How did Pats go from NFL’s greatest dynasty to bottom-3 team?

The NFL regular season kicks off four weeks from tonight, and with it brings the fifth season of life without Tom Brady for the New England Patriots.

When that devastating news was delivered in March 2020, I didn't have too high hopes for the Pats in the immediate future, but had you asked me "where will the Patriots be in five seasons?" I would have assumed that to be plenty of time to conduct a rebuild and get back to being a contender for the divisional title year in and year out.

Well, that hasn't quite been the case. It turned out Bill Belichick, who you just know had been waiting for the opportunity to show he could win without Brady, had no real Plan B at the position and turned to Cam Newton on his final NFL legs after the rest of the league had passed him over.

That resulted in Bill's first losing season since his first year on the job in 2000. The drafting of Mac Jones appeared to bring a new life of optimism to the organization, with Jones turning in a respectable rookie season and guiding the Pats into the playoffs. But once Josh McDaniels left that off-season for the Vegas gig, Bill stripped the offense down and handed the keys to Matt Patricia and Joe Judge in a move that can only be explained by the G.O.A.T. coach being too stubborn to not do things his own way, rather than "in the best interest of the New England Patriots," as he always preached.

There's no need to recount the rest, we all know how it played out. But why did it go the way it did? How did the Patriots go from the NFL's greatest dynasty to one of the worst teams in the league, and who exactly is responsible for it?