SAN FRANCISCO — When I’ve run into media people from other cities out here at Super Bowl 60, it’s not long before they say,  “I bet you didn’t expect YOUR TEAM to be back here again so soon!!!”

CONFIRMED!!!! I did not.

But now that the Patriots are here, I’d be surprised if they’re not here (i.e. in a Super Bowl) again sometime in the next three-to-five seasons. And it wouldn’t surprise me if they showed up in two or three.

Consider the landscape of the AFC and the Patriots’ current situation. The elite from last September are all in reboots. The Bills and Ravens have brand-spanking-new head coaches. The Chiefs went 6-11 and their cupboard is kinda bare. The Bengals seem cooked, the Steelers and Colts are QB-less and Houston has a C.J. Stroud concern.

On Groundhog Day 2026, the Broncos, Jaguars and Patriots seem most stable. And the Patriots’ arrow is pointing WAYYYYY up based on their situation.

They are stacked with draft picks. Their trade deadline moves of Kyle Dugger and Keion White left them with 12 selections. (The Patriots retained a seventh-rounder they would have sent to San Francisco if White played six or fewer games for the 49ers. He played nine).

They have $42 million in cap space (11th-most in the league, according to OverTheCap.com), a franchise quarterback, an elite corner, a stable (in my opinion) left tackle, coordinators and assistant coaches who aren’t going anywhere, and a head coach who — based on how it’s looked the past five months — players will line up to play for.

Right before free agency started last March, I pointed out on Patriots Talk how undesirable the Patriots were as a free-agent destination. Siberia, I called it.

“Players are looking at the Patriots like it’s Siberia. … We’re perceiving the Patriots as being in on players because of the amount of money they have. … Every single player is gonna look at this team, and they’re gonna have to swallow hard and say, ‘Do I really want to do this just for the money?'”

Mike Vrabel let me know he wasn’t psyched about the description. NEVERTHELESS!!!!! That’s how it played out. Left tackle Ronnie Stanley didn’t want to come here. Wide receiver Chris Godwin famously took less to stay in Tampa Bay.

The plum free agent the Patriots did land — defensive tackle Milton Williams — was on the verge of signing with Carolina when the Patriots blew his financial doors off.

“My agent was on the phone, and I was kind of in the room,” Williams said. “They were on the phone talking to teams, and teams were coming in with new deals. There was a lot going on, and it happened really fast. They talked about Carolina then and I was like, ‘All right, it sounds like the best offer we are going to get, so, we were going to go there.’

“Then, a split second later, New England hopped on and was like, ‘Nah, this is what we got for you.’ Carolina felt like they went too high on their number, so, they stayed at where they were at. New England came in, and it was [over] after that. They wanted me the most and made me a priority. So, I made them a priority.”

Williams acknowledged last month he didn’t think the Patriots were going to be this good this quickly. 

But now that they are this good thanks to the signing and success of players like Williams (ranked 17th in Pro Football Focus’ Top 100 free agents last March), Stefon Diggs (11), Carlton Davis (25), Morgan Moses (58), Robert Spillane (88), Mack Hollins (not ranked), Garrett Bradbury (NR), Harold Landry (NR), K’Lavon Chaisson (NR) and Khyiris Tonga (NR), the Patriots are Siberia no more.

They have the cap space to chase edge rushers, corners, offensive linemen and wideouts. And those will be on the market next month.

They have their cornerstone positions on rookie contracts (for now) and have the draft capital to go up and down the board if they want. 

The Patriots are primed. 

I don’t usually point all this out to the people I run into. If you’re from Houston or Cincinnati, Cleveland or Jacksonville, you don’t really need that dink from Boston rolling his eyes about how much WORK it’s gonna be now that the Patriots are good again and likely to get better.

But it’s true. On this Groundhog Day, 2026 it feels like the start of something. Not a continuation.

I’ve seen this movie before in 2001 and 2011, when a team that wasn’t as good as it was going to be got to the Super Bowl. Strap in.