The Patriots Should Not Get Any Sympathy

The New England Patriots may have won 3 Super Bowls in the 2000's but I believe they do not deserve the credit people give them. We all know that Bill Belichick was caught cheating back in 2007, which ultimately lead to a one loss season. He may have helped them earn an 11-5 season without Tom Brady and 10-6 with him but losing key members on the defensive end killed them. 

In the past decade the teams that have won the Super Bowl, excluding the Indianapolis Colts, have all had great defenses. The Patriots had a great defense and won each of their Super Bowls by a combined 9 points. Tom Brady only needed to do enough not to lose the game. He won the Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) because you cannot give it to an entire defense so why not give it to the quarterback? Besides Deion Branch in the last Super Bowl victory, no wide receiver had outstanding stats. When was the last time the Super Bowl MVP was rewarded to a kicker? It has not, sorry kickers. You do a lot of the scoring but do not get much of the glory. Unfortunately something has got to give. 

Tom Brady had some great statistics in the Super Bowl victories but when you tape the other teams defensive signals anybody would do great? He was not that good at the University of Michigan and somehow ran up through the ranks of the NFL's top quarterbacks in a matter of years. I have a ton of respect for him taking down all of the doubters and giving the people who get drafted or are even undrafted a fighting chance at becoming successful in such a tough game. However, the players that are top in the NFL have consistently been there for a reason. It was noticed by scouts and the football world that they have talent. They were the top players in college and have now become the top players in the NFL. 

While the Patriots continue to think offensively, they have forgotten what has gotten them and just about every other Super Bowl team victory. That aspect is defense. Trading away defensive players and having some retire is a big hit. If you can score 50 points but let up 51, guess what, you lose. If you score 2 points but let up 0, guess what, you win. It is that simple. If the Patriots want to start winning again the key for them is to start with improving their defense. If you are going to trade players, trade them on offense and improve your defense. That is how the San Antonio Spurs won their 3 NBA titles in over the last 10 years and that is how the Patriots won theirs. Even though the top two teams in the NFL this year (Colts and Saints) had the top offenses in the league, if they let up more than they score, they are going to lose. It is okay to lose some games but now if the Patriots or anybody else wants to return to stardom in such a competitive league, it starts with defense. They can trade away Tom Brady, Randy Moss, Benjamin Watson, or anybody else on offense and still win games. But if they do not improve their defense, they are going to see more national embarrassments like they saw against the Baltimore Ravens last Sunday.