The New England Patriots are back in the Super Bowl. Faster than anyone would have thought after the end of the successful era with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. Why is that?
After long periods of success, teams in the NFL often need some time to get back to their old strength. Good players are expensive, the resulting financial legacy must be reduced, young and talented replacements are needed in important positions, who must be gradually recruited from colleges in the draft, found and then brought to the right level.
After Brady’s departure came the dry spell
The New England Patriots last appeared in the Super Bowl seven years ago, when superstar quarterback Tom Brady won his sixth title with the Patriots. Shortly afterwards, Brady left the franchise for Tampa Bay. Four weak seasons followed without a playoff win. Head coach Bill Belichick then also resigned after 23 years in office. The franchise, which had been so successful for many years, seemed to be one big question mark. Without a top quarterback and head coach, the NFL’s flagship appeared leaderless.
Especially because the first year without Belichick did not go well with the new head coach Jerod Mayo, a former player under Belichick himself, and Mayo had to leave after just one season and four wins and 13 losses. But as much went wrong under Mayo – a tender plant of hope was already blooming again on the east coast. Drake Maye, who had just been signed as a potential new quarterback in the draft, showed remarkable signs in an otherwise weak offensive line.
Successful duo of an era: Tom Brady and Bill Belichick
Mike Vrabel takes Drake Maye to the next level
The man who was supposed to continue watering this plant in the 2025 season had, typical of the Patriots, a “stable smell”: Mike Vrabel, himself a three-time Super Bowl winner as a defensive player for the Patriots. Unlike Mayo before him, Vrabel brought five years of successful head coaching experience with the Tennessee Titans to Boston. In addition to his sporting competence and experience, the 50-year-old places great value on discipline, but at the same time is considered humorous and sociable – “tough love” is an attribute that Maye, among others, recently attributed to his coach.
And with that tough love, Vrabel transformed the Patriots in just one season. Maye had an almost incredible season for a second-year quarterback, was among the best in the league in almost every statistic and is a candidate for the MVP award, i.e. the most valuable player of the season. In addition, former linebacker Vrabel has significantly improved the defense and turned one of the worst defenses in the league into a respectable unit around cornerback Christian Gonzalez and defensive end Milton Williams.
Easy game plan and a bit of luck
Despite all the justified praise for the Patriots’ performance this season, which is outstanding with a win record of 14-3 and three playoff successes, another aspect of success must be mentioned: timing. Or rather “luck”. Because New England had one of the “easiest” schedules of the regular season – the NFL actually measures something like that – only two teams had an easier combination of opponents to play against.
And in the playoffs, where only the best teams of the season are playing? First it was against the Los Angeles Chargers, who were so shattered offensively that they only managed three points, then against the Houston Texans, whose quarterback played possibly the worst game of his career, and finally against the Denver Broncos. They had to do without their quarterback Bo Nix, who had broken his ankle in the previous game. Its representative Jarrett Stidham had not thrown a single NFL pass for two years.
Nevertheless, the Patriots only narrowly won all three of these games, or rather they only decided in the final quarter. Especially in the offense around Maye, it was noticeable that many players didn’t have much experience at the highest playoff level. That’s why New England is the underdog in the Super Bowl against the Seattle Seahawks, who were able to convince offensively in both playoff games. But no matter how the game ends on Monday night: the Patriots are back. Possibly (again) in the long term.
