Brady might have had his name tarnished more than he likes. He also will be frustrated by not being able to lead his team as usual. But the four-game suspension won’t cause a dent in his family finances, and it won’t be too detrimental to New England.
Beyond the short-term cons, the Patriots at least know it won’t be too long before their indispensable quarterback is back. Looking at the big picture of the 2016 season, it’s easy to find five ways the negative turns into real positives.
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- Brady can use the time off. Brady stays in amazing shape for his age and shows little signs of slowing down. That said, he does turn 39 on Aug. 3. He has started in 126 consecutive games over the past seven seasons. When we last saw him on the field in January, he was getting bruised and batted by the Broncos’ defense in the AFC championship game. He took a lot of hits behind a shaky offensive line for much of 2015 and was sacked 38 times.
Brady won’t lose his mental edge when he’s not playing, and he’ll ensure there’s little physical rust when he returns. When Brady’s out, he’ll miss matchups against his former teammate Chandler Jones, Ndamukong Suh and J.J. Watt. His body will have extra time to recover, and it will keep him fresher for December and January, giving the Patriots a better chance to play in February.
- The Patriots will get a good look at their future. Brady wants to play forever, and while we wouldn’t challenge him on that one, Father Time always wins in the end. New England must have thought about that day when it used a second-round draft pick on Jimmy Garoppolo in 2014. Garoppolo will have been groomed for three full offseasons behind Brady before he steps on the field when it counts. He should know both Josh McDaniels’ playbook and how his skill set fits.
Unless Brady would have suffered another freakish ACL injury like the one in the 2008 opener against the Chiefs, the Patriots wouldn’t have had a chance to find out what they have in Garoppolo — now they can find out on their terms. Garoppolo steps in with a strong supporting cast, and New England will quickly see whether he is indeed Brady’s worthy successor. If Garoppolo plays well, he also will build trade value.
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Jimmy Garoppolo (Getty Images)
The Patriots will be more unpredictable than usual. The Patriots probably will use Garoppolo’s athleticism, a non-existent element with Brady, to their advantage. Opponents are so used to game-planning for how Brady might execute the offense, and they still fail, as the Patriots always find next-level wrinkles. Bill Belichick and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia should also mix up the Patriots’ defensive aggressiveness to force more takeaways and take pressure off Garoppolo to execute long drives. Belichick and his staff are terrific at adjusting to their personnel, and when Garoppolo’s in the lineup, they will find a few more schematic successes that will be applied for Brady. Belichick is a mad scientist who only gets better with more chances to experiment.
The Patriots will face the meat of their schedule with a rested Brady. Even with Brady, an opening Sunday night shootout on the road in Arizona would be a difficult game for New England to win. Miami, Houston and Buffalo all come to Gillette Stadium, and New England gets an early “mini bye” after the Thursday night game against the Texans in Week 3.
Brady will be back for seven road games and the Patriots’ four toughest division games. Although Garoppolo will see a few tough defenses, the real challenges don’t come until November. The Dolphins have a new coach, and the Texans have a new quarterback. The Bills will be shorthanded on both sides of the ball early. In an AFC where they are heavy favorites, the Patriots only need to get out of the first month at 3-1 to stay on track for the No. 1 seed in the playoffs. They should do just that.
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- The Patriots can re-focus on the running game. Two years ago, the Patriots had the NFL’s No. 9 rushing attack. When they went on to win the Super Bowl, it was a still-respectable No. 19. Last season, because the pass protection woes trickled into the run blocking, the Patriots plummeted to No. 30. With better health and a few lineup changes, they are bound to be better. With Garoppolo and some flux in the wide receiver corps, the team should be able to get into a groove pounding the ball. Martellus Bennett joining Rob Gronkowski also gives the team the best run-blocking tight end duo in the league.
LeGarrette Blount is still recovering from his hip injury, so that’s a concern. But the Patriots can compensate via their versatile committee. James White and Dion Lewis can extend the running game as frequent dump-off options for Garoppolo. Being run-heavy will set up New England’s offense for bigger things when Brady returns.
A healthier Brady and a heartier ground game late in the season are exactly what the Patriots need to live up to their status as Super Bowl favorites.
