Patriots Star Drops Bold Claim on State of the Franchise

A New England Patriots star has revealed a bold claim on the state of the Patriots' franchise.

Nov 17, 2024; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez (0) leaves the field after game against the Los Angeles Rams at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | Eric Canha-Imagn Images

The New England Patriots are one of the most storied franchises in the NFL, particularly in the 21st century. Of course, you would never know it based on the way they've played for the last half-decade, but they ran the league for much of the 2000s.

The Patriots won six Super Bowls between the 2001-02 and 2018-19 campaigns and made nine Super Bowl appearances overall during that time. They also won 17 AFC East division titles.

So, what has happened to New England, and can the Pats ultimately return to their winning ways?

Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez was asked about the state of the franchise during a sitdown interview with Jon Gruden, and he had no qualms in expressing his confidence that New England is poised to bounce back.

“It’s just the pedigree of the Patriots. Just the history, the winning," Gonzalez told Gruden. "That’s kind of how it is. We've got to get back to it. We’ve been off these past two years, but hopefully, we get back to being who we are.”

Well, to be fair, it's been more than just two years. Gonzalez has only been in the NFL for the last two seasons, but the Pats have been struggling ever since Tom Brady departed in 2020.

Since then, the Patriots have missed the playoffs four of the last five years, and they actually have not won a playoff game since last winning the Super Bowl in February 2019. For New England fans, that is a massive drought, and the Foxborough faithful are starting to get impatient.

But the Pats may finally be headed in the right direction, as they have an impressive young quarterback in Drake Maye and substantial cap room heading into the offseason.

We'll see if Gonzalez ends up being right over the next couple of years.

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