Should Patriots Fans Start to Panic?

This past Sunday, the New England Patriots took an L in the loss column for the second straight week. The last time that happened, Wes Welker was one of the top receivers in the league, and a star player for the Patriots named Aaron Hernandez helped make up a dangerous two-headed tight end monster for the that every team in the league feared.

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After this loss years ago (and after any loss the Patriots have where they look terrible, or have lost multiple in a row), many people started to wonder if the Pats might not make the playoffs or if it was time for fans to panic about the rest of the season. Therefore, after New England’s 35-28 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, I beat everyone to the punch and asked myself: Is it time for me to panic about the New England Patriots’ 2015 season?

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My initial thought after saying this question out loud was “Of course not. Why would I even ask such a thing”, and 90% of me still agrees with my gut.

First of all, if anyone is worried about the Patriots continuing this losing streak and potentially losing their place atop the throne of the AFC East, then you can put those thoughts to bed right now. The Patriots DO NOT go on long losing streaks; the last time they lost at least three consecutive games was in 2002. So sorry Houston but the Patriots are taking this week’s game personally, and history says that they will come out of NRG Stadium with a win.

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My second reason to refrain from panicking are two people that have been the main figureheads for this team for many years. Personally, I will never panic about this team as long as we have Bill Belichick on our sidelines with his headset on, and Tom Brady taking snaps under center. That quarterback-head coach duo is perhaps the greatest the league has ever known, and when you have two of the sports’ biggest icons on your side, you can count on them to make something happen no matter what obstacles they are presented with. After all, you don’t become the NFL’s all time winningest quarterback-head coach tandem by panicking at the first signs of losing.

Dec 6, 2015; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick watches from the sidelines during the first half against the Philadelphia Eagles at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

If you’ve just read those two reasons and are still hyperventilating when you think about the rest of the regular season, then I say that you look no further than the past two games to find comfort in this team and how the duration of the season will play out. Against the Broncos, the Patriots played the entire game without Danny Amendola, Julian Edelman, Jamie Collins, and they lost Rob Gronkowski with a little under three minutes to go in a game that went into overtime.

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Then, this past Sunday, the Pats took on the Philadelphia Eagles with Danny Amendola and Jamie Collins back in exchange for Gronk and Dont’a Hightower being inactive. Despite these injuries, when the Patriots found themselves down 35-14 at one point in the fourth quarter, they were still able to rally back and come within one touchdown of tying the game. And in the end, the thing that killed them was three consecutive dropped passes which will be fixed when the injured players come back.

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The 10% of me that is a little concerned about this Patriots team is mostly worried about the timing of when the injured can return and what seed the Pats will be in the playoff. If they can regroup and win like they have been all season, then they can earn a first round bye which would have most of the players almost fully healed and it would ensure that Edelman would be able to play. If the Pats don’t get the bye, then I’m concerned that they won’t be healthy enough to play up to their potential and win like we all know they can.

No matter what happens, I think the Patriots will be a serious threat to make a deep run in the playoffs, and maybe even defend their title.

Next: Week 14 AFC Power Rankings: Pats fall to No. 3

So relax Patriots fans, there’s no need to panic.