NFL Betting Online: The New England Patriots suffered a big loss when quarterback Tom Brady accepted his four-game suspension to start the season resulting from the Deflategate controversy. Even though the team’s star quarterback will be out, the Patriots are expected to stay afloat for the first quarter of the season. Once Brady returns, New England should once again ascend to one of the best teams in the NFL and challenge for the Super Bowl crown. With a team talented on both sides of the ball, it’s easy to see why the Patriots are heavy -500 favorites to make the playoffs. Those who think the suspension could affect that shot will get paid out at +350 if the Patriots miss the postseason in NFL betting.
The Patriots went 12-4 a season ago despite getting racked by injuries and made it to the AFC Championship game. The Denver pass rush was too hot to handle and New England fell in that game by a score of 20-18. Despite that, the numbers for the season were impressive. The Patriots averaged 29.1 points on the year despite missing key offensive skill players like Julian Edelman and Dion Lewis for big chunks of the year. Brady finished throwing for 4,770 yards with 36 touchdowns against only seven interceptions, a standout performance even at the age of 38. Even though Brady’s career is unquestionably coming to a close, he continues to put up numbers at an extremely high level, and few are expected any type of dropoff this season. Tight end Rob Gronkowski is back as his main weapon after catching 72 passes for 1,176 yards and 11 touchdowns a year ago. Edelman is another standout while Lewis hopes to be back to his electric self but is coming off an ACL tear. The Patriots will count on backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in the first four games, where the offense could have its troubles, but if they can manage a 2-2 record it will be fine once Brady returns.
While the offense gets most of the publicity, the Patriots defense was impressive a year ago. It allowed 19.7 points per game, which was 10th in the NFL. Linebacker Jamie Collins made the Pro Bowl by accumulating 89 tackles, five forced fumbles and 5.5 sacks while Malcolm Butler proved himself to be a shutdown cornerback. Chandler Jones led the team in sacks with 12.5 and added four forced fumbles, but he was traded away to the Cardinals in the offseason for guard Jonathan Cooper and a second-round draft pick. The Patriots feel like Jabaal Sheard and other defensive ends have plenty of talent to adequately replace Jones, who was going to be too expensive to keep in ensuing seasons.
The Patriots have made a few big acquisitions in the offseason. They added tight end Martellus Bennett to complement Gronkowksi, and defensive end Chris Long was picked up to aid the pass rush. The Patriots didn’t need to make a ton of changes following last season because the team was so good, but hope the tinkering will result in a Super Bowl in 2016. Even without Brady for four games to start the year, it would be a massive upset if the Patriots missed out on the playoffs this year in NFL betting.
Access live betting lines from your mobile device at BookMaker sportsbook for the New England Patriots, who must bear the loss of star quarterback Tom Brady for four weeks but should still be in good shape behind Julian Edelman, Rob Gronkowski, Dion Lewis and Jamie Collins! You can wager on sporting events as they unfold on television with BookMaker’s live betting platform. Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here so start betting with BookMaker today!
