The New England Patriots benched Cam Newton in the team’s Week 7 loss while Tom Brady thrives in Tampa Bay with the Buccaneers.
New York Jets fans had waited two decades for this season. The moment Mo Lewis popped Drew Bledsoe on the sideline of an early-season game in 2001 was the instant Tom Brady inserted himself into a course that would forever change the NFL.
Jet playoff appearances in 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2009 and 2010 may have happened, including two AFC championship game shots, but Brady and the New England Patriots dominated the AFC East to a level that’s never been witnessed.
The 2020 season finally brought a Brady-free Patriots team. It’s too bad the Jets decided to put forth one of the worst starts in NFL history.
All of that waiting led to nothing—at least not in 2020. Besides, prior to the season, nobody thought Bill Belichick’s team would be in the situation they are now (2-4 after losing badly to the banged-up San Francisco 49ers).
New England Patriots' hopes and dreams featuring Cam Newton and Tom Brady. pic.twitter.com/34lrokd8y4
— Jets X-Factor (@jetsxfactor) October 26, 2020
Pundit after pundit believed Cam Newton to the Patriots was going to result in gold. The overwhelming belief that Belichick and Josh McDaniels could mold the correct offense around Newton remained firm.
It started well, with Newton running a quarterback-infused rushing offense featuring plenty of read options and inverted power read options, but the magic has worn off just a bit.
Newton was benched this past Sunday after completing just 9 of 15 passes for 98 yards and three interceptions. The 2015 NFL MVP has thrown for just 969 yards and two touchdowns to seven interceptions on a 67.2 completion percentage.
It’s the stuff that’ll drive spoiled Patriots fans nuts, but what’s happening down south is driving them over the edge.
Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers are now 5-2 after their latest triumph—a 45-20 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders. Brady has thrown for 1,910 yards and 18 touchdowns to just four interceptions through seven games. The six-time Super Bowl champ currently ranks sixth in passing yards and second in passing touchdowns at age 43.
While the New York Jets (and their fans) have bigger fish to fry at the moment (mainly involving the No. 1 pick and Trevor Lawrence), the New England Patriots 2020 season is a sidebar two decades in the making.
Thus far it hasn’t worked out well for Bill Belichick and Cam Newton.
