The New England Patriots have done something they don’t normally do. They’re retaining their roster from last season. Bill Belichick has never feared roster turnover, particularly when a season ends as poorly as 2021 did with a 47-17 loss to the Buffalo Bills in the first round of the playoffs.
That one stung a Patriots team that didn’t think the scoreline demonstrated its talent. That one stung the fanbase so much that they were clamoring for an overhaul, one not unlike 2016 to 2017 when they had 50 percent of their roster turnover.
Normally, Belichick doesn’t even wave goodbye to players. He shoves them out the door. But this year, he hasn’t done that. On the contrary, he has kept together the core of a team that finished 10-7, struggled against good AFC teams and went one-and-done in the playoffs. The prevailing wisdom after that game was that the Patriots were miles behind the Bills and the Chiefs (who beat the Bills) — and the Bengals (who beat the Chiefs) … and…