There is a perception out there that the New England Patriots aren’t a truly great football team, and even their thrilling Super Bowl victory won’t change that.

This view is based on the accepted truth that the Patriots don’t have any superstars, and therefore they can’t be counted among the NFL’s all-time greats. They’re a product of the salary cap and parity and a great coach, this line of thinking goes, and they owe their sparkling record as much to luck and benevolent officiating as they do to their play.

Where do people get these ideas? And when the Patriots beat the Carolina Panthers to finish the season with 15 straight wins and their second trophy in three seasons, how can anyone suggest that they don’t deserve to be counted among the very, very best that’s ever played the game?

Okay, we know who’s better: The ’72 Dolphins that ran the table and finished 17-0.

But who else?

Joe Montana’s 49ers had such talent as Ronnie Lott, Roger Craig and Jerry Rice, but they never finished a season with 15 straight wins. Roger Staubach’s Cowboys never did it. Nor did Terry Bradshaw’s Steelers or John Elway’s Broncos or any of Joe Gibbs’ Redskins champs.

Those were all great teams. No one will argue that. They had great players and great nicknames: Doomsday, Hogs, Steel Curtain, Roger the Dodger, Super Joe, Orange Crush.

Maybe that’s why the Patriots aren’t getting their props -- no nicknames. The defense is one of the best we’ve seen, but it doesn’t have a catchy name. Tom Brady doesn’t have gaudy yardage totals, but he’s never thrown more interceptions than touchdowns in his three seasons as a starter, and he keeps winning. But he hasn’t got a nickname. Just Tom. It’s hard to be thought of as great when people call you Tom.

People say it’s their coach who makes them great, and not the players. That’s nonsense. It’s like saying the Vienna Symphony is a good band because they get to play Mozart and they have a good conductor, as if a first-grade kazoo band could do as well if only they had a great conductor.

There’s no question that Bill Belichick is a great coach. But all great teams have great coaches. Yet no one says the Cowboys weren’t that good, they just had Tom Landry to make them look good.

The greatest schemes in the world are worthless if you don’t have the players to carry out the assignments and make the plays. The Patriots make the plays. Ty Law is one of the best corners in the game, if not the best. Rodney Harrison is a heck of a safety. Willie McGinest can’t decide if he’s a defensive end, outside linebacker or strong safety, and he doesn’t have to. The guy makes plays -- big plays.

Brady is more than an adequate quarterback. He does whatever is needed to win. People rip the Patriots offense, but when they faced the Titans in the regular season and Tennessee scored 30, New England scored 38. They did the same during the season against the Colts. If the other team got zero, the Pats got three or six or nine. If the opposition got 20, the Pats got 23 or 27. No matter what the other team scored, the Pats scored more.

That is the true mark of greatness.

Maybe you can’t compare the Patriots position-for-position with those other great teams. But you can’t do that with any team these days, not with the hard salary cap limiting the number of superstars you can afford.

But you can compare results. And the Patriots, with their Super Bowl win, have won their final 15 games and their second title in three seasons. If that were a nothing accomplishment, somebody else would have done it; one of those other great teams would have done it. They didn’t. That makes the Patriots special.

And don’t tell me they’re just lucky, that they got the benefit of a silly rule two years ago when they beat the Raiders to get to the big game, or that the refs let the Pats mug the Colts’ receivers in the AFC championship. You make your own luck in this business, and when you string 15 wins together, you’re more than lucky; you’re good.

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