If you had told me in August that the Pats would be 6-2 nine weeks into the season after playing the Jets, Phins, and Chargers on the road, and the Bengals, Ravens, and Vikings at home, I wouldn’t have believed you. And if you had told me they’d have that record largely without Ty Warren, Leigh Boddon, Logan Mankins, and Randy Moss, I would have used my physician privileges to admit you to a psychiatic facility. Now granted, San Diego, Cincy, and Minnesota aren’t the powerhouses that they were in 2009, but supposedly, neither were the Patriots. This was supposed to be New England’s “rebuilding year”. This was supposed to be the first year since 2001 where Patriots fans started the season with no reasonable expectations for a Super Bowl.
Yet here the Pats sit, even after a stumble against Cleveland, still holding onto the best record in the NFL. The way New England got here certainly wasn’t pretty. This hasn’t been the “finesse” Patriots we’ve come to expect over the past couple of season. Except for a single one-handed touchdown grab by Moss in Week 2, there hasn’t been a time all year where the Patriots have “wowed” their onlookers with a brilliant display of athleticism. Instead, the Patriots have been grinding games out and doing the small things that add up to big results. Despite their youth and “newness”, this New England team has been somewhat of a surprising throwback to the early years of the Patriots dynasty. They’re a team of misfits surviving solely by their collective will to win.
With the Steelers, Colts, a short week to prepare for Detroit, and the Jets on tap the next four weeks, it’s fair to wonder if the Patriots will be able to keep up their impressive run. I, for one, am pretty confident that the team will continue to rise to the occasion. The NFL is wide open this year, perhaps more than any other in over a decade. There is no dominant team, and I could easily see the top seed in the AFC being won by a team with a 12-4 or even an 11-5 record. When I look at that four game schedule, I don’t see a single opponent that should scare a team that’s playing “Patriots” football. It certainly won’t be an easy stretch, by any means, but if New England can stick to the fundamentals and grow under the tutelage of Belichick, only good things will happen.
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Predictions:
NFC North
1. Packers
2. Vikings
3. Bears
4. Lions
NFC South
1. Falcons
2. Saints
3. Buccaneers
4. Panthers
NFC East
1. Giants
2. Eagles
3. Redskins
4. Cowboys
NFC West
1. Rams
2. Seahawks
3. Cardinals
4. 49ers
AFC North
1. Ravens
2. Steelers
3. Browns
4. Bengals
AFC South
1. Colts
2. Titans
3. Texans
4. Jaguars
AFC East
1. Patriots
2. Jets
3. Dolphins
4. Bills
AFC West
1. Raiders
2. Chiefs
3. Chargers
4. Broncos
NFC Playoff Seeding:
1. Atlanta
2. New York
3. Green Bay
4. St. Louis
5. New Orleans
6. Philadelphia
AFC Playoff Seeding
1. Baltimore
2. New England
3. Indianapolis
4. Oakland
5. Pittsburgh
6. New York
Playoffs
Wild Card:
Packers over Eagles
Saints over Rams
Colts over Jets
Steelers over Raiders
Divisional:
Falcons over Saints
Giants over Packers
Steelers over Ravens
Patriots over Colts
Conference:
Falcons over Giants
Patriots over Steelers
Super Bowl XLV:
Patriots over Falcons
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