The biggest advantage the Patriots hold over their opponents stands on the sideline. Bill Belichick's football genius allows New England to withstand major free agent departures and even a relatively down season from Tom Brady. This was never more apparent than last year, when the Patriots held one of the highest scoring teams in league history to just three points in the Super Bowl, while their offense didn't find its way into the end zone until the fourth quarter.
While the previous five Super Bowls of this era belong to both Brady and Belichick, this one was undoubtedly The Hoodie's to savor. His brilliant defensive game plan baffled the upstart Rams, who had absolutely no idea what was coming.
And that was with Jared Goff at quarterback. Just imagine how inept the Rams would've looked with backup Sean Mannion under center.
The proposed 18-game season, which would limit each player to 16 games, is obviously not structured to affect postseason play. But it would dramatically impact how teams strategize in the regular season, and thus, their Super Bowl ambitions. An emphasis will be placed on vision and foresight, with coaches being mandated to win with less talent at various points during the grueling NFL schedule.
That sounds like a coup for Belichick, who's better prepared than anybody who's ever put on a pair of headsets.
Brady has only missed 20 games over the last 20 years, with 16 of them coming in the 2008 campaign (he did play the first snap of the '08 season opener against Kansas City, but for our purposes, we will chalk that down as a missed contest). As Brady detractors will often point out, the Patriots have not collapsed on the rare occasions in which TB12 is seated on the bench –– either due to Bernard Pollard blowing out his ACL or a ludicrous suspension for playing with deflated footballs. The Pats are 14-6 with Matt Cassel, Jimmy Garoppolo and Jacoby Brissett taking snaps at quarterback. It is a testament to the organization's stability and Belichick's brilliance.
The same cannot be said for other franchises that lose their star quarterback. The Colts went 2-14 without Peyton Manning in 2011; the Packers are 3-6 when Brett Hundley subs for an injured Aaron Rodgers; Pittsburgh is barely above .500 when playing without Ben Roethlisberger. Across the league, clubs cannot win on a consistent basis without their star pass-thrower.
That isn't the case here.
It isn't always pretty, of course. The Patriots struggled against teams with winning records in 2008, leading them to miss out on the playoffs despite their 11-5 finish. Brissett's lone victory as a starter in 2016 came on a sloppy Thursday night against Houston, when he only completed 11 passes and threw for just 103 yards.
But still: they've won. History says the Patriots would still be formidable when forced to play their backup QB, whether it's Brian Hoyer, Jarrett Stidham or somebody else.
The same cannot be said for other elite teams in the AFC. Imagine Andy Reid trying to run his offense with Chad Henne instead of Patrick Mahomes, or Bill O'Brien attempting devise a winning game plan around A.J. McCarron rather than Deshaun Watson. It's hard to fathom they would achieve much success.
Three years ago, the Patriots won the Super Bowl –– and completed the greatest comeback of all-time –– without Rob Gronkowski. The following year, they were one strip-sack away from taking home the Lombardi Trophy sans Julian Edelman. Belichick can win with less on the biggest stage, so of course he would figure out a way to get past Miami or Buffalo without his full array of starters.
If this proposal becomes reality –– and given the NFLPA's stated opposition, that's far from a guarantee –– nobody would do a better job of dividing up playing time than Belichick. The Patriots would probably have their 18-game slate planned out in July, whereas the competition would be scrambling on a weekly basis.
It's undetermined if the 18-game schedule would be good for anything besides the owners' coffers. But it would be likely be a boon to the Patriots. That probable reality, and not the NFLPA's complaints, may ultimately be what kills this proposal.
