The New England Patriots are in a unique situation. On Monday, they squeezed their way out of their contest against the New York Jets with a slim 30-27 win thanks to former Jets kicker Nick Folk. Folk gave the Pats their third win of the season after he knocked down a 51-yard FG as the game clock run out. But, given how 2020 has been especially challenging for the 2018 Super Bowl Champs, they find themselves stuck in unfamiliar territory.
After the game, Twitter exploded with Patriots fans livid (and NFL neutral fans amused) about the fact that Bill Belichick's squad actually came up with a W… and it wasn't because they didn't have a chance to win over the 0-9 Jets.
The Pats winning their way out of a new QB>>>
— ben pfeifer (@bjpf_) November 10, 2020
https://twitter.com/fazeopticbean/status/1326007394330157058
Brilliant end for the Jets. This is how you tank. Pats – I dunno what they’re doing. They had this.
— Pac 0 (@wstrojan) November 10, 2020
The #Patriots had a 3rd-and-20 and ended up picking the first down.
The tank is still on.
— The Jet Press (@TheJetPress) November 10, 2020
Just like the Jets, New England find themselves in a tough spot as they're slowly heading towards the bottom of the AFC. In their first year of the post-Tom Brady Era, Belichick's squad is poised to miss the postseason after 11 consecutive years. With the way things are going, it seems that a winning record might not even be a possibility with the Patriots struggling to find their footing after nine weeks.
With that said, it has been suggested that the best option for New England moving forward would be to tank the 2020 season and fight for the worst record in the league to put them in a good position to grab top 2021 QB prospect Trevor Lawrence out of Clemson. Though there isn't a lot the Patriots can do for their team's short-term success, they still have a shot on focusing on the long-term if they do decide to drop this season to potentially snag the Clemson standout.
—
Follow NFL on ClutchPoints on Twitter & Instagram, and like us on Facebook. We can also be found on Flipboard where you can subscribe and follow us. Get more on the Patriots and Jets.
Find the NFL section of the ClutchPoints home page here. For fantasy football content, click here. Keep tabs on the Patriots.
Download the ClutchPoints App and head to the scores tab under the NFL section. Find the latest on the Patriots.
Follow Us
Subscribe