Patriots: Dante Scarnecchia comments on team’s first playoff-less season since 2008

Dante Scarnecchia doesn’t believe the Patriots are entering a losing spiral.

Patriots legend Dante Scarnecchia left, and the playoffs disappeared. Go figure.

The iconic offensive line coach, known for molding viable linemen out of anyone and everyone, then watching them depart for bloated deals on someone else’s roster pre-regression (neat trick!), was called out of his first retirement and returned to the Pats from 2016-19 before officially calling it quits again prior to 2020.

And what a time to do so.

In a season unlike any other without Tom Brady under center, Scarnecchia became the first of many opt outs, and watched the Patriots stumble to a 7-9 record and miss the playoffs for the first time since 2008 (Matt Cassel’s 11-5 year). But despite the optics, Scar doesn’t believe this team is now on a downward trajectory.

He commented on New England’s chances following the season’s unfortunate end, and the man who’s seen it all is still bullish on where the franchise is headed.

As Scarnecchia told the media this week, while explicitly endorsing Robert Kraft’s leadership:

"“I think so. You have an owner that’s driven. He has an amazing way about doing things. Does he know what’s going on? Yes, he knows what’s going on. And I think he, if necessary he will ask the questions and wonder about things. That’s my opinion. I don’t know that. I’ve never seen that conversation between those two, but you have strong ownership and you have an organization that really wants to be successful. Will it get back? Yeah, absolutely it will get back. But, obviously, they have to get some things worked out at certain positions and try to develop a good team.So the stars have to come into alignment to a degree in a lot of areas. Yeah, my hope and all our wishes are our team comes back to a very, very high level.”"

If they do follow Scarnecchia’s advice and make it back to the high level we’ve come to expect, the Patriots are going to have to fill a major hole under center.

Though the OL guru was kind to Jarrett Stidham in his evaluation over the summer, it became increasingly clear as this season wrapped that the long-term solution was not, in fact, in the room.

Other than a two-year sabbatical to coach the Colts and his brief first retirement, Scarnecchia has been a member of the Patriots family since 1982, long before this current regime, and prior to any sort of sustained success.

He’s been there for the biggest lull you could imagine, and he still believes. Comfort yourself with that thought this Wild Card Weekend.