The New England Patriots are still the dominant team in the AFC East. They have named AFC Champions many times over the past 12 years, but the question on everyone’s mind is how did the Patriots win all of these games with so many key injuries on both sides of the football? Many people did not believe in the Patriots this year. For example, the entire football analyst staff on both ESPN and NFL Network picked the Patriots to make a low seed in the playoffs. The Pats proved them wrong.

I interviewed a close friend of mine from Amesbury, Adam Burt. When I asked him about the Patriots doing so well this year he said, “I didn’t expect anything different. The Pats are the team to beat in the AFC. This is because of Tom Brady, a strong running game, and also a revamped Defense!” Obviously the defense isn’t revamped anymore due to the high amount of injuries the team has suffered on the defensive side of the ball. Key injuries to the first team defense include starting middle linebacker Jerod Mayo, starting defensive tackles Tommy Kelly and Vince Wilfork, safety Adrian Wilson, and corner back Alfonso Dennard. At the beginning of the season, the defense looked unstoppable. However, as the season progressed, the injuries started stacking up. Once the injuries began, a lot of people lost hope because they didn’t think we could stop a high-powered offense. Again, throughout the season, the Patriots proved everyone wrong by shutting down multiple high-powered offenses. I asked Adam what he thought about the injuries and he said, “I am concerned, but not to a point where I would give up hope with the Pats. I know that the Pats will prevail somehow, someway. Brady will find a way.”

I also interviewed another close friend of mine, Shawn Eaton. He and Adam are both die hard Patriots fans like me. I asked Shawn if he thought Belicheck would switch his style of coaching due to all of the injuries. He said, “Belicheck will just continue to coach like he always has. He is a mastermind, and he isn’t going to switch his style just because a few players got hurt. If the backups can’t produce, he will find new people who can.” I also asked him about the Tom Brady situation and how little receiving options he has. He said, “Brady may not have many big name receivers, but he should be able to spread the ball around to the new guys. He has to trust them to make the big plays. All he controls is where the ball goes, not whether they catch it or not.” He also said that Tom Brady and Bill Belicheck are both “class acts” and are two of the best in the business.

As you can see, throughout this season the Patriots have battled through thick and thin. With all of the injuries to some of our star players, the backups have managed to step in and play very well. Some of our non-star players have stepped up and turned into stars to help lead this team. This makes the coach happy, the team happy, but most importantly, it makes Patriots Nation happy.