Super Bowl 39 Patriots--again.(NFL Preview)

It is an accepted axiom in the NFL: Every team has problems. Coaches and team executives commiserate about them like old folks complaining about aches and pains. ("Oh, my aching backfield.")

And then there are the Patriots and Eagles.

I don't like picking the chalk, because the chalk hardly ever wins in the NFL. Besides, it's too easy and too boring to go with the favorites. But when two teams are in a class by themselves, they can't be ignored. The Patriots have won two of the last three Super Bowls. The Eagles have made it to three straight NFC championship games. And while the rest of the NFL has crumbled around them, both these teams are clearly better in September than they were in January.

That both of these teams know how to win is significant. Both organizations are among the best in the NFL. Bill Belichick and Andy Reid run their operations as well as any head coaches and are surrounded by some of the best assistants in the league. Both coaches operate with long-term vision balancing short-term urgency.

Sure, both teams made splashy offseason acquisitions, with the Patriots picking up running back Corey Dillon and the Eagles acquiring receiver Terrell Owens and defensive end Jevon Kearse. But those aren't the only reasons to like the Eagles and Patriots. They were elite teams before they added those players because they have excelled at building their rosters methodically.

Player development is a myth in many desperate franchises, but not in these two. The Eagles should demonstrate that this year with ...