2011 NFL Predictions: New England Patriots' 10 Keys to Season Success

In what some NFL franchises would call a step forward, the 2010 divisional playoff loss to the New York Jets meant a disappointing year for the New England Patriots.

New England heads into the new season with plenty of interesting offseason acquisitions and a preseason full of blowout games through the first three weeks—two of which the Patriots have been the ones lighting up the scoreboard, while the Detroit Lions ran a way with a easy victory against the AFC East squad just this past Saturday.

With the new season just a few weeks away, here are the top 10 keys to the Patriots' success in 2011.

Consistent Play from the Offensive Line

Ndamukong Suh and the Lions pass rushers took a play out of the Jets' book and showed what can happen when you fluster Tom Brady.

Throwing out 2008, last year was Brady's lowest total passing yards since 2006. Brady is still a top talent at the quarterback position, but the offensive line needs to protect its field general better than it showed last Saturday against the Lions and in the playoffs against the Jets.

The Patriots still have many familiar faces on the line this season, and they'll all need to play to their full potential this year in order for the Patriots to have the best chance to win it all.

Reliable Rushing Attack

BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Danny Woodhead exceeded even the most hopeful of Pats fans' expectations in 2010, combining for 1,555 rushing yards.

The backfield has been a question mark with this team over the past few seasons, but if Green-Ellis and Woodhead can build off their career years in 2010, the Patriots will have few flaws on the offensive side of the ball.

A reliable running game takes pressure off Tom Brady and the passing game, allowing both aspects of the offense to play off one another and keep the defense guessing.

Tom Brady Must Play Like Tom Brady

Coming off a less-than-stellar performance in the playoffs last season, Brady has posted very uncharacteristic numbers in his two preseason games.

Albeit that it is just exhibition matchups, but in 49 pass attempts, No. 12 has a mere 56.1 percent completion rate to go with an interception and three sacks.

The good news is that Brady has also thrown for three touchdowns in limited play over the past two weeks. Until the worries carry over into the regular season, expect Brady to play like his usual dominant self.

Pass Rush Must Live Up to Hype

It might be forgotten in the criticism regarding the New England defensive unit last year, but the Patriots actually finished third against the pass.

With Albert Haynesworth, Andre Carter and Shaun Ellis now on the roster to team up with Vince Wilfork, there's a conceivable chance this front four makes a play for the top spot in pass defense.

Despite playing well in passing situations last season, the Patriots finished 29th in sacks recorded. If Ellis, Carter and Haynesworth can play to the level New England expects out of them, there's a fair chance this team move up the sack rankings.

Chad Ochocinco Must Make an Impact

Chad Ochocinco had spent his entire career as a member of the Cincinnati Bengals before moving to the Northeast, but his final season with the team is one to forget statistically.

Ochocinco posted his second worst reception total in his 11 year career last season with the Bengals, and he's hoping the change of scenery will bring him back to his old form.

The issue Ocho has had, however, is learning the new playbook of Bill Belichick, and if the head coach doesn't believe you know the plays well enough, there's little chance of being the No. 1 target on a play.

Still, if Ochocinco turns out to produce numbers somewhere in between his 2010 and 2009 output of 1,000-plus yards and nine touchdowns, he'll be a key contributor in the New England attack this year.

Sweep the New York Jets

The New York Jets have been the proverbial thorn in the side of the Patriots in recent years, but since the Rex Ryan regime in New York has begun they've become much more than an annoyance for New England.

The Jets have had a successful rebuilding process over the past several years and now find themselves a legitimate Super Bowl contender under their controversial head coach.

Ryan has made it no secret he views the Patriots as their No. 1 rival in the AFC East division and has to feel good after 2010. Ryan's Jets handed New England one of its two losses all year in the regular season, then knocked the 14-2 squad out of the playoffs in the divisional round.

What better way to put the rest of the NFL on notice than to sweep a team the caliber of the Jets, who also happened to ruin your playoff hopes last year?

Defeating New York twice in once regular season would give the Patriots some much needed confidence against their rivals and be a huge achievement considering the talent on that squad.

Come out of the NFC East with a Winning Record

Over recent seasons, there have been divisions that have proven to be nothing short of an all-year battle for the title, and the NFC East is one of those divisions.

The Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants and Washington Redskins have been consistent contenders not just within their division, but within the whole NFC conference for decades now.

Washington may be an easy win for the Pats come Week 14, but it's the other three teams that will surely give Bill Belichick's team a true test.

If the Patriots are able to win three of four against some of the NFC's toughest teams, that would send a huge message to the AFC playoff-bound teams if New England finds itself in the postseason conversation this year.

Win Games They're Expected to Win

This key stems from the infamous loss to the Cleveland Browns last season, which was one of the few blemishes on the record for New England last regular season.

Any team can pull out a victory no matter how improbable, and the Browns game was living proof of that last season.

It's always important for a team to win the games they're favored to win. For the Patriots that means no slip-ups against the Buffalo Bills or Miami Dolphins and no surprising defeats to the Denver Broncos or Washington Redskins.

Clinch the AFC East Title

If the Patriots are able to sweep the Jets, obtaining the AFC East crown would become that much easier and lead to a better position within the playoff seeding, theoretically.

If New England wants to find itself in sight of the division crown, the Jets will need to have a worse record overall or against the Patriots themselves.

Buffalo and Miami won't go down without a fight, but as long as the Pats put together another season with 14 victories and sweep the Jets, the AFC East should be theirs for the taking.

Regain Postseason Swagger

Since the historic 2007 season where the Patriots had the undefeated season ruined thanks to the New York Giants in the Super Bowl, New England has been quiet in postseason play.

Brady suffered the season-ending injury the following year and his team missed the playoffs. The two years since the injury to their star quarterback, the Patriots have gone one and done in the playoffs despite a 24-8 regular season record over that time frame.

New England has lost its postseason swagger, being defeated in two close games to the Baltimore Ravens and Jets, respectively, in the past two seasons.

Above all keys to success listed here, the goal of playing your best football in the postseason has escaped this proud squad as of late.

If the Patriots regain that intangible that made them seemingly unstoppable in the playoffs for many years, there's no telling what kind of noise they could make if they earn a playoff berth.