GEORGE: Patriots Should Avoid Playing At Denver At All Costs

This past Sunday had huge ramifications for the Patriots, even though the Patriots were all sitting at home watching their flatscreens.

Unless they were one of the predicted 35-40 players at Gillette Stadium working out and studying rather than enjoying an idle weekend, but that’s another story for another day.

Maybe you fans were enthralled with the Buffalo-Tampa Bay game. At least you were during the time where the visiting Bucs were winning. Josh Allen then went on a fantasy football player’s dream, scoring six touchdowns, three rushing and three passing, and the Bills won by about two touchdowns. Rats, you said. We could have the division practically locked up if Buffalo had only lost.

To that we say: rubbish, balderdash, poppycock and some other choice words we will leave to those who are liquored up and those who can say them on podcasts but not on live TV.

The Buffalo game was basically inconsequential to the Patriots, at least right now. The Patriots have six games left and all are winnable, with maybe two of them losable. Buffalo winning or losing this game, with the Patriots currently holding the tiebreaker with the Sons of the Niagara Frontier, means literally nothing right now. If the Patriots win their final meeting with Buffalo at Gillette Stadium in December, that should sew up the division right there unless it is already sewed up prior to this game.

The real important, or problematic, game you should have been paying close attention to was the Kansas City-Denver game. The way things are right now, these two teams are more of a problem than Buffalo is.

And of course, this is one of those “who do you root for” games. Neither outcome pleases Patriot Nation.

Actually, it would not surprise many of you if the majority of Patriot Nation rooted for Denver. Any Patrick Mahomes loss is a good loss. Anything to keep that annoying nuisance out of the playoffs (the exact same sentence the rest of NFL fandom would say about Tom Brady). The last thing the Patriots want to do is have to go through Mahomes, even at home, to reach Super Bowl LX.

This is true, isn’t it? Not on your 0-4 record in Patriot team history in all postseason games played in Denver.

This subject came up on a local talk show. Some guy named Tony Mazz was talking to some guy named Paul Perrillo and some guy named Jim Murray. Mazzarotti asked the other two guys this question: “What would you rather do, play Mahomes at home or play at Denver?” He then went on to say, in his usual kind and soft spoken manner, “If you would rather play at Denver than at home against Kansas City, you are an idiot!”

I…ladies and gentlemen…am NOT an idiot. Mazzarotti happens to be right.

Rooting against Mahomes does not brand you as an idiot. It’s a natural feeling. This is how the rest of the league felt about Brady. I don’t blame any of you for wanting Mahomes to lose and to keep losing. Once the Chiefs hit January, they change into this powerful machine that can do literally anything to anybody.

But Mahomes losing meant that Denver won. That is what is bad for the Patriots.

By winning, Denver took the top seed away from the Patriots. Denver has the Patriots on conference record (6-2 versus 5-2). So if both teams win out, New England would have to play an extra playoff game and go to Denver for the AFC Championship Game.

And this is where it will be fatal for your suddenly great once again Patriots.

The Patriots are 1-4 against Denver all-time in postseason games. The one win was the only time these teams met at Foxborough. In 2011, the Patriots played Denver in an AFC Divisional Game and won, 45-10. Tom Brady threw six touchdown passes, and it was 35-7 Patriots at the half. By the way, some former Patriot quarterback named Tim Tebow was 9 of 26 passing for 136 yards and a rating of 52.7. The Patriots went on to lose to the Giants in Super Bowl XLVI.

The other four postseason meetings were all in Denver, two in Mile High Stadium and two at Empower Field. In 1986 John Elway led the Broncos to a 22-17 win. In 2005, Brady suffered his first career postseason loss at Denver, 27-13. Then in 2013 and 2015, Peyton Manning scored two wins over the Patriots to advance to Super Bowls XLVIII and 50. The 2015 game was particularly galling as Bill Belichick literally handed Denver the home game with a pathetic rush-oriented regular season finale loss at Miami.

So there it is. 0-4 at Denver in the playoffs. This is why Mazzarotti thought you were an idiot if you rooted for Denver on Sunday.

So, to all of you: root against Denver no matter who they play. The Patriots need to try and nail down the top seed now that it is once again within their grasp. It is still unbelievable that all the story lines of the previous two decades are once again being dredged up on this typewriter. As Jackie Gleason would say a long time ago, “How sweet it is!” It’s as sweet as a hot fudge sundae at Friendly’s. But it will sour quickly if the Patriots have to play a playoff game at Denver.

And let’s keep all of our wonderful old discussions on the front burner, all the way up to and including the 60th annual Big Show.

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About Bob George

Covering Boston Sports since 1997. Native of Worcester, Mass. Attended UMass and Univ of Michigan. Lives in California. Just recently retired after 40 years of public school teaching. Podcasts on YouTube at @thepic4139

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