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Patriots Are Being Disrespected by Surprisingly Low Win Total for 2020 NFL Season

By michael obermuller

Tom Brady may be gone, but Bill Belichick isn't, and he does not like losing.
Tom Brady may be gone, but Bill Belichick isn't, and he does not like losing. / Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
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If you are a New England Patriots fan, things haven't looked this uncertain in nearly two full decades. What started with a first-round upset by the Tennessee Titans in last year's NFL Playoffs has now spiraled into a free agency period that's seen Tom Brady and many key defensive pieces walk. Bill Belichick is still the coach of this team though, and until proven otherwise, Belichick's Patriots win football games.

Patriots Win Total 2020

It's unclear whether Brady left the Patriots, or if Belichick finally thought it was time to move on. Either way, he's gone, and now the NFL world should finally get some more insight on the Brady versus Belichick debate (although Brady is towards the end of his illustrious career). Currently sitting at a projected win total over/under at 9 (-110 for both) on FanDuel Sportsbook, the Patriots have not been Super Bowl underdogs like this in a long time.

Despite their championship aspirations taking a hit, the Pats are still favorites to win the AFC East. According to the odds, their top competitors are the Buffalo Bills, who sit at an over/under of 8.5 wins.

The biggest question looming for New England is the obvious one, who will be the quarterback that replaces Tom Brady? Once we know the answer to that, it might become easier to gauge their 2020 outlook. At this very moment, the QB room consists of unproven second-year pro Jarrett Stidham, veteran backup Brian Hoyer and nearing bust Cody Kessler. Not exactly a gold mine of talent, but there is still a plethora of quarterbacks available on the open market, not to mention the NFL Draft, so this group could still change or grow.

Aside from quarterback, the Patriots still need to add offensive weapons after coming up short on DeAndre Hopkins and Stefon Diggs trades. Special teams' expert Damiere Byrd has been the only new receiver brought in so far. Replacing defensive cogs like Kyle Van Noy, Jamie Collins, Danny Shelton and Duron Harmon will also be a priority, although Belichick has already brought in Beau Allen, Adrian Phillips and Brandon Copeland to help in this regard. A return by the McCourty brothers is huge for this defense as well.

It will be interesting to see what moves Belichick makes in the next month, which will culminate in the 2020 NFL Draft. This offseason could be more important than any other in recent Patriots' history. Can this team operate without the GOAT? We know they can, but will they remain a playoff-caliber team?

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Michael Obermuller is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Michael also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username king_mizzard. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.