Bell Tolls: Strange parity as New England Patriots could be on way to 19-0

Looks as if it will take a while before Mercury Morris, Larry Csonka, Manny Fernandez and company can pop that cork in their annual ritual to mark the occasion of the 1972 Miami Dolphins standing as the only team in NFL season to produce a perfect season.

As the midseason mark looms, there is no shortage of dreams about the possibility of NFL perfection.

Five teams are still undefeated, and at the end of Week 8 — which includes the Broncos and Packers clashing in a battle of 6-0 teams on Sunday night — there could be four teams at 7-0.

How rare is that?

Since the 1970 merger, the most 7-0 teams the league has had in a single season is two.

Meanwhile, 19 teams are trudging along with losing records at the moment.

Kids, this is what you call a case of the haves and the have-nots.

What in the world has happened to parity?

Well, there’s still parity, but Bill Belichick isn’t buying in. After producing a 16-0 regular season in 2007 with the Patriots that just fell short of ultimate perfection with a Super Bowl loss, New England is again steamrolling toward the possibility of 19-0.

At the same time, parity has been redefined.

Look at some of the matchups beyond the big one in Denver.

Over in London, the Lions (1-6) meet the Chiefs (2-5). That’s some brand of football for the NFL to export overseas. Loser gives up passports?

Then there’s the riveting game pitting Houston (2-5) and Tennessee (2-5). Sure, it means something. If the Texans win and the Colts lose at undefeated Carolina on Monday night, the Texans — with Brian Hoyer at quarterback, Adrian Foster on the injured list and Ryan Mallett on the street — would be tied for first place in the AFC South.

Say what? That’s the A-South, like last year’s NFC South. The Colts (3-4) are leading the thing with a losing record and a coach on the hot seat. Yes, another division might be won by a team without a winning record, which could fuel another round of "Re-seed the playoffs!" outrage.

In Baltimore, it might be called the "What have you done lately?" bowl. The Ravens have been a perennial playoff team, but at 1-6, this is pretty much a "correction" year. The Chargers, with Philip Rivers winging it, have fallen flat at 2-5.

What separates the haves and have-nots?

Generally, you can look at quarterbacking as a game-changer. Surely, Cincinnati’s consistency at 6-0 is a reflection of Andy Dalton’s play. The Patriots have Tom Brady, and the Packers have Aaron Rodgers.

But it goes beyond that. Rivers has passed for more yards than anyone, but his Chargers are three games under .500.

Naturally, injuries are an X-factor. Ask Dallas about life without Tony Romo.

And there’s also widespread grumbling this year about the lack of quality offensive line play.

Yet those generalities don’t cover it all. Peyton Manning hasn’t been Peyton Manning; yet, Denver is 6-0. The Packers lost Jordy Nelson but are perfect. The Patriots O-line has been struck by one injury after another, costing three starters; yet, Belichick has found a way.

Same for Ron Rivera, the Panthers coach. Cam Newton’s biggest weapon, Kelvin Benjamin, is gone for the season. Luke Kuechly missed three games, while Charles Johnson’s out for a couple of months with a hamstring injury. Yet Carolina is perfect.

Parity means everybody has some type of problem.

Yet there’s nothing equal about how the teams play through their issues.

Other items of interest as Week 8 rolls on ...

Who’s hot: Todd Gurley. It was sure worth the wait. The Rams’ decision to use a top-10 pick on a running back (albeit not just any running back) coming off a torn ACL was a move a few other teams might now wish they had taken. Following reconstructive surgery, would he be the same dynamic runner he was before he blew out his knee? Apparently. After sitting out the first couple of weeks while the knee continued to mend, Gurley, 21, is the youngest player in NFL history to rush for 125 yards in three consecutive games. Jim Brown was 22 when he hit that mark in five consecutive games. And with 107 yards against San Francisco on Sunday, the former Georgia phenom would top Billy Sims’ mark (539) for most rushing yards in a player’s first four NFL starts, since the 1970 merger.

Pressure’s on: Peyton Manning. Two undefeated teams. Bright lights. A primetime national TV audience. Two marquee quarterbacks. Just don’t expect P-Money, without the zip on his passes that he used to have, to win an air war against Aaron Rodgers. Manning, 39, is in the midst of one of his worst slumps ever (7 TDs, 10 INTs, pedestrian 72.5 passer rating), which might also be the ultimate sign that the end is near. But perhaps not, or not without a bang. Manning has a great challenge to prove he still has something left to aid a championship run. It doesn’t help that he’s playing behind a subpar O-line and with an impotent rushing game, all while trying to flow in the new offense that came with new coach Gary Kubiak. At least he’s caught one break: Denver’s top-ranked defense is carrying the team, relieving some of the pressure on a man who has it coming from elsewhere.

Key matchup: Tyrann Mathieu vs. Gary Barnidge. The Honey Badger has raised his game a notch in his second pro season with the Cardinals, proving so capable of providing big plays in a variety of ways — in coverage, in run support, on pick-six run backs, as a blitzer — from his strong safety post. Barnridge, meanwhile, has raised his game in his eighth pro season. Every week it seems, the Browns tight end is making a big play or few, showing what can come with the opportunity to land a featured role. With 33 catches, 514 yards and 5 TDs, Barnridge has already hit career highs in each of those categories in becoming Cleveland’s most reliable go-to target. Who knew?

Next man up: Zach Mettenberger. Remember how the second-year pro pledged to "fight to the death" to win the job after the Titans drafted their quarterback of the future, Marcus Mariota? Well, the rookie will miss a second consecutive game with a sprained MCL, giving Mettenberger another shot to win his, well, first NFL game as a starter in a matchup of struggling teams in Houston. Six starts last season, one start this season. Zero wins. With Mariota close to returning, this also might be Mettenberger’s last chance in a while to show he can thrive behind a shaky O-line. It’s also a what-comes-around-goes-around encounter. Mettenberger’s first NFL start came against the Texans, days after he posted a selfie to mark his anticipation ... which prompted J.J. Watt to feign his own selfie pose after sacking Mettenberger. Time to catch up with old friends.

Rookie watch: Randy Gregory. Back after missing four games with a high ankle sprain, the edge rusher looks to make a mark as part of a Cowboys D-line rotation that pressed to make up for the deficiencies of an injury-stricken offense. And what a week to show up, with Dallas riding a four-game losing streak. Seattle will bring a shaky O-line to town, allowing an NFL-high 31 sacks. Gregory’s job includes putting the clamps on the elusive Russell Wilson, who can provide quite the test to show whether Gregory — who was a preseason star with three sacks — still has the same explosion and agility he demonstrated before suffering his injury.

Stomach for an upset: Jets at Raiders. Maybe the ultimate stomach ache came to viewers in 1968 who were watching the thrilling Jets-Raiders finish until ... the broadcast was abruptly ended by NBC, so that the network could get on with its next scheduled program, a movie-of-the-week showcase. And thus, the "Heidi Game" became part of NFL TV lore. Viewers missed the two TDs the Raiders scored in the final minute to pull off a comeback win. Maybe Sunday’s intriguing matchup will be worth watching until the end. The Raiders (3-3), fresh off a win at San Diego, have already matched their victory total from last season and can prove that this revival under new coach Jack Del Rio is no fluke. The Jets are improved, too, under their new coach, Todd Bowles. The Raiders are underdogs but are at home, and the Jets have a history of playing supbar on the West Coast. This game could hinge on how well young quarterback Derek Carr handles the blitzes that we know are coming from a defense that sends extra pressure more than any unit in the NFL (47%), and whether Amari Cooper, the NFL’s most productive rookie receiver, gets lost on Revis Island.

If the playoffs were today ...  Four teams that were in the playoffs last season — Baltimore, Seattle, Detroit and Dallas — would be out. Of the four, the Seahawks are best-positioned to put it together for a playoff push. Or so it seems. Seattle was 3-3 last year, then finished with a 12-4 regular-season mark and repeated as NFC champion. But this is different. They are trying to rebuild the shaky O-line with marginal talent. After losing some pieces on defense, they haven’t finished games well. At least they get two games against NFC West leader Arizona, which may be make-or-break scenarios.

Did you notice? Adrian Peterson’s 75-yard run at Detroit last weekend came out of a Power-I formation, to further illustrate that the Vikings star is still perhaps the NFL’s most lethal runner ... when used properly. According to ESPN research, Peterson is averaging 1.5 yards a carry when aligned in the shotgun or pistol. That’s worst in the NFL. Strikingly, Peterson had the exact number of carries from the formations (28), as he had two years ago in his last full season, when he averaged 5.5 yards. When the ball is snapped under center, Peterson is averaging 5.3 yards. In other words, give the man a fullback and let him run downhill.

Stat’s the fact: The Steelers are 2-4 in games when Ben Roethlisberger has returned after missing time due to injury. Now comes the next case, with Big Ben due back after missing four games due to a sprained knee and the unbeaten Bengals coming to Heinz Field looking to strengthen their hold on first place in the AFC North.

Fantasy vs. reality: Golden Tate was one of the NFL’s  best free-agent moves last season, when he caught 99 passes for the Lions. He has hardly picked up where he left off, much to the chagrin of Marion Motley Crew. Tate has stumbled like the rest of the offense for the 1-6 team, and the dropped passes against Minnesota last weekend underscored that. He’s collected 34 receptions in seven games, and his lone touchdown was so, so iffy. Earlier this season, Tate revealed that opponents maintained that Detroit’s offense was so predictable that they knew which plays were coming. Let’s see if anything changes now, with Jim Bob Cooter replacing fired coordinator Joe Lombardi just before the Lions left for London, where they will play the Chiefs.