Conspiracy theories are nothing new to the Patriots, as fans and analysts have suggested plenty of secret things behind the scenes to explain some of the more unfavorable parts of their seasons in recent years. That hasn't changed with the new regime in Foxboro, with one of the latest starting since Drake Maye was drafted earlier this year.
But now that his starting future is in the rearview mirror, new theories are making waves online. The newest craze appears to focus on the current coaching staff to explain why the team is failing to win games.
Besides the reasonable explanation that the Patriots weren't expected to win many games this season, even with Maye under center, due to undergoing a rebuild, longtime writer Bill Simmons has floated a new idea that owner Robert Kraft is asking the coaches to purposefully tank games now that we're more than halfway through the 2024 season.
The Pats coaching today would only make sense if we find out after the season that Kraft ordered them to tank games starting now.
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) November 17, 2024
This could be the result of unhappiness stemming from their latest avoidable loss to the Rams on Sunday, and this is Simmons' way of trying to twist the result into something it wasn't. Or there is some sort of belief among Patriots fans and reporters that the team has decided to tank for a better draft pick, even if winning is what helps build a culture.
Bill Simmons' conspiracy theory doesn't make a lot of sense for the Patriots this season
In theory, tanking the season would explain many of the staff's questionable decisions this year, especially the offensive play calling that continues to be a problem in nearly every game. It would certainly help ease the pain of losses continuing to pile up, but it also brings up a lot more questions that doesn't make a lot of sense.
The Patriots have not given any indication of being a tanking team now or in the past, so why would they start now?
Knowing that the organization, from the top to the bottom, all believe in Drake Maye and developing him the right way to be the franchise quarterback for the long term proves that purposely losing has little merit. Winning helps a team grow and move forward, even more so for a team in the Patriots' position.
We've seen it already this year with the three wins they have accomplished. The way the team rallied together to get those wins and the boost in morale that came from it is difficult to ignore, making the idea of tanking seem even less credible.
On top of it all, at this point in the season, moving from their current draft positioning in the first round (sixth overall) to maybe fourth won't make much of a difference with who is available for them to select once they're on the clock. If this were the beginning of the season and tanking rumors began, it might be more understandable. But not at this point.