Making Sense of Brady, Gronk and the Future of the Patriots

This offseason sure has had a different feel to it than any other in the last 17 years. Yes, there was always turnover, interesting moves that surprised us all, but the holy duo of Belichick and Brady were always secure and that meant that the Patriots were basically secure.

Now, after a year with plenty of rumblings about off-field problems, we still don’t know if Brady or Gronk are fully in for the 2018 season and that uncertainty is splitting Patriots fans down the middle even as they prepare for what should be an exciting couple of weeks featuring the release of the schedule and the draft.

Patriots’ QB Tom Brady still has not committed to playing in 2018, even though people who know him believe he will back coming season, league sources told ESPN.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 18, 2018

There are so many camps right now within Patriots Nation. There’s those still furious and waiting for an explanation from Belichick about why he benched Malcolm Butler in the Super Bowl. There are those who are frustrated with Brady and Gronk for dragging this stuff out well into the offseason as we’re staring down the barrel of 2018. And then there are those outside of New England, content to watch it all finally burn to the ground.

I also know there are plenty out there who think it’s all “fake news”, that this is all media-driven and everything will be a-okay when the opening game comes around, with Brady throwing touchdowns to Gronk then both high-fiving Belichick as they begin another campaign for title number six. As a faithful blogger of the team I’ve been a big “Ignore the Noise” kind of guy, but there’s too much noise this time to believe it’s all a total fabrication, especially when reports are coming both locally and nationally.

There’s too much smoke for there not to be some kind of fire and now the million dollar question is can that fire be put out in time for another run in 2018?

I have no doubt there are plenty out there who are happy to throw gas on any flames that might consume the Patriots dynasty. Maybe those sources are connected directly to Brady and Gronk. Maybe it’s just about money, which is usually the case, and of course I think we’d all prefer that Brady and Gronk would just come out and say it then, rather than play coy about maybe retiring. And maybe there’s “sources” out there more than happy to help sew discontent for the Patriots and all their fans. That’s undoubtedly part of this all too, and that muddies the water.

But I can’t sit here and tell anyone that there’s nothing to all this as much as I’d like to just stick my head in the sand and assume everything will work out just fine. I’ve always fully believed the end of it all would be messy and this very well might be the start of it.

I think that the frustration toward Belichick, Brady and Gronk is all understandable and not mutually exclusive. As fans it’s like picking between Mom and Dad in the divorce, there’s no easy answer. And it’s okay to be mad at all of them, especially as we’re caught in the middle. We’ve been so lucky because all the drama that inevitably is part of every NFL franchise has been beneath us for so long.

Ultimately there are a few things that need to happen:

1. Get Over SB52: I still fundamentally believe that Belichick always does what he thinks is best for the team. The ego/sabotage angle is silly to me. There were things going on all year with Butler and he admitted himself that he had a down year. He came late to Minnesota because he was sick. We may not like Belichick’s explanation or wish that he just laid it all out on the table but that is the antithesis of everything we’ve seen over the last 18 years. We all can wonder what difference Butler might’ve made even if he’d just played in the second half, but that ship has sailed. Butler’s a Titan. Belichick can and has made mistakes. No coach is perfect, even ones dubbed geniuses. But if you’re going to celebrate him for winning Super Bowls with unknowns and making unconventional choices you can’t crucify him when one of them doesn’t work out. They lost. Time to move on.
2. Brady/Gronk Shit or Get Off the Pot: These guys have given everything to the Patriots, if they really want to retire I will be sad but celebrate their careers and them as people. But the draft is next week, the Patriots need to know if Brian Hoyer and Dwayne Allen are their starters or not. If it’s about money then say it and do what hundreds of other NFL players have done and hold out and wait for more money or a new team. We saw what happened when this thing drags into the regular season with Deion Branch in 2006, it’s bad for the team and needs to be nipped in the bud asap.
3. Enjoy the End: It’s inevitable that there will be a post-Brady, post-Gronk and Post-Belichick Patriots. Are you a Patriots fan or just a fan of rooting for the best team in the league? There’s no easy way out. No pain-free option. The big turnover might not happen all at once, or maybe it will. But if things do work out with the trio for 2018 we have to savor it because this offseason is a stiff reminder of how good we’ve had it. The end might be near, but until then we still have three Hall of Famers to watch make football magic. Savor every moment while it lasts.