We haven’t had much to believe in the last 4 years man. Bill has coached well but his management decisions and drafting has been atrocious. Hopefully this years class is better but there’s still not been a ton to be optimistic about… and I’m in my 30th year as a season ticket holder
The improvements absolutely are there. Are they perfect? No, but it’s an actual offense rather than whatever the heck last year was. I definitely for more comfortable with bill as our oc than Patricia and judge.
The Patriots do not have any splashy individual players, but they can succeed as a team. When they’re successful its because of their coaching scheme. So it basically comes down to how quick can the players adapt and are they able to execute the plays?
Die hard Pats fan. I’m covering the team as well as the NFL in general…but I’m saying the same thing. Nobody thinks the Patriots will compete this year. Not a bad spot to be in considering their current situation.
@@billshun3963sucks for Thornton because I still believe he can produce in right system (kinda like Corderrelle Patterson as far as a late bloom but not as a running back reciever duo)
@@namtrof01 difference is Patterson is huge. The dudes an absolute house. Thornton is a toothpick, even if he added muscle he’s just tiny. His body would never be able to stand up to the punishment of a Patterson. I’d love to see him turn it around and become a factor, I hope I’m dead wrong… but so far it doesn’t look great in my opinion. I’m expecting him to make the team but I think this will probably be his last opportunity. At this point though it seems like they will get more out of the two rookies than TT has been able to show to this point. I bet he makes the team then gets IR or PUP listed. Then again, wtf do I know 😂 have a good one man
@@namtrof01 sorry I didn’t see your last sentence. Yeah I don’t think he could ever be a WR/RB, or even a slot guy. He’s just seems to be too fragile. He’d basically have to become a top tier punt returner bc there’s not much else he could do lol
@@Andy_Babb I mean deep he can beat you but that’s not based on skill tree as much as straight line speed , and I think he has hands but idk his route running leaves alot to be desired as far as nfl wide receiver
@@PeanutButterAndJellyBrosmeyers had 800 last year in a garbage offensive scheme no reason juju on 17 games can’t get 1k. Mac can get a guy to 1k yards he’s not that bad people over hype.
Not only are they underrated, but I believe you’re even underrating them. Lol. For example, at WR… yes, there are absolutely questions. Clearly. But the Pats were not eliminated from playoff contention until Week 18 last season. So, we’re looking to compare to last season. And the Pats have literally improved at EVERY position… Defense: CB: Gonzalez should be an upgrade over Mills, who goes back to safety. Safety: Mills, though a crappy CB is a solid safety. McCourty, good as he is, lost a step last year… thus, his retirement. Mills going to safety is at least break even, if not a slight upgrade. D-line: Added depth. Depth is more important and D-line than anywhere else. That’s where players wear down… during games (ask the Falcons, lol) and during a season. Pats gave up progressively more points as the season went on last year. Being able to rotate and rest is a huge upgrade for the D-line. Offense: WR: Based on stats alone Jakobi for JuJu is an even deal. But I think everyone would agree that the ceiling on JuJu is higher. Also, Thornton, though I agree, hasn’t impressed, is finally back healthy. Then with Boutte and Douglas there are more options. Hard to see the WR corps is much better than last season, but with many more options it’ll be easier for the Pats to find something that works. TE: I like Jonnu, but he just didn’t fit or work out. Gesicki, even if he’s merely okay, is an upgrade. RB: Like WR… lost one, gained one. But Zeke is a much better fit for our needs. We were last in red zone offense and 27th in third down conversions. Zeke was tied for 5th among RBs in TDs and in the top half of the league in first downs. We’re desperate for a short yardage guy. Zeke is perfect for that. Not to mention what you noted… great in pass blocking. That alone could parlay itself into better WR performance, as Mac has more time for plays to develop. O-line: Not much change here, but like the D-line, more depth. Definitely right to have questions. Brown is certain to miss games. He always does. But with the improved depth via the draft, they’ll have more options and more ability to solve any issues that come up. That should make it an improved unit over last season. QB: Ok, Mac is Mac. Hard to say for certain that the Pats are better at this position this year. But given the fact that Mac wasn’t too good last year, combined with far superior offensive coaching this season, it’s likely safe to expect Mac to be better. Pats are literally better at every position. Look, I’m not saying they’re a lock for the playoffs. Every AFC East team has gotten better, along with the Pats. It’s a brutal division. But I will say that I’m more confident than you are that the Pats will be in the hunt. I believe the Pats have improved more than the Fins. Fins are the 4th place team this year… and I think they’ll be 4th with a winning record (9-8)… that’s how good the East is. The only question is whether or not the Jets’ O-line sinks them. If not, they may pass the Pats. Still doesn’t preclude the playoffs. The East very well may have two WC teams. But it gets sketchy if the Pats are third. So… I’m absolutely NOT declaring the Patriots a playoff team. Not playing in their brutal division. But I *AM* saying they’re a playoff contender. They’ll be in the hunt at least through Week 16, if not right up until the end, of not even securing a WC spot.
@@JDProdNFL yup, that’s why I’m not remotely confident they’ll do any better than last year, even though they’re better at every position. I *think* Pats will pass the Dolphins, but Jets may pass the Pats, leaving us in third again. So, I’m certainly NOT saying Pats are a lock for a playoff spot or anything like that. I’m merely saying they’re clear contenders. Even in 4th it’s not impossible for the Pats to make the playoffs. There are three WC teams now. There was a recent article on either NFL or ESPN about the chances of a division sending all four teams to the playoffs. No division is likely to do so… obviously. But the AFC East was rated most likely to do so. And I do think every team in the division will end up over .500. Yes, I know that’s very difficult beating up on each other for six games each. But if these teams are as good as everyone preaches, no one is going to go 0-6 intra-divisionally. If everyone gets at least two division wins (not unlikely), they merely need to go 7-4 in other games. “Merely”… yeah, 7-4 isn’t easy, but again, these are SUPPOSEDLY all good teams. Are they going to go barely .500 (6-5) outside the division. That’s not “good”. That’s mediocre. So, yeah… I see the last place AFC East team going 9-8. And I expect that to be the Dolphins. I should note, and I do not wish this upon him, I’m just being realistic… one reason I expect the Fins to finish last is that I expect Tua to get knocked out for several games again. Odds of a concussion increase if you’ve been concussed before. And he’s got six games against the Bills, Jets and Patriots’ defense. Ouch. That’s why I expect the Fins to finish 4th. They’ve also likely improved the least of any AFC East team. They NEED Tua healthy the whole season to compete with this division. Sorry. My comments are too long. LOL. I just think everyone is badly underestimating this Patriots squad. Tell me where I’m wrong on my positional analysis. At what position are the Patriots worse. Maybe safety… barely… if you think Mills is a downgrade from McCourty. Maybe O-line isn’t better (depth may not help much there, like it does on the D-line… though I’d still argue that it does, given the inevitability of Brown missing time)… but is it worse? I don’t think so… it’s largely the same group of guys. CB maybe there’s some question, as you don’t know how any draft pick will turn out. WR the upgrade is marginal. So, yeah, certainly a LOT of iffy question marks on just how substantial these “upgrades” are. But nowhere, except safety, could any argument be made that these are downgrades. …and, remember, Pats were in the playoff hunt in Week 18. A win by them and a loss by the Dolphins and they would’ve end up tied… Pats take the tiebreaker AND a WC spot. Unfortunately, Pats lost and Find won, leaving Pats two games back. So, it didn’t look as close in the final standings, but, yeah, the Pats - for all of the disgust over their putrid offense - were in playoff contention right up to and including Week 18. And remember that Raiders debacle. Pull out a W there and it’s even tighter AND Pats finish with a winning record. As ugly as we perceive last season to be, the Pats were in contention (thanks mostly to the D). They’re either unchanged or improved at every position. …the only problem for the Pats this season? Every other team in the AFC East has improved too. Jets have improved a lot. Fins upgraded their D with a lockdown corner. Bills haven’t added a lot, but got a couple more weapons and their secondary is back to being healthy. So, are the Patriots’ improvements enough to leapfrog the Fins and stay ahead of the Jets?? (I don’t think we’re catching the Bills.) I don’t know. I suspect we’ll be able to leapfrog the Fins, as Tua is likely to miss time. But can we keep ahead of the Jets? OR, can the East send three teams to the playoffs (that seems plausible)?
The defense is still going to be stout and could give them the edge to make the playoffs alone. The offense last year looked disorganized and hapless, hopefully BOB offense will give them enough but the o-line is the issue and could be their Achilles heel. Then the last factor is the the AFC is extremely strong, the AFC east is easily the hardest conference this season. I am excited to see how the season progresses and I feel like this team could play really well and end up 7-10 or play exactly the same and end up 12-5. It seems weird to say that but in this difficult conference anything can happen.
I am a Cowboys fan, and I am an Ezekiel Elliott fan. You guys are gonna love him, and he is a great blocker as well. I hope he has a great season with yall. I hate the Pats, but as said before I am a fan if Zeke and want to see him do well.
Wrong about Reiff, he's most likely gonna be a backup guard. He was getting burnt in practice and in the pre season at RT and let up 0 pressures at RG. Calvin Anderson just got off the PUP and will be the starting RT
Pass rush is good, but the defense is constantly overmatched against competent QB’s/Offenses. The outside CB’s and the 2nd level of the defense is weak until proven otherwise. Bill is 10-20 against teams .500 and above since 2020 - that is not good. The staff is mediocre, OL is bad and skill players are bottom half of the NFL. Sleep on the Pats - they will come in 4th place this year.
Bro Parker was easily the best receiver last year did you watch any games? Kendrick Bourne is good though, don’t sleep on Parker, dude balled out last year
Everyone got better. So our main goal is to do our job and reduce the amount of mistakes we make. We’re out talented, so we’re going to have to rely on schemes and coaching more than individual star power. That’s going to be the reason we make the playoffs cause I don’t see us out dueling anyone really
I greatly respect Bill Belichick but I’ve seen what happens when a dynasty loses it’s HoF QB & doesn’t have a great QB who can consistently pull through in the most crucial situations. Average consistency at QB=average team records. In 2023 Belichick is doing what he did with Brady in 2001-2004 by trying to win with defense first in close games. I hope Mac can execute like Brady did in those years in the most crucial moments.
@@eaglesman19 It wasn't luck. If you had half a brain, you'd realize that Malcolm Butler read the play and anticipated where Russel Wilson would throw. He was the only defender who wasn't pressing on that play.
don't get why patriots fans look over the fact that the patriots' defense have always look good against below average to average quarterbacks. They do not wanna play any of the top quarterbacks at all.
But its not 2003 anymore. Youre not gonna win a championship as a defense first team in todays nfl. Its a passing league. Im a lifelong Bears fan and it just looks like Bill is trying to play Bears smashmouth football when that style has been dead for almost 20 years.
Well the afc is going to beat each other up. And the Patriots maybe on paper the worst but for being the worst team they probably have one of the toughest schedules in the AFC so if they can scrape out 12 win’s they will probably go 2 and out in the playoffs. I just don’t see Mac Jones ever taking the Patriots to the Super Bowl. In my opinion Mac Jones doesn’t have it in him to lead a team over the top.
I feel like the Pats have quite the odds stacked against them by everyone outside of New England. They went 8-9 last year with a DC as their OC, with little depth in their offense outside of Stevenson, think about that. The play in possibly the toughest division in the NFL, with 3 (potential) playoff teams ahead of them. The AFC is already tough enough, but having 3 of the 7 playoff teams in your division already makes it worse. Now that they have re-united with Bill O'Brien, the fact that they still will have an effective duel rushing attack with Rhamondre (might showcase as more of a pass catcher with Zeke in the mix) and Elliott, their receivers aren't amazing but they have added more depth with guys like Juju, Parker, Bourne, the rook Boutte, etc, and their Top-5 defense from last year. They have so much potential and although they don't have any top tier players on their team, they could certainly turn some heads during the season, and don't be surprised if they finish above .500 or even get a playoff spot.
On the bright side, this season can't be worse than last year right? I don't expect to win the division but I do expect a big improvement from last year
I love how everyone assumes jets will be contenders because they got a washed up arron rodgers 😂😂. Kinda like how everyone assumed broncos would be good with wilson
Anyone who picks the pats to win more than 8/9 games is on something. Vegas has them favored in 4 games all year meaning to get 8 wins they’ll need 4 upsets minimum. Vegas is Vegas for a reason bet against at your own peril.
The one bad thing about O'Brian is, if he's really good, and Mac and the Patriots do very well, like make the playoffs. Well, we can kiss his ass goodbye. He'll be a head Coach again. Then what?
They haven’t been great the last couple of years but the Patriots have not been push overs either. Belichick keeps that team competitive and they play tough defense
it all comes down to execution in situational football. if they can be disciplined and avoid stupid mistakes in key spots then i think they can compete for the division. those mental lapses were the real killers the past few years.
I’ve been rooting for the pats for the past 10 years . But let’s be real…… Mac is arguably the 4th best QB in the division.. and 3rd at absolute best. He doesn’t have my confidence until he earns it , just like every other player
It's hilarious that every fall Patriots fans forget how bad Mac Jones is. Give it 1 month of that pop gun arm and everyone will be bailing on him yet again.
Jets will find a way to Jets. Dolpins still have the worst QB in the division the irony is he is worse than some of the backup on other teams. The Bills if Refs call the holds JA will show an even bigger regression than the last two season after the 1 good season. The Pats Defense looks really really good. Its more can the offense score the 20 pionts a game that will be needed to win
You talk about preseason like it counts, nobody is game planning to stop anyone it's all about evaluating your team. So lets pump the brakes a little before we start fitting Jones for a yellow jacket.
I"m on the wrong site to make this statement but Belichick is overrated and last year kinda proves it. Bottom line, without Brady he has a losing record 79-87. No way to whitewwash those numbers.
I honesty think so too! Not saying the Jets won't be better, but give me a break. They got Aaron Rodgers, Dalvin Cook, and a good defense, but as far as WR's, I am not impressed. Randall Cobb just turned 33 and hasn't been the same player in quite a while. I believe he was dealing with injuries at one point and while Lazard is a good young player who has potential, he can't be the Jets No. 1 WR just yet. Jets may have Rodgers, but that doesn't matter if the WR group isn't all that impressive. They have a tough schedule too! I can honestly see them starting out 2-4. They have the Bills, Cowboys on the road, Eagles, and Chiefs. 3/4 of those games are at home which is good for them, but I still don't see them defeating the Chiefs or Eagles.
Eh, sleep with one eye open. But Bill has entered the apathetic phase of his career. No more Brady, no more reason to do anything else outside of beating Shula. He’s largely burned bridges with Mac Jones, and they won’t rebuild.
The Patriots are the Browns of their division this year. Most people are writing them off and they’re the 4th-best team in the division on paper but they could surprise and easily make the playoffs
@billshun3963 Most people? Yeah But when you look at it Zeke gonna have 2 baller games this year: Vs the Birds and Vs the Boys Before going back to 2 yards a carry 😭 Add that onto the fact The Pats are underrated and the Eagles are overrated, you get a sleeper upset pick
I love him as a player and a person! It's just the reality, he's been really solid for sure, but until proven otherwise he isn't WR1 material. Regardless, having him on the team is a boost imo. I truly think he's going to have a big season this year!!!
@@JDProdNFL nah man i really can’t agree with you , bourne has been our most reliable receiver we had and he put up 400+ yards with 35 receptions with a terrible OC.. he has nothing but positive energy on the team and its only his 2nd year on the team if thats not a WR1 then thats crazy
Honestly dont get what people see in this team. Sure you gotta let the season play out but I really dont get why people buy into this team. Theyre a mediocre football team honestly.
honestly, you could be completely right, and on paper that's facts, but anything can happen during the season, and i'm hoping at the very least to see positive signs that the team is moving back in the right direction. Pats have gone so long without a true "rebuild" period, so I really think this next season or 2 is going to decide if that's going to finally start for them. But as of now, they do have some solid pieces, just hard to win with the AFC East being so STACKED
