The dictionary defines dilemma as a difficult situation that forces a person to choose between two or more options, usually when all choices are unpleasant or unfavorable.
I define dilemma as having two football teams that are headed in opposite directions that meet each other at a time when those directions appear poised for a u-turn.
For all the right reasons, I do not expect the New England Patriots to have a very good season in 2026. They cashed all their chips last year when they rose from back-to-back last place finishes with only four wins in both 2023 and 2024, to winning the American Football Conference and meeting the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX.
When a team rises from last place to the playoffs, they almost always have a severe hit on their next year’s record. The reasons are pinned to both physical and motivational factors. When they rose from the bottom to the top they were buoyed by the need to overcome and were playing a last place schedule. Once they reach the top, particularly when they do it all of a sudden, they then face a first place schedule and have the tougher challenge of needing to maintain success as opposed to first achieving it.
Yep, I think the Patriots are in for a disappointing 2026 campaign. I was surprised they did as well as they did in their opener against the Seattle Seahawks, but they ultimately lost and the next week got the advantage of playing a Pittsburgh Steelers team that is not nearly as good as their reputation. The Patriots won their only home game of this season over Pittsburgh, 20-3.
Last week, off that lopsided win against the Steelers in Foxboro, they got hampered on the road by the highly regarded Jacksonville Jaguars, 35-6. That’s the kind of result I would be expecting from Mike Vrabel’s men this year.