The State of the Patriots: Accountability Check

If there’s one thing I learned from my early days playing Madden on Super Nintendo, it’s that if something is working, you keep on doing it.

All the way back in 2018, when the lowly Patriots were sitting at 1-2 after back-to-back losses to the Jaguars and Lions, I posted an article just like this one, with the exact same title, where I asked fans to make their predictions as to the state of that 2018 squad and what the rest of the season had in store for them. Overall, people seemed to enjoy it, and the comments were plentiful.

Unfortunately, the comments on that article are long gone, but of the over 300 that were posted, the majority had some version of the Patriots finishing 9-7, 8-8, or 7-9, with the playoffs off the table. Folks were pretty despondent over how the Patriots looked in September, and I was blown away by how many different ways one could say “the dynasty is officially dead.”

Just in case you forgot, New England went 11-5 that season, got the 2 seed, and won their sixth Super Bowl.

So I thought I’d do the same thing here today, with this version of the New England Patriots, now sitting at 1-3 having just released Stephon Gilmore. As always, there’s never a shortage of takes out there, so I thought I’d give us all the chance to put our money where our mouths are, hold ourselves accountable, and make some predictions as to where this team will end up once the season ends. Later on this year, I’ll take some of the comments that I think represent a good cross-section of how everyone is feeling, post them up for all to see, and give you the opportunity to crow over how right you were, or eat crow over how wrong you were.

Just so we’re clear: by commenting on this article, you hereby give Pats Pulpit your full permission to have that comment posted in an article I will put up at the end of the season in which I see who was right and who was wrong. If you were correct, you’ll be acknowledged for it. If you were way off, be willing to face the music. Opposing fans welcome as well - just be ready for the potential consequences of accountability.

So have at it. What can we expect from this team once the season is over? Where will the Patriots end up?