With the 2025 NFL season past the halfway mark, the New England Patriots have established themselves as one of the best teams in the NFL this season. Entering Week 10 with a 7-2 record, everyone is praising New England’s turnaround.

The two names receiving the most praise are head coach Mike Vrabel and quarterback Drake Maye. With those two in place, analysts don’t consider their record a fluke; instead, it’s being viewed as a sign of what’s to come.

In a recent CBS Sports piece by Bryan DeArdo, the writer predicted every NFL team’s remaining schedule. For New England, DeArdo predicted a 5-3 record to finish out the regular season. While that’s probably more losses than Patriots fans would like to see, that would give New England a 12-5 record on the season and a playoff spot.

Patriots predicted to finish with a 12-5 regular season record

This record puts the New England Patriots at No. 2 in the AFC East, with DeArdo predicting a 14-3 record for the Buffalo Bills. While that’s certainly a reason for Patriots fans to be frustrated with this outlook, DeArdo argued the big-game experience difference between the two teams could factor in at the end of the regular season.

Still, DeArdo predicted wins for New England over the New York Jets (twice), the Cincinnati Bengals, the New York Giants, and the Miami Dolphins. The three predicted losses for the Patriots came against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Bills, and Baltimore Ravens.

“While the Bills have a wealth of big-game experience, this Patriots team doesn’t (which is unusual to say, given New England’s run of dominance from 2001-19). The Patriots’ youth will undoubtedly be tested in consecutive late-season games against the Bills and Ravens.”

Bryan DeArdo (CBS Sports)

Although Patriots fans would love to reclaim the AFC East’s throne this season, it will be hard for the fan base to be frustrated with a 12-5 finish and playoff appearance, after how rough recent seasons were. It would officially mark the Patriots’ return and point to a bright future with so many young pieces in place.

That will be a tough pill to swallow for the rest of the NFL, who had to witness New England’s 20-year dynasty. With Bill Belichick and Tom Brady gone, the Patriots are quickly back to dominating the NFL, and the rest of the league has to live with that.