What's Happened to the Patriots?

For over a decade, the New England Patriots have been the cream of the crop of the NFL. Year in and year out, they consistently win double-digit games, and are unparalleled in terms of their undeviated regular season success. The only time the Patriots have not won their division in the Belichick/Brady era was in 2002, following their first Super Bowl victory when they lost out on the division due to a tiebreaker, and in 2008 when they played without Tom Brady due to his torn ACL and still won 11 games, again losing out on a tiebreaker. The Patriots have become such a model of success that fans across the nation have grown such a disdain for this team that they root against them in almost any situation. Even players from other teams have grown to hate the Patriots and Tom Brady, likely because of their ruthless domination over them and the rest of the league. So much so that Terrell Suggs, a man who refers to himself as T-Sizzle, called them "arrogant pricks" following their triumph over the Pats in this year's AFC Championship, and that was probably the nicest thing he had to say about them.

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One of the more confounding items pertaining to the Patriots is that despite all of their regular season success, and Brady surpassing Joe Montana for most playoff victories by a QB all-time, they have yet to win a Super Bowl since the 2004 season. They've made two additional trips to the Super Bowl, once in 2007 and 2011, yet their efforts were twice thwarted by Eli Manning and the Giants. Both games they could have, and arguably should have, won. But they didn't. Thus, Brady's playoff record currently stands at a still-impressive 17-7 and is 3-2 in the Super Bowl.

Unfortunately, Brady was once 10-0 in the playoffs and 3-0 in Super Bowl games, so each of those winning percentages has drastically declined in recent years. Is there something from the Brady of old compared to the new Brady? Or is it something systematically with the team and coaching staff that isn't as successful as the old regime?

First things first, anyone that says Brady has declined as a player clearly isn't watching the same game I am. Yes, he's 35 years old and isn't getting any younger. But this experience has groomed him to become the QB he is. Since his last Super Bowl victory, he has garnered two MVP's and two Offensive Player of the Year awards, and has put up absolutely stout numbers throughout his career. This past season Brady managed to throw for 4,827 yards while completing 63% of his passes and tossing 34 touchdowns compared to only 8 interceptions. He was just as steady and consistent as he's always been, and people have grown so accustomed to seeing him do this year in and year out that it's taken for granted. What's more remarkable is that the revolving door of offensive coordinators Brady has had over his tenure has never been a hindrance to him. Granted, they all run similar schemes and game-plans in an effort to keep a semblance of continuity within their offense, but Brady has battled through these changes almost effortlessly.

But there's something missing in this equation. Before the AFC Championship a reporter posed a question alluding to his postseason experience and how that could help him in this game. Brady responded with a rather pertinent answer by saying, "Well there was a time when I was inexperienced and we did pretty well." Of course, that would be referring to Brady's three championship rings that he won within his first four seasons as a starter. Since then, when Brady has constantly been referred to as "experienced" he is 7-7 with no additional rings. He also seems to underperform in the more heartbreaking losses, and seems to disappear when the team needs him most. There was once a time where giving the ball to Brady, down by X amount of points and a game winning drive to be had, you'd sit back, smile, and watch him go to work. Nowadays, you bite your nails and wonder if Brady can get the job done. More often than not lately, he doesn't. He has zero playoff comebacks since 2007 and zero game-winning drives in the same time span. That can be attributed to the Patriots throttling certain teams in the playoffs and leaving no room for comebacks, but also shows how when the Patriots are down, Brady hasn't led a hard charge back.

But it obviously can't all fall on Brady's shoulders. Over the last 5 years the Patriots have had nothing short of a dismal defense year in and year out. They are constantly finding themselves beat in coverage, watching receivers fly past them, and are prone to big plays every single week. They're also young. Only Brady and Vince Wilfork are the remaining players from their last championship run and Brady's weapons are constantly reloaded with different receivers and backs. After their acquisition of Aqib Talib in 2012, their defense vastly improved and it gave them a new edge and a little bit more, dare I say, swagger. They had a big, dynamic playmaker on the outside for once, and it allowed other players to shift around to positions where they were more effective such as Alfonzo Dennard on the #2 receiver, Devin McCourty playing safety, and Kyle Arrington as the nickelback. It was also evident that without Talib, the defense takes a hit as it did in last weekend's Championship game when Talib left with a thigh injury in the 1st quarter.

If the Patriots are smart, they'll re-sign Wes Welker, as he is still Brady's favorite target, and they'll also re-sign Talib. They need him and they're unquestionably a better team with him on the field. Belichick also needs to have a solid draft, as he has made many questionable decisions the last few years with the exception of 2012 where he walked away with a very respectable group of rookies who played well in their allotted time, and give hope to the growth of this team, especially the defense.


The Patriots have shown that they're trying to maximize their time left with Brady, which realistically may only be 3 or 4 more years. They've loaded up at running back and established a very good ground game with the likes of Stevan Ridley, Shane Vereen, and Danny Woodhead in an effort to take the load off Brady's right arm. Their defense was also improved in 2012, especially after the aforementioned addition of Talib who cost them a 4th round pick. They're making necessary moves to help out their future first-ballot Hall of Famer, but it might not be enough.

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Then again, despite everything, maybe it's just the Ravens and the Giants that give the Patriots fits. In four of their last five playoff visits, the Patriots have exited the playoffs courtesy of one of these two teams. It's an anomaly and it's head-scratching, but it's the reality of it. Even when Brady bested the Ravens in last year's AFC Championship, he still played like a deer in the headlights and they were extremely lucky to walk away from this game as the victors.

If the Patriots, and Tom Brady especially, are going to win another Super Bowl title, they need to close in on it soon. They've created a culture where it is Super Bowl or bust every single year, and anything short of a title is of the utmost disappointment. That is unfortunately a product of their early dominance, and regular season supremacy, but it's a culture they embrace and strive in. All of these things culminate in wondering if the Patriots can win another title with their HOF tandem of Belichick and Brady, and how long it'll take for it to happen. If they don't, it won't affect their status as perhaps the greatest in their respective fields, but it'll make people wonder what happened to a team that conceivably could have won upwards of 5 Super Bowls in their day, but failed to win a big, must-have game in convincing fashion since maybe the 2007 AFC Championship.