New England Patriots: Debunking the myths of past futility
Believe it or not, the New England Patriots had plenty of good moments prior to Tom Brady.
There’s a myth about the New England Patriots, aka the Boston Patriots years ago that needs debunking.
I’ve been thinking about this for a while. Hearing commentary alluding to the absolutely pitiful and dismal history of the pre-2000 Patriots and intimations that they were perennial losers is upsetting because it’s just not accurate. It’s time to debunk this.
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The first comment I’ll likely hear about this theory is that the Patriots never won a championship prior to Tom Brady. Fair enough and true. They didn’t. No denying that.
The era of greatness under No. 12 not only brought the first Super Bowl win but also the second, third … you know the rest. The greatest run in NFL history especially in the era of free agency. That’s a given and it, unfortunately, ended maybe a few years prematurely.
But what about the Patriots of previous generations?
Previous years. Previous teams. The popular notion that gets thrown around is that Patriots always stunk.
They were always just losers. The joke, laughingstock and doormat of the American Football League (AFL), the National Football League (NFL) and whatever other unflattering descriptions you’d care to attribute to them.
But this article is here to say that’s baloney. It’s just not so.
Yes, they had downtimes. No question. Even extended downtimes. Yet, there were also seasons and even runs of years when the negatively depicted Patriots were not only good, they were better than good, and on a couple or few occasions, they actually in my view may very well have been the best team in the National Football League.
But as I’ve acknowledged, they never were able to get that final win.
For those who have heard and digested this “miserable myth” over the years, this is an attempt to point out some of those times in the team’s history when they were anything but the laughingstock that some suggest.