Monday, December 5, 2011

December most wonderful time of year for Patriots

By Sam Hollingsworth

It’s no secret the New England Patriots play great football when there’s snow on the ground. But we’re still waiting for the first significant snowfall in Foxborough on game day and the Patriots continue to live up to their reputation as December dominators.

Since Bill Belichick has taken over the team as head coach in 2000, the Patriots have won an astonishing 39 December regular-season games. Even more impressive is the fact that the Pats have only lost three December games since 2003, compiling an overall record of 39-7 in the month throughout Belichick’s tenure.

“I think the important thing is that they keep improving as a football team,” Belichick told the media before New England beat the Indianapolis Colts, 31-24, for December win No. 39.

“I think early in the year, everything is so new and fresh. You start playing games and nobody has played a full game in preseason. You build up your stamina (and) you build up your routine which is different than what it is in training camp, a far as your weekly preparation. You start to expand your playbook a little bit and your opponents each week, you see a little bit more from each of them progressively.

“Then, as you get into this part of the season, I think it’s important that we keep working to improve as a football team and individually,” he said. “Fundamentally, here are the things we need to better, these type of plays or your individual techniques and things like that.”

Despite the typical Belichick jargon, he’s basically got the season progression down to a science. That’s why he was able to bring three Super Bowl championships to New England and continues to be one of the most feared coaches in the game.

Well, that and a guy named Tom Brady.

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