Is Tom Brady’s Age Beginning Now An Obstacle to Patriots Super Bowl Hopes?

Photo courtesy of Jeffrey Beall's Flick page - Tom Brady: https://www.flickr.com/photos/denverjeffrey/6566852021/in/photolist-b1hQjz-6TGQLf-6TCNjt-6TCQrP-ihYLBr-6TGXaY-91St2X-6TDcjM-6TD38p-quibTs-6THKxb-hGKoPh-gQnQcg-96MbC5-8B3HqL-rgz3YD-qz5ZLN-hGKoHf-qvEoAs-7owYgn-fMLkYm-6TCSWz-nV7bPa-hGJxK6-7oARWy-5xv7E5-qLF6bB-biYQPX-6TCSbe-gNTTwc-gNTYva-gNSie6-6TCHwa-6TCyUV-bh4Lxt-6TDfuD-6THpgu-6TCDMV-6TGXxA-6TD1CM-6TCUtk-gnh4wB-6TD6SD-aEwQeH-6TCK44-6TGXnQ-6THdRE-6THzA5-ihZDW8-6THiE5

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A lot of people are expressing concern about Tom Brady following the Patriots loss to the Texans in Houston on Sunday night.              

Indeed, New England did not look like themselves.  They did not resemble the consistent winning team that they have been now for many seasons. And it seems that just as quickly, people are pointing to Tom Brady and his poor showing in Houston.              

This is understandable, on some level. People tend to overreact whenever things like this happen. That seems especially true whenever it involved the New England Patriots, because, well, people are tired of them. And that is understandable, right? After all, they have been on top for a very long time, and seem to make it to the Super Bowl almost every other season. They have been to nine Super Bowls in the first 18 years of Belichick and Brady (Belchick was head coach in 2000, before Brady became the starter), and have won six of them. So, yeah, people have grown sick and tired of them.              

But it seems that anytime that the Pats show any signs of weakness, people are quick to write them off. Remember a few years ago, they got destroyed 41-14 in Kansas City a few years ago, and everyone was quick to write them off. They had fallen to 2-2 on the year, and people were asking what was wrong with the Pats that year. Bill Belichick drew everyone crazy by infamously answering repeatedly “It’s on to Cincinnati.”              

Well, what he was saying was that while it was a bad loss, he and his team would not dwell too much on it. They had another game to prepare for, and they went about their business. Everyone did their job, and they won against Cincinnati. Then they won at Buffalo. And they won again and again, recovering from that 2-2 mark to finish the regular season at 12-4, earning home field advantage throughout the playoffs. They advanced through the AFC playoffs to the Super Bowl, and stunned the world by beating the Seahawks, even though part of the blame had to be the play calling on that infamous 2nd and 1.              

No, I am not saying that the Patriots are going to go all then way to the Super Bowl, and/or win it, to boot. I think that the Ravens could give them a very serious test in the playoffs, especially if that game were to be played in Baltimore which, if the season ended right now, is where the game would indeed be played.              

However, I am also not eliminating that from being a distinct possibility, either. After all, this Patriots team is a historically dominant team. They have won more games in the last two decades than any other team in any other era. This is the first team in NFL history to have won “Team of the Decade” honors in back-to-back decades. They have raised the bar of high standards dramatically, to the point that it is difficult right now to imagine anyone else really coming close to what they have managed to do.              

So, while the Patriots might need to be concerned about what happened in Houston, it seems to me overblown to assume that this should automatically be regarded as a bad omen or a sign of things to come. New England has overcome incredibly tough obstacles and games before and, let us not forget, they are still 10-2, and in good position to win their division and get a playoff bye, at the very least. True, they have a tougher test than usual with Buffalo, and they still have to face the Bills, so this division title is not in the bag like it has been for the Pats in previous seasons by this point. But the Patriots have won consistently for a reason, and I suspect that they will not be overly discouraged by one bad performance.              

Remember, they have gone a very long time without losing a game in New England. And if they get a playoff bye, at least one of their playoff games will indeed be played up at Foxboro. That would give them a good opportunity to win that game, and qualify for what would be a record ninth straight AFC title game appearance.              

All of that is still within reach for New England, and it is not by accident. Again, no team in NFL history has won with this level of consistency and relentlessness. And it is tougher to do that now, in this era of free agency and parody and more teams than ever, than it has ever been before. They have weathered the storm just fine before, and my suspicion is that they will weather it again this time, too. They are not champions for no reason, after all.              

This is not a guarantee that the Pats will be back in the Super Bowl. But I am almost positive that the Patriots will return back to winning consistently again soon enough, to let people forget about this loss in a hurry.