The Patriots were fortunate to be in a position in the 2026 offseason not to be looking for a new head coach or quarterback, unlike the past five years. The same cannot be said for some of their immediate competition, with the Dolphins and the Jets remaining the most unstable franchises in the AFC East.
While the Jets retained their head coach, the Dolphins did not and instead hired Jeff Hafley, then made their problems even worse by releasing quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Although it was understandable, given how poorly he had performed in recent years, it also created a big hole on their roster that they had to address quickly.
The Jets were dealing with the same issue again: they were not interested in keeping Justin Fields as their starter. They were connected to some of the top names that went into free agency or were up for trade, including Kyler Murray, only to instead trade for Geno Smith.
It was a heavily criticized move, especially since Murray was seemingly available. However, the Cardinals made the wrong move, too, since they took on $55 million in dead cap by releasing him rather than trading him.
And apparently, that might be a good thing for the Patriots and their hopes of maintaining a big lead in the division.
The Jets might have made a big mistake not trading for Kyler Murray
The Jets are no strangers to scrutiny over how they conduct business or what their definition of success is, since they don't see much of it, and that is no different from their apparent disinterest in trading for Murray, even as a rental starter.
The Cardinals have received the most backlash, however, with an anonymous NFL executive slamming the NFC West team to Mike Sando of The Athletic for not making the better decision with their former quarterback, while also questioning the Jets' motive, or lack thereof, to not make an offer.
"How were the Cardinals not able to trade him to the Jets, eat $35 million this year and then the Jets are on the hook for the $19.5 million next year? That is basically two years at $25 million. The Jets would not have signed up for that?"
How does this impact the Patriots?
Well, Murray might have been more of a problem as their starting quarterback for New England's defense than Smith will be. Although the former Raiders and Seahawks quarterback doesn't have the best record against the Patriots, he did beat them in the first game of the 2025 season, and the hope is that trend won't continue now that he's back in the division.
It left a bad taste in the Patriots' mouths, so the only assumption is they will do everything in their power to continue their streak of sweeping the Jets every single season, even with him back under center.
Murray, on the other hand, is younger and faster than Smith and has the potential to have a bounce-back year with a new team. If he manages to get that going, it would be far worse for the Patriots' chances of maintaining the crown in the AFC East, which is never good.
Instead, he will be with the Vikings, and fortunately, the Patriots will have to play them at some point this upcoming season. But that is far better than having to play him twice a year and see his potential comeback right in their backyard.
On top of it all, it's always good to see the Jets getting ripped for more things they have done, or didn't do, and that will never get old.