2008 New England Patriots Season Preview

2008 New England Patriots preview from MadduxSports.com. With the AFC East being one of the harder divisions to forecast in terms of nfl point spread success, be sure to have an ace in the hole on your side this season. That ace being Maddux Sports' weekly NFL picks.

2008 New England Patriots Predictions
By Adam Barone

Rundown
It’s not going to be easy to improve upon a near perfect season and get motivated to start all over after a Super Bowl defeat, but nothing ever seems to be out of Bill Belichick’s reach. Sure, the Patriots have nothing left to prove in the regular season. But if the Pats end up going 13-3 or 12-4 everyone will likely think they’re slipping, which Brady’s bunch would more than welcome.

A slew of marquis additions prior to last season got New England pumped up to the point where they were unstoppable. Despite not making any huge acquisitions in the off-season, they managed to bring back Randy Moss. The departures of cornerbacks Asante Samuel and Randall Gay sparked the snaring of Fernando Bryant and Jason Webster as replacements. Tank Williams will fill the void left by safety Eugene Wilson.

The biggest move made was probably obtaining former Jets linebacker Victor Hobson. Hobson was with the Jets for five seasons, totaling 62 tackles and two sacks a year ago. His best year saw him net 100 tackles and six sacks in 2006. He’s experienced in the 3-4 scheme, which both the Jets and Patriots employ. Hobson is athletic and should fit right in with the much-hyped Pats’ linebacker corps.

Also lost were tight end Kyle Brady, long time Pats receiver Troy Brown, pass-rushing linebacker Roosevelt Colvin, and receiver Dante Stallworth.

Obviously New England ranked first in offense in 2007. They averaged 36.8 points per game for cryin’ out loud. The shocking thing about their 2007 season was that they finished fourth in points against with just 17.1 per game. Normally, to score so much, a team would need to score quickly and allow their opponent to answer quickly so they could get the ball back and score again. New England allowed the fourth least yards per game against, at 288.3.

Even if they do slip some they’ll still be among the NFL’s elite. There’s no reason to expect any drastic change in this team from last season. The apocalypse will not arrive if they lose a game.

Draft Analysis
The Pats’ 2007 draft saw them choose nine players. Three of them managed to avoid being released. Two of the three ended up on injured reserve. Granted, eight of those nine picks were in the fourth round or later. Only first round pick safety Brandon Meriweather survived. New England traded their mid-round selections to acquire Randy Moss and Wes Welker, so the draft wasn’t all that disappointing.

New England actually used their draft picks this time, choosing Tennessee linebacker Jerod Mayo with their first round pick, the tenth overall. Mayo has size and speed, and can play inside and out. Third round pick Shawn Crable, an outside linebacker out of Michigan, is an intriguing pick, but scouts feel that he’s not much more than a pass rusher right now. His lower body strength needs to be developed.

Two picks were used to add depth at cornerback following the loss of Asante Samuel, including Colorado’s Terrence Wheatley in the second round.

After viewing the New England Patriots preview read about their rivals in the AFC East including the Dolphins, Jets, and Bills.

Related Pages:
Patriots Official Site
NFL Sports Betting