Don’t look now, but the New England Patriots are alive and well heading into the playoffs after they clinched their 13th bye since 2001 yesterday!
Think about that: three times they’ve played on Wild Card Weekend, two times they’ve missed the playoffs (including 2008, when Tom Brady tore his ACL), and 13 times they’ve gotten the bye. Those numbers are insane. Here’s something even better: 12 out of those 13 times, they’ve made the AFC Championship Game, and 8 out of the 13 times they’ve made the Super Bowl.
I’m sure people will tell you that it’s just the Jets.