The New England Patriots. Tom Brady. Bill Belichick. These are names that will go down in NFL history. No. American sporting history. No. Sporting history. Following Sunday night's, or Monday morning's, stunning comeback against the Atlanta Falcons, the three claimed their fifth Super Bowl ring. But how has a team gone from no success and the joke of the league, to the most successful new in the new millennium?
Tom Brady, lifting his 5th Vince Lombardi trophy in 15 years.
Patriots History
The Patriots weren't always the dominate team we see today. In fact, they didn't have a Super Bowl appearance until 1986, Super Bowl XX, where they lost to the Chicago Bears. Boston was struggling in sports, minus their success in the NBA, and the Patriots were there to make up the numbers. The team were beginning to be known as chokers. In the 1979 season, the team went from a 7-3 record, to losing their last four games and missing out of the play-offs. The following year had similar fortunes, beginning 6-1 before finishing 10-6 and again missing out of the play-offs.
In 1993, Robert Kraft, the current owner of the franchise, bought the struggling team, with the goal of bringing New England it's first Super Bowl win! However, fortunes didn't change too much in the next couple of years. Average records saw the Patriots miss out on play-offs, until they finally made it to their second Super Bowl, Super Bowl XXXI.
Another loss though. The Green Bay Packers won their third title of the Super Bowl era in a 35-21 game. It appeared the name of chokers would never leave the Patriots, despite them taking the lead in the game.
After two struggling seasons, Robert Kraft then made the best decision of his life. Welcome to the New England Patriots the man they will call the greatest coach of all time, Bill Belichick.
The New England Patriots, then known as the Boston Patriots, didn't appear in an AFL Championship game between 1963 - 1973.
Beating the NFL
Most teams aim to build a team that can win one Super Bowl, and this is how the NFL is built as well. A league that, with the system created, clearly doesn't like dominance. Once you've won, you move to the back of the queue. Worst pick of the new blood of college footballers. Toughest schedule based on the previous season's results. No repeat winners. Please let someone else have a turn.
This type of system is proven to work through the Denver Broncos the last couple of years. Super Bowl winners of the 2015 season, yet don't make the play-offs this season, whilst also finishing third in their division behind Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders.
So, how have the New England Patriots broken this system? They made it to the top of the mountain and stayed there, despite many attempts to push them off. Not always Super Bowl contenders, but over the last 6 seasons, they have been ever present in the AFL Championship match. Many will also claim that the NFL, led by Roger Goodell, have tried themselves to set the Patriots back following their banning of Tom Brady for six games at the start of the season, but even they can't do anything to stop this wrecking ball.
In short...
Reasons the Patriots have been able to hold this dominance:
Bill Belichick
Tom Brady
Drafting the Undrafted
Ruthless
Bill Belichick
Probably the main reason for any success the Patriots have encountered. Bill Belichick, from a family of coaches, has taken a poor Patriots franchise to the number one team in the NFL.
Belichick has made the Patriots the most professionally run team in the NFL. Every coach follows his strategy. Every player follows his rules. And if you don't? You're on the first plane out of Boston. Take Jamie Collins, for example. Arguably the best defensive player on the Patriots roster, but a falling out with Belichick over wages saw him traded to the Cleveland Browns. He went for possible Super Bowl winner to member of the franchise with the league's worst record.
Belichick's vast experience across all aspects of the game allow him to be able to change a team's system depending on who they're playing, and even mid-game (take the Falcons win last Sunday). His attention to detail has helped to make his players the most versatile they can be. They can go from a power running game, to a passing game within a matter of a few plays, making them the most difficult team to come up against. They don't have A system, they have MANY systems.
Coach Belichick knows what you're going to do before you do it. He's the most forward thinking, adaptable and vicious coach this league has ever had. His studying of the game has made him better than anyone at knowing the business the of building and maintaining a successful NFL roster. Simply. The greatest coach this, and maybe any sport, will ever know.
Bill Belichick has finished top of the AFC East with the New England Patriots 14 out of the 17 seasons he has been head coach.
Tom Brady
Tom Brady. On his first day with the organisation, he stepped into owner, Robert Kraft's, office and proclaimed "I'm [the] best decision this organisation has ever made". What a statement from a man that had just been pick 199th in the 2000 draft.
Tom Brady only got his opportunity as Patriots QB after Drew Bledsoe picked up an injury mid-game against the New York Jets, giving him his first taste of NFL action. It's fair to say, he hasn't looked back since.
Brady's jump into the NFL appeared fairly sudden, but the work he did behind the scenes during his year with the Patriots was second to none. He knew the playbook as well as Bledsoe. He wasn't going to be beaten on knowledge. The scouts at the 2000 Combine event stated that he was too skinny and not strong enough. Brady's season, both on and off, was spent training himself specifically so that when he was given his opportunity to lead the Patriots at QB, he wasn't gong to give it up.
Brady has since played in 7 Super Bowls, winning five of them and claiming MVP in four. For a man that many teams turned away, this stat is astonishing.
It can be strongly argued that he is not the best player to have played in this position, in the past or currently. Some are stronger, like Steeler's quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Some are quicker, like Seahawks' Russell Wilson. But none will have the drive, determination and motivation that has made Brady the G.O.A.T (Greatest of All Time). Simply. You know if you have Brady in your team, you've always got a chance.
Drafting the Undrafted
Brady isn't the only player on the Patriots roster who wasn't opening an opening round draft pick. As the table below shows, several key members of the Patriots squad were lower round picks or not picked at all, and yet, they have proven to be big players in the Patriots success. Malcolm Butler got the game winning interception in Super Bowl XLIX against the Seattle Seahawks. Danny Amendola scored the game levelling 2-point conversion in the most recent Super Bowl win.
The Patriots coaches and scouting team very rarely seem to draft or trade in great footballers. More so, they bring in great ATHLETES. Chris Hogan was originally a lacrosse player, before converting to football. All they need are players that are willing to get stuck in and go with the Patriots and Belichick way. People say that anyone can be thrown into the Patriots system, and with the amount of former failures and lower draft order success, this is hard to deny.
Significant Patriots Players 2016 Season
Player; College; Draft; Pick: Significance
Tom Brady; University of Michigan; 2000; 6th Round: 5 Super Bowl rings and 4 Super Bowl MVPs
Julian Edelman; College of San Mateo; 2009; 7th Round: Miracle catch in Super Bowl LI
Malcolm Butler; University of West Alabama; Undrafted: Super Bowl winning interception vs. Seattle Seahawks
James White; Wisconsin; 2014; 4th Round; 3 touchdowns, incuding winning score, in Super Bowl LI
Chris Hogan; Monmouth; Undrafted: 680 yards and 4 touchdowns in 2016 regular season
Danny Amendola; Texas Tech; Undrafted: Scored 2-point conversion to level up Super Bowl LI at 28-28
The Patriots have made Super Bowl winning teams from players who most franchises turned away.
Julian Edelman, final round pick in the 2009 Draft, making a vital (and improbable) catch against the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI.
Ruthless
The Nations vs. Patriots Nation. That's how it's viewed in New England, anyway. Either you support the Patriots, or you want them to lose every step of the way. This has come through many forms. Their general success, yes. But their ruthlessness and win at all costs mentality leaves many teams and fans disliking this franchise.
Before deflate-gate, there was spycam-gate. The Patriots were accused of filming the New York Jets' defensive coaches' signals from an unauthorised location. Fines were handed out, Belichick being fined the largest amount by the NFL to a coach in its history, but the Patriots would still go on to make the Super Bowl that year, despite losing to the Jets' city rivals, the New York Giants.
This ruthlessness is shown throughout their play and preparation. Deflate-gate? Let's not get caught up in this too much because there still isn't substantial proof to say that they actually did lower the air pressure in the balls, but their ruthlessness nature was enough to make people convinced it happened.
We've discussed how ruthless Belichick can be with throwing players out, but play calls and tricks of the trade cannot be ignored either. It can be as big as going for fourth downs or two point conversions when they don't necessarily need them, or simply the never say die attitude like they showed on Sunday.
The Patriots have made a home in the head of every player and coach in the NFL. Every team is worried when they play the Patriots. Doesn't matter if you're on a terrible run or the best run of your franchise's existence, the Patriots will always find a way.
The Story is Ongoing...
15 years after their first Super Bowl win, this story is far from over. Many people have now given up the argument against Brady being anything other than the greatest quarterback of all time, but there is still time further cement his and the Patriots dynasty.
It's still incredible how the Patriots have broken the NFL's system and created this legacy that will be remembered and spoken about for years to come. Love them or hate them, the New England Patriots have proven to be a team for the ages.
