This is a quarterback-driven league. The Pats are the only team in the division with a proven QB. Hard for them not to be the favorite. That said, I think the Pats have fallen from an elite team to just an above average team, unless their defense makes huge strides, and Amendola and Gronk stay healthy. The AFC East is down this year as a whole, which should give them a soft cushion on paper, though Buffalo and Miami have some playmakers now, and the Jets have the best defense in the division. The Pats' margin for error is smaller now. If any of the other three teams find competent QB play, they could definitely compete in this division. Tannehill showed he could be decent last year. Bills and Jets are total question marks at QB. Outside of QB, one could argue that New England has the least talent in the division. There are enough pieces there where that argument could be proven wrong come December, but it's definitely a possibility.
Yeah, it is kinda sad how DUI isn't much of a concern when you can help a team win games. I doubt he gets cut, I mean, the Pats signed Stallworth after a DUI and he ran over some poor guy and killed him. The only way Denard is even discussed about being cut is because of the whole Hernandez fiasco right now, but otherwise, this probably doesn't even make mainstream news at this point. Yeah, as much as I dislike them, I have to give them credit for staying on top for all these years and having a competitive team. Having a HOF caliber QB erases a ton of liability on offense for them, and the league is more slanted towards the QB. So now, you can't hit the WR hard or when he's jumping for a ball, you can't hit the QB hard, so it all plays into a team's hand if they have a top tier QB. I do think they take a step back, obviously, but I doubt they are going to fall out of say the top 10 in offense. They'll still be an upper echelon offense, but maybe not as dominant as the ones before. They'll have trouble with very good defenses, but they usually have trouble with that even in years past. But over average to worse defenses, they'll do just fine, because of Brady.
"Handily" may indeed be an overstatement, I honestly don't know. What I mean is that I don't think it's going to come down to the last two weeks of the season. I don't see the Patriots winning 12 or 13 games, but even 10 or 11 wins should give them breathing room. You never know. It will be interesting to see how they adapt the offense. They've gone through this before, most recently when they got rid of Moss and went to more of a spread-the-ball-around philosophy. I think they'll have a strong ground game, and almost have to in order to make the offense click. Keep in mind, the only "unexpected" loss has been Hernandez. Maybe they thought they'd have Gronkowski back sooner but I doubt it. Everyone else has been allowed to walk, or cut. So nothing should be surprising Belichick or catching the team off guard, with the obvious exception of their homicidal tight end. What do you mean? They still play the Jets twice. :wink: Actually, their strength-of-schedule is very favorable this year, but that usually doesn't mean much.
He's not going to be cut according to a release. I think it's a smart decision besides the timing of this arrest, he would get picked by any other team and that could haunt them in the ass with him shutting down NE's offense in a possible match up. Also, I don't think he's a thug, a bad ass, he's not being well oriented apparently, it's not wise to going out in the night in the place you are under probation for punching a cop.
Yeah, there's a high chance to get jail time right now for this violation. If he clears justice, probably he will not clear Goodell's. I think BB pretty much moved to another option for this season already, but Dennard is a long term investment.
