Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
The Tufts Daily
Where you read it first | Friday, March 29, 2024

Patriots not dead yet

Feature-Image_Place-HolderWINTER31

When I started writing this column on Sunday afternoon, it was going to be overwhelmingly negative, as only a Patriots post-mortem authored by a native New Englander can be. It was supposed to be about the sudden death of a football dynasty that extends back to when most Tufts students were in elementary school. I was going to address how and why the Patriots' season was dissolving amidst a toxic mix of underperformance on the field and internal tension off the field. And I was definitely going to lament that though the Patriots have dominated the National Football League for so long, all good things must come to an end and that when they do, it's rarely pretty (trust me: I'm a Celtics fan).

Now, in the wake of New England's biggest win of the season, I don't have to gripe about any of that. Instead I can celebrate the Pats' 43-17 throttling of the Cincinnati Bengals -- the last undefeated team in the NFL before Sunday night. And man, let me tell you, it felt good.

Winning always feels good, but I'd be lying if I said some wins don't feel better than others. Postseason wins matter a lot more, obviously, but even in the regular season not all wins are created equal. Beating the Yankees, Lakers and whomever Peyton Manning plays for always feels amazing. Not quite as good as winning it all, of course, but close.

And while the Bengals don't approximate anything resembling a traditional rival, watching the Patriots obliterate them was still spectacular. It was a game that New England absolutely had to win coming off an embarrassing, nationally televised 41-14 dress-down by the Kansas City Chiefs. New England's worst defeat since 2005 sent the national media into a frenzy. "The Patriots are a mess," the headlines shouted. "Bill Belichick doesn't know what he's doing," columnists cried. "Trade Brady," sports radio dared.

It was a week unlike any other of the Brady/Belichick era, rife with controversy, rumors and speculation. A frustrated Brady, fed-up with the lack of star talent around him and mediocre results to date, hinted that he was open to finishing his career elsewhere. Naturally, the press jumped all over that.

What? Tom Brady ... leave? New England's situation was not just grim, but dire.

So on the eve of its Sunday night matchup with Cincinnati, another nationally televised game (gulp), New England's season appeared to be unraveling. There was a sense of urgency normally reserved for playoff games or those aforementioned showdowns with Manning. The Patriots needed to make a statement, but above all else, they needed to get back in the win column.

The Pats went out and did just that, delivering a thoroughly convincing victory in front of their amped-up home crowd. New England's offense went bananas, scoring on eight of their first 11 drives. The onslaught can be attributed to the offensive line finally getting its act together, protecting Brady in the pocket and creating space for New England's rushing attack, which pounded Cincy's porous run defense for 220 yards on the ground. Brady deserves credit too, for he responded with a vintage performance in which he completed 23 of his 35 pass attempts for 292 yards and two touchdowns, both season highs. Brady proved that, given adequate time to look downfield, he can still pick apart a defense.

It's official: The Patriots are back. One win wiped away four weeks of underperformance, rendering talk of their demise premature (for now). Brady's not going anywhere anytime soon. With the critics momentarily silenced, Patriots fans can breathe a sigh of relief. Their team doesn't appear to be going to hell in a handbasket after all.

Last week the Patriots were dead. This week they are very much alive. Sunday they square off with the Bills, the other first place team in the AFC East. I can't wait.