For over two decades, the New England patriots led by Bill Belichick and Tom Brady held as one of the most prestigious franchises in all of sports history, winning six Super Bowls and playing in nine.
Winning was a staple at Gillette stadium. Year after year, playoff appearances would come and even when everyone thought it was over, the playoffs rolled around and everything just seemed to click for New England.
The Patriots still hold as one of the best franchises in not only football but sports history as a whole, however for the last five years things haven’t been all that smooth. In 2019, the Patriots and Tom Brady started hot, 8-0 record, another great Belichick defense, everything was the same as it had been for the last 20 years. In their last eight games, the Patriots ended up going 4-4 to end with an overall record of 12-4. They wouldn’t earn a first round bye and the haters said this was it.
Many fans around the globe still had faith in this New England team, however the Patriots were a first round exit in the playoffs. The bad grew worse when Brady left the cornerstone of the franchise, the GOAT was gone. However, Belichick did everything he could to bring the team back to the Super Bowl with former MVP Cam Newton. This proved to be unsuccessful, as the Patriots did not make the playoffs for the first time in over a decade.
This laid the framework for a new foundation. Rookie Mac Jones was brought in, along with many other new players. The first year of the “MAC experiment” went well as the team earned a 10-7 record with a playoff berth. Although they were embarrassed at Buffalo in the first round, this seemed to be a good start for the new era. Unfortunately, the next three years were everything but. For three years in a row, the Patriots earned under five wins in a season. They were still a joke in the league.
In April of 2023, the annual NFL draft was held and the Patriots had the third overall pick. With that they chose Quarterback Drake Maye, a highly touted and talented prospect from UNC. In his first year, he only started seven games. There may not have been many wins, but there was hope. Drake Maye hadn’t played systemic, robotic. It felt like a new surge was let into the building the day he was drafted. In the offseason the Patriots did everything they could to help out their young QB, hiring former Patriot player and coach of the year Mike Vrabel and spending a ton of money on star players in free agency.
It isn’t easy to recover from being a staple in the Super Bowl for 20 years, then losing the key pieces from that dynasty. It may not have been right away, but the New England Patriots and Drake Maye have finally arrived. With a 5-2 start, the best since Brady and the Belichick era, and Drake Maye playing at MVP-caliber level, the Patriots look to bring back that winning culture.
