Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

You’ve seen it happen before, haven’t you? You’ve probably even been there once or twice yourself, right?

You wake up one morning on a friend’s couch, trying to figure out exactly how you ended up there in the first place.

It all started so innocently, a silly fight over something that could easily be resolved with a little give and take. You even thought about making the first move yourself, but something inside told you to hold your ground. So you drew a line in the sand, decided to prove your point this one time. Things would work out in the end, wouldn’t they? They always did, so why not stand firm and enjoy the satisfaction that comes with winning the battle.

Deep down, you knew you belonged there. You wanted to be there. You were wanted there. As a team, you accomplished great things. Staying together wasn’t just the right thing to do; it was the only thing to do.

Still, you made your stand for pride’s sake. Along the way, stubbornness led you to push a few buttons; those buttons only parties very familiar with one another know how to push or when to push. Things were said and done in anger and spite, things that can never be taken back. And so you laid there on an uncomfortable couch, staring at the ceiling and thinking; how did we ever let it get to this point?

I wonder if that’s what Bill Belichick and Deion Branch are thinking this morning.

What happened? Where did it all go wrong? How did a team in desperate need of a top flight receiver alienate the one they already had? How did a player who was never all about the money become all about the money?

There’s too much common ground for things to end up this way. Deion Branch is perfect for the Patriots. His chemistry with Tom Brady is electric, their best work coming on the biggest stages. Brady even signed a below market deal so other deserving players could get their share. The Pats have money to burn, an estimated $12-million under the salary cap. Lesser talents like David Givens were allowed to leave, presumably so funds would be there to keep the guy they really wanted (Branch) all along.

On the other hand, is there a better fit for Branch than New England? Isn’t the Patriots focus on t-e-a-m exactly why a player like him flourishes? No need to be “the manâ€? week in/week out in Foxboro. Just do your job, prepare properly, and the coaches put you in position to become  Super Bowl MVP on a team that also features all-world talents like Brady, Richard Seymour, Tedy Brushci and Rodney Harrison.

What else could either side ask for? Apparently, a lot!

So we sit here this morning with the breakup all but inevitable. Heels have been dug in. Bluffs have been made and called. Feelings have been hurt. Lawyers are now involved, never a good thing. Even a potential replacement, Doug Gabriel, has been brought in. (Wait till Belichick wakes up on the couch and sees that laying next to him!)

Breakups are never good. Even Jennifer Aniston movies about them bomb. Let’s hope the Patriots 2006 season doesn’t do the same because of Irreconcilable Circumstances.

What are your thoughts on the Deion Branch situation? Can the relationship with the Patriots be repaired or is it over? Who's to blame, if anyone? Can the Pats win a Super Bowl without a #1 receiver?