NFL: Patriots won't match 2007 heroics

Jay Asser 08:12 28/10/2015
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Mail
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Can they do it? New England Patriots.

    The New England Patriots’ dominance through seven weeks has invoked flashbacks of the historic 2007 run when they became the first and only team in the league’s history to achieve a perfect 16-0 mark in the regular season.

    We’re still not even halfway into the schedule and there’s already plenty of chatter as to whether or not this team can match its accomplishment of eight years ago.

    However, as captivating as it would be to see New England’s revenge tour against the NFL and its franchises culminate in a flawless record, as well as their second chance to cap it with a Super Bowl victory, this simply isn’t as good a team as it was in 2007.

    – NFL: Brady carries Patriots to victory over Jets
    – VIDEO: NFL’s Buffalo Bills settle in at Tottenham

    – #360USA: Klinsmann is guiding unhappy ship into crisis

    Yes, Tom Brady is on an absolute tear and the clear frontrunner for MVP at the moment, but he’s still not on track to top his gaudy numbers from that spectacular season, namely the 50 touchdown passes, the 8.32 yards per pass attempt and the 117.2 passer rating.

    That doesn’t mean he’s not at his peak right now though. In 2007, he had a once-in-a-generation type of talent in wide receiver Randy Moss, who hauled in a record 23 receiving touchdowns to go with 1,493 yards.

    While Moss was blowing the top off defences, slot receiver Wes Welker was carving them up in the middle of the field with 112 receptions for 1,175 yards.

    This year, Julian Edelman has done more than a spot-on Welker impression, but tight end Rob Gronkowski, who’s impossible to cover in his own right, isn’t the same type of quick-strike deep threat Moss was.

    Couple that with Brady’s top outside wideout, Brandon LaFell, having just made his first appearance due to injury and it’s clear the four-time Super Bowl winner has had incrementally less to work with than he did in 2007.

    It may be difficult to remember just how good the offence was in that undefeated campaign because it was nearly a decade ago, but that team scored at least 38 points in each of its first eight games. This year, the Patriots have crossed that figure just twice in six games.

    The disparity hasn’t necessarily been due to the offence’s effectiveness, but rather the defence’s.

    Through the first six games of 2007, New England allowed more than 17 points once, holding opponents to an average of 15.3 points. Opponents this season have topped 17 points on four occasions, with the Patriots allowing 21.0 points per game.

    A chunk of those points have come in spots with the result all but decided, but they’ve also made contests too close for comfort and shown their wins to be slightly less impressive on the surface.

    What made the 2007 team so unique was that they often left no room to doubt just how dominant they were. They would blow away opponents with their foot on the gas pedal and teams’ throats.

    And yet, for everything they were, that Patriots team had to really fight to remain unbeaten in the second half of the year and came close to slipping up at times.

    The NFL is not set up for a team to win every game, which is why back then they were such a glitch in The Matrix.

    There’s hardly anything left to accomplish for the first time between Brady and Bill Belichick, but a 19-0 record is one and would vault their already-legendary status to an unattainable level.

    As Brady and Belichick would tell you though, what matters is the ring in the end. Save the storybook narratives for the romantics.

    Recommended