'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAYACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABeAAEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABAcQAAIBBAMBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAECAwAEBREGBxIUIQEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAhEAAgIDAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQIDEQAEEkH/2gAMAwEAAhEDEQA/AMf7B4rYdacQtsjYSTyPInxuHaMhxr0WYePwsE0SDVmO6kxt7j7S5lvJ1kngjkcL40C6gnW0pShO5XS13FdOz9GhZrFHLI0Ytj5n/9k='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
2023 marks the fourth season since Tom Brady left the New England Patriots after the 2019 season. Since then, the team has seen a noticeable step down in quality and the AFC East has seen a revolution. Speaking on ESPN's "Get Up," NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky claimed that things are only going to get worse if the Patriots don't have a vintage level of success. Here's how he put it:
"The Patriots have to make the playoffs this year. It's going to get noisy in New England. It will. And he's the greatest coach of all time. But this football team has missed the playoffs in two of the last three years with losing records."
Will Bill Belichick win a playoff game in 2023?
He continued, bracing the head coach for what could happen if he fails:
"[Belichick] wasted [2022] by his decision making, so if they don't make the playoffs this year, the last 25 years isn't going to come save him from the noise that's going to happen in New England."
Patriots falling into similar Denver-style depression after Peyton Manning's retirement
New England lost Tom Brady at the turn of the 2020s. Since then, many have believed that the team is only one or perhaps a few pieces away from being competitive once again. However, as time has continued, the team has only appeared to be slipping farther away from where they were in the Tom Brady era.
The slow revelation also took place in Denver in the late 2010s. Initially, fans believed that the team was close to where they were in the Manning years. They simply needed a piece or two and they'd get right back to their winning ways.
However, after several years of missing the playoffs and failing to make any noise in the league, fans began to tune out or lower their expectations coming into each season. Should New England fail to win a playoff game for the fourth consecutive year without Tom Brady, some believe the Patriots will fall into the same hole as Denver as the other teams battle competitively for the division.
Does Bill Belichick have a trick up his sleeve or could this be the last year of hope in New England for quite some time?
If any of the above quotes are used, please credit Get Up and H/T Sportskeeda.
