The Patriots ruled as a dynasty in the NFL for the better part of the last two decades, winning six Super Bowls from 2001 to ’18. But since a victory in Super Bowl LII, New England has yet to win a playoff game.
And that bothers Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
“I’m a Patriot fan, big time, first. More than anything, it bothers me that we haven’t been able to win a playoff game in the last three years,” Kraft said Tuesday at the NFL annual meeting, per ESPN’s Mike Reiss.
“After my family, there’s nothing more important to me than the New England Patriots and winning football games. That’s my passion, so whatever I can do – hopefully in a small way to make that happen – I’m there. I’m not happy that we haven’t won a playoff game in three years. I think about that a lot.”
The Patriots last postseason win came with a 13–3 victory over the Rams in Super Bowl LIII, but the team has since floundered by its standards. After a wild-card round exit following the 2019 season, New England failed to make the playoffs in 2020 with Cam Newton under center.
In 2021, the Patriots bounced back under the leadership of rookie quarterback Mac Jones. After the former Alabama signal-caller guided the franchise to a 10–7 regular season record, New England was blown out in the playoffs with a 47–17 road loss in Buffalo.
The result wasn’t exactly what the Patriots had hoped for, but Kraft found himself encouraged with the play of the team’s new additions in 2021.
“I’m happy that I think we had a great draft last year, and made up for what happened the previous four years or so,” Kraft said, per Reiss. “I look forward to hopefully having a great draft this year. That’s the only way you can build your team for long term and consistently, that you have a chance of winning – is having a good draft.”
After a strong draft and record-breaking spending spree last offseason, New England remained relatively quiet this month in free agency. Nevertheless, Kraft feels strongly about the team’s current roster talent and anticipates that the Patriots could become a contender as soon as next fall.
“I’d expect it to happen as soon as this year. I think we’ve made the commitments as an organization,” he explained. “I think we have a lot of talent – some wonderful young men from last year and a couple in the weeds from before. It’s a chance for them to grow and hopefully come together, and the team comes together.
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