Yes or No... Do the Patriots make the Superbowl this season?

[MrNathanDrake]

I say Yes.


Ravens lost their DPOY in Suggs.

Steelers lost Aaron Smith, Farrior, and Hines Ward. James Harrison and Polamalu have been steadily slowing down.

Colts are done for now. Chargers are annual disappointments.

Broncos might be a threat, but they aren't elite. Peyton has done less, with more talent around him.

Texans are the only real competition in the AFC IMO.

 

[Brady_to_Moss]

i want to say yes..but it's so hard getting there twice in a row...i think Houston, Ravens and Pats...one of those will be there in the end

and the pats play them both...i think they lose in balt...but beat houston in a barn burner

 

[eagle eye]

One line in that post that I'm not too sure about is 'Colts are done for now'. I don't expect them to be great this year but Luck is a real special QB and it wouldn't surprise me at all if he took up where Peyton left off.

As for the question, lets just see how they get through TC and preseason first. All it takes is the loss of a couple of key players to make things real hard. If they make it through the season with a healthy squad then I think they will go real close.

 

[VOODOOZF]

YES

I don't say that as a fanboy either. I think the Patriots are the best team in the AFC. The biggest challenge as I see it is Houston.

 

[Observer]

Yes.
In fact, I can't think of any team more likely to make the Super Bowl than the pats.

 

[Deus Irae]

I expect Vegas to make them the favorite from the AFC.

 

[Joey007]

I won't say whether we'll make it to the SB or not (avoiding a jinx) but I will say our main competition is Houston and Baltimore. Don't sleep on the Ravens, Suggs may come back later in the year and don't forget the revenge factor.

 

[blackglass3]

Unfortunately, no. A heartbreaking loss in the playoffs awaits us to an up and coming team.

I sincerely hope I am wrong.

 

[fxkane]

If Tom Brady is as young as I think he might be, yes. If not, or if he sustains one of those slow down injuries, maybe not.

 

[Sciz]

If it's the Pats against the rest of the AFC field, then the odds are no.

If it's the Pats against each AFC team individually, then I'd rather put money on the Pats than any other team.

 

[JMarr]

If my honest answer was "no" I wouldn't even bother following the team.
Luckily, that's not the case. Houston will be one and done as usual. Ravens and Steelers are the only teams with any shot.

This year we're actually going to be able to get to the QB. In spite of the conventional wisdom regarding rookies in the Pats' system, I think Jones and Bequette are both going to be animals as situational pass rushers and I'm expecting Hightower to be a huge force as well.

 

[SwedishPat]

Well its real hard to do it twice but they've done it before. If Welker is as good as last year and our tight ends keep improving, our offense will be really good. And the addition of Lloyd I believe will help a lot. It will help our offense spread out a bit from the middle. Maybe have Hernandez a bit outside the numbers too.

Our defense will hopefully improve. Nincovich was good last year and I expect him to play just as good this year. The addition of Hightower will give us another good linebacker. The pass rush right now is a big question. But I think we will play a lot of 4-3 where Jones can impact early on. As many knows, Pats are not a 4-3 or 3-4 team but have played booth over the last years. The secondary was truly aweful last year and especialy McCourty who couldn't cover for ****. This will hopefully improve with a full off-season.

I think it will be hard to reach SB again this year but if our defense improves then I think we will have a great chance of getting there.

 

[Simple Jack's Brother]

YES.

I think the heavens (god willing) are aligning in a perfect storm of mediocrity in the AFC and pure talent being strung along in perfect harmony on the Pats by the ultimate puppet master in BB.

Seriously, i think the defense is locked and loaded, and BB is about to unleash a torrent of pass rushers on 3rd downs...and the secondary may finally have enough talent to hold its own should the front 7 not get there. Giddy up buttercup, it's gonna be funnnnn (assuming not too many injuries).

 

[Efstratios]

I'm not certain they'll make it back to the Superbowl seeing as how anything can happen in the season, but I certainly think that they a good shot barring a catastrophic injury or a series of smaller ones that cripple the team in the final few weeks of the regular season. In my opinion, the Pats are the best all around team in AFC right now. However, the question on my mind isn't if this group can make it back to the big game, It's if they can beat whoever represents the NFC.

 

[YearbookCurfew]

I think they make the playoffs but they will lose in the second or third round. It's really tough to make the SB twice in a row. I sure hope I'm wrong though.

 

[Brady_to_Moss]

i hope they prove me wrong...but i will wait until training camp and preseason before i give my answer guess even though i kind of already gave the answer

 

[MrNathanDrake]

One line in that post that I'm not too sure about is 'Colts are done for now'. I don't expect them to be great this year but Luck is a real special QB and it wouldn't surprise me at all if he took up where Peyton left off.

As for the question, lets just see how they get through TC and preseason first. All it takes is the loss of a couple of key players to make things real hard. If they make it through the season with a healthy squad then I think they will go real close.

Even WITH Peyton, they wouldn't be a very good team right now.

 

[MrNathanDrake]

Didn't the Patriots make the SB 5 out of the last 10 years?

It's not like it's something the team has never done before. 50% chance with BB and Brady.



I think it all comes down to injuries. If the key players stay healthy, we should have a very good chance. And then the other question is how do the rookies perform? If either one of Hightower/Jones becomes an impact player... or if both become solid players in their rookie year... we should be dangerous.

 

[RayClay]

I'm pretty sure you can't make the Super Bowl before training camp starts.

 

[MrNathanDrake]

We can't make the Super Bowl until the AFCCG... thats never stopped people from making predictions before.