On the surface it is hard to feel great about the KC game. You have a 5-0 team coming in off of a dominant victory over what was considered the 2nd best team in the AFC. They have the best offense in the league with playmakers at every level. And while their defense wouldn't be considered a "dominant one", they have far more "playmakers" than the Pats do on that unit. We, on the other hand are 3-2 team with zero playmakers on defense and an improved offense, but not one that has shown the consistency to win a shootout with the "best offense in the league".
But scrape the surface and I start to feel a better. Not a lot better, but some. First playing on the road is always tough. Playing on the road in Foxboro is even tougher. Second the Pats offense is getting better each week, and now that the major pieces are coming into focus. So the chances the Pats CAN compete in an offensive shootout are looking better. This offense, playing at home, is poised to put up a lot of points against anyone's D
On Defense this will be a frustrating game for the fans of "aggressive football". The Pats are NOT going to blitz much, if at all. And when it happens it will be late and up the middle. No, what we saw last week vs Luck will be what we see vs Mahones, and perhaps more so. For the Pats to have ANY success against KC it will require a great job vs the run, and great reads of the patterns by the secondary. 3 punts, 3 FG's, 2 TD's and one turnover would be a fantastic result for this D. Actually anything from 28-32 will give the Pats a decent shot at winning this game
It will be interesting to see how KC tries to stop the Pats offense. Some teams have had some luck in doubling Gronk and Edelman and going tight man on the rest. That strategy could create some big openings for White and Gordon.
What I'm hoping for is a competitive game with no injuries. A loss would hurt, but would certainly be sustainable in the long term. At this point of the season this looks like a 12-4/11-5 kind of team, but that perception could change as we move on.
If there is one "must" factor for this game it is this. If we want to have any chance at home field for the AFCCG, then we "must" win this game. Just sayin'