By Eugenia Ruiz (@EugeniaR_)
We New England Patriots fans knew that this season would be somewhat complicated: eight players decided not to participate in the 2020 season, including Marcus Cannon and Dont’a Hightower, Tom Brady would no longer be the starting QB and teams like Miami and Buffalo were starting. to settle in its reconstruction period.
For the first time in ten years, the Patriots did not win the AFC East and they won’t go to playoffs either. Yes, we knew that a rebuilding phase was coming, but it was not only the Tom Brady factor: this lack of offensive talent comes from last season and the team must start thinking about the future and not just “survive”, especially in a division in which Miami and Buffalo have extremely complete teams.
However, perhaps living a bit with hope, we hoped to end this season fighting for second place in the division or with a record at least a little more “decent”. The addition of Cam Newton in offseason It seemed like a good decision with the money available to New England at the time: an experienced QB, strong in rushing and 2015 MVP.
There will be a lot to say about Newton’s performance this season, the key plays he failed to make and the many mistakes he made that ended up costing the Patriots games. But, we must also clarify that the fault of the bad season of the Pats is not only Newton nor is it the only thing that is wrong with the team.
The defense was his “strongest” point this season, however, it is where more pieces chose not to play, so at times he was unstable and without many ideas. But, the part that especially suffered and needs to be renewed is the team’s offense.
While it seems to me that Cam Newton shouldn’t stay with the team in 2021, a better receiving corps is needed whoever the starting QB is. After the injury of Julian Edelman, the offensive body shone at times, but never found stability or any key piece that was truly a factor in the team. Jakobi Meyers had one of the best performances, but with many things to refine.
A tough offseason is coming for the Patriots, where Belichick will have to make a near-perfect draft, strengthen the offensive line, bring in offensive talent with WR and RB, or do something Belichick knows how to do very well: free agency.
