Tom Brady Looks Like a Magician Who Can't Find the Card Up His Sleeve

You simply cannot count out Touchdown Tom. But what you can do is point out the obvious. In fact, some would argue that you owe everyone that honesty as opposed to clinging to the idea that somehow the team that always finds a way to win will find a way to win. Or, you know, make excuses for him.

Skip Bayless' assertion that Kansas City, as a whole, has a better receiving core than the Patriots is probably true. That said, Julian Edelman is quite possibly the best pass-catching option of them all and it's not as though Demarcus Robinson and Mecole Hardman are world-beaters. But that's not really what's important here.

What's important is how painfully obvious it's become that Brady has regressed to a point where he can't carry an inferior side to victory. The man has made a Hall of Fame career in getting the most from flawed puzzle pieces. We all understood there'd be a time when he was no longer capable of pulling this magic trick off year after year, and it seems like that time has arrived.

New England has looked woefully inferior in matchups with the AFC's contenders against Kansas City, Houston, and Baltimore. No one is better at making adjustments than the Pats, but it's not like reinforcements are coming through the door at this point in the season.

The longtime Pats QB is going to have to find a way to tap into vintage Brady and carry this team on his aging shoulders for a chance at another title. Not impossible, but not feeling very probable at this point.