The View from Patriots Wire

[Shaw66]

3 hours ago, PatsFanNH said:

 Lmao if every fan base could only be proud and think their team is amazing when the “experts” think so then 28 out of 32 teams fans be quiet.   The Bills and Ravens are the favorites! Really? A team with QB on the downside in Jackson and really under performed every year with him in the playoffs… meanwhile Pat fans whose team stunk beyond bad for 2 years does a miracle turn around and makes it to the SB, yes got absolutely destroyed because be honest they shouldn’t have been there but Buffalo the only true test in the AFC found a way to lose a game they had absolutely no right in losing.  But Pat fans shouldn’t be hopeful but the teams that constantly find ways to lose should be?  (FYI you should but the reasoning makes no sense) 

Pats fans, all fans, are free to be hopeful. I was always hopeful through the drought. But being hopeful didn't make my team the team to beat in the NFL. 

 

There are 14 teams in the AFC other than Bills and Pats, and I'm sure there are very few fans of those 14 teams who think the Pats are the team they need to beat to get to the Super Bowl.

[reddogblitz]

23 hours ago, Ray Stonada said:

 

With the easiest regular season schedule. And performing the worst in the playoffs of any Super Bowl team I can remember.

 

That may all be true, but Championships must be won on the field.  As of right now they are the defending AFC and AFC East champs.  Sad but true until someone does some about it (hint hint Brady and co.).

[NewEra]

16 hours ago, PatsFanNH said:

Be honest between them and the Texans which D scared you more? I know for me it was the Texans they made MVP QB look average or below average 

Texans 💯 

 

Denvers defense just very good last season imo.  
 

titans- gave up 12- team averaged 17

colts- 29 -27

chargers-23-22

bengals (backup QB)- 3- 24

eagles- 17- 22

jets- 11- 18

Giants- 32-22

cowboys- 24-27

Texans (backup QB-75% snaps) - 15- 24

raiders- 7- 14

KC- 19-21

commanders (backup QB)- 26-21

Raiders- 17-14

packers- 26-23

jags- 24-28

chiefs (backup QB)- 13-21

chargers (backup QB)- 3-22

 

Don’t get me wrong, they were one of the best in the league last year, but I agree with you, I wouldn’t consider them a special defense.  I think what sets them apart from the Texans is Bo Nix vs Stroud.  Nix is a grinder and will continue to find ways to win games.  

 

 

[PatsFanNH]

12 hours ago, Shaw66 said:

Pats fans, all fans, are free to be hopeful. I was always hopeful through the drought. But being hopeful didn't make my team the team to beat in the NFL. 

 

There are 14 teams in the AFC other than Bills and Pats, and I'm sure there are very few fans of those 14 teams who think the Pats are the team they need to beat to get to the Super Bowl.

I felt last year was wide open, there was no team to beat in the AFC. They all had flaws, and I think every fan base felt the same way when the Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention.  I know Bills fans think the. Bills were that team but they weren’t I think every playoff team fans felt that their team could beat them. Be honest the NFC had the big guns last year. As for this year we are all 0-0, do I expect the Bills be better than my Pats? Yes, you are a lot further along than NE. The Pats are only in year 2 of what is suppose be a rebuild.. they went to the SB in year 1. That was a heck of a ride and I am still super excited and think they can beat anyone especially after adding the talent on o as they did.. will they? heck no! But I don’t feel this is a team I’m gonna dread watching for a long time either and think they are closer to getting number 7 than they are to a 1st overall draft pick too. 

[Shaw66]

9 minutes ago, PatsFanNH said:

A. there was no team to beat in the AFC. They all had flaws, and I think every fan base felt the same way when the Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention.  I know Bills fans think the. Bills were that team but they weren’t I think every playoff team fans felt that their team could beat them.

 

B. Yes, you are a lot further along than NE. The Pats are only in year 2 of what is suppose be a rebuild.. they went to the SB in year 1. That was a heck of a ride and I am still super excited and think they can beat anyone especially after adding the talent on o as they did.. will they? heck no! But I don’t feel this is a team I’m gonna dread watching for a long time either and think they are closer to getting number 7 than they are to a 1st overall draft pick too. 

With respect to A, I think you're incorrect. I think the betting odds throughout the entire season said the Bills were among the teams to beat, not that they were just in a pack of contenders. The Pats were not.

 

B. is what I've been saying. The Bills are further along than New England, and the Pats are on a path that may make them one of those perennial winners. I began worrying about the Pats the day they signed Vrabel, because he had already demonstrated in Tennessee he could lead a team. But they can't and won't be thought of as a perennial winner until they have an established, seasoned franchise quarterback. They may have one in Maye, but we can't know that yet. But I absolutely agree that they are a team worth watching, maybe for a long time, and they certainly are closer to the Super Bowl than the #1 pick. Absolutely. 

 

 

[PatsFanNH]

29 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

With respect to A, I think you're incorrect. I think the betting odds throughout the entire season said the Bills were among the teams to beat, not that they were just in a pack of contenders. The Pats were not.

 

B. is what I've been saying. The Bills are further along than New England, and the Pats are on a path that may make them one of those perennial winners. I began worrying about the Pats the day they signed Vrabel, because he had already demonstrated in Tennessee he could lead a team. But they can't and won't be thought of as a perennial winner until they have an established, seasoned franchise quarterback. They may have one in Maye, but we can't know that yet. But I absolutely agree that they are a team worth watching, maybe for a long time, and they certainly are closer to the Super Bowl than the #1 pick. Absolutely. 

 

 

A. I wasn’t talking about odds makers there Jon is to make the spread just enough for the house to win but close enough for people to bet. That doesn’t mean that’s how people felt about the team. I was talking about any fan base in the AFC last year didn’t fear any other team in the playoffs because Mahomes the man who has made every playoff team in the AFC his plaything was out.  I’ll break it down like this:

 

Pats — inexperienced, and honestly probably just happy be there. inconsistent O that too WR faded down the stretch.. D is very good though.. but beatable 

 

 Jags —  defense was ok and O was Ok they were a good team but who doesn’t think they could beat them they were not special.

 

Denver — great D But amazing and the Oneas ok but not spectacular

 

Texans - probably the best D I have seen since the year the Ravens won with Dilfer.. but their QB was worse than him.

 

Chargers — Has Their QB won a playoff game yet? Ok

 

Steelers — the North was awful this use to be the AFCS winner a laughable punching bag.

 

Bills — the oddest one of the group. Have an MVP QB have an amazing RB and a decent D. So why not fear them? Because for whatever reason come playoff time the Bills have always found a way to grab defeat from the jaws of victory. heck they could be undefeated last year if they didn’t inflict damage on themselves. So play sound football and wait for them to mess up.

 

The Bills should have won it all last year or at least made the SB. Why didn’t they? Self inflicted wounds.. I don’t know if that was coaching or players just trying to do to much by themselves.  But it was a constant theme in the playoffs under your old HC.  

[Dillenger4]

1 hour ago, PatsFanNH said:

A. I wasn’t talking about odds makers there Jon is to make the spread just enough for the house to win but close enough for people to bet. That doesn’t mean that’s how people felt about the team. I was talking about any fan base in the AFC last year didn’t fear any other team in the playoffs because Mahomes the man who has made every playoff team in the AFC his plaything was out.  I’ll break it down like this:

 

Pats — inexperienced, and honestly probably just happy be there. inconsistent O that too WR faded down the stretch.. D is very good though.. but beatable 

 

 Jags —  defense was ok and O was Ok they were a good team but who doesn’t think they could beat them they were not special.

 

Denver — great D But amazing and the Oneas ok but not spectacular

 

Texans - probably the best D I have seen since the year the Ravens won with Dilfer.. but their QB was worse than him.

 

Chargers — Has Their QB won a playoff game yet? Ok

 

Steelers — the North was awful this use to be the AFCS winner a laughable punching bag.

 

Bills — the oddest one of the group. Have an MVP QB have an amazing RB and a decent D. So why not fear them? Because for whatever reason come playoff time the Bills have always found a way to grab defeat from the jaws of victory. heck they could be undefeated last year if they didn’t inflict damage on themselves. So play sound football and wait for them to mess up.

 

The Bills should have won it all last year or at least made the SB. Why didn’t they? Self inflicted wounds.. I don’t know if that was coaching or players just trying to do to much by themselves.  But it was a constant theme in the playoffs under your old HC.  

I think the Jags are better than you give them credit for. They will be in the mix this year for sure.

I'm not sure what to think of the Pats. You had a good season and we can't dispute that. Superbowl appearance. But I think they peaked. I truly do. Nowhere to go but down for Maye now that his tendencies are so blatant. I guess we will see this year. Should be a great AFC East battle.

[DrDawkinstein]

CTEspn was discussing the AFC on GetUp! this morning, and shocker, Jason McCourty says the Pats are by far the best team in the AFC. They carried on for like 5-10 minutes about it too. With the only argument being "they were in the Super Bowl last year, and added AJ Brown, so obviously still the top team".

 

The ballwashing is disgusting, and I cant wait for the the season to start and Maye to regress and Pats fall back to Earth.

[13 Seconds to Mars]

On 6/25/2026 at 3:46 PM, LeviF said:

It's somewhat justified in the sense that this guy sees what everyone sees: a GM that is relying on his generational QB to carry the passing game entirely on his back. Nothing new or groundbreaking about that.

 

Awfully short memory (or no memory?) of Allen against the Pats last year:

 

41 of 59 (69.5%), 446 yards, 5 TDs, 1 INT, 112.7 passer rating.

 

I mean it's not sensational or lighting the world on fire but most QBs would love that stat line over two games against a "top 10 defensive unit."

 

It's also extremely high on Maye who showed up and did almost nothing in the playoffs. Granted, he didn't have to do much until the Super Bowl but he managed to fall on his face there.

And that would be fine with me if they could actually build a  solid & consistent defense to give Josh for the playoffs. I’m almost thinking they’re better off  investing in nothing but offense and hoping to win a ton of shoot outs. The results would be the same on defense at least. Can’t really get any worse IMO

Edited July 1 by 13 Seconds to Mars

[Ghost_002!]

On 6/29/2026 at 5:58 PM, Shaw66 said:

Because the Pats aren't feared around the league.

 

The betting lines say that the bBills and the Ravens are the AFC favorites to go to the Super Bowl, and the Patriots are even with the Chiefs and the Chargers. The Chargers have done nothing, and the Chiefs are questionable until Mahomes returns as a star, and even then the Chiefs are questionable. A rational Patriots fan should look at those odds and recognize that their team is not a team to beat in the NFL yet.

 

 

This part doesn't matter. It's the end results that matter. The Bills were favorite last season, been favorite for quite some time since Brady was done in NE. The end results haven't lead up to expectations right? I am sure all coaches and players aren't paying too much attention to outside hype unless it's great bulletin board material. They are all who matter. Fans are just gonna "fan" regardless. 

 

 

Edited July 1 by Ghost_002!

[ToGoGo]

Very real chance we see the Patriots revert to the mean this year and be a wildcard again, or even miss the playoffs entirely. Last season was a statistical outlier. 

 

Not to mention the off the field issues with Vrabel. The Russini story keeps finding new dirty laundry every other day it seems. 

[Shaw66]

2 hours ago, Ghost_002! said:

 

 

This part doesn't matter. It's the end results that matter. The Bills were favorite last season, been favorite for quite some time since Brady was done in NE. The end results haven't lead up to expectations right? I am sure all coaches and players aren't paying too much attention to outside hype unless it's great bulletin board material. They are all who matter. Fans are just gonna "fan" regardless. 

 

 

The discussion is about a post on a Pats board that begins with this:

“The Patriots have seemingly pulled away in the race with the many moves they've made in the offseason."

 

That is, is it correct to say the Pats have pulled away from the Bills in th AFC.

 

Except for Pats fans, pretty much nobody in the country agrees with that. The betting line, polling of NFL fans, talking heads. It's optimistic fan talk only.

 

The discussion is not about who actually will win anything.

[Blank Stare]

F the Cheats (and the Chiefs). 

[Ghost_002!]

 

41 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

The discussion is about a post on a Pats board that begins with this:

“The Patriots have seemingly pulled away in the race with the many moves they've made in the offseason."

 

That is, is it correct to say the Pats have pulled away from the Bills in th AFC.

 

Except for Pats fans, pretty much nobody in the country agrees with that. The betting line, polling of NFL fans, talking heads. It's optimistic fan talk only.

 

The discussion is not about who actually will win anything.

 

 

And you pulled it from a pats form and put it on a Bills form..like what exactly would you expect the article to say and what Bills fan would agree with it?  

 

Wouldn't it not be as bias if it was a Bills fan writing about their own team? And to what I put in bold. MY point still remains

 

How the media, vegas or the rest of the nfl views your team doesn't matter. The ending results does. A Fan is going to act like a fan..

Edited July 1 by Ghost_002!

[RoyBatty is alive]

On 6/25/2026 at 3:26 PM, colin said:

i expect to go 5-1 or 6-0 in the division.  i think the pats win under 10 games.

They had the luckiest run to the Super Bowl of all time last year, they certainly didnt "deserve" to be there and the game is evidence of it.

[Shaw66]

47 minutes ago, Ghost_002! said:

 

 

 

And you pulled it from a pats form and put it on a Bills form..like what exactly would you expect the article to say and what Bills fan would agree with it?  

 

Wouldn't it not be as bias if it was a Bills fan writing about their own team? And to what I put in bold. MY point still remains

 

How the media, vegas or the rest of the nfl views your team doesn't matter. The ending results does. A Fan is going to act like a fan..

You are really missing the point. I didn't start this thread, someone else did. They posted something from a Pats forum that said the Pats are ahead of the Bills as a result of what they've done during the offseason.

 

Then PatsFanNH, a regular poster here although he's a Pats fan, started posting explanations about why it was correct that the Pats are now the team to beat. I responded telling him that I thought he was incorrect and that just about everybody in the country agreed with me, not with him. 

 

It's true as you say that none of this really matters. All that really matters is who wins when the games are played. But that wasn't what we were talking about. We were talking about whether it was logical to conclude that the Pats have passed the Bills as a preseason favorite to get to and win the Super Bowl.

 

All is good.

Edited July 1 by Shaw66

[Ghost_002!]

14 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

You are really missing the point. I didn't start this thread, someone else did. They posted something from a Pats forum that said the Pats are ahead of the Bills as a result of what they've done during the offseason.

 

Then PatsFanNH, a regular poster here although he's a Pats fan, started posting explanations about why it was correct that the Pats are now the team to beat. I responded telling him that I thought he was incorrect and that just about everybody in the country agreed with me, not with him. 

 

It's true as you say that none of this really matters. All that really matters is who wins when the games are played. But that wasn't what we were talking about. We were talking about whether it was logical to conclude that the Pats have passed the Bills as a preseason favorite to get to and win the Super Bowl.

 

All is good.

 

As far as who started the thread my apologizes for thinking it was you. But just because you and the rest of the country feel different than him doesn't mean he could be wrong though. (going back to my orig point as proof). I am a Pats fan too, but I don't have the Pats as the clear cut favorite or the bills. I think it's going to be a dog fight but I couldn't fault anyone who has the pats or the bills as the favorite. The pats are the division champs and split with the Bills...and the BIlls have Josh Allen (enough said there) so I right now do not think either side is wrong. 

 

Edited July 1 by Ghost_002!

[YattaOkasan]

On 6/27/2026 at 7:21 PM, Nihilarian said:

What a lot of Bills fans are missing is that the Patriots OC, in Josh McDaniels, is the same guy who helped Tom Brady win a lot of Super Bowls. He returned to the team last season. He also helped rookie QB Mac Jones get to the playoffs in his first season. Drake Maye may or may not fall on his face this season, and it's a wait-and-see type deal, as nobody knows.

 

Regardless of their 2024 schedule, it's tough to win an NFL game, even against bad teams sometimes. 14-3 means that they were a pretty good team, top 5 offense, top 10 defense. They did beat Buffalo in Buffalo in the regular season, and went on to beat the Chargers, Texans, and even a Denver team minus Bo Nix, all in the playoffs. To overlook them as a not-so-good team would be foolish. They improved this offseason in many areas. 

 

What the Buffalo Bills must do to find themselves in the mix at the end of the season is to defeat that injury bug that continues to haunt them year after year. If they can stay somewhat injury free than they stand a chance against any team.

 

 

Damn thats impressive.  someone should make McDaniels a head coach.  Im sure he would do great, especially his offenses....

 

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/coaches/McDaJo0.htm?__cf_chl_f_tk=Drjn_JlH7IXXKqCK.j7vZgQXv3hS2FlWn7d4oyAFfYM-1782934203-1.0.1.1-LMBfoKwPyICTeaq_OwULEzpPDS7aYcAG6Tm9xs62rkQ

 

he really hasnt led a top 10 passing offense without TB until last year, which i get to a degree.  But you should point to his entire coaching history if you want to convince me hes a QB whisperer.  that was the reason he got the Den, LV and IND (lolz) jobs.  I didnt see an update to this note from schatz but wow were the defenses they played also super not good based on DVOA, so i will miss mcdaniels (assuming he gets an HC job somewhere else).

 

 

[Shaw66]

50 minutes ago, Ghost_002! said:

 

As far as who started the thread my apologizes for thinking it was you. But just because you and the rest of the country feel different than him doesn't mean he could be wrong though. (going back to my orig point as proof). I am a Pats fan too, but I don't have the Pats as the clear cut favorite or the bills. I think it's going to be a dog fight but I couldn't fault anyone who has the pats or the bills as the favorite. The pats are the division champs and split with the Bills...and the BIlls have Josh Allen (enough said there) so I right now do not think either side is wrong. 

 

If he is or your are predicting, I have no problem with that.  Everyone is free to have their predictions. But that is not what the quoted language said, the language that PatsFanNH was defending.  It said, “The Patriots have seemingly pulled away in the race with the many moves they've made in the offseason."

 

What I said is that statement clearly represents fan bias, because non-Pats fans don't agree with that statement. How do I know?  One way is that the Bills are the clear betting favorite to win the AFCE, which means that many more people around the country are picking the Bills, not the Pats. The Bills are second in Super Bowl odds, the Pats are seventh. In other words, people around the country do not agree that the Patriots pulled away from the Bills. They just don't.  And the sports media don't, either.  ESPN's power rankings has the Bills 4th, the Pats 6th.  If ESPN thought the Pats had "pulled away," those rankings would be reversed. 

 

So, sure, Pats cans believe whatever they want. As I said, I had several seasons during the drought where I believed the Bills were going to the playoffs. Fans will be fans. But there also are facts, and the fact is that outside of New England most fans, the oddsmakers, and the sports press think the Bills are the team to beat, not just in the AFCE but in the entire AFC. 

 

That doesn't mean the Bills will win anything. All it means the idea that the Patriots have "pulled ahead" of the Bills is almost certainly an opinion that is clouded by Patriots' bias (which was the question raised in the original post), since the rest of the country seems not to agree. 

[Ghost_002!]

54 minutes ago, Shaw66 said:

If he is or your are predicting, I have no problem with that.  Everyone is free to have their predictions. But that is not what the quoted language said, the language that PatsFanNH was defending.  It said, “The Patriots have seemingly pulled away in the race with the many moves they've made in the offseason."

 

What I said is that statement clearly represents fan bias, because non-Pats fans don't agree with that statement. How do I know?  One way is that the Bills are the clear betting favorite to win the AFCE, which means that many more people around the country are picking the Bills, not the Pats. The Bills are second in Super Bowl odds, the Pats are seventh. In other words, people around the country do not agree that the Patriots pulled away from the Bills. They just don't.  And the sports media don't, either.  ESPN's power rankings has the Bills 4th, the Pats 6th.  If ESPN thought the Pats had "pulled away," those rankings would be reversed. 

 

So, sure, Pats cans believe whatever they want. As I said, I had several seasons during the drought where I believed the Bills were going to the playoffs. Fans will be fans. But there also are facts, and the fact is that outside of New England most fans, the oddsmakers, and the sports press think the Bills are the team to beat, not just in the AFCE but in the entire AFC. 

 

That doesn't mean the Bills will win anything. All it means the idea that the Patriots have "pulled ahead" of the Bills is almost certainly an opinion that is clouded by Patriots' bias (which was the question raised in the original post), since the rest of the country seems not to agree. 

 

 

 

Yea I do not think the Pats have pulled away...I truly believe odd makers will be wrong with their predication of the Patriots but that is a story for another time...but No. the Pats have not pulled away, all I can add in that articles defense is. I think it was more for Pats fans..."a circle jerk" if you will then for others to see...but no they didn't pull away.