Patriots:

The 10-2 New England Patriots seek to avoid their first three-game losing streak since 2002 when they travel to Houston to face the 6-6 Texans on Sunday. The Patriots need a win to keep even with Denver and Cincinnati in the race for a first round bye in the AFC, while Houston looks to overtake Indianapolis for the lead in the AFC South.

Will Josh McDaniels stay patient enough to allow the running game to get going on Sunday night?

The Patriots committed the cardinal sin in all of sports; don’t ever, ever let an inferior team hang around, because it come back to bite you.

Philadelphia rookie CB Eric Rowe gets his first NFL start Sunday, and it against a New England team that since 2003 is 38-4 coming off a loss and is 52-8 in the month of December since 2001.

Look no further than the Patriots third-down percentage the past two games to see that the running game is slowing down the offense. New England is 5 for 28 on third down percentage the last two weeks including just 2 of 13 against Denver.

Week 13’s best game is between Seattle, who just went over .500 for the first time all season, and Minnesota, who ranks 25th in the league in scoring. The only other game with two winning clubs involves a pair of 6-5 teams: the under achieving Colts with a 40-year old backup QB, and a Pittsburgh defense that has given up 39 and 35 points in recent games. NFL fans deserve better than this.

In the last five games, the Philly defense has allowed 828 yards on the ground an average of 165.6 yards per game. This is the time for Blount to get some yardage and take some pressure off the receivers.

In NFL Week 14 Early Advanced betting lines, the Westgate in Las Vegas has initially installed the New England Patriots as 3.5 point road favorites over the Houston Texans. Jacksonville is a 1-point favorite over Indy, the Broncos are favored by 6.5 over Oakland, and Carolina is an 8-point favorite over Atlanta.

Since realignment in 2002, the Pats own a stellar 45-10 record against NFC teams including a 3-0 record against the other teams from the NFC East this season.

The Patriots added to their depth at wide receiver, running back and kick returner on Tuesday by signing WR Demaris Johnson and RB Trey Williams. Williams played at Texas A&M and for Danny Amendola’s dad in high school

For those of you living in the southeastern United States that don’t have the Sunday Ticket, it’s another Sunday off to the local sports bar if you want to catch the Pats; for the rest of the country, you will be able to see the Patriots from the comfort of your living room couch.

Thru eleven games in 2015 the Philadelphia defense has been on the field for 83 minutes more than the offense.

The loss to the Denver Broncos was a minor one compared to the potential loss of Rob Gronkowski who was injured in the fourth quarter of the game on Sunday night

Unbeaten Carolina is just a 3½ point favorite against a struggling Saints defense in New Orleans; Miami is favored by 6½ (granted, it is against the Ravens); Minnesota is a 1½ point home underdog against Seattle; and Dallas was listed as a three-point road favorite at Washington – though to be fair, this was prior to Tony Romo’s injury on Thanksgiving Day. It is also interesting to note that there are more favorites playing on the road (nine) than home favorites (just six).

The focus on this week’s Patriots – Broncos game will not be about Brady – Manning or the high octane offenses but the prowess of each team’s defense. This one promises to be a defensive struggle