Patriots owner Robert Kraft has more to choose from than others when it comes to favorite memories.
But even before this current season is over, Kraft said the current version of his team is among his favorites.
While the Patriots haven’t added to the three Super Bowl trophies, they’ve gotten to the AFC Championship game in a year which included the murder arrest of tight end Aaron Hernandez, and a seemingly endless parade of injuries to key players.
“We’ve had some wonderful experiences and some wonderful teams, but this team really is super-special,” Kraft said, via Christopher Gasper of the Boston Globe. “When you go through the locker room, you can get a feeling for the chemistry, how guys feel about one and another, the camaraderie.
“This team really reminds me of that 2001 team, a lot of players who weren’t household names, but they bonded together. They weren’t the best team on paper. But it’s not the team with the most talent, but rather the team that has the players who play the best together as a team and make the fewest mistakes.”
In addition to the Hernandez ugliness, the Patriots have lost six starters to injured reserves, including All-Pros Vince Wilfork, Jerod Mayo, and Rob Gronkowski.
“There are so many things that happened in the offseason that were unfortunate and that we didn’t want or plan for,” Kraft said. “It’s another reason I love this team.”
Tomorrow night in Denver, we’ll find out of he has another reason.