The New England Patriots went 16-0 in 2007. Randy Moss and Wes Welker caught a lot of Pats passes then, but the continuity is supplied by the guy throwing those passes and the guy in the sweatshirt on the sideline, Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. So to those who don’t live deep inside Patriots Nation, it still seems a little like the same team, nearly a decade hence. Today’s Pats have another thing in common with that perfect team: they were both 7-0 at this point in the season.
Now just like then, the Patriots face the Washington Redskins in their 8th game of the season. In 2007, the Patriots bombarded the Redskins 52-7. But it wasn’t clear sailing from there. The 2007 Patriots beat the Colts, Giants, Eagles and Ravens in the second half of the season by a combined total of only 13 points. (The Giants would beat them in the Super Bowl.) This year’s Patriots face the Giants on November 15, Eagles on December 6, and a familiar face (former Colt Peyton Manning’s) behind center in Denver on November 29. They say they’re not thinking about an undefeated season, and that’s probably true. But fans are — they can’t help it.
