How do you honestly feel about our chance at a repeat?

[DarrylS]

I am cautiously optimistic, in the past during this run always seemed after a SB run or a run deep into the playoffs there were a lot of injuries in the following season, that seems to be less of an issue now. Perhaps the high rate of turnover, adding about 10-12 new players minimizes the effect of a long season..

My confidence has to do with the greatest coach of all time and #12, on paper this is one of our deeper teams and there will still be additions come September.. cannot wait to see Harry and Gordon on the field at the same time to compliment are already adequate WR's...

 

[Tony2046]

Chances are good ....

C'mon. Jules was holding the stopwatch?? That was a freaking 6.9 at best. Haha

 

[SHOWTIME15]

No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Don’t get sucked into the checkers playing media thinking. That team isn’t making the postseason.

the bears defense alone will put them in the playoffs...

 

[Gronk]

I haven’t thought about it enough regarding the division. I just think the Bears are massively overhyped. Trubisky is a coddled little deer-in-headlights boy who is well below average. Their defense is now literally comparing themselves to the 85 Bears (lol) and there’s a lot of ****iness and high expectations. Their absurd trade of the two first round picks to pay an absurd price for a pass rusher is going to hit its absurd consequences soon. Sure, I’ll take Green Bay...provided Rodgers doesn’t suffer another injury (and that’s not a certainty by any means), I think they’re the better team due to have a far superior QB.

Losing Fangio as DC gives me a little pause with the defense, but it's still a really good unit at all three levels. They will pay a price for the Mack trade long-term, sure, but for this season it doesn't matter much. Trubisky isn't as good as Rodgers, that's fair lol, but they have some playmakers on offense. They may be flawed and may not be a Super Bowl team because of the QB, but declaring they "will not make the postseason" out of hand is a little silly.

As for the Pats...well I honestly feel like they are in the same position they have been every year. Going to 4 is hard, but you gotta get to 3 before you can even try. 50% of the teams that made it to 3 make it to 4! (90s Bills did, 70s Dolphins didn't). They'll miss Gronk and Flowers, I'll miss watching them for sure and it adds an end-of-an-era element particularly with Gronk gone, but production wise it isn't like they need to replace 90/1300/17td Gronk and I like what they've done with the roster.

 

[Nunchucks]

I feel good about the defense and if the offense can rely on the running game, the Patriots will be in really good shape.

 

[DaBronxPats14]

I feel good Every Year going into a new season. I Always feel we have an Advantage with TB & BB. As long as TB is Upright, We'll be Alright. It's Not how you start but how you Finish and that separates us from other teams year in and year out. No different this year, I like our chances to Repeat.

 

[turkeyneck]

If the Oline can keep Brady healthy I like our chances. That's a moderate sized 'if' right now.

 

[everlong]

Given the history of the last 18 years they have a 33% chance of winning the SB, 50% chance of making it there, 72% chance of making the AFFCG and an 89% chance of winning the division. Factor in Brady being healthy for the entire year and all these numbers go up.

So I'm pretty confident especially given the draft plus the red shirt players. I expect there will be some growing pains as there always are early in the year. Left Tackle is the one large concern. I'm sure Scar will work it out but as of now there are a lot of untested solutions.

 

[Mike the Brit]

Optimistic that they can replace Brown, Flowers and the departed coaches. Then there's the loss of Gronk. Re-watching old games, I've lost count of the times I said "Wow! Only Gronk makes that play." Even last year, when they were managing him to protect him, he was the one to make the plays they really, really needed. But BB and McD know that better than me. So, yes, optimistic -- I can't think of any other team I'd rather have money on.

 

[Pats2000]

I'll feel a lot better about it if we get Gordon back. But right now we should have a top 10 D and a Top 10 O just because of Brady. So I think are chances are good to great if we get that final elite offensive piece.

 

[Patstastic]

I know I won't overreact if they drop to 1-2 or 2-2 to start the season. I know better now. Plenty of teams every season jump out to a 2-0 or 3-1 start. But it's the finish that matters most.

This article was written after the 2014 KC game. Woof....

"He still has the hair. He still has the teeth. He still has the supermodel on his arm. No. 12 still looks like No. 12 in every way, except when it comes to playing football."

"The bottom line: Brady is no longer a difference-making quarterback. He can't save the Patriots' season without help, and it's hard to see where that help will come from."

Embarrassing MNF Blowout Loss to Chiefs Sounds Death Knell for Patriots Dynasty

 

[Ice_Ice_Brady]

Losing Fangio as DC gives me a little pause with the defense, but it's still a really good unit at all three levels. They will pay a price for the Mack trade long-term, sure, but for this season it doesn't matter much. Trubisky isn't as good as Rodgers, that's fair lol, but they have some playmakers on offense. They may be flawed and may not be a Super Bowl team because of the QB, but declaring they "will not make the postseason" out of hand is a little silly.

As for the Pats...well I honestly feel like they are in the same position they have been every year. Going to 4 is hard, but you gotta get to 3 before you can even try. 50% of the teams that made it to 3 make it to 4! (90s Bills did, 70s Dolphins didn't). They'll miss Gronk and Flowers, I'll miss watching them for sure and it adds an end-of-an-era element particularly with Gronk gone, but production wise it isn't like they need to replace 90/1300/17td Gronk and I like what they've done with the roster.

We’ll see. I said the same thing about Jacksonville last year and was called “silly,” etc. In fact, I even doubled down on Jacksonville missing the postseason after they beat the Pats. Every year there’s one team that’s massively overhyped, usually they do have a good defense....because in the NFL it’s very hard to have an elite defense year after year (that’s why I was so down on Jax) and it’s not like the Bears have proven they are a consistently great D yet...one year wonders on are frequent on defense.

The year before that, my overhyped pick was the Raiders, who everyone had penciled into in the 2017 AFCCG...that one was easy...they had a negative point differential in 2016 despite a good record and were bound to disappoint.

I’m not going back to find my old posts, but suffice to say most people disagreed with me in 2017 when I said OAK was missing the playoffs and 2018 when I had JAX missing the playoffs. I just look at the teams that are most fragile, have the most shaky “I’m good as long as everything around me is perfect” QBs, and suddenly have massive expectations which make them likely to collapse. I may be wrong of course, but the Bears are my 2019 pick.

 

[Ivan]

Three in four years, including a back to back in there, would constitute a "Dynasty" imo. To me winning Super Bowls (Not just appearing in them) means more to me. It's so subjective though. There's really no right or wrong answer. I don't think we will ever see a run like the Patriots again though. And I don't take this for granted.

I think you have to figure in their overall dominance as well.8 straight AFCCG and the best decade winning % in football history, as well as 3 Lombardi’s in 5 years. That’s a dynasty.

 

[Mike the Brit]

AFC Championship Game EIGHT straight years! And winning three Super Bowls along the way. If that doesn't define "dynasty" I don't know what to say.

 

[RobertWeathers]

I know I won't overreact if they drop to 1-2 or 2-2 to start the season. I know better now. Plenty of teams every season jump out to a 2-0 or 3-1 start. But it's the finish that matters most.

This article was written after the 2014 KC game. Woof....

"He still has the hair. He still has the teeth. He still has the supermodel on his arm. No. 12 still looks like No. 12 in every way, except when it comes to playing football."

"The bottom line: Brady is no longer a difference-making quarterback. He can't save the Patriots' season without help, and it's hard to see where that help will come from."

Embarrassing MNF Blowout Loss to Chiefs Sounds Death Knell for Patriots Dynasty

Lol.

Since that game you could argue they've been on the most dominant 5 year run in NFL history.

 

[SBLIII]

The same I've felt during the last 8-10 years

2007 and 2008 I really felt we should win it no matter what,

but after that I went into each season, yeah we can win this but don't have to, we are in the hunt and can win it if we don't have an absurd amount of injuries.

I feel like that this year. There are about 8 teams I can see winning it and we are one of them.

 

[SBLIII]

I think repeating is a prerequisite for being considered a dynasty. A SB this season would be 4 out of the last 6. Back to back. Even more impressive than the run from 01-04.

As for the Pats chances, it's tough to say. Injuries and regressions/improvements will make a world of difference. The schedule is pretty difficult. Maybe that benefits them. Who knows. The WR situation seems rather pedestrian again. I like the defense.

The schedule is pretty easy, one of the easiest in the league.

 

[SBLIII]

HIGHTOWER HAS TO BE HEALTHY. He’s arguably the most important guy apart from TB12, that Defence is completely different when he’s there. He is also unbelievably clutch when it matters the most.

As long as the O-Line can protect Brady as well there’s not one team that worries me.

Our Defence will be as solid as it always is, but for me we really need to make sure Hightower is healthy for the play offs.

Hightower is a good player but we are only ****ed if we lose Gilly for an extended period of time.

 

[wizwor]

I always predict the Patriots will win it all. What is the point of being a fan if you are not going to be a fanatic, right? Since BB's arrival, I honestly put the Pats at even money to win it all. Coach will ALWAYS put the team in a position to win, but injuries, luck, and the New York Giants tend to f*k things up. I am very excited about the coming years. I believe the team is transitioning from TB12 (whether he likes it or not) and that we are going to be treated to a defensive clinic as Bill deals with a diminished Brady and his eventual replacement.

 

[Patsfanin Philly]

I know I won't overreact if they drop to 1-2 or 2-2 to start the season. I know better now. Plenty of teams every season jump out to a 2-0 or 3-1 start. But it's the finish that matters most.

This article was written after the 2014 KC game. Woof....

"He still has the hair. He still has the teeth. He still has the supermodel on his arm. No. 12 still looks like No. 12 in every way, except when it comes to playing football."

"The bottom line: Brady is no longer a difference-making quarterback. He can't save the Patriots' season without help, and it's hard to see where that help will come from."

Embarrassing MNF Blowout Loss to Chiefs Sounds Death Knell for Patriots Dynasty

Since that game, Brady has gone 57-15 in the regular season and 12-2 in the playoffs. That's 69-17 or .802 winning percentage for the math-impaired.....