New England Patriots

Why we’re going all the way The New England Patriots were the most well-rounded team in the NFL last season, and they spent the offseason getting better. The Patriots are entering with the same coordinators for the sixth straight season; the offense upgraded with players like Brandin Cooks, and the defense added Stephon Gilmore while retaining Dont’a Hightower and Malcolm Butler. The 2016 Super Bowl champions should be better at every single positional group in 2017 and will face the easiest schedule in the NFL. Anything less than the Super Bowl will be a disappointment.

The season is hopeless if [THIS] happens Tom Brady could suffer an injury as the Patriots enter a twilight zone oddly reminiscent of 2008. But there is no one single injury to a player that could sink their season. Instead, the Patriots have a lot of question marks on the edge that could derail the defense. There is a world where the Patriots fail to generate any pressure against a strong slate of opposing quarterbacks and the secondary is unable to cover for five seconds at a time, eventually costing them home-field advantage in the playoffs.

Who is your biggest rival and why? In a really obnoxious way, do the Patriots really have a rival at this point in time? The only team that would make sense would be the Denver Broncos. The Patriots have a 4-3 record against the Broncos over the past five years, with two of those losses coming in AFC Championship games. But the Broncos will have to prove themselves a contender in a post-Peyton Manning world if they are going to be the Patriots’ rival.

Tailgate food that best describes your team? Since avocado ice cream is completely unacceptable as a tailgate option, there’s only one choice and it will be available during the Patriots’ season opener against the Kansas City Chiefs: ribs, served by a dancing Vince Wilfork. If it’s good enough for Vince Wilfork, it’s good enough to represent the entire New England Patriots franchise.

What does your team do better than anyone else? Win. From top to bottom, there is no team that can hold a candle to the depth of the Patriots. Head coach Bill Belichick knows that investing too much money in a single player is extremely risky because an injury to that player could disrupt the entire franchise. The Patriots were able to overcome the loss of Tom Brady for four games and the loss of Rob Gronkowski for half the season. That roster construction is why the Patriots are able to compete at the end of the season more consistently than any other team.