While some NFL executives are being fitted for nooses in case their drafts go wrong, Bill Belichek and Scott Pioli are being touted as the two greatest minds in football today.

Days after the Bengals' Corey Dillon was traded to the Patriots for the 56th overall pick in the NFL draft, the rest of the NFL is shaking in its proverbial boots. The move only further shows why the Pioli-Belichek tag team is the most unbeatable duo since Rogers and Hammerstein.

The Patriots had one glaring weakness last year: the rushing game. Now they have added a running back who, until last year, averaged over 1,100 yards a season since the beginning of his career. Of course, Dillon was labeled a problem child last year when he sat on the sideline and pouted over Rudi Johnson's increased carries. So the move could turn ugly for the Pats, but I don't see it happening.

Dillon is as happy to get out of Cincinnati as a fat kid is to get his hands on a slice of pie. He'll mesh right into Belichek's precision offense too. Belichek is an old school coach who likes to run his opponents into the ground with a rushing attack and grinding defense. He was raised that way under Bill Parcells, which is kind of like being taught how to practice law by Johnny Cochran.

Besides, the Pats have been too methodical and too smart in the last three years to take on a challenge they didn't know they could handle. Not only do they have Dillon, but they have six more picks to bolster their roster with Saturday. This is just a hunch, but look for them to trade away one or two of those to get more picks in NFL drafts down the road.

Any more than four picks in the first four rounds would be a waste for a team that has slightly more ammunition than the nations of NATO going into next season. The Pats could also send disgruntled Ty Law and a second-round pick to a team like Detroit, to pick up stellar safety Sean Taylor from Miami.

However the draft turns out for New England, they are the odds on favorite to repeat as Super Bowl champs. They have arguably the second-best running back in the league behind Priest Holmes. They have a quarterback who is as popular in the NFL ranks as Pat Buchanan is with right wing conservatives, and they have the best coaching staff ever assembled.

The Patriots are the NFL's version of the Ming dynasty right now. The way things are going in New England, it could be a long time before anyone else challenges the throne.