By Siddharth Anmalsetty On January 4th, 2020, the New England Patriots fell on the first week of wildcard weekend to the Tennessee Titans 20-13. The final score doesn’t tell the full story. If you watched this game you would realize that this wasn’t as close as it seems. The Patriots after halftime didn’t have that same cold blooded execution that they’ve maintained for the past 20 years. Derrick Henry ran over them and the Titans ended the game with a walk-off pick-six. I think a lot of other football fans felt the same way I did. I felt odd. It was a strange feeling. For the past ten years a lot of fans just accepted the fact that the AFC Championship would be some up and coming team against the Patriots. Their consistency in ruining the dreams of teams is unparalleled and not seeing them win was abnormal. I guess we couldn’t accept that we didn’t know who would be in the AFC Championship, which is quite the testament to the Patriots. Especially in a salary cap league, the Patriots being this good for this long is close to impossible. That's what makes it all the more strange. We might be witnessing the end. This is based on the eye test really. On paper, the regular season was solid: finishing at 12-4 and winning the division. Normal stuff. But then we go deeper. After starting the season 8-0, the defense that was lights out and feasted on weaker opponents seemingly fell off. Stephon Gilmore, who is a legitimate defensive player of the year candidate, got torched by Devante Parker on eight catches for 137 yards with a loss. This was the same dolphins team that they annihilated in week two, 43-0. More and more opponents figured out Bill Belichick’s defense, something rarely done in years past. Tom Brady, who I personally thought just didn’t age, seemed to have father time catch up to him. He had his least effective season in years with a passer rating of just 88. He couldn’t carry this team like he did in earlier years. There’s something I just can’t trust about this team. I can’t see them continuing their success any longer. Brady and Belichick aren’t getting any younger and their division is on the rise. Could this be the end of the Patriots? We’ve been saying that for a long time, but this year feels different. The league is in a full youth movement and maybe it's time for the legends of the past stay there.
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