Law of averages-Patriots will likely lose another key component

HOUSTON -- The Patriots went to the Super Bowl in 1997 and came back without coach Bill Parcells. After their 2002 appearance, Drew Bledsoe made it back to New England but never played another game for the team.

The Patriots are in the Super Bowl for the third time in eight seasons, and once again it's likely that one of them won't be back when they try for another.

This time, it's cornerback Ty Law.

"Hopefully, they want to keep me around. But right now is about winning the championship," Law said recently. "I would like to retire here. But it is a business, and I understand. There won't be any hard feelings, because if I do have to leave, I want to leave as a champion."

Law will cost the Patriots almost $9.5 million against the salary cap next year and more than $12 million in 2005, a hefty price even for a guy who was selected to his fourth Pro Bowl this year-- three in a row. The normal NFL solution would be to renegotiate the contract, giving Law more cash up front in exchange for adding years on the back end, but the Patriots have shown they can take a hard line on such things.

Five days before this season's opener, coach Bill Belichick made safety Lawyer Milloy a salary cap casualty and released him over what was reportedly a difference of $600,000. Milloy signed with Buffalo -- for more money than the Patriots offered, in fact -- and in the first game led the Bills to a 31-0 victory over New England.

Taking it out on opponents

Law fumed over the loss of his friend and fellow defensive captain. Then, he realized fuming wouldn't get him anywhere.

"We have a pretty prideful group here and that Buffalo game was an embarrassment to all of us," Law said. "It was like, 'You know what: We're still football players. No one man wins a football game, so that's not an excuse.' ... I think we were embarrassed so badly that we wanted to come out and prove to everybody and ourselves that we're a better football team than that.

"And then one thing led to another," Law said, "and we're here."

Law is one of six Patriots playing in his third Super Bowl. Along with Troy Brown, Willie McGinest, Adam Vinatieri, Tedy Bruschi and Ted Johnson, Law has been around long enough to remember when the talk before the '97 game was dominated by the feud between Parcells and owner Robert Kraft.

Parcells defected to the New York Jets after New England lost the Green Bay Packers.

Five years later, the hubbub was whether the starting quarterback would be sore-ankled Tom Brady or Bledsoe, who lost the job when he was injured early in the season. Brady started and won the game's MVP, and it was just a matter or time before Bledsoe was traded to Buffalo.

This year's personnel problem may not have the cachet of those crises, but it has the potential to have an impact on the team for years to come. After all, the Patriots eventually replaced Parcells with Belichick, who's no slouch as a coach, and they already had chosen Brady over Bledsoe.

But can they find another Pro Bowl cornerback to replace Law if they decide he's too expensive?

"I think coaches and management will handle that when the time comes. But, as we can all see, Ty is a prime-time performer," defensive lineman Richard Seymour said. "He plays well in big games and he's definitely someone we'd love to have on this team. But I'm not sure how that will play out."

Belichick lavishes praise on Law as a player but refused to discuss his future with the team.

"Right now the only thing we're worried about is Carolina," Belichick said. "We'll worry about next year, next year."

Law was second in the NFL with six interceptions this year and had a career-high 77 tackles on a defense that allowed the fewest points in the league. He picked Peyton Manning off three times in the AFC Championship game while holding Colts receiver Marvin Harrison to three catches.