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The New England Patriots three Super Bowl Championships in the last four years have come in great part from their steady and hard hitting defense. But as the team prepares for the 2005 season, the squad finds itself missing many of the key defensive ingredients that have played a significant role their Super Bowl success.

As the Pats start their 2005 training camp, the team is missing five top defensive players; linebackers Teddy Bruschi, Roman Phifer and Ted Johnson, defensive lineman Richard Seymour, and cornerback Ty Law.

After the 2005 Super Bowl Championship season, the Patriots had to make some very difficult salary cap decisions. First, they opted not to resign linebacker Roman Phifer, a veteran backer who had played four seasons for the Pats and had been a key performer in all three of the team's Super Bowl wins. Then the Pats released Ty Law, a ten year veteran and all pro caliber cornerback, again due to the financial constraints of the NFL salary cap.

Also during the off season, middle linebacker Teddy Bruschi suffered a mild stroke that required hospital time. Though he has seemingly been recovering steadily from his collapse, the Patriots team leader on defense has elected to sit out the 2005 season to continue his rehabilitation regiment in the hopes of playing again in 2006.

Then just prior to training camp came the surprising announcement of another linebacker. Teddy Johnson, another tough inside backer and outstanding defender against the run indicated that the numerous concussions that he had experienced while playing pro football had taken their toll. Said Johnson, it was time for him to call it quits for his own long term health.

Finally, for the first time in recent memory, the Pats saw a player under contract express dissatisfaction with his salary agreement and elect not show for the team's mandatory training sessions. Richard Seymour, the Pats' all pro defensive lineman, failed to report for the team's mandatory minicamp earlier in the summer and now has yet to make an appearance at the preseason team camp.

The Seymour no show was an extremely unusual situation for a team that has had very few holdouts during the Belichick coaching era. The Patriots have become the league poster child for team harmony, with many professionals opting for less money just for the opportunity to play for the leagues best team in recent years.

Complicating matters for the Patriots is the off season loss of their defensive coordinator as well. Romeo Crennel, the Pats highly though of assistant coach finally was rewarded for his numerous years of success by becoming the head coach of the Cleveland Browns. But the loss of Crennel and co-captains Bruschi and Johnson mean the Pats have lost a lot of the intellectual leadership that formed the basis of defense that succeeded as much from being in the right place at the right time as it did for its punishing hits.

Though it has been known as the era of parity in the NFL, the Patriots in the last four years have managed to become a repeat champion and with three titles during the period the term dynasty has been associated with the franchise. But the highly-respected head coach of the Pats, Bill Belichick, will more than have his work cut out for him as he prepares his team to defend its NFL championship.

The decimation of the defense may just have brought the Patriots back to the pack and returned them to the parity level of the rest of the NFL.