There’s always a huge sigh of relief when the preseason is over. Injuries are the most impactful and most unknown factors of a football season, and to lose someone in August, before the games even matter, is always a downer.
Seeing Julian Edelman go down so soon after being a Super Bowl hero instantly put the team behind the eightball. But this year the 2018 Patriots were fortunate. There were certainly disappointments — Isaiah Wynn (who still isn’t on IR), Jordan Matthews and Kenny Britt being the prominent ones.
Otherwise, the Patriots will start the season with the team they wanted almost entirely intact. We can poke holes in where there could be depth problems, but every team has those. The fact once again remains, if the most key players of this Patriots team remain upright the entire season their chances at going to a toss-up Super Bowl are nearly assured.
There will be bumps in the road regardless of injuries. Remember, September football is very much an extension of the preseason. The team is still figuring out who they are exactly and what will make them unique amongst the last 18 seasons. They might look like total dogshit one week and lose a game to a team who might win four games all year.
But as the coaching kicks in, the players come together and begin playing to their strengths watch out. Those are the games where we’re reminded the New England Patriots Football Machine is still very much alive and well.
So, did we learn much of anything in the final preseason scrubfest? Were any roster spots won? Let’s take a quick look back before we totally turn the page to the roster craziness of the weekend and then the Texans.
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