Exactly. We are not even close to full strength. (70%)? and we almost beat an 8-2 team in their house. And they had to be helped extensively by the officials. This is why I am not worried. If the NFL is dumb enough to do another screw job on national TV during the playoffs then that's their own fault, and it WILL NOT be received well, considering how even patriots haters received this latest screw job.
I'd feel better if the Patriots are capable of scoring enough to get too far out in front for uncertainty of the outcome to be removed. It's the best bulletproofing against a refs screw job. The good news is, IMHO, once health returns we will be close to that first half of the season where the Patriots were dismissing their opponents/scoring enough where the final outcome was not really in doubt/not capable of being altered.
Lewis is the big deal in terms of production loss. If anyone (White, Bolden, even Blount, ???) can step up to just 2/3 the role Lewis played (what I consider a reasonable expectation), the Patriots will become that unstoppable force we saw for 8 games.
-It is believed that Gronk, DA, and Jules will be back to full strength.
-The OL appears to be getting healthy. Quite a difference watching the OL play Sunday night versus the last few weeks.
Offense: TB at QB, an OL providing lots of protection/time, Jules Gronk LaFell DA (and even Lewis and Chandler) targets. It should return the Patriots to that most difficult offense to stop. Someone just moderately steps up at the 3rd down back role? Patriots are rolling with too many targets capable of beating their one on one coverage to be kept under 30 points.
Defense: It is believed Hightower and Collins will be back at full strength (be nice to have Coleman back). With them back this defense is, IMHO, overly capable of stopping even top tier offenses from getting 30 points. With Ryan and Butler providing competitive coverage (man to man) along with the pass rush being the best I have seen from the Patriots in quite a long time, opposing offenses are going to have a very difficult time sustaining 4 TD drives ((as long as the Run D doesn't slip into the abyss like it displayed at too many points against Denver)).
A defense that most frequently gives up lower point totals complemented with an offense that is the top QB protected by a very good OL and throwing into a very rich target environment (and add in complementary top STs), it makes the equation seem pretty obvious to me. As I have said, annoyingly
, too many times this year this team along with the conditions of this year's NFL makes for a very well paved road to the SB win for the Patriots. As long as the Patriots get these guys healthy and don't have any new key injury setbacks, exactly what team does anyone look at and think "oh they are so good on offense? Or they are just scary of defense? Or this team looks very good on both sides of the ball, beating them in Foxboro or Santa Clara seems such a tall task to accomplish?
As long as health doesn't derail it (and the league doesn't find a way to derail it by other means), this is the Patriots year.
