FOXBORO, Mass. — Who exactly are the 2014 New England Patriots?
Sunday night’s 43-17 trouncing of the previously undefeated Cincinnati Bengals presented even more questions to an already query-filled season.
One week, it’s a 41-14 loss on the road to the Kansas City Chiefs. The next, it’s a 26-point swing the other way. So, who are they?
If you ask the Patriots, they’re a good team — one that beat one of the few AFC powerhouses.
“We know we’re a good football team,” cornerback Darrelle Revis said in the Patriots’ locker room after the win. “We know we are. We know we have talented football players on this team.”
The Patriots, despite their talent, weren’t supposed to beat the Bengals in this fashion. More than one pundit this week said it either would be a blowout loss or a close win. It was neither.
Unlike last week, it was the Patriots who got off to a hot start, which forced the Bengals to stray from their running game and try to play catchup through the air. Unlike last week, it was the Patriots who established the run early, totaling 220 yards on the ground, which helped open up the passing game.
That’s the formula for success on a team whose offense might not be able to get by on talent alone. The days of winning the coin toss and deferring might be put on hold this year.
The Patriots needed this win, and they needed it to be this dominant. Every player in the locker room beat the drum that the Patriots “ignored the noise” throughout the week and paid no attention to critics.
That’s hard to believe, though. The overreaction to the Patriots’ Monday night loss reached mainstream proportions. It wasn’t some third-tier 1 p.m. game on CBS — it was on national television in front of a worldwide audience, which is why everyone seemed to panic about why the Patriots looked so damn bad.
“Best way to answer anything is to win,” defensive tackle Vince Wilfork said in the locker room. “If we were sitting here undefeated, everybody would be blowing smoke up us, how great we are. We don’t pay attention to anything outside of here.”
The Patriots weren’t making excuses last week, but everyone else was for them. The reason the Patriots played terrible last week? “Brady doesn’t like his coaches.” “Aaron Dobson is fighting with Josh McDaniels.”
The Patriots answered for themselves against the Bengals, and it was more resounding than any excuse that could have been made. The Patriots might not trounce every top-tier team by 26 points, but they’re also not the kind of team that rolls over when facing a challenge.
So, who is this team?
They’re still the Patriots, and they’re still coached by Bill Belichick. They’ll probably make the playoffs and win their division, and until they prove otherwise, expect them to win big after an embarrassing loss.
