By: Emma West

The Patriots’ loss in Super Bowl 52 left New England reeling. The season included both absolute dominance and crazy comebacks, suggesting to fans and critics alike that they were on the path to earning their sixth ring. But at the end of the season, the Eagles emerged victorious. Blame it on a sloppy defensive showing (the Pats scored the most points by a losing team in Super Bowl history) or questionable play calls, but we must face it: we lost.

What appalls me are the claims that the dynasty of New England football is over. For any other team, a 14-2 season that ultimately led to a Super Bowl appearance – a Super Bowl that came down to the last play, no less – would be looked upon as a success. A dynasty isn’t winning the Super Bowl every year. It’s the presence of a dominant power in the league that threatens to win (and often does win) championships every year. If that isn’t the Pats, I don’t know what is.

But I get it. The definition of dynasty is not the whole argument. Belichick, Brady, and Kraft hate each other, right? The lack of evidence to this claim is embarrassing. They’re mere rumors. Even if it were to be true, that’s understandable: any organization with three greats at the wheel is bound to have some tension. It may seem, at times, that there is too much genius for one organization. However, these are professional, intelligent men. They will not let squabbles (that may or may not exist, I might add) get in the way of the dynasty.

If all else – free agency not going as expected, or Gronk actually deciding to retire – fails, there is one fact that rises above everything else: we have Tom Brady. It may seem obvious, but it may be the best argument of them all. In his 40-year-old season, the QB is showed no signs of stopping, or even slowing down. His 32 touchdowns and 66.3% pass completion were good enough for MVP of the league this year. To quote the legend himself: “When I suck, I’ll retire.” Based on his stats this year, he won’t suck anytime soon. We have a few more legendary years out of Brady – AT LEAST.

People age. Even Brady, whose greatness may trick you into thinking that he is immortal, will retire. People also get traded to the 49ers (miss you, Jimmy) and the Colts (we wish you the best, Jacoby). Brian Hoyer isn’t going to cut it. Football is a business, and football is a life cycle; saying goodbye to faces through trades and retirement only means that new ones will emerge. Fans should be paying close attention to the 2018 draft, which will bring our new Jimmy or Jacoby or perhaps even our new Tom. Four of the Pats’ five picks those come in the first three rounds. One of those five picks could be the new QB to continue the dynasty.

Belichick’s no youngster himself. But there happens to be a certain someone that recently turned down a head coaching job with the Colts for a little extra money and to stay with the organization that has brought him great success. That’s right: all signs point to Josh McDaniels as our next head coach. Someone who lives and breathes the dynasty will be carrying it on, even when Belichick is gone.

Our favorite burger-loving, book-writing, red-glove-wearing wide receiver will make his return in 2018. Even in the highly unlikely case that none of our pending free agents resign, we have eight returning offensive starters and nine on the defensive end (notably Cooks, Gronk, and Flowers). In short, the dream team will remain largely unchanged, but Edelman could provide us with a spark that was missing from 2017-2018.

Hope you had your fun, Eagles. Super Bowl 53 has this dynasty’s name all over it.

Sources Used:

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/B/BradTo00.htm

https://www.cheatsheet.com/sports/is-the-patriots-dynasty-coming-to-an-end.html/?a=viewall