Back in early October, the Dump Danny Amendola campaign was in full swing.

It didn’t matter if Amendola still had time left on the five-year, $31 million contract he signed with the Patriots in 2013.

Given what the wide receiver had produced to that point, the commonly held opinion of many pundits, not to mention fans, was for the Pats to cut their losses at season’s end. When you factored in his expected $5.5 million cap hit in 2015, it made even more sense to just set him loose.

With quarterback Tom Brady barely looking in his direction during the early months of the season, it’s conceivable the brain trust might have held a similar view. Add in an actual overall savings of $1.9 million against the cap for dumping his contract, and it might have seemed like a no-brainer.

Only, something happened on the way to Amendola’s supposed exit out of town.

Four months later, the mood has changed. The anti-Amendola sentiment has softened.

Why?

The wideout has finally shown how valuable he can be in an offense, especially in the big games.

Talk about a resurrection.

Amendola had a few moments during the year where he stood out, but it was his work during the postseason that really made its mark and helped him drop the label of Foxboro’s favorite whipping boy. His efforts in the Baltimore and Seattle games especially boosted his stock.

In those epic nail-biters, Amendola caught 10 passes for 129 yards and three touchdowns. His contributions were pivotal to the Patriots advancing to the Super Bowl and winning it.

Amendola also took over as the team’s primary kick returner, strengthening that area, not to mention serving as a capable backup to Julian Edelman as a punt returner.

So anyone who might have thought dumping Amendola would be wise this offseason, or even a no-brainer from a management perspective, here’s three words: Not so fast.

Let’s give the guy some credit. The way he was buried, barely being used early on, he could have been a problem in the locker room. But he never once mouthed off publicly. He never complained about his lot with the Patriots. He just kept working hard, and waiting for his chance.

“It sounds cliche and it is our motto, but everybody’s got a job to do,” Amendola said in the aftermath of winning the Super Bowl. “Regardless of your role, you’ve got to do your job, and you’ve got to make plays when your number is called.”

That’s exactly what he did. He didn’t wallow in his negative press clippings or feel sorry for himself at being considered a free agent flop by the masses. He just worked harder to change the view.

Down the stretch, Amendola opened some eyes with his toughness and ability to get open in the Patriots offense. By season’s end, he looked more like the guy who caught 10 passes in the season-opening win against Buffalo in 2013 before getting hurt. He really started to click with Brady, not to mention Edelman.

Being on the receiving end of the surprise double-pass from Edelman for a 51-yard touchdown catch in the divisional matchup against the Ravens was one of his starring moments, but there were more. In that same game, he shook off a defender and leaped to the end zone pylon for another score, and spun out of a tackle and carried Ravens safety Anthony Levine just beyond the first down marker for a key third-down conversion to keep the Patriots alive.

In the Super Bowl, he pulled in five passes for 48 yards and a touchdown. On his TD, he was the second option on the red zone play, and Brady didn’t hesitate. Once he saw Brandon LaFell was covered, he went right to Amendola, who still needed to make a nice play to grab the ball for the score.

Amendola might not have been quite Edelman-like as a go-to guy for Brady, but he was significant, just the same.

Without his contributions, there might not have been a parade.

“It’s an amazing feeling,” said Amendola. “It’s a lot of hard work paid off.”

That hard work has people thinking twice now about Amendola’s future and where he stands going forward.

Amendola, Edelman and LaFell did make a nice receiving trio for Brady on the plays that counted most. While Amendola hasn’t become the player he was initially brought here to replace — Wes Welker — he’s evolved into a contributing member of the offense and special teams, which is something most didn’t think possible a few months ago.

He’s definitely changed the view when it comes to his value in the offense. Ultimately, that might serve to prolong his stay.