I thought this team would have a record-setting offense, and the inability to close out games would be a thing of the past. But I was also expecting some combination of Gaffney/Stallworth/Branch/Johnson/Gonzalez to make the team, and for Vereen to have a bigger impact, and for Waters to actually show up. And wasn't expecting the team to roster FIVE tight ends instead.
Far be it for me to question the wisdom of Belichick, one of the greatest football minds of all-time, but this isn't the team I envisioned. Now, a 10-game winning streak could do a lot to change perceptions around here, but really, how much different are the Patriots now than a year ago? A more diverse running game, sure. But otherwise we're seeing the same problem with the secondary as before, and the lack of a killer instinct late in games with their backs against the wall.
Someone else brought it up. Remember when Brady used to lead back the Patriots and win these types of games on a regular basis? That seemed to stop happening six years ago. Today, I fully expected the Pats to give the ball back to the Seahawks, unable to run the clock out, and watch Seattle march down the field at will, like more teams have done in recent memory. It's ridiculous to think the team has lost the moment they punt the ball away, but that's how it is.
BTW being objective I see that luck works both ways. The Pats were about to lose the AFCCG to Baltimore when the Ravens screwed up their chance to bring it to OT... and the Pats lost a game they nearly lucked themselves into victory with against Arizona. But still, great teams know how to protect a lead. The Patriots seem to be a great team (yes, I still dare to call this 3-3 team "great") that somehow still struggles with this concept. This team is an enigma... not as good as we thought they would be coming into the year, but not as bad as their record makes them look. In other words, not an 8-8 team, but likely not a 13-3 team either.
