New England Patriots: 5 observations from week 8 win over Chargers
By Ben Porter
Bye Bye Bye
I don’t think this bye week could come at a better time for the New England Patriots. Chris Hogan is hurting. The offense is sputtering. The defense is adapting and improving. They desperately need some time to work things out.
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This week’s win was huge going into the bye week. With their 4th straight win, the Patriots have put themselves in a great spot moving forward. They’ve also shown themselves what they’re capable of and what they struggle with.
Coming at exactly halfway through the season, the Patriots will have an opportunity to make adjustments and come out the other end even stronger. If you think about the season as a single game, this bye marks halftime. The Patriots-patented score-half-score translates into a win-bye-win.
The first half of the season flew by, but now it’s time to prepare for the fun part of the season. Training camp is ending, and now we move towards ring season. I wish I had access to the inner machinations of Bill Belichick’s mind, because I would love to see what he does during a bye week.
To be honest, I probably couldn’t handle the mental stress Bill Belichick puts on himself during a regular week of preparation. His brain capacity is not that of a mere mortal. With an extra week to work with? He’ll know every play the opposing team will call and in what order they’ll call it. Imagine if his mind was wasted on something far less important than football? He might have already cured cancer. I guess we’ll never know.