Biggest Threats To The Patriots
So we are six weeks into the season, there have been a couple teams in my opinion who have separated themselves as serious threats to the Patriots Super-Bowl chances. Before I start, The Patriots, even with all of their warts are still in my eyes the favorite to make another Super-Bowl appearance. They have the best player (Tom Brady) and they have the best coach (Bill Belichick), by far. I only see two teams who have a shot of tripping up the Patriots.
The Pittsburgh Steelers. Not much surprise here I know. We all know about the playmakers they have on offense, guys like Antonio Brown, Le’Veon Bell, and even though he has been quiet so far this season, Martavis Bryant can take the top off a defense at anytime.
Their quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is a Two time champion, He has been playing the quarterback position at a high level for a long time. We all know what he is capable of in the playoffs. But where I really think this team is different then Steelers teams in the past is on defense. They added Joe Haden in the off-season, giving them a legitimate number one corner that they haven’t had in years.
Now I believe the Steelers added Joe Haden because they know, to beat the Pats especially in the playoffs they need to play tight man to man coverage in the secondary. They realized last season, the zone scheme they like to use will not cut it against a quarterback like Brady. It could be for nothing if the Steelers crap themselves again like last year and play their stupid zone coverage and sit around while Brady hangs 40 on them. Which is entirely possible, but this year they are more equipped than ever to stop the Pats.
The Kansas City Chiefs. Okay hear me out for a second, yes Andy Reid and Alex smith, those Chiefs. This team scares the crap out of me. We all know they came into Gillette stadium week one and gave the Pats a whooping. So they have the tie breaker now and are two games up on the Patriots already for home field advantage throughout the playoffs. We all saw what happened to the Patriots the last time they went to Arrowhead stadium, Week four of the 2014 season losing 41-14. They have struggled in Arrowhead Brady’s entire career.
All that being said, boy do they have a ton of talent on both sides of the ball. They have the type of talent that should scare all patriots fans, they have speed on both sides of the ball and bring a physical in your face mentality on defense. Guys like Tyreke Hill, Travis Kelcie, and Kareem Hunt have paced them all season on offense. Their quarterback Alex Smith has been an early season MVP candidate and can’t be taken as the “Game manager” we have all accused him of being for years. They have their own version of a lockdown corner, Marcus Peters, he has been a stud since he entered the league. Justin Houston and Tamba Hali pace them on the defensive line, They are always all over Brady whenever they play the Patriots.
They can stretch the field, they can run the ball down your throat, and they will turn around on defense and play man to man coverage across the board and get after it with their pass rushers. These guys are no joke and they are in this for the long run, everybody better start to take the Chiefs serious, because they most certainly are.
Written By: Danny Dipietrantonio (@Donato05)