Patriots quarterback Cam Newton talks mindset as team remains in playoff hunt

By Ty Anderson, 985TheSportsHub.com

Cam Newton and the New England Patriots simply refuse to die.

Left for dead at 2-5 after what we all figured would be a season-altering loss to the Buffalo Bills, the Patriots have since rallied back with victories in four of their last five games. Sunday may have been their best work to date, too, with a 60-minute, three-phase domination shutout victory over the Los Angeles Chargers.

This really was the Patriots at their best. They pummeled the Chargers with a 13-play, 7:10 touchdown drive to begin the afternoon, and closed their first half with a 16-play, 5:41 drive. Both were capped by Newton smashes over the goal line.

"It was the right way we wanted to start the game and we had that as a key to victory this week," Newton, who threw for 69 yards and rushed for 48 yards and totaled three scores (two rushing, one passing), said. “Be the hammer, not the nail.”

In addition to Newton doing what was necessary to win, the Patriots created another 14 points on special teams thanks to a Gunner Olszewski punt return touchdown and Devin McCourty scoop-and-score after a blocked field goal, while their defense came up with a pair of interceptions and buried rookie quarterback Justin Herbert for three sacks. Even backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham got in on the action with some garbage-time fun by way of a 38-yard touchdown to Olszewski.

It was the kind of effort you'd expect out of a team knowing every single play counts when it comes to their playoff fate.

"We understand what position we are in," Newton admitted. "Everything is pretty much in front of us."

Newton's not wrong.

Back even at 6-6, the Patriots find themselves two games behind the Titans for the seven seed in the AFC playoff picture and are two and a half games behind the Bills for first place in the AFC East. That's not insurmountable. It's also worth mentioning that another COVID outbreak and canceled game as a result will see the NFL expand their playoff field from seven to eight. So, while they're not playoff favorites (PlayoffStatus.com gives them a 10 percent chance), their headstone remains without a date of death.

Now, the real problem has been the Patriots' inability to make up a ton of ground on those teams in front of them.

The Jets out-Jets'd themselves Sunday to give the Raiders a victory on the final play of the game, the Colts took care of business against the Texans, and the Dolphins scored 19 unanswered points in a 19-7 win over the Bengals. We'll have to wait and see what happens with the division-leading Bills (playing the 49ers on Monday) and nine-seed Ravens (playing Dallas later this week), but as of right now, the only help the Patriots received Sunday was in the form of a Browns win over the Titans. (Not a ton of help when the Browns are also among the group of teams in front of you.)

But the Patriots close out their season with games against two of the teams in front of them (the Bills and Dolphins) and the league's only winless squad. Feels like there's a pretty good chance that Manish Mehta will get the start for the Jet in that one in an attempt to truly put the exclamation on the suckiest season to ever suck in the name of Trevor Lawrence and the Patriots played admirably in both of their prior 2020 head-to-heads with the Bills and Dolphins.

That make-or-break run, however, starts with a short-rest meeting with the Los Angeles Rams later this week.

And that's the most perfect 'one game at a time' stretch run you'll see in 2020, honestly.

"We just have to understand that we have to take it one game at a time," Newton confirmed. "We just gotta really hone in and focus on the opponent we face that week and maximize each and every opportunity we have in front of us.

"I think if we keep that going on, we’ll be in good graces."

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