The 2020 NFL season was a difficult one for a multitude of reasons, and the New England Patriots were no exception.
In addition to the stress and challenges of playing football through a pandemic, the Patriots also struggled on the field and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2008 with a disappointing 7-9 record.
The 2021 campaign is shaping up to be a much better experience for the Patriots, and head coach Bill Belichick in particular.
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Curran: Mac Jones was exactly what the Patriots needed
The 69-year-old coach drafted a quarterback in Round 1 on Thursday night for the first time in his 21-year tenure with the Patriots. Developing Alabama quarterback Mac Jones, who New England selected with the No. 15 overall pick, might give Belichick a kind of energy that he hasn't felt in a while.
“Bill Belichick’s obviously one of the older coaches in the NFL. I think he literally never retires,” NFL Media's Ian Rapoport said Friday on NFL network.
“From the sense I get, he’s extremely excited about working with a young quarterback, teaching a young quarterback, grooming a young quarterback. He hasn’t done it since Tom Brady. I think Bill Belichick will probably coach, I don’t know, forever, and Mac Jones is going to be one of the reasons why.”
The Patriots have been very busy this offseason. They went on a rare spending spree in free agency that saw a bunch of positions on both sides of the ball get bolstered. They also brought back several of their own free agents, most notably starting center David Andrews and running back James White. They also have nine more picks in the 2021 NFL Draft to make.
2021 NFL Draft grades: First-round pick analysis and tracker
New England Patriots
The roster looks a lot better today than it did in early January, and with a talented and intelligent young quarterback to develop, we might see a revitalized Belichick in 2021 and beyond. This is a fresh challenge he hasn't faced in a while, and sometimes you need that after a prolonged period of historic success.