The New England Patriots cruised to a 13-3 record on their way to the AFC's top seed, but Tim Britton of the Providence Journal uncovered a disquieting fact for Pats fans: the team only played two games against franchises that finished with winning records, and lost them both -- to the Steelers in Pittsburgh and at home against the Giants.
Fun Fact: The New England Patriots Went 13-3 Without Beating A Winning Team
While it would be easy to jump to conclusions about the Patriots’ postseason chances -- every Super Bowl winner since 2000 has played at least five winning teams during the regular season -- this is more a quirk of scheduling than a guaranteed predictor. All but two of the Pats’ games came against opponents in the AFC East, AFC West, and NFC East; discounting the Pats, those divisions produced only one team over .500 (the 9-7 Giants).
A soft schedule does not necessarily spell doom, however: the 1999 Rams played just one game against a winning team during the regular season, a loss to the Titans that they avenged in the Super Bowl. If I were a Pats fan, I'd be more concerned about the team's porous defense than their strength of schedule.
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