Will the Patriots take back the division next season?

[Patnation21]

Maybe so, maybe not.

Honest assessment, Buffalo looked orders of magnitude better than us in 2021, yet they finished only one game ahead. It's a game of inches.

This is all very true but they also had a horrible stretch going 3-5 and losing to the Jags plus the wind game with us. The odds of that happening again are slim.

Good teams can lose games to bad teams but its not very often they play that bad for a big stretch. Whatever the issue was they fixed it down the stretch and we saw what happened.

On paper we have a tougher schedule and so do they. We absolutely cannot lose both games to Miami. At worst we need to go 4-2 in division to have any shot at 1st. Buffalo is 11-1 in the last two years with the one loss being the wind game. That's why those division games are so important.

 

[DoobieKen]

I think the Bills will be on top for quite a while unfortunately. I expect us to have a bit of regression next year before we start to get better in 2023.

I totally agree. The thing is they are a pretty young team and drafts well unlike us. They have some cap money too and Josh Allen is a beast.
.

 

[DoobieKen]

The problem with that thinking is that the Bills would have been 16-1 by that logic. Every loss but 1 came down to 1 play.

The difference between the Bills vs Pats showed itself in the last two games. 47-17. that's the reality of this. We also lost Josh and three assistants off a not too good staff already and our personal guy. This is not a good coaching staff.

 

[DoobieKen]

LB too

Yes so many needs. they are bad drafting corners and wideouts,two big needs. They need a young stud tackle and linebackers that actually can play and run. They have drafted a group of linebackers and none of them are on the field. Let's face it all Hightower did this year was collect game checks. and Van Noy, less off the field talking and more on the field play making. both of these guys need to go.

 

[kennyb]

I see a good 10 losses next year. I doubt they get to the playoffs in the next few years. If they do, it'll be 1 and done.