POSTED 5:20 a.m. EDT, August 12, 2006

PFT PRESEASON POWER RANKINGS:  NO. 6

We're down to a half-dozen teams.  And the flak we took for dropping the Dolphins at No. 7 would have been 1000 times worse if we'd made Nick Saban's unit any higher than our No. 6 team.

The New England Patriots.

Yes, the gap between these two franchises has gotten that thin that quickly.  The Fins have improved, the Pats have taken an inevitable dip toward the rest of a solid AFC field.

But the Pats will be within the top ten and hovering near the best five for as long as Tom Brady is playing.

If he's healthy.

And at a time when there is plenty of focus on the condition of quarterbacks like Donovan McNabb (hernia), Ben Roethlisberger (face), Carson Palmer (knee), and Daunte Culpepper (knee), it's been easy to forget that Brady had offseason surgery for a hernia of his own that was expertly concealed for most of the 2005 season.

If Brady can't play, the Pats don't have a veteran backup.  Instead, they'd be forced to turn to Matt Cassel, a second-year quarterback who has precious little game experience, and who wasn't even the starter on his college team.  (Then again, the Pats had a similar "problem" five years ago when an unproven second-year quarterback who wasn't the starter on his college team stepped in for Drew Bledsoe.)

Beyond Brady, the Pats are in transition.  There are whispers that running back Corey Dillon will be phased out this year in favor of rookie Laurence Maroney, and rookie receiver Chad Jackson needs to step up to help defray the absence of David Givens, who is in Tennessee, and Deion Branch, who is in his TV room.

On defense, the return of safety Rodney Harrison will help to shore up a backfield that was blown apart after Harrison's knee was blown up in September.  Linebacker Tedy Bruschi's busted wrist is a mosquito bite compared to the stroke that he suffered in early 2005.  And Richard Seymour anchors a solid line with improving nose tackle Vince Wilfork and defensive end Ty Warren.

The schedule is relatively soft, with games against the NFC North and the AFC South.    

Can the Pats get back to the Super Bowl?  Yes.  Even with all of the injuries the Patriots suffered in 2005, they easily could have gotten past the Broncos in the divisional round of the playoffs, and New England then would have hosted Pittsburgh for the AFC championship game.

With the tandem of coach Bill Belichick and V.P. of player personnel Scott Pioli still in place, and with Brady at the helm of the offense, the Pats will continue to be a Super Bowl threat in 2006, and in every other season in which those three guys are associated with the franchise.

Now, the fantasy grades.

Quarterback:  Tom Brady had the most passing yards of his career in 2005, even with a sports hernia bothering him for much of the season.  His 4,110 yards were enough to lead the league, and his 26 touchdown passes were third in the NFL, behind only Carson Palmer (32) and Peyton Manning (28).  Concerns regarding a receiving corps in flux, however, keep us from giving Brady a solid A; he gets an A-.

Running back:  The big question is who'll get the bulk of the touches, if anyone.  Corey Dillon will turn 32 in October.  In 2004, he had his best NFL season in his first stint with the Patriots; the next year, he had one of his worst.  With first-rounder Laurence Maroney in the fold, Dillon could slide into a Jerome Bettis-type role in New England for the next couple of years, with Maroney gradually getting more and more opportunities.  For now, then, drafting either guy is a risk.

Wide receiver:  Deion Branch is still listed as a starter on the team's online depth chart, even though his holdout is now into week three.  For now, the safest bet is to steer clear of Branch.  Beyond him, the top pass-catchers are Reche Caldwell and Chad Jackson.  Though Jackson has a chance to be very good, taking him any higher than a third receiver would be a risk.  Our advice?  Unless Branch shows up soon, look elsewhere.

Tight end:  This position simply isn't a key part of the passing game in New England, and hasn't been since Ben Coates was dominating the Madden franchise.  Avoid.

Defense:  25th statistically and 31st in takeaways last year, the return of Harrison and Bruschi (assuming his wrist injury is healed by September) should make a huge difference.  We give them a B.

Kicker:  The Pats lost one of the best kickers in league history and replaced him with a washed-up Hamburglar and a rookie who was off of Mel Kiper's radar screen on draft day.  If, as we assume, Stephen Gostkowski wins the job as a rookie, we'd be inclined to take a flier on him as a late-round pick.  The offense will put him in position to have opportunities, and that's all any kicker needs.  He gets a B-.