I'm glad all the comments have been sympathetic to the torture Patriots fans suffered. No fanbase should have to go through what they did in those nine seasons. Also that's not how Reche Caldwell's first name is pronounced, that's my bad.
@@brickwallblitz as a pats fan it actually did have a negative effect lol. Obviously it was the best time ever to be a fan of any NFL team, but after watching them win 3 out of 4 SBs …then watching them be so good and lose the same way in big games for 10 years…when they finally beat Seattle to break the curse I wasn’t even able to enjoy it as much cause it felt like the same thing all over again, falcons as well
I haven't finished but I would attribute it to after Brady was injured and had to come back. He changed his style of play. Then fast forward to about 2011 he was playing so much better and not hesitating on his ankle.
@@brickwallblitzIt's funny I had literally said the same thing. Two conference championships / Super Bowl appearances. I can't remember if it was four or five appearances in the conference championship and like seven play off appearances. I'm just going off the top of my head Underrated video
Dark era: 2 Super Bowl appearances, 5 AFC Championship appearances, 9 playoff wins, 8 division championships, 9 winning seasons, and a perfect season. I'll take that dark era any day as a Vikings fan, lol
@@egirlegirlegirl Where did they go 31-1 over 2 seasons. They went 16-0 regular season 2007. But in 2006 they went 12-4 and in 2008 they went 11-5. If they went 31-1 over 2 seasons in the middle of 2005 to 2013, they would have had to go 15-1 in 2006 or 2008 which they did not. They were great but I do not recall a 15-1 season sandwiched next to that perfect 16-0 regular season.
The man who was burned the worst in this dark era: Logan Mankins. Joined the patriots the season after the Super Bowl 39 victory and left before the season of the Super Bowl 49 victory.
Theres no amount of money teams wouldnt pay for a "dark era" like the patriots had from 2005-2013. Going to the playoffs every year except 2008, going to 2 super bowls and a perfect regular season.
In 2008, they still managed to go 11-5, just missing the playoffs on a tiebreaker with Miami. My favorite team hasn’t won 11 games in a season since 1991! 😤😤
That year Brady got hurt had he not gotten hurt I 100% bet you they would have won the super bowl that year instead of the Steelers after all that same team came very close to making the playoff but they lost their start quarterback to injury Steelers would have never made it had Brady been able to play that whole season
They are two separate dynasties Brady and Belichick are the only linkage. The defense of the first dynasty was old and gone after 07-08 and they rebuilt and developed into a new championship core. The secondary from 09-13 was horrible.. when they got Talib and then turned Talib into Revis was when the defense got back to being championship level.
Five AFC Championship games, two Super Bowl appearances, nine consecutive winning seasons with eight playoff berths. Literally any other team in the game, it’d be the greatest run in their history.
The ironic thing about this era was individually Tom Brady was at the peak of his powers it’s just things didn’t fall in his favour due to luck and the Patriots having some suspect defense during that era especially in 2010-2013 where they were a bottom 5 pass defense almost every season (and had the second worst pass defense ever in 2011)
@@brickwallblitz well im sure tom brady could suck it up losing due to "luck" because unlike the fans he didnt make any excuses and he kept pushing to keep winning lol, im sure there was no "luck" involved when he was winning... (tuck rule, vinateri savior, seahawks interception, the whole 2020 playoffs lol)
The problem was they tried to turn into the Colts. They invested year after year into offense while letting the defense slip. They set offensive records, but they couldn't win that way in the postseason. The defense was allowed to slip by not investing, and it was proved that you cannot win in the playoffs on offense and Brady alone. Look at those losses. The Jets and the Ravens were able to shut down that offense. The Giants did it in '07. Brady with all those weapons could not go out and win playoff games on their own. Brady needed a good defense to do just as much. This on its own is proof that no qb can just win titles on their own. It's always been nonsense. Just look at those Patriots team offense in the playoffs and compare it to the regular season. They didn't look the same against quality clubs. Winning titles is all that matters, not regular season scoring records.
At that time, Cassell and the Pats became the second team in history to miss the playoffs with an 11-win season. Brady returns the following year, and the Pats get 10 wins, and they make the playoffs.
You can thank The Manning Brothers and Joe Flacco (for some reason) for causing this dark age, they combined to thwart the Patriots 6 of their 8 playoff runs during that time period
Nah, it was really the Pats letting the defense slip. They put too much into offense trying to set records. If they had stayed balanced like before and after, they would have had a middle dynasty too.
2005-2013 was the era where they didn’t win a Super Bowl. They were still a top playoff team and went undefeated 18-0 and losing the superbowl. Also went to another bowl game. Just goes to show you how good he was. His dark age would have put him in the HOf.
He? Belichick was just as much responsible. No qb has that much control, only a moron would suggest it. Brady had nothing to do with the defense, special teams and the lack of team wide mistakes. He also didn't draft and develop himself and put himself in over Bledsoe who many considered an irreplaceable star. He also didn't continue to keep himself in in 2014 when the media was calling for the 37 year old Brady to be replaced. Without Belichick, none of this happens.
As a Ravens fan, I'll always cherish the battles we had with them and the mutual respect between the teams. Especially between Ed, Ray, Suggs, Tom & Bill
I have to say that the Ravens played them the toughest during those years. The Steelers were pushovers and the Colts usually were too. The Ravens played the best defense and gave the Pats the toughest time consistently. They knew how to play defense against the Pats while most teams had no clue.
I didn’t realize this until I watched your video but during this period they made trips and lost two super bowls. What I find impressive is that’s usually when the problems begin. We saw it with the falcons in 2016. It’s basically a dynasty-ender… teams start losing, coaches get fired, etc. but the patriots kept winning, kept going, and got back to the promised land in 2014.
Dark Era: - 2 Super Bowl trips - 6 AFC Championship games - 8 division titles - 112 wins - Two Brady MVPs, one Unanimous - 07 undefeated regular season - Two coach of the years for Belichick So, so dark 😢😢😢
I’m glad patriots fans were finally rewarded after sticking it out through those 9 miserable seasons with 119 regular season and playoff wins. As a Bears fan I can relate to the cold weather you guys endure up in Boston too.
It was tough, but somehow we persevered. I will say, the lowest point was probably when the Seahawks got that lucky catch and it looked like the Pats were about to lose another tough SB game. It had been 10 years since winning and it looked like we were being kicked in the teeth again. But then Malcolm Butler makes an unbelievable play and everything turned around. In the end, just got to give Belichick and Brady all the credit because they are the ones that made it possible. We were just lucky to witness it.
Bob Kraft is the worst ownership in professional sports. The patriots won in spite of Bob Kraft not because of him. He’s the cheapest owner in the NFL.
@@stickman1742 it’s not Kraft not wanting to spend its Tom wanting to win and Bill taking advantage to get people on the cheap. Krafts billions can afford him a cowboys like roster in terms of money.
But during that decade long SB drought(The Dark Era), Tom Brady led his team to the most wins, won 2 MVPs, 8 probowls, 3x all pro, 2x OPOY, CPOY, went to five AFC Championship games, and 2 Superbowls(one being an undefeated season). 124-29 record including the playoffs (81% winning percentage) 🐐 Peyton Manning had the second best record 121-39 record including the playoffs (76% winning percentage) during that decade long SB drought for Brady.
They turned into the Colts for some reason, great scoring success during regular season and not much playoff success. Should have just stayed the Patriots by being balanced. When they went back to that, they won 3 more SBs.
I love it, always love these extended deep dives into brady and the patriots. One problem though, you can't say COUNTLESS and then flash the number 9 on screen. We counted bro. 🤣
These "dark age" teams were BETTER than all the SB winning teams besides 03 & 04. Only difference was the league didn't have dumbass teams like Seattle & Atlanta handing them super bowls by pure foolishness.
Their " Dark ages " are nine straight 10+ win seasons , 8 division titles , 5 AFC title games , 2 super bowl appearances, a 16-0 season , Tom Brady won 2 MVPS , Welker catching 100+ balls every year , and a lot of other success , Crazy that's " Dark" for them
I’m a Dolphins fan. I’ll always say it: the 2007 Patriots is the greatest pro football team I’ve ever seen. They had college level dominance in the pros. Even in the Super Bowl, the Giants played it perfectly. Keep the ball away from them, hit Brady, don’t make any mistakes and even THEN the Patriots took the lead late and were a dropped Asante Samuel INT or a helmet catch away from 19-0. I’m eternally grateful for the Giants though!
The 2001 Canes would beat the 07 Pats and I'll go to my grave saying so. 2001 Miami Hurricanes are the greatest football team to ever step on the field.
@@davis2k1234 Normally yes, but look at the 2001 Canes roster. Shockey, Winslow, Reed, Buchanan, McGahee, Portis, Gore, Reggie Wayne, Santana Moss, Wilfork, DJ Williams, Jonathan Vilma...Yeah they are whooping the 07 Pats. Even with Ken Dorsey at QB.
This is why as a Patriots fan Super Bowl XLIX will always be my favorite of the first 6. We lost a perfect season, revenge against the team that cost us a perfect season, got our doors blown off at home by the God damned Jets AND then the fucking Ravens TWICE, and allowed Seyton Manning to get a ring by blowing an 18 point lead in the AFC Championship game.
I became a fan during the Patriot dark ages. They were incredibly fear-inducing. No team looked at the Pats and brushed them off. They were consistently great, even if they weren’t winning superbowls between those years. They were a true force by still making constant AFC championships, having a 16-0 season, going to 2 Super Bowls, having great offensive statistics and the best turnover margin in the entire league. The Dark Ages are what a majority of the NFL wishes they could have.
The dark era? As in 2 Superbowl appearances , countless AFC championship games , an undefeated season. Those dark years saw more success than most franchises. After 6 years without Brady I'ld gladly go back to those dark years haha
Honestly as a young Pats fan during this run, it was tough because I always saw my team get so close but couldn’t close the deal. I was devastated after 07 and I remember watching every playoff game after. Losing to the Jets and those Ravens teams hurt man
i became an nfl fan following the 07 18-1 season hoping that they pull it off lol. These years made those last couple feel all the better in hindsight.
If you ask me, the dark era began Week 1 of the 2007 season because that was when Spygate occurred. Until 2013 after that, people would always say the Patriots haven’t won a championship since being caught cheating.
Except that spygate was always bullshit that only idiot losers hold on to. In 2006, the Pats kicked a Jets cameraman out of Foxboro for filming where he wasn't supposed to. This shit happens all the time. The next year, the Jets did the same thing to the Pats in NY, the only difference is that the babies brought the camera down the street to the commissioner's office to turn it into a federal complaint. Teams would never do these things, but the Jets did. This forced the NFL to treat it like a big deal. Throw in ESPN looking for ratings acting stupid about it and it get a bunch of crazed loser fans around the country crying bloody murder. Many probably didn't know that the next week, the Ravens filed a complaint against the Jets. It was another team doing that to the Jets as payback for being whiny losers and running to the mummy. Of course, no one and ESPN wouldn't care about Raven's complaint. It was always the media stoking the flames to get ratings from stupid football fans tired of always losing to the Patriots. Only deflategate was more ridiculous.
Very easy to forget the in-between era of their first couple Super Bowls with TB and BB and the last couple. But this “dark era” is still quite impressive and most franchises would kill to have that stretch.
Completely unrelated topic here. Yeah, everyone loves throwbacks. Would love to see the Patriots in their original helmets. Pat Patriot started in their 2nd or 3rd season. Their first helmets had a minuteman hat with the jersey number in the middle, the curve. Always liked those a lot more.
@@brickwallblitz - Those were cool. The stripes. Pat Patriot uniforms are cool as throwbacks but when I started watching the NFL the Patriots were horrible. And the uniforms looked like they were from the local high school compared to the rest of the league. 1993 was when things began to turn around. For a lot of reasons, rebrand the uniforms was an important step to changing the culture.
The 2009 and 2010 seasons were def weird seasons for New England. The 2009 Wild Card blowout loss to the Ravens made no sense considering New England beat them in the regular season. But the 2010 season was even weirder and worse because the Pats (WITH HOMEFIELD ADVANTAGE) lost to the Jets of all teams after beating them by 42 just six weeks prior.
Not strange actually. The Jets and Ravens during those years could play great defense against the Pats. They had the talent and knew how to shut down Brady which I guess some people think isn't possible, but it is. The playoffs are just different than regular season play and these coaches always adjust game plans so one game has no affect on the next. The Pats had a lot of trouble against those Jets and Ravens, don't cherry pick one game where the Pats blew them out. The reason why the losses were not surprising is that the Pats invested in offense, but let the defense slip. When the offense was shut down by a good defense, the Pats defense was unable to win the game on their own like they could during the SB winning years. Also in 2010, Gronk and Hernandez were rookies and both were unavailable during the playoffs hurting the offense more. In 2009, the entire team was collapsing late in the season and everyone knew it. Real Pats fans expected nothing in the playoffs from those 2 teams because they knew they weren't that good regardless of the regular season record. Belichick actually cleaned house after '09 and started the rebuild for the next dynasty in '10. It took a few years before they started winning SBs again, but '10 was the start of the building.
I turn 28 next month and this (2006)is exactly when as a child I chose New England cuz my little league qb buddy liked them and I wanted to be a qb (I played online🥺) I had no clue New England would go on the run they did and they’d already won 3 super bowls before I turned 9 and really had any clue what football was about.
I wouldn't call this a Dark Age per se but many people seem to forget that for as dominant as the Patriots were, they went a decade before they won another championship
Whenever Browns, Lions, or Jets fans complain about their “suffering” I want to point them to this hell the Patriots went through. No other team in the history of sports has had it as bad as the Patriots.
i think the blunt truth is that its just really really hard to win the super bowl. Even when you're Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, arguably the gold standard for success in NFL history, its really really hard to win the super bowl, as evidenced by this 9 year gap. which is why, and ill fully admit if this ends up aging badly, but im not sure why everyone thinks the Chiefs are just gonna march through the postseason on route to Lombardi #5 with minimal suffering, there's a reason only 2 teams in NFL history ever three-peated and it hasn't happened since 1967. This isn't the NBA, it just doesn't work like that
The problem was they went away from what had worked. They became hung up on offense and turned into the Colts. They set offensive records during the season, but there were 2 issues. They didn't invest in the defense and it became unreliable. In the title winning seasons, the defense made just as many huge plays as Brady in the offense. Real Pats fans know this. It was equal and the special teams were always good. The 2nd issue is that it is much easier to dominate with offense in the regular season. In the playoffs, it was very different. The Jets and Ravens regularly dominated the Pats offense in the playoffs. Brady with all that offensive talent could not do much against the better defenses, he wasn't a miracle worker. The Giants shut them down in '07. This happened year after year. In the years that they won SBs, the defense would be there to win those games. Didn't happen in those middle years. They never should have strayed away from what had worked before. The 2 seasons for '03 and '04, they were an absolute machine. They just controlled every game, not many blowouts, but most all the games never seemed in doubt and they won almost all of them. 2 of the 4 losses they had they never should have lost. They dominated, but only lost because Brady had unusually bad games with turnovers. With Belichick and Brady together, they usually could only beat themselves. It's also sad that Kraft never wanted to spend so they mostly won on a budget. Year after year they had a lot of cap space that they would never spend. It's sad because they did let key players go in some years that they weren't able to replace until later. If Kraft wasn't so cheap they probably would have an extra title or 2.
Man 2008 is such a “what if” for Brady best roster of his career and on a revenge tour after the superbowl loss and ruined 16-0 season in 2007 and he gets hurt Week 1
I'm biased because I was growing up through this, but this was the best era of football, you had both Peyton Manning & Tom Brady at QB and you also had 4 of the best WRs ever in Jerry Jones, Terrell Owens, Randy Moss, & Chad Johnson (Ochocinco) all playing during the early 2000s, while Rice retired in 2005, the others played into the early 2010s at least. Of course you also had a bunch of other insanely good QBs during this era like Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger.
His longevity is pretty amazing. To want to play that long and be able to play that well up to 45 will probably never be equaled. It's find of funny that it ended right around 45 as I remember him going back to when he was 37 and he kept saying he wanted to play until 45. Sometimes he would say maybe longer, but he usually came back to 45. Most people didn't believe he could do it, the media certainly didn't. They kept predicting 39 would be the end for all qbs. And in the end, 45 was basically the last time the Brady could still play like Tom Brady.
6:47 Marlin jackson is from my hometown, and my dad coached him when he played midget football with my brother back in the day on the Sharon Tigers, same team i played for as a kid.
Great video. This debunks the myth that Belichick couldn’t win without Brady. Brady wasn’t all-pro until 2007 (1st team), and then they went 9 years w/o winning it all. The first wins were carried by defense. The last ones are all people dumbly remember.
The Patriots dark era had more success then probably 15 franchises. For those other 15 franchises these years would have been considered their Glory Days. That's how you know how dominant this team really was
It was a dominance that I don't think will be matched. The Chiefs are good, but for Brady and Belichick to combine for that for almost 2 decades is hard to catch. When you throw out Brady's injury season and the first year that he didn't play, Belichick and Brady had 18 seasons together. They were in 12 AFC championship games (2/3), 9 SBs (1/2) and won 6 SBs (1/3). Nice symmetry and probably unmatchable.
Lol, if the "dark" era is going to Super Bowls, Championship Games, winning the division, and always having winning seasons, then I would totally take the "dark times" any day Sincerely, A Bears Fan
As an Eagles fan I never hated Brady and the Patriots because we didn’t play them that often. Yes they beat us in SB 39 but we got revenge in SB 52. That said, I’ve always looked at the Patriots as one long dynasty instead of two different dynasty’s even though they went 10 years without winning a Super Bowl. But in those 10 years, they went to 2 Super Bowls and made 5 AFC Championship games.
It was one long dominant run led by Brady and Belichick the whole way. I do look at the 2 separate SB winning groups as 2 separate dynasties because they were largely different teams each responsible for their own dynasty. It's hard to build an NFL dynasty and Belichick was able to build 2 separate ones around Brady. Each dynasty deserves it's own space since most of the players were different.
I don’t understand why the 2005-13 Patriots seasons are considered to be part of “The Dynasty”. 9 seasons, zero championships. The Giants and Steelers each won 2 Super Bowls in that time span. Some declared the Pats dynasty “over” in 2008 when Brady tore his ACL.
Just semantics, but I would say they were 2 separate dynastic teams. But it was 2 decades of dominance because they were always led by Brady and Belichick and even during those years without a SB win, they were still a great team knocking on the door. They were a SB contender the entire time. It wasn't like they went down and had to come back up. The ACL thing has nothing to do with anything so no reason to bring it up. It was one season. The 1st SB winning dynasty ended after the 2004 season.
The “dark era” the Patriots nearly went undefeated, played in 2 Super Bowls, and made 4 AFC title games, that was the “dark era” that would be most franchises “golden age” 🤣🤣🤣
The Pats dark era was still a higher winning pct than most teams during that time period . And the pats i believe had 6 teams that hit 500 pts scored in the Brady era . They can be divided in two dynasties 2001 to 2008 and 2014 to 2020 . I will take the first dynasty over the latter .
I’d say the dark era started with the Super Bowl XLII upset. Tom Brady gets injured Week 1 ‘08 after the greatest QB season ever and the Pats end up missing the playoffs at 11-5 (Matt Cassel is goated.) 1st round exits ‘09, ‘10. PTSD ruins them in XLVI. Joe Flacco anomaly. Peyton Manning greatest QB season ever, crushing TB12’s ‘07 season, and making them their last victims of ‘13. Malcolm Butler’s interception literally saves Brady from having a career like Ben Roethlisberger. That pick set a whole new era in motion and revitalized Brady’s career. He was firmly behind Joe Montana in the GOAT debate even after the XLIX win. That one play saved the Pats from 3 straight Super Bowl losses. Look at the 49ers after 3 Super Bowl losses.
I'm glad all the comments have been sympathetic to the torture Patriots fans suffered. No fanbase should have to go through what they did in those nine seasons.
Also that's not how Reche Caldwell's first name is pronounced, that's my bad.
Such a disappointing time to be a pats fan 😂
@@brickwallblitz as a pats fan it actually did have a negative effect lol. Obviously it was the best time ever to be a fan of any NFL team, but after watching them win 3 out of 4 SBs …then watching them be so good and lose the same way in big games for 10 years…when they finally beat Seattle to break the curse I wasn’t even able to enjoy it as much cause it felt like the same thing all over again, falcons as well
Its really crazy to think that Tom has a 9 year stretch in the middle of his career with no Super bowl wins and still has 7 rings
I haven't finished but I would attribute it to after Brady was injured and had to come back. He changed his style of play. Then fast forward to about 2011 he was playing so much better and not hesitating on his ankle.
Their dark era would be most franchises in all of sports best stretch of their existence
Understatement.
@@brickwallblitzIt's funny I had literally said the same thing. Two conference championships / Super Bowl appearances. I can't remember if it was four or five appearances in the conference championship and like seven play off appearances. I'm just going off the top of my head
Underrated video
@@brickwallblitzthey were so good but I completely forgot that they won the AFC East every year but once in their so called Dark Age
@@brickwallblitznot to mention the success the Red Sox Celtics and Bruins had
@@Renegade-kf8fp - Would like to see a video on the real Patriots dark age, 1986-1992.
Ironic how their “dark age” includes what would have been the greatest season in the history of the sport if they had beat those pesky Giants
The Giants send their regards.
God bless the Giants 😁
They are such good runner ups
They were probably better in this "dark era" than in most of their Superbowl winning seasons. Brady was anyway. 2007 and 2010 were his best seasons.
Twice.
Dark era: 2 Super Bowl appearances, 5 AFC Championship appearances, 9 playoff wins, 8 division championships, 9 winning seasons, and a perfect season. I'll take that dark era any day as a Vikings fan, lol
As a Browns fan I'll take the Vikings' history any day of the week myself lol
finished with a record of 31-1 over two seasons during this “dark era”
Bruh, it don’t matter who you’re a fan of you’re going to be content with a stretch like that ESPECIALLY if it’s surrounded by Super Bowl wins lmao
My teams glory years dont even measure half the success of the dark ages.
@@egirlegirlegirl Where did they go 31-1 over 2 seasons. They went 16-0 regular season 2007. But in 2006 they went 12-4 and in 2008 they went 11-5. If they went 31-1 over 2 seasons in the middle of 2005 to 2013, they would have had to go 15-1 in 2006 or 2008 which they did not. They were great but I do not recall a 15-1 season sandwiched next to that perfect 16-0 regular season.
Brady’s dark ages was just Philip Rivers’ career but for nine years instead of fifteen
😭
Broooo 💀
You can take the Chargers out of San Diego, but you can't take the San Diego out of the Chargers
Except with 2 Super Bowl appearances and 2 MVPs, it’s more like Marino’s career actually.
Fr I’m from San Diego and I can tell you all about the chargering I’ve witnessed in my 27 years
The man who was burned the worst in this dark era: Logan Mankins. Joined the patriots the season after the Super Bowl 39 victory and left before the season of the Super Bowl 49 victory.
Agreed one of my favorite Patriot players that unfortunately never won a championship hopefully he goes to the Patriots hof and maybe canton as well
Well remember not before, he was traded in 2014 which makes it even more painful
Theres no amount of money teams wouldnt pay for a "dark era" like the patriots had from 2005-2013. Going to the playoffs every year except 2008, going to 2 super bowls and a perfect regular season.
But that's like the Cubs World Series drought for Boston Sports fans
@@brickwallblitzWe had an 86 year World Series drought man don’t act like our fans never suffered 😂
EXACTLY !
In 2008, they still managed to go 11-5, just missing the playoffs on a tiebreaker with Miami.
My favorite team hasn’t won 11 games in a season since 1991! 😤😤
That year Brady got hurt had he not gotten hurt I 100% bet you they would have won the super bowl that year instead of the Steelers after all that same team came very close to making the playoff but they lost their start quarterback to injury Steelers would have never made it had Brady been able to play that whole season
In the dark era, the other three Boston teams won at least one championship.
interesting how the dynasty was very front-loaded and back-loaded in terms of super bowls won
They are two separate dynasties Brady and Belichick are the only linkage. The defense of the first dynasty was old and gone after 07-08 and they rebuilt and developed into a new championship core. The secondary from 09-13 was horrible.. when they got Talib and then turned Talib into Revis was when the defense got back to being championship level.
@@waynetables6414Wilfork is the only Patriot besides Brady who has a ring in both “eras”! He was a rookie in 04
@@Sully0020 yeah it’s cool that his first and last year in NE were SBs
Five AFC Championship games, two Super Bowl appearances, nine consecutive winning seasons with eight playoff berths. Literally any other team in the game, it’d be the greatest run in their history.
As a GIants fan who was friends with an obnoxious Patriots fan since '03, this was my favorite era.
you could have just said Patriots fan, obnoxious is understood
The ironic thing about this era was individually Tom Brady was at the peak of his powers it’s just things didn’t fall in his favour due to luck and the Patriots having some suspect defense during that era especially in 2010-2013 where they were a bottom 5 pass defense almost every season (and had the second worst pass defense ever in 2011)
@@stealthiscool who would’ve thought Brees of all QBs had a better defense than Brady/Rodgers that year
Though he won his two mvps in this era, I think you could argue that Brady’s peak was 2014-2017
2007 was his physical peak for sure
@@brickwallblitz well im sure tom brady could suck it up losing due to "luck" because unlike the fans he didnt make any excuses and he kept pushing to keep winning lol, im sure there was no "luck" involved when he was winning... (tuck rule, vinateri savior, seahawks interception, the whole 2020 playoffs lol)
The problem was they tried to turn into the Colts. They invested year after year into offense while letting the defense slip. They set offensive records, but they couldn't win that way in the postseason. The defense was allowed to slip by not investing, and it was proved that you cannot win in the playoffs on offense and Brady alone. Look at those losses. The Jets and the Ravens were able to shut down that offense. The Giants did it in '07. Brady with all those weapons could not go out and win playoff games on their own. Brady needed a good defense to do just as much. This on its own is proof that no qb can just win titles on their own. It's always been nonsense. Just look at those Patriots team offense in the playoffs and compare it to the regular season. They didn't look the same against quality clubs. Winning titles is all that matters, not regular season scoring records.
The Dark era where they went to three conference championship games and two Super Bowls
wes welker had the most unfortunate career not winning a title with manning or brady.
That's not a dark age, is it?
One thing to point out Matt cassel first start for New England was his first start since HIGHSCHOOL
At that time, Cassell and the Pats became the second team in history to miss the playoffs with an 11-win season. Brady returns the following year, and the Pats get 10 wins, and they make the playoffs.
You can thank The Manning Brothers and Joe Flacco (for some reason) for causing this dark age, they combined to thwart the Patriots 6 of their 8 playoff runs during that time period
Nah, it was really the Pats letting the defense slip. They put too much into offense trying to set records. If they had stayed balanced like before and after, they would have had a middle dynasty too.
The 2011 team is still my favorite Patriots offense of all time! It just sucks they couldn't finish it off AGAIN
These types of videos that bring up the Giants haunt me as a Patriots fan. Its really really hard to watch.
2005-2013 was the era where they didn’t win a Super Bowl.
They were still a top playoff team and went undefeated 18-0 and losing the superbowl. Also went to another bowl game.
Just goes to show you how good he was. His dark age would have put him in the HOf.
He? Belichick was just as much responsible. No qb has that much control, only a moron would suggest it. Brady had nothing to do with the defense, special teams and the lack of team wide mistakes. He also didn't draft and develop himself and put himself in over Bledsoe who many considered an irreplaceable star. He also didn't continue to keep himself in in 2014 when the media was calling for the 37 year old Brady to be replaced. Without Belichick, none of this happens.
Ironically this was Brady in his actual physical prime. People don’t remember but back then he had a strong ass arm
It is interesting how they went 10 years without a championship at one point
9*
You make awesome videos man
As a Ravens fan, I'll always cherish the battles we had with them and the mutual respect between the teams. Especially between Ed, Ray, Suggs, Tom & Bill
I have to say that the Ravens played them the toughest during those years. The Steelers were pushovers and the Colts usually were too. The Ravens played the best defense and gave the Pats the toughest time consistently. They knew how to play defense against the Pats while most teams had no clue.
I didn’t realize this until I watched your video but during this period they made trips and lost two super bowls. What I find impressive is that’s usually when the problems begin. We saw it with the falcons in 2016. It’s basically a dynasty-ender… teams start losing, coaches get fired, etc. but the patriots kept winning, kept going, and got back to the promised land in 2014.
@@BigCon4700 that’s what happens when you have a coach that’s constantly innovating and a QB that’s constantly adapting to changes in the NFL.
Beard Long hair Brady was a beast in that era that wasnt talked about.
I love how this channel brings up the unsung hero's of dead eras. Id'e love to see a video on every teams tops unsung Hero of their dead eras.
Very well made video. Looking forward to the next ones
Dark Era:
- 2 Super Bowl trips
- 6 AFC Championship games
- 8 division titles
- 112 wins
- Two Brady MVPs, one Unanimous
- 07 undefeated regular season
- Two coach of the years for Belichick
So, so dark 😢😢😢
@@JS-sv3fk I don’t know how the fans did it.
As a Bears fan, I’d give up a lot for that 😂
I’m glad patriots fans were finally rewarded after sticking it out through those 9 miserable seasons with 119 regular season and playoff wins.
As a Bears fan I can relate to the cold weather you guys endure up in Boston too.
Oh I'm from Cleveland and I'm a Browns fan. But in that case the cold weather point still stands.
It was tough, but somehow we persevered. I will say, the lowest point was probably when the Seahawks got that lucky catch and it looked like the Pats were about to lose another tough SB game. It had been 10 years since winning and it looked like we were being kicked in the teeth again. But then Malcolm Butler makes an unbelievable play and everything turned around. In the end, just got to give Belichick and Brady all the credit because they are the ones that made it possible. We were just lucky to witness it.
You know you’re the goat when your “dark era” consists of the 2nd greatest QB season ever and constant playoff success
Wes was a lethal player for Miami…Even with the likes of Joey Harrington.
2 mvps and 2 sb appearances in the dark era.
Aka the “good times” for about 28 other franchises
Bob Kraft is the worst ownership in professional sports. The patriots won in spite of Bob Kraft not because of him. He’s the cheapest owner in the NFL.
Al Davis and Mike Brown have something to say
Probably would have won more if Kraft would have spent. It's too bad. They probably led the league in cap space during those years.
@@stickman1742 it’s not Kraft not wanting to spend its Tom wanting to win and Bill taking advantage to get people on the cheap. Krafts billions can afford him a cowboys like roster in terms of money.
But during that decade long SB drought(The Dark Era), Tom Brady led his team to the most wins, won 2 MVPs, 8 probowls, 3x all pro, 2x OPOY, CPOY, went to five AFC Championship games, and 2 Superbowls(one being an undefeated season).
124-29 record including the playoffs (81% winning percentage) 🐐
Peyton Manning had the second best record 121-39 record including the playoffs (76% winning percentage) during that decade long SB drought for Brady.
I agree! This is the era of the Patriots that nobody ever really talks about. To me this is always been the most interesting part of their dynasty.
They turned into the Colts for some reason, great scoring success during regular season and not much playoff success. Should have just stayed the Patriots by being balanced. When they went back to that, they won 3 more SBs.
I love it, always love these extended deep dives into brady and the patriots.
One problem though, you can't say COUNTLESS and then flash the number 9 on screen. We counted bro. 🤣
If Tom Brady is the goat does that make a goat the Tom Brady
Indeed
Thank you. Thought I was the only one who wondered this
99% of the franchises would kill for Toms “ dark” period. Went to two Super Bowls. Undefeated season
Really cool editing and audio in this.
I started watching the pats in 2008 and I been a fan ever since. The dark years is what made me love them
These "dark age" teams were BETTER than all the SB winning teams besides 03 & 04.
Only difference was the league didn't have dumbass teams like Seattle & Atlanta handing them super bowls by pure foolishness.
That's just wrong. The later dynasty was better because it was a complete team. The middle years weren't as good on defense.
Those early Pats teams had elite defense
Their " Dark ages " are nine straight 10+ win seasons , 8 division titles , 5 AFC title games , 2 super bowl appearances, a 16-0 season , Tom Brady won 2 MVPS , Welker catching 100+ balls every year , and a lot of other success , Crazy that's " Dark" for them
I’m a Dolphins fan. I’ll always say it: the 2007 Patriots is the greatest pro football team I’ve ever seen. They had college level dominance in the pros. Even in the Super Bowl, the Giants played it perfectly. Keep the ball away from them, hit Brady, don’t make any mistakes and even THEN the Patriots took the lead late and were a dropped Asante Samuel INT or a helmet catch away from 19-0. I’m eternally grateful for the Giants though!
The 2001 Canes would beat the 07 Pats and I'll go to my grave saying so. 2001 Miami Hurricanes are the greatest football team to ever step on the field.
@@maplebear6527 The 2001 Hurricanes would lose to the 0-16 Lions big difference pro vs college
@@davis2k1234 Normally yes, but look at the 2001 Canes roster. Shockey, Winslow, Reed, Buchanan, McGahee, Portis, Gore, Reggie Wayne, Santana Moss, Wilfork, DJ Williams, Jonathan Vilma...Yeah they are whooping the 07 Pats. Even with Ken Dorsey at QB.
@@maplebear6527 meds
Maybe they would’ve beat the worst pro team if they were lucky but no way in hell any collegiate team is beating the 07 patriots
This is why as a Patriots fan Super Bowl XLIX will always be my favorite of the first 6. We lost a perfect season, revenge against the team that cost us a perfect season, got our doors blown off at home by the God damned Jets AND then the fucking Ravens TWICE, and allowed Seyton Manning to get a ring by blowing an 18 point lead in the AFC Championship game.
It’s hilarious how you just didn’t acknowledge Aaron Hernandez’s existence in the 2010-12 teams. And nobody blames you at all.
Bursted laughing at “censored”
@@unclebenandcrackaI had to rewind the censored part like 5 times lmfaoo
I became a fan during the Patriot dark ages. They were incredibly fear-inducing. No team looked at the Pats and brushed them off. They were consistently great, even if they weren’t winning superbowls between those years. They were a true force by still making constant AFC championships, having a 16-0 season, going to 2 Super Bowls, having great offensive statistics and the best turnover margin in the entire league. The Dark Ages are what a majority of the NFL wishes they could have.
We back and bricked up baby!!
love the vids
I pray for your stomach
this was so heartbreaking :(
As a pats fan those two super bowl losses to the giants are as memorable as our 28 - 3 super bowl win.
The dark era? As in 2 Superbowl appearances , countless AFC championship games , an undefeated season. Those dark years saw more success than most franchises. After 6 years without Brady I'ld gladly go back to those dark years haha
It was tough in a sense we couldn’t get over the hump but as a kid I always enjoyed having a top 5 team almost every year
Honestly as a young Pats fan during this run, it was tough because I always saw my team get so close but couldn’t close the deal. I was devastated after 07 and I remember watching every playoff game after. Losing to the Jets and those Ravens teams hurt man
Still crazy to think Cassel hadn't started a game since HS at that point
i became an nfl fan following the 07 18-1 season hoping that they pull it off lol. These years made those last couple feel all the better in hindsight.
Bandwagon
If you ask me, the dark era began Week 1 of the 2007 season because that was when Spygate occurred. Until 2013 after that, people would always say the Patriots haven’t won a championship since being caught cheating.
Except that spygate was always bullshit that only idiot losers hold on to. In 2006, the Pats kicked a Jets cameraman out of Foxboro for filming where he wasn't supposed to. This shit happens all the time. The next year, the Jets did the same thing to the Pats in NY, the only difference is that the babies brought the camera down the street to the commissioner's office to turn it into a federal complaint. Teams would never do these things, but the Jets did. This forced the NFL to treat it like a big deal. Throw in ESPN looking for ratings acting stupid about it and it get a bunch of crazed loser fans around the country crying bloody murder. Many probably didn't know that the next week, the Ravens filed a complaint against the Jets. It was another team doing that to the Jets as payback for being whiny losers and running to the mummy. Of course, no one and ESPN wouldn't care about Raven's complaint. It was always the media stoking the flames to get ratings from stupid football fans tired of always losing to the Patriots. Only deflategate was more ridiculous.
I very much enjoyed the Patriots Dark era and "No fanbase should have to go through" is funny. Somebody play the small violin🎻
Very easy to forget the in-between era of their first couple Super Bowls with TB and BB and the last couple. But this “dark era” is still quite impressive and most franchises would kill to have that stretch.
I’ll take any of those seasons every 10 as a bears fan😔
You gotta fight and find a temporary bandwagon team to root for until the Bears get it together, don't submit to suffering!
I grew up a patriots fan but never watched a full season till 2007. It was dark times indeed but I enjoyed the ride 😂
Completely unrelated topic here. Yeah, everyone loves throwbacks. Would love to see the Patriots in their original helmets. Pat Patriot started in their 2nd or 3rd season. Their first helmets had a minuteman hat with the jersey number in the middle, the curve. Always liked those a lot more.
@@jpmnky I’m partial to the blue uniforms they had in the 90s, those were kinda cool too.
They probably should use it for a throwback game, but can't say I like it as much as Pat Patriot which I think is their best logo and helmet.
@@brickwallblitz - Those were cool. The stripes. Pat Patriot uniforms are cool as throwbacks but when I started watching the NFL the Patriots were horrible. And the uniforms looked like they were from the local high school compared to the rest of the league. 1993 was when things began to turn around. For a lot of reasons, rebrand the uniforms was an important step to changing the culture.
Even as a pats fan this was a great time for me honestly. We were a top 5 team almost every year and were genuine contenders
15:43 third guy on this list is a killer TE
2007 18-0 team w Moss was the best of the two-decade dynasty. albeit they lost the championship to finish 18-1
As a pats fan, I’d take those “dark days” over what we’ve had lately
Their 'dark era' is better than what most franchise's have had for success in their entire history.
This “dark era” has more accomplishments than the entire panthers and jaguars franchises 😭
And Alot More Other Teams !
The 2009 and 2010 seasons were def weird seasons for New England. The 2009 Wild Card blowout loss to the Ravens made no sense considering New England beat them in the regular season. But the 2010 season was even weirder and worse because the Pats (WITH HOMEFIELD ADVANTAGE) lost to the Jets of all teams after beating them by 42 just six weeks prior.
Not strange actually. The Jets and Ravens during those years could play great defense against the Pats. They had the talent and knew how to shut down Brady which I guess some people think isn't possible, but it is. The playoffs are just different than regular season play and these coaches always adjust game plans so one game has no affect on the next. The Pats had a lot of trouble against those Jets and Ravens, don't cherry pick one game where the Pats blew them out.
The reason why the losses were not surprising is that the Pats invested in offense, but let the defense slip. When the offense was shut down by a good defense, the Pats defense was unable to win the game on their own like they could during the SB winning years. Also in 2010, Gronk and Hernandez were rookies and both were unavailable during the playoffs hurting the offense more. In 2009, the entire team was collapsing late in the season and everyone knew it. Real Pats fans expected nothing in the playoffs from those 2 teams because they knew they weren't that good regardless of the regular season record. Belichick actually cleaned house after '09 and started the rebuild for the next dynasty in '10. It took a few years before they started winning SBs again, but '10 was the start of the building.
I turn 28 next month and this (2006)is exactly when as a child I chose New England cuz my little league qb buddy liked them and I wanted to be a qb (I played online🥺) I had no clue New England would go on the run they did and they’d already won 3 super bowls before I turned 9 and really had any clue what football was about.
I wouldn't call this a Dark Age per se but many people seem to forget that for as dominant as the Patriots were, they went a decade before they won another championship
The dark era apparently includes winning tons of games and two Super Bowl appearances. Are you fucking kidding me?
And a 16-0 season..
That's how good both Belichick and Brady were.
Whenever Browns, Lions, or Jets fans complain about their “suffering” I want to point them to this hell the Patriots went through. No other team in the history of sports has had it as bad as the Patriots.
i think the blunt truth is that its just really really hard to win the super bowl. Even when you're Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, arguably the gold standard for success in NFL history, its really really hard to win the super bowl, as evidenced by this 9 year gap. which is why, and ill fully admit if this ends up aging badly, but im not sure why everyone thinks the Chiefs are just gonna march through the postseason on route to Lombardi #5 with minimal suffering, there's a reason only 2 teams in NFL history ever three-peated and it hasn't happened since 1967. This isn't the NBA, it just doesn't work like that
The problem was they went away from what had worked. They became hung up on offense and turned into the Colts. They set offensive records during the season, but there were 2 issues. They didn't invest in the defense and it became unreliable. In the title winning seasons, the defense made just as many huge plays as Brady in the offense. Real Pats fans know this. It was equal and the special teams were always good.
The 2nd issue is that it is much easier to dominate with offense in the regular season. In the playoffs, it was very different. The Jets and Ravens regularly dominated the Pats offense in the playoffs. Brady with all that offensive talent could not do much against the better defenses, he wasn't a miracle worker. The Giants shut them down in '07. This happened year after year. In the years that they won SBs, the defense would be there to win those games. Didn't happen in those middle years. They never should have strayed away from what had worked before. The 2 seasons for '03 and '04, they were an absolute machine. They just controlled every game, not many blowouts, but most all the games never seemed in doubt and they won almost all of them. 2 of the 4 losses they had they never should have lost. They dominated, but only lost because Brady had unusually bad games with turnovers.
With Belichick and Brady together, they usually could only beat themselves. It's also sad that Kraft never wanted to spend so they mostly won on a budget. Year after year they had a lot of cap space that they would never spend. It's sad because they did let key players go in some years that they weren't able to replace until later. If Kraft wasn't so cheap they probably would have an extra title or 2.
The real dark era is now 2020-??
Man 2008 is such a “what if” for Brady best roster of his career and on a revenge tour after the superbowl loss and ruined 16-0 season in 2007 and he gets hurt Week 1
I'm biased because I was growing up through this, but this was the best era of football, you had both Peyton Manning & Tom Brady at QB and you also had 4 of the best WRs ever in Jerry Jones, Terrell Owens, Randy Moss, & Chad Johnson (Ochocinco) all playing during the early 2000s, while Rice retired in 2005, the others played into the early 2010s at least. Of course you also had a bunch of other insanely good QBs during this era like Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger.
As the second biggest Brady hater of all time (behind Barry McCockiner of course) I clicked on this video so fast
Thank you 🫡
Aaron Hernandez being blurred out is too funny
Meanwhile in the off the field moments of this era : Tom Brady dumped his girlfriend for his now-Ex wife only to find out she's pregnant months later.
Brandy was going to be a hall of Famer with the three Superbowl titles alone! The fact that he won four more after 2013 is insane!
His longevity is pretty amazing. To want to play that long and be able to play that well up to 45 will probably never be equaled. It's find of funny that it ended right around 45 as I remember him going back to when he was 37 and he kept saying he wanted to play until 45. Sometimes he would say maybe longer, but he usually came back to 45. Most people didn't believe he could do it, the media certainly didn't. They kept predicting 39 would be the end for all qbs. And in the end, 45 was basically the last time the Brady could still play like Tom Brady.
@stickman1742 Yeah I agree to play into you're mid 40s is probably something we won't see again
This Dark Age, people really though Brady was going retire after every down season. So blessed get Brady to stay healthy and get another 4 rings.
As a Pats fan it was absolute torture
6:47 Marlin jackson is from my hometown, and my dad coached him when he played midget football with my brother back in the day on the Sharon Tigers, same team i played for as a kid.
Great video. This debunks the myth that Belichick couldn’t win without Brady. Brady wasn’t all-pro until 2007 (1st team), and then they went 9 years w/o winning it all. The first wins were carried by defense. The last ones are all people dumbly remember.
Remind me what was belichick record for the browns and what he has done since letting tom go??
@@Mayute2002Brady was a system qb in the first 3 championships, his last 3 with New England made him the goat
@@Shawn.Mathew do people all forget the 2nd super bowl win against the panthers was a shootout and that he threw for 354 yards and 3 tds
@ wow he had one good game, now why didn’t he have those numbers in the regular season 😂
@@Shawn.Mathew lmaoo quit acting like he wasnt putting number up relative to that time, and last time i checked the post season is when it matters 😂
The Patriots dark era had more success then probably 15 franchises. For those other 15 franchises these years would have been considered their Glory Days. That's how you know how dominant this team really was
It was a dominance that I don't think will be matched. The Chiefs are good, but for Brady and Belichick to combine for that for almost 2 decades is hard to catch. When you throw out Brady's injury season and the first year that he didn't play, Belichick and Brady had 18 seasons together. They were in 12 AFC championship games (2/3), 9 SBs (1/2) and won 6 SBs (1/3). Nice symmetry and probably unmatchable.
Lol, if the "dark" era is going to Super Bowls, Championship Games, winning the division, and always having winning seasons, then I would totally take the "dark times" any day
Sincerely, A Bears Fan
Big shout out to Bill he helped Giants win 4 SB
2
@graysonpitman8959 4
I get it 😅
@graysonpitman8959 4 he was the defensive coach for the Giants in 86 and 90
I’d take this “dark” era again over the current Patriots era 😭
As an Eagles fan I never hated Brady and the Patriots because we didn’t play them that often. Yes they beat us in SB 39 but we got revenge in SB 52. That said, I’ve always looked at the Patriots as one long dynasty instead of two different dynasty’s even though they went 10 years without winning a Super Bowl. But in those 10 years, they went to 2 Super Bowls and made 5 AFC Championship games.
It was one long dominant run led by Brady and Belichick the whole way. I do look at the 2 separate SB winning groups as 2 separate dynasties because they were largely different teams each responsible for their own dynasty. It's hard to build an NFL dynasty and Belichick was able to build 2 separate ones around Brady. Each dynasty deserves it's own space since most of the players were different.
It is wild to think that Tom Brady's, "dark era", still was better than most NFL franchises, "golden eras"
Well you mean the Belichick and Brady era. There is no Pat's dynasty without Belichick.
I don’t understand why the 2005-13 Patriots seasons are considered to be part of “The Dynasty”. 9 seasons, zero championships. The Giants and Steelers each won 2 Super Bowls in that time span. Some declared the Pats dynasty “over” in 2008 when Brady tore his ACL.
Just semantics, but I would say they were 2 separate dynastic teams. But it was 2 decades of dominance because they were always led by Brady and Belichick and even during those years without a SB win, they were still a great team knocking on the door. They were a SB contender the entire time. It wasn't like they went down and had to come back up.
The ACL thing has nothing to do with anything so no reason to bring it up. It was one season. The 1st SB winning dynasty ended after the 2004 season.
Lol "resh caldwell". Come on man.
The “dark era” the Patriots nearly went undefeated, played in 2 Super Bowls, and made 4 AFC title games, that was the “dark era” that would be most franchises “golden age” 🤣🤣🤣
The dark era meaning ZERO Super Bowls. For Brady that is a dark era for him.
We’re on to Cincinnati ❤
2007 season, by far, was the greatest team I have ever seen in my 60 years. Possible tie would be the 85 bears.
The Pats dark era was still a higher winning pct than most teams during that time period . And the pats i believe had 6 teams that hit 500 pts scored in the Brady era . They can be divided in two dynasties 2001 to 2008 and 2014 to 2020 . I will take the first dynasty over the latter .
I'd say 2 decades of dominant play, with 2 dynasties: 2001-2004 and 2014-2108. 3 SBs in 4 years, 3 SBs in 5 years, those are your dynasties.
You should have talked a little bit about the game against the titans
Those 09 red thorwback jerseys 😍😍😍
@14:19 should Tom Brady win comeback player of the year by 2009? Maybe we didn’t know he would be playing a playoff game at age 45…
“To Boston fans this is a 52 year drought” yes yes it is -pats fan in pain
I’d say the dark era started with the Super Bowl XLII upset. Tom Brady gets injured Week 1 ‘08 after the greatest QB season ever and the Pats end up missing the playoffs at 11-5 (Matt Cassel is goated.)
1st round exits ‘09, ‘10.
PTSD ruins them in XLVI.
Joe Flacco anomaly.
Peyton Manning greatest QB season ever, crushing TB12’s ‘07 season, and making them their last victims of ‘13.
Malcolm Butler’s interception literally saves Brady from having a career like Ben Roethlisberger. That pick set a whole new era in motion and revitalized Brady’s career. He was firmly behind Joe Montana in the GOAT debate even after the XLIX win. That one play saved the Pats from 3 straight Super Bowl losses. Look at the 49ers after 3 Super Bowl losses.