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chunkmeister
It sometimes irked me when people would say the same thing about the Rams in the 70's.....but once you got into the 80's the 49ers arrived.
The AFC East has been an absolute joke of a divion for 15 years. There were a few years when the Rex Ryan Jets showed something....but after the Butt Fumble....they crashed and burned quickly. Over this time the Patriots were virtually guaranteed a 5-1 record in their division just about every year. So they really only had to go 6-4 outside of their division to be assured of a home playoff game. This year, it was good enough to carry them to first round bye.
I give the Patriots credit for finishing the deal (like the 70's Rams could never do). They took advantage having had more home playoff games then they otherwise should not have had (if their division was worth anything). Brady agreeing to always renegotiate his salary to allow more cap room for The Pats to sign other pieces is also a big factor. There are some QB's that would never consider doing that.
While I think the Pats get favorable calls from the Refs.....that happens to all Dyanasty teams in all sports. It's on the underdog to overcome that and unseat the Dynasty team.
The Pats do many things right....but they have rode an unprecedented wave of incompetence by the Bills/Jets/Dolphins that we many never see again. The worst part is.....only the Bills see light at the end of the tunnel. If the Bills aren't on track......this could go on for a few more years.
