Pigskin Perspective

Mac Jones will be the starting QB for the New England Patriots this Sunday.

So move along, now. Nothing to see here. Move along. Let's move along…

The Patriots travel to New Jersey to face the Jets this Sunday for their next "must win" game of the 2022 season. Having lost last week's "must win" game this one is even mustier. (Hate the poetry, don't hate the poet.) They probably can't get themselves out of the AFC East basement (the Dolphins travel to Detroit to face the poorly coded simulation of a football team known somewhat ironically as "Lions"), but they could at least remain in visual contact with the rest of the division, and, of course, pick up a game on the Jets with a win.

If you're thinking 9-8-0 could get the Patriots into the playoffs, well, you might not be wrong.

Seeing one of those "if the playoffs started today" posts and noting the teams currently in the playoffs actually made me feel pretty good about the Patriots chances. Yes, I'd still bet on Buffalo and Kansas City to face off in the AFC Championship game, but, the rest of the field hardly strikes fear in my football fan heart. 

So, yeah. Monday night was tough. Tuesday wasn't much better. Now? Now I'm feeling like one and done in the playoffs would feel pretty damned good and 9-8-0 might just get them there.

On the other hand…

We're nothing if we're not realists here in New England. Driving up a coastal highway in early winter only to confront a boulder that was heaved up onto the asphalt by a nor'easter will provide you with a certain perspective. It also begs many questions. Why would people leave a place with crushingly bleak weather only to travel thousands of miles to find a place so much like the one they'd left they called it New England? And they stayed and built homes and cities there? Also, why would I ever get on a boat if that's what the ocean did with a boulder? 

Life, much like the NFL it seems, is a mystery.

Given the impending trade deadline next Tuesday, it will be interesting to see how Belichick would handle a loss. As noted above, the playoff picture is muddled beyond the Bills and Chiefs (and maybe the Bengals if they make a closing stretch run). A 3-5-0 record at the almost halfway point won't eliminate the Patriots from the playoffs, but when the Bills, Jets, and Dolphins (all favorites to win on Sunday) check their rear view on Monday, the Pats will not be closer than they look. 

If it's me, I'm selling. 

As in, everything must go. 

I'm taking offers on anyone on the roster 25-years old or older. I'm stockpiling picks to get younger and faster; to be able to package enough draft capital to move up for some Top 10 talent in 2023.

The Patriots will have $54MM in cap space next year but I'm dumping salaries, too, because you can never have too much money. I don't know who will be available in free agency next year but I'm buying them all! 

I'm trying to find Devin McCourty a chance to win one more ring. I'd like to do the same for Matthew Slater but finding a contender in search of a special teams ace isn't going to be easy.

But you know what?

I really don't want to do that. 

I want to see my pigskin heroes bounce back this Sunday with a decisive win. I want to see the Patriots, having confronted that boulder on the highway, figure out some way to get around it, and get a much needed "must win." 

Go Pats!