Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady have won 166 games and three Super Bowls together. They know a little bit about football. So after the Patriots steamrolled the Panthers, 30-7 Friday night, their perspective is worth noting.

Yes, the Panthers have a number of issues, but it’s probably best to back away from the ledge for at least a few more weeks.

Question to Brady: Is this game a confidence builder?

Answer: “Well, we could have lost 30-7 and none of it’s going to matter two weeks from now.”

Question to Belichick: It’s a preseason game, but the Panthers were a playoff team last year. Do you take that into account at all?

Answer: “No. No, there’s no game planning, there’s no formationing or game planning plays and situations and those type of things. That’s not really what this game is about. I don’t think that’s what it was about for them. It’s not what it was about for us. I think if that’s the way you want to judge it, I think you’re making a big mistake. I think it’s a game about fundamentals. It’s about basic football and it’s not anything close to a regular-season game in terms of game planning and situational football and doing strategically the things that you would do … We have 90 guys out there, we can’t game plan for 90 guys. We can barely get it right when we have 46. It’s just not what this game is. That’s not what we’re trying to get out of it and I don’t think that’s what Carolina is trying to get out of it … I’m sure they weren’t running all the plays they had either, so I wouldn’t make too much of it.”