As Tom Brady arrives, Patriots get further away from the standards he set

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – From the six gleaming Lombardi Trophies that greet you the moment you step out of the elevator into the team’s business office, to the New England Patriots Hall of Fame outside the stadium’s main entrance, to The Standard hanging In the south end zone, which reminds everyone of six Super Bowl victories in just 17 years, The Standard is everywhere at Gillette Stadium.

Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr., the physical incarnation of The Standard, was also feted Sunday for the memories he provided, the wins he was a part of and the miracles he sometimes performed.

But it’s hard to watch the team he loves — Brady told the crowd at halftime, “One thing is for sure and will never change, is I’m a lifelong Patriot” — these days and trust the standards is being satisfied.

The Patriots opened their season against the defending NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles in Gillette, but they quickly fell into a 16-0 hole before falling 25-20. New England’s record is now below .500 (25-26) in three seasons and one game since Brady left for Tampa Bay after the 2019 season, where he played three years with the Buccaneers , before retiring permanently in February.

It’s been a while since his last game with the Patriots, but everything about Brady is still familiar to fans, and much of what he did here is still familiar to him. As the opening strains of his signature warm-up entrance music, Jay Z’s “Public Service Announcement,” began to play, Brady unzipped his navy blue windbreaker to reveal his now-iconic No. 12 jersey, and then did what he always did Things that are often done. Running onto the field for the first time in his home stadium and sprinting toward those Super Bowl banners (expletive) (well, in this case, jogging; after all, he’s 46 and was never agile in his prime), Screaming “Let’s (expletive) go!” and pumping his beloved right arm.

If his goofy smile was any indication, he liked it. They love it.

What’s not so cute: The post-Brady Patriots can’t consistently win close games or score enough points to win in a league that’s shifted heavily toward offense. Since drafting Mac Jones in 2021, New England’s starting record is 0-11 when opponents score more than 25 points. Jones also has only one fourth-quarter comeback and one game-winning kick in 33 NFL games.

That’s not the standard. What was the “patriot way” that was once touted? Was this idea used so frequently that it was hacked?

Jones caught the pick-six on New England’s first possession Sunday, a pass to Kendrick Bourne that was high but just wide. Byrne hit the ball and Eagles corner Darius Slay happily caught the ball and ran 70 yards downfield for a score that gave Philadelphia a 10-0 lead.

As soon as the Patriots got the ball back, they turned the ball over again, this time from veteran Ezekiel Elliott. Five plays later, Philadelphia scored another touchdown.

New England fought back, and for a moment it seemed like Brady’s magic could work whenever he was in the building — a six-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a stunning 11-yard touchdown pass to The wide open Bourne. The game lasted less than four minutes. The score closed the gap to five points.

But the Patriots did nothing to move the ball after a hard hit by Jabrill Peppers resulted in a fumble by Jalen Hurts on the Eagles’ next play , as if to emphasize that this team is no longer what it used to be, the offense was flagged to delay the game on a fourth-and-12 try.

“You’ve got to do your best in the most critical moments. Free throws, different things throughout the game — cleaning up (those). We’ve got to do a better job,” center and captain David Andrews said. “It’s hard to beat a good team when you’re trying to beat yourself.”

It’s unfair to blame Jones for everything that’s happened over the past few years. It was always going to be a near-impossible situation for Brady’s longtime quarterback in New England, and Bill Belichick’s decision to have Pro defensive coach Matt Patricia and Pro special teams Coach Joe Judge’s tenure as co-offensive coordinator last season was inexcusable. That election, coupled with the Patriots’ recession back into mediocrity, led to reports that Belichick is on the hot seat this year, which once seemed like a job for life but is now less certain.

Brady’s sustained success doesn’t come often. That’s part of the reason he’s so revered. It’s been an incredible decade in the NFL. Twenty-plus years worth is essentially unprecedented. In terms of turnover in the NFL, only nine Patriots players currently play alongside Brady and have a front-row view of his greatness on the field, on the practice field and in the classroom.

He demands a lot from the people he plays with, but he demands a lot from himself as well.

On Sunday night, Jones blamed himself for the loss, sounding a bit like Brady when he thought the Patriots fell behind early because of him. Linebacker Matthew Judon didn’t hear it and said the quarterback was “a dog.”

“We did a good job, but not enough to win,” Peppers added.

At some point, when the defense plays less stingy, the close calls, near misses, and frustrating unwinnables have to end.

This isn’t just the standard Brady is introducing to New England, it’s the standard you want to win in the NFL. Fifty-one games into Brady’s departure from the Patriots, the team is struggling to maintain that form.