TAMPA, Fla. — Back on Feb. 3, 2019, Tom Brady and Bill Belichick won the last of their six Super Bowls with the New England Patriots, beating the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 in Atlanta. The once-proud franchise hasn't won a playoff game since, going on close to seven years now.

During that time, the Patriots have fired Belichick, hired and then fired Jerrod Mayo after one year as a head coach, and then hired former Patriot Mike Vrabel earlier his year. He had great success as a coach with the Tennessee Titans, though it went a little sideways at the end of the 2023 season.

But Vrabel has made an immediate impact on this Patriots team. He has a system, he brings culture, and he hires good assistants. They're doing it right, posting an 8-2 record thus far, and it shows. They've won seven games in a row, including an impressive 28-23 win here in Tampa last Sunday.

The Patriots are back, baby. And so are their fans. It's been a long, hard road from the glory days, and they all feel like this 2025 team can contend again for titles.

There are all sorts of New England transplants in Florida, and it seemed like all of them showed up on Sunday,  taking over Raymond James Stadium. There were, without question, more Patriots fans in the building than there were Bucs fans.

They got loud when they needed to, and they enjoyed all the big plays the Patriots broke out. And at the end, the MVP chants were all directed at quarterback Drake Maye, who's having a breakout season.

The Patriots have Vrabel to thank for that. They crushed the offseason, had a good draft and the Josh McDaniels/Drake Maye combination has been terrific.

Maye leads all NFL quarterbacks with a 74.1 percent completion percentage, and he's passed for 2,285 yards, 17 touchdowns, and only four interceptions in nine games. Their 8-2 mark has them leading the AFC East, 1.5 games ahead of the Buffalo Bills, who were the prohibitive favorites to win the division this year. They've won the AFC East for five straight years.

The Patriots might very well be staring at an 11-2 mark when the see the Bills next on Dec. 14. New England plays Thursday night against the New York Jets (2-7), then face the Cincinnati Bengals (3-6) and New York Giants (2-8). They'll be at least a touchdown favorite in all three games.

Vrabel has this team playing well. He was a great defensive guy on New England Super Bowl teams, and he coaches that way, too. The schemes are good, and it's a Vrabel tradition that his teams play hard, from start to finish.

They are also breaking a lot of big plays, which helps keep them away from having to make long, grueling drives. The Patriots did that to the Bucs — and it was the difference in the game against the NFC South leaders.

Maye had a 72-yard touchdown pass to Kyle Williams, a 54-yard pass to Mack Hollins, a 26-yard shot to DeMario Douglas and a 19-yard shot to Stefon Diggs, who also caught a touchdown pass earlier.

And running back TreVeyon Henderson, the speedy rookie from Ohio State who's been waiting his turn to have a breakout game, basically ended the game late with a 69-yard touchdown run. He had 147 yards on 14 carries, besting his previous season-high of 75 yards.

It's been clear that Vrabel's impact has been immediate, but he's also good at staying in the moment. He'll have this team believing they can win every game, when they're favored like these next three, and when aren't, like against the Bills in that December showdown.

I spent a year with Vrabel in 2023 when I was covering the Tennessee Titans, and I really respected the work he did, and the person he is.

I'm thrilled for his success there. And I'm really curious to watch what they can do from here. The over/under for them this year was just 8.5 wins, and they could pass that Thursday night against the Jets. Can they win the division? Sure they can. Can they win playoff games? Of course.

They've made it clear that Maye is the real deal, even in just his second season. And we already know that Vrabel is the real thing.

The Indianapolis Colts, who weren't supposed to do much this year either, have been that feel-good story most of the year. We need to include the Patriots in that conversation now, too.

A Colts-Patriots playoff game, now that would bring back some great memories.

Here are the season win totals for all 32 NFL teams:

Over/under 11.5

Baltimore Ravens
Buffalo Bills
Kansas City Chiefs
Philadelphia Eagles

Over/under 10.5

Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
San Francisco 49ers

Over/under 9.5

Cincinnati Bengals
Denver Broncos
Houston Texans
Los Angeles Chargers
Los Angeles Rams
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Washington Commanders

Over/under 8.5

Arizona Cardinals
Chicago Bears
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
Pittsburgh Steelers
Seattle Seahawks

Over/under 7.5

Atlanta Falcons
Dallas Cowboys
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Miami Dolphins

6.5

Carolina Panthers
Las Vegas Raiders

5.5

New Orleans Saints
New York Giants
New York Jets
Tennessee Titans

4.5

Cleveland Browns