Patriots Clinch NFL Playoff Bye for 6th Straight Season: Comments and Reaction

Just in case you needed another reminder the New England Patriots are good at football, Around the NFL shared this stat Sunday highlighting their AFC domination:

It's no secret the Patriots are a modern-day dynasty with four Super Bowls the past 14 seasons, and this shows even in the years they don't win it all, they aren't having a down season.

The last season they did not have a first-round bye, 2008—when Brady missed the final 15 games of the year with a knee injury—they still went 11-5 with backup Matt Cassel.

New England clinched its latest first-round bye with a Week 15 win over the Tennessee Titans coupled with a Denver Broncos loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick gave his succinct thoughts on the team's success after the Week 15 win, per ESPN.com. "Twelve wins," he said. "That's on the right track here."

Belichick, who is 187-67 in 16 years with New England, is the mastermind behind the team's success. No one has ever accused him of being too friendly, but it's unlikely that he cares as long as the wins keep piling up.

It's been even more amazing this year, considering the amount of injuries his team has had to overcome. The Patriots have been without their top running back, wide receiver and tight end at various points this season.

Julian Edelman, New England's best receiver, has missed the past five games after suffering a broken foot but could be back in Week 17, according to Kevin Patra of NFL.com. Running backs Dion Lewis (knee) and LeGarrette Blount (hip) are both out for the season, and the backfield is down to backups Brandon Bolden and James White.

After the team lost three more starters to injuries in Week 15, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe joked that the Patriots will be looking far and wide for help next week:

There have been allegations that the Patriots have cheated their way to the top with Spygate and Deflategate, but there is no way any perceived advantage they gained could have given them the sustained success they've experienced over the past 15 seasons. 

A Super Bowl win this year would tie New England with the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers for second place in NFL history with five. No matter what happens this season, there is no denying that this era of Patriots football will go down as one of the best in NFL history.