The New England Patriots are heading into an extremely odd year in 2020 — for many reasons.

Tom Brady’s gone, the coronavirus pandemic has caused unprecedented circumstances and that’s just to name a couple of them. New England also lost out on key contributors his offseason with Jamie Collins, Kyle Van Noy, Danny Shelton, Elandon Roberts and of course, Brady.

For all of these reasons, it’s set up for a peculiar training camp and a lower bar for the Patriots this season. Fortunately, Bill Belichick is still the coach and he happened to collect a former NFL MVP at quarterback under the veteran minimum (Cam Newton if you were wondering).

There are many reasons to believe the Patriots can overcome this adversity and put together a winning season. Here are six strengths the Patriots have on their roster ahead of training camp.

Offensive line

The offensive line will be the most important group for the Patriots in 2020. They’ll be responsible for clearing holes for the team’s running attack, protecting a new quarterback in this system and keeping the pace going offensively in general. Before, a shaky offensive line would get covered up by the genius of Brady. Now, every mistake will be exposed.

Fortunately, the Patriots carry one of the best offensive lines heading into the season. The group features Isaiah Wynn, Joe Thuney, David Andrews, Shaq Mason and Marcus Cannon. They have the ability to excel as pass and run-blockers and will be fundamental in the team’s success — health is the only concern.

The Patriots will likely have a run-heavy scheme that relies on great defense and clock management. This season will boil down to the trenches and Belichick is heading into the season with the right pieces in play.

Cornerbacks

Similar to the offensive line, the Patriots will head into the 2020 season with arguably the best group of cornerbacks. The 2019 Defensive Player of the Year, Stephon Gilmore, will head the group. Jason McCourty, J.C. Jackson, Jonathan Jones and Joejaun Williams will be his counterparts.

New England allowed the second-least passing yards last season (2,886) and recorded the most interceptions (25) — with 12 coming from cornerbacks. Gilmore was named a Pro Bowler and First-Team All-Pro for the second consecutive season and he only allowed one touchdown on the year.

Jackson is entering his third season and is ascending as one of the league’s top cornerbacks, while Jones remains elite as a slot cover guy. The Patriots have one of the best cornerback crews in the NFL and it’ll allow for maximum flexibility for Belichick.