It felt strange to experience an NFL postseason in which the New England Patriots were not taking part. Having made the play-offs for 12 consecutive years prior to the 2020 season, Bill Belichick’s team missed out on the showpiece fixtures and were forced to pack up early. A third-place finish in the AFC East, with just seven wins and nine losses, was enough to ensure that the Patriots would miss the play-offs for the first time since 2008-09.
As the new season approaches, it’s a chance for the Patriots to forget about the failures of last season and get back on the right track. At odds of 33/1 in the NFL betting to win the Super Bowl, they’ll certainly need to improve if they want to go deep this season, and Belichick will have to call on all his years of experience. The 69-year-old has been through hard times at the franchise before and come out the other side. Can he do it again? Let’s have a look at what we can hope to see from New England this season.
Improved form
Let’s face it, this Patriots roster is nowhere near the standard of the teams that have contested 11 Super Bowls in the past, but that does not mean they have no hope of making it to the postseason. Belichick has proved himself as the master of getting the best out of his players, even if other teams around him are spending big on lucrative contracts for the sport’s biggest stars.
With Tom Brady having had his Patriots swansong, and Rob Gronkowski also plying his trade elsewhere, there has been a changing of the guard, but that might not be a bad thing. We’ve seen in the past how strong team spirit and collective effort can yield results, and if Belichick can foster a winning mentality, who knows what could happen?
Better quarter-back play
It’s fair to say that Cam Newton didn’t enjoy the best debut season for the Patriots, but a fresh start in a new campaign might bring the best out of him. Everyone knows the quality and power that Newton possesses, after he almost single-handedly led the Carolina Panthers to the 2015 Super Bowl, where they just fell short against the Denver Broncos.
Having had a year to adjust to life under Belichick at the Patriots, you’d expect Newton to perform at much higher levels, and if he can rediscover his best form than he has the ability to win games on his own.
A seventh Super Bowl triumph?
It’s perhaps a bit much to expect that the Patriots could go all the way this season. After all, few in the NFL betting tips are predicting that they will make it to the showpiece game next February, and returning to the play-offs would be enough to consider the season a success.
But this is the Patriots. Even in tough times, they have an uncanny knack of grinding out wins out of nowhere. Belichick is just about the wiliest coach in the NFL, and he knows what it takes to make a team greater than the sum of its parts. Write them off at your peril.