New England Patriots

Why the New England Patriots losing in Week 4 was a good thing

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Vincent Valentine (99) and the Patriots were humbled in Week 4. Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

Try to view the New England Patriots’ shutout loss in Week 4 as something that wasn’t so bad after all.

Now that we have had over 72 hours to digest the New England Patriots bad day in Week 4, let’s realize this: the Patriots losing that game has a few silver linings.

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First off, losing is healthy. There’s nothing like being slammed on the ground that will wake up a team and make them realize what their weaknesses are. It’s good to be humbled time and again; often times, constant winning will hide real and substantial flaws in a team.

Secondly, the Patriots are no longer undefeated, which puts to rest the annual conversation of “are the Patriots going to go undefeated?” To some degree, this writer still has bandages on the wounds created in February of 2008, so not having to deal with the weekly stress of being an undefeated team is nice.

And look, if the Patriots had gone 4-0 without Tom Brady, people would really be starting to question the value of the 39-year-old quarterback, which is certainly a conversation we could all do without. The “system quarterback” talk? Give me a break. The 2016 Patriots need Brady, that much is clear.

At the very least, try to view the Patriots’ Week 4 loss as a perfectly normal early-season occurrence for the Patriots. The 2001 Pats started 0-2 and won the Super Bowl. The 2003 Pats were ran out of Buffalo in the season opener by a score of 31-0. And most recently, the 2014 Patriots started 2-2 after suffering double-digit losses to the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs.

So while Sunday was an extremely frustrating day, the Patriots and their fan base were brought back to reality. And reality looks like this: the defense needs improvement, the offense needs Brady, and this team still has a long way to go. And that’s all perfectly fine, with a 3-1 record in tow at the beginning of October.

Keep an eye out on Musket Fire in the coming days for bold predictions, a staff roundtable discussion and a question and answer session with Dawg Pound Daily, among other pieces of engaging content.

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