Patriots NFL Schedule 'Winners'?
The New England Patriots were a middle-of-the-pack team for a majority of last season. After a 1-3 start, they went on to win four of their next five games but ultimately hovered around .500 for the rest of the year.
While the 8-9 campaign could've been much worse, missing out on the postseason is still an anomaly for head coach Bill Belichick.
But with first-round pick Christian Gonzalez and new offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien, New England looks to improve from its second time missing the postseason in three years.
And with a treacherous schedule on the horizon, another average start to the year could do exactly that again. Despite being tied with the Dallas Cowboys with the third toughest schedule based on last season (53.5 winning percentage), the Patriots were considered a "winner" by The Athletic.
"They’ve got a tough slate, but the Patriots have a chance to make a playoff push in 2023," The Athletic writes. "If they can hover around .500 through Week 8, they’ll enter a midseason stretch with home games against the Commanders and Colts before their Week 11 bye and a chance to show their worth against comparably tricky teams like the Giants, Chargers and Steelers before the homestretch. If the Patriots are an improving team, they’ll set themselves up for an intriguing stretch run."
An improved offense including wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and tight end Mike Gesicki provides more weapons for quarterback Mac Jones, who tossed just 14 touchdowns in 2022.
New England opens its season at home Sept. 10 against the Philadelphia Eagles.
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