Patriots Ranked 17th in PFN's Power Rankings -

The New England Patriots were placed at No. 17 in Pro Football Network’s latest power rankings for the summer.

“Opinions on the formerly dynastic New England Patriots seem to vary greatly throughout the vast wilderness that is football content. There were contentions in our roundtable about where to place them. There is optimism surrounding Cam Newton heading into 2021, but the weapons in New England still underwhelm, despite owning a seemingly infinite number of viable tight ends.

The truth is, placing them any lower than this seems like a dangerous bet to place against whom many believe is the greatest NFL coach to ever live in Bill Belichick. We also shan’t forget that the Patriots suffered significant losses to their defense last year through COVID-19 opt-outs. And despite the poor QB play and gutted defense, the team still won seven games. It will be interesting to see if they insert rookie quarterback Mac Jones into the mix in 2021.

Dalton Miller, the author of the article, has the Patriots at No. 17, which is just ahead of their division rival, Miami Dolphins at No. 18 in the league. Interestingly enough, Miller ranked these two AFC East teams as teams that have a realistic shot to contend for their division. Miller also ranked the Buffalo Bills at No. 3, which I would personally predict as the AFC East division winners in 2021.

Belichick continues to show optimism regarding Newton’s ability. In fact, in a press conference back in May, he couldn’t help but toot Newton’s horn.

“Cam’s been here all the way through,” Belichick said. “He was here at the beginning and has been a consistent participant, continues to give us the usual leadership and energy that he brings to the field and to the workouts and to practice. So Cam’s very professional and I’m sure that he’ll continue to work hard and do his best out there like he’s always done for us. It’s never been anything but that from the day he got here.”

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Newton underwent a historically bad season in 2020. He threw a career-worst eight touchdown passes, and a career-worst 2,657 passing yards.

The Patriot’s defense should be a top-10 unit with upside. The team is looking for players like Kyle Dugger and Josh Uche to make the famous second-year jump. Veteran linebacker Dont’a Hightower should be back to old form. After opting out in 2020, Hightower will surely help solidify the inside linebacker position. Dugger projects as a starting-caliber defender in 2021. We also can’t forget the Patriot’s big free agency signing on the defensive side of the ball, Matt Judon. The outside linebacker has been one of the best in the NFL since entering the league with the Baltimore Ravens in 2016. Judon is a two-time pro bowler.

On offense, the Patriots lost Julian Edelman to retirement. They did add some solid pass catchers in the offseason. Both Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith should provide excellent production at the tight end position. The question still remains whether or not New England has enough talent at wide receiver.

But again, this ranking all comes down to how the quarterback play looks. If Newton or Jones can take control of this team and win football games, then the ranking will look very low by the end of the 2021 season.

–Kevin Tame Jr. is a Staff Writer for Full Press Coverage Sports Media and covers the New England Patriots. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Tame