Mike Florio was taken aback by how the New England Patriots looked over the past two weeks.
The Patriots were firmly in the driver's seat after taking down the Bills in Buffalo on "Monday Night Football" in Week 13. Not only was New England in first place in the AFC East. It also had a hold of the No. 1 seed in the conference, which comes with a first-round playoff bye.
But the Patriots let the favorable situation slip through their fingers. Consecutive losses against the Indianapolis Colts and the Bills put New England sixth in the AFC standings with two weeks remaining in the regular season. It's unlike Bill Belichick-coached teams to slide in December, which Florio believes is cause for concern in Foxboro.
"I'm fascinated by the psychology of the Patriots," Florio said Sunday night on NBC. "They haven't won since that night in Buffalo, that Monday night. They had a bye week, then they lost on Saturday night. Mac Jones said they didn't have enough energy when they came out against Indianapolis and now they've lost again. I can't get used to seeing this from a Bill Belichick-coached team -- almost like they lost their edge a little bit. They got content with themselves after they beat the Bills. Bill Belichick actually smiled after that game. I can't help but wonder whether or not they, you know, they lost that laser focus and they're having a hard time getting it back."
We shouldn't act like the sky is falling in New England. After all, the Patriots dropped two of their final four regular-season games in their last Super Bowl-winning season. But if the last few weeks have taught us anything, it's that New England probably isn't the class of the AFC like many were suggesting over the back end of its seven-game win streak.
