For New England, though, it would represent a significant turnaround from the dark place the franchise has been stuck in since the end of the Tom Brady era, an era in which Newton himself played quarterback for the Patriots. But these Patriots are not the same team that Newton suited up and was eventually benched in favor of Mac Jones.
This Patriots club has rediscovered success by returning to its winning roots, bringing in coach Mike Vrabel, who built his fame playing under Bill Belichick in New England, and largely adopting some of the key elements of the famous Patriot Way.
They applied one — ignoring outside noise — when processing Newton’s comments.
“I just worry about what people in our organization think and worry about (what) we think and what my teammates think,” Maye said. “People are going to have different opinions. I’m just going out on Sunday worrying about ourselves.”
Echoing his quarterback, Vrabel welcomed outside doubts while staying focused on what he can control: his team’s preparation for an upcoming slate that begins with Cincinnati and the New York Giants, but also includes a rematch with Buffalo and a date with Baltimore.
“Nothing is weird to me because people can come on the radio, TV, and you know whatever, it’s just things that get their attention. We’re fine with that,” Vrabel said. “I promise you we’re fine with it. Whatever anybody says, we’re fine with.”
“We’re going to come to work, we’re going to focus on us, we’re going to try to improve and we’re going to focus on the Bengals and continue on the road and try to get our 10th win. That’s what we’re going to focus on.”
This response is not far from Belichick’s famous “We’re on to Cincinnati” response from 2014.
While the Patriots certainly haven’t tried to replicate the Patriot Way in its entirety, they have clearly benefited from being under a coach who has extensive experience as both a player and a coach and has found success in both areas.
Now the coach is tasked with guiding his team of youngsters through uncharted waters that are known. Based on their reaction to Newton, they are off to a great start.