Heading into tonight’s game against the New York Giants, one thing is certainly clear for the New England Patriots.
Monday night’s game is absolutely pivotal, especially given what could be waiting for them in two weeks.
With Denver spoiling a possible upset win for the Commanders in overtime Sunday night, the Broncos remain in the driver’s seat for the top seed in the AFC.
That adds some additional pressure for New England tonight. Anyone who has followed this team over the last two decades knows that playing in Denver in January is never ideal, even when you have Tom Brady under center.
The Patriots went 0-3 in Denver in the playoffs during Brady’s career, with the Broncos having dealt Brady his first-ever postseason loss during the Divisional round back in 2005. Brady did beat them at Gillette Stadium during the Divisional round back in 2011, handing Tim Tebow and company a 45-10 defeat on an afternoon where Brady threw six touchdowns.
But they ended up back out in Colorado for two losses in the Conference Championship to cap off the 2013 and 2015 seasons. Those defeats in the Mile High City definitely stung, and the hope is they can avoid having to play the Broncos on their turf should the two teams potentially cross paths.
For New England to leap ahead, Denver has to be the one to slip — not the Patriots – in order to grab that coveted top seed.
But tonight the Patriots simply have to hope they can extend their current winning streak to 10 games at home against a Giants team that is starting to play good football. This is a team that’s given some of the top teams in its conference all it can handle in recent weeks.
Despite having lost six in a row, they’ve been competitive over their last three games. They made life tough against likely playoff teams in the Bears, Packers, and Lions with New York coming up on the wrong end of one score losses. One of which was a tough battle in Detroit where they forced overtime before the Lions ultimately pulled out a win in overtime.
Still, it’s a group that has shown no signs of quitting despite the turmoil they’ve faced following the firing of former head coach Brian Daboll.
With a bye upcoming, a win tonight will determine how difficult the road ahead will be. After a week off, the Patriots have back-to-back games against what will arguably be their most significant tests of the season. The first will see the Bills come into Gillette Stadium likely looking for redemption after New England’s upset win in Buffalo back in October. That one will be followed by a trip to Baltimore to face a Ravens team that is still dangerous.
As it is, Baltimore will probably have a lot to play for by then. At 6-6, the Ravens have an interesting path these next two weeks before the Patriots come in. They’ve got a match-up against the Steelers at home, followed by a trip to Cincinnati against a Bengals team that just snapped what had been a five-game winning streak for Baltimore. They could either be back in contention by then, or below .500 and in desperate need of a win to stay alive.
For Buffalo, a loss by New England tonight and a win next weekend could see that game in two weeks have even more meaning as the Bills try and climb back on top of the Division. Still, they’re about to face a Bengals team that looked better with Joe Burrow back under center, with a lot riding on that game before they come into Gillette Stadium on December 14th.
As a result, the teams that ultimately end up having the most success in January are the ones playing their best football. The surprising thing about the Patriots is the fact that during this latest nine-game win streak, that really hasn’t happened yet.
It’s actually been a frequent topic of discussion, with Mike Vrabel’s team still trying to bring it all together during what have definitely been some uneven moments. Added to some of those challenges is the latest rash of injuries, with both offensive linemen Will Campbell and Jared Wilson joining defensive standout Milton Williams among some names they really couldn’t afford to lose.
We’ll see how those recent losses affect them against the Giants. But if the Patriots can somehow overcome those and be the ones doing the right things over those final four weeks, it wouldn’t be a surprise if this team can take advantage of what’s arguably been one of the more wide-open AFC Conferences we’ve seen in recent memory.
For a team that’s already facing adversity, another step forward tonight would be a nice little bookend before the bye. It would also give them some much-needed momentum before they finally have a chance to rest up and get ready to embark on what will likely be a challenging stretch ahead.
Support Us: Help Us Compete Against The Corporate Media Giants
We need your help. If you enjoy our content, please help us beat Google's Corporate algorithm by adding us as a preferred source on Google News.
Click the button below and check the box next to "PatsFans.com"
Add as a preferred source on Google News
Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
The team certainly isn’t reacting to what Denver or the Bills are doing. Denver has a tough final 5 games. Other than the Raiders being perhaps a “layup”, DEN has: JAX, Packers, KC, Chargers. That’s 4 teams that are in the playoff hunt. Denver likely won’t run the table. They nearly lost to a backup QB last night. I’ll take the Pats schedule all day long over Denvers road. The Pats need to win the AFC first and foremost, and then maybe your playing for a bye. To early to talk playoff seedings and who knows if the pats are… Read more »