throwing, with velocity and movement, to the first base side (or, in his case, arm side) of the plate.

As they say, very Krafty. Given that victory tour was the highest grossing tour in history at the time, I am not sure I believe it. But here is what Boston.com is saying (and quoting Fortune):

Now there's a headline you probably don't expect in the wake of the King of Pop's death yesterday at age 50. But it's true. Michael Jackson played a significant role in Robert Kraft becoming the owner of the Patriots.

Puzzled? A Forbes magazine feature story on Kraft from September 2005 spells it all out, detailing how the a disastrous business venture by the Sullivan family -- the founding owners of the franchise -- indirectly helped Kraft fulfill his dream of owning the Patriots.

According to the article, Kraft's first step toward purchasing the team was a subtle and savvy one -- he began purchasing land around the stadium.

He wanted to own not only the team but also its stadium and all the surrounding land. He started by locking up purchase rights to 300 acres around the stadium in Foxboro, Mass. The Sullivan family, founding owners of the Patriots, owned the team and the stadium but not the surrounding land. In 1985 Kraft bought a ten-year option on the property, paying a group of Boston businessmen $1 million a year for first dibs to buy the land someday for $18 million. It was risky, but "the option gave me ten years to try to figure out how to get the team," he says.

In the 1986, the Sullivans put the team up for sale, but not the stadium. Kraft decided to hold off on bidding on the team. Victor Kiam -- the founder of Remington shavers who would prove to be an embarrassment to the franchise -- bought the team for $87 million.

Kraft's opportunity may have been lost -- until a failed venture with Jackson and his musical family forced the Sullivans' hand in 1988.

". . . Two years later he snagged the second piece of the puzzle--thanks to singer Michael Jackson. In 1988 Kraft and a partner put up $25 million to buy the Foxboro stadium from the Sullivan family, besting a $16 million offer from Kiam. (Kraft would buy out his 50-50 partner for a small premium five years later.) Charles Sullivan had used the stadium as collateral to fund the Jackson brothers' Victory Tour back in 1984. Over-leveraged, Sullivan went bankrupt and was forced to sell the arena.

By the end of 1988 Kraft had rights to the land, but when the team was put up for sale in '92, he again held off. Kiam sold to James Busch Orthwein, who a year later decided he wanted to either move the team to his hometown of St. Louis or sell it. But Kraft owned the stadium's operating covenant, meaning anyone who wanted to buy the team had to negotiate with him.

Instead and at last, in 1994, he bought the team for $172 million, then the highest price ever paid for a sports franchise. And the rest is history, with the three-time Super Bowl champion Patriots being on a victory tour of their own this decade.

Oh, and here's the kicker: To this day, Kraft keeps a poster from the Victory Tour among his mementos.