Enjoy Laughing at the Patriots While You Can
The Patriots are 6-8 and coming off a loss to Miami yesterday that was the final nail in the coffin for the Patriots’ playoff hopes in 2020. Mathematically, there is still a slight chance that the Patriots sneak into the postseason, but yesterday’s loss was devastating.
The Patriots aren’t a playoff football team. They don’t deserve to make the playoffs, and this pains me to say as a New England fan. The 2020 Patriots have been the most uncharacteristic New England team that we have seen in the Bill Belichick era.
The league and fans all around the country are laughing at the Patriots. They should be laughing because New England has been embarrassing on multiple occasions throughout the year. However, enjoy chuckling at the Patriots while you can because the New England dynasty will resume in the very near future.
The Reasons to Laugh at the New England Patriots
I was watching the Patriots game yesterday with some fellow New England fans. We were getting frustrated with every snap of the football on Sunday. The New England offense hasn’t scored a touchdown in eight quarters. The team has dropped two games in a row and has no shot of finishing above .500 this year. With the way the season has gone, it looks like the Patriots will finish at 7-9 if they lose to Buffalo, but beat the Jets in Week 17.
The Patriots have won the AFC East every year from 2008 until 2019. They have rolled through their division with ease by dominating the three other opponents in the AFC East for almost two decades. This season was an exception to the Patriots AFC East authority. New England has only looked legit once this year against the Chargers in a 45-0 blowout.
The team looked good against competition like Seattle and Buffalo earlier this year, but were unable to finish these games in the fourth quarter. The Patriots are 27th in the league when it comes to points scored per game. The offense has been the worst unit on the team in 2020.
Cam Newton is no longer an MVP caliber player. If you disagree with this that’s fine, but his numbers and actions this season show that he can’t get the job done. It’s true that Newton doesn’t have many weapons to work with on the field, but the days of “Superman Cam” are done and it’s getting worse every single week.
Yesterday’s loss was just one of many reasons to laugh at the New England Patriots this season. It’s fun for people to see the best dynasty in NFL history fall off a cliff, but New England has already started the climb back up to regain their spot on the top of the NFL mountain.
Patriots Coaching Bill Belichick
Bill Belichick is the first reason that the Patriots will be back in the near future. Tom Brady was a big factor in the team’s success during his time in New England, but Belichick was much more instrumental. Belichick is one of the best football minds that the league has ever seen. He is able to confuse opposing offenses with his defensive schemes like no other coach in the NFL.
The Patriots haven’t been bad on defense and this a testament to Bill Belichick. In addition to his defensive brilliancy, Belichick knows how to scout amazing talent. You know that the Patriots are looking ahead and Belichick is searching for his late-round steal in the 2021 NFL draft.
Even though the Patriots are struggling, Belichick has embedded a strong winning culture in New England that doesn’t disappear after one subpar season. Belichick has won six Super Bowl Championships at the helm in New England. The Patriots know how to win, but they just need to add a few missing pieces to their team puzzle. A quarterback is replaceable, but Hall of Fame coaches are few and far between.
Patriots Coaching Josh McDaniels
Josh McDaniels is in his 17th season with the team and his 12th as the offensive coordinator. McDaniels has been offered head coaching jobs, but he has made it clear that he wants to stay in New England. Most likely, he will succeed Bill Belichick when the time comes, but he’s currently locked in on leading the New England offense to success.
Cam Newton is good enough to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. It’s hard to say if the Patriots will stick with him in 2021, but McDaniels will find a way to get his offense going next season. McDaniels built his offense around Tom Brady so an adjustment period should be expected.
This offense will look like a totally different unit under McDaniels next season no matter who is playing quarterback. I wouldn’t expect anything less from one of the best offensive minds in the game of football.
Patriots Cap Room
The talent on the field in New England hasn’t been great. The Patriots were bankrupt this season. They put everything into their Super Bowl runs the past few seasons. The team had no chance of bringing in any great free agents because of their financial state. Cam Newton only received a $1 million contract which is pennies for the former MVP.
This will not be the case in 2021 so expect a few big players to make their way to New England. Next season, the team’s cap space will be $70.46 million which is the fourth most of any team in the NFL. Close to half of the team’s in the league will not be able to pick up any high level free agents because of their cap limitations.
Upgrades will be made throughout the entire roster with over $70 million in cap space. This should make every Patriots fan excited about the future of New England football. Enjoy laughing while you can because your time is running out. The Patriots will win the AFC East next year for the 18th time in 21 years and will be back in Super Bowl contention for years to come.
