The New England Patriots historically have been the best franchise ever.  Although this season’s 11-3 record seems like the usual Patriots, this team isn’t all that meets the eye. 

The team started off on a phenomenal pace with an 8-0 record by handily beating most of their opponents. The defense had been historically good with giving up their first touchdown against the Buffalo Bills in week 4. The defense allowed only a 33.4 passer rating, which is unbelievable and only permitted 6.8 points through the first games which is extremely low. 

The team could have been carried solely on defense at this point in the season; the offense was also performing well, scoring over 30 points against each game in the first half, except against the Bills. A lot could be said about that Tom Brady and the Patriots at this point and most of it was good. 

Looking back at the beginning of the season, the Patriots fan base should have somewhat expected what would come next. The Bills is the only team the Patriots played in the first half of the season that currently has a winning record. Teams like the Jets, Dolphins, and Redskins are contenders for the first pick in the draft, showing how terrible those teams really are. Any solid team would easily beat those types of teams, proving nothing for the Patriots. 

The Bills put a scare in the Patriots. The offense was atrocious against that team, which has a solid defense, again showing that against good competition the Patriots can be beaten. The Bills are the only playoff team that the Patriots played in the first half of the season and almost lost, foreshadowing to the rest of the season. 

Next, they lost three of their next four games. These three losses were to the Chiefs, Ravens, and Texans. These teams are real contenders for the title as they all have elite quarterbacks.  The losses show that against real competition the Patriots simply choke and can’t pull out a win. 

An argument can be made about the Chief’s game that the refs blew a call on a touchdown, taking one away from the Patriots, but at home it shouldn’t have to get that point against a young quarterback such as Pat Mahomes. 

We hope we can all look back at this article and laugh because it is an overreaction, but right now we are worried with this team.

With Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, the Patriots are never out of a game and hopefully this recent win versus the Bengals help put the Patriots back on track and regain some confidence. The Patriots only have two more games in the regular season, one against the Bills and the other against the Dolphins. Both of these games are home. These two games are must wins to secure the first round bye for the playoffs, which will increase the chance of a playoff run for the Patriots. A win against the Bills on Sunday will put a lot of confidence in this team, something that it is currently lacking. 

Fans in New England expect a deep run into the playoffs, although one will happen, it may be shorter than expected. If the Patriots have to play the Chiefs or the Ravens, we fully expect the Patriots to lose. It makes us sad to say it, but the Patriots are fakers and against those two teams, an exit out of the playoffs will happen.