Here it is at the end of 2025 and I still can’t get over the turnaround from where we were last year. The Patriots were 3-12 heading into Week 17 and fans were rooting hard for a 3-14 finish to secure the overall No. 1 seed in the draft. That plan went about as well as anything else the team tried to do that year. A win over the Bills in the final game of the season dropped them to No. 4, but I’m not complaining. This season has been the polar opposite. New England had to be really bad for a couple
years and hit bottom before it could rebound — and what a glorious recovery it’s been.
Mike Vrabel, Drake Maye and company have made football fun again. Frankly, that’s pretty much all I wanted on my NFL Christmas list this year, for the Patriots to be on a solid track back to relevancy. Fans have already received so much that anything more — like snagging the AFC East title from Buffalo (so close we can touch it), maybe being the No. 1 seed in the AFC, and then winning a playoff game or two (or three) — is gravy.
Good things are all back on the table now, as the Pats prepare for a 3-12 Jets team that has lost their last 3 games by at least 23 points – and just lost QB Justin Fields to Injured Reserve. Meanwhile New England is a perfect 7-0 on the road. I have no doubt Mike Vrabel will be reminding his players about the big picture this week, needing to stay focused and not taking any wins for granted. Here’s to the Pats taking care of business at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, and I’m putting in a special request for no new injuries. Please, please, please Santa!
GO PATS!!
Around the AFC East:
New England Patriots (12-3) at New York Jets (3-12)
Buffalo Bills (11-4) vs. Philadelphia Eagles (10-5)
Miami Dolphins (6-9) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-8)
AFC Matchups:
Denver Broncos (12-3) at Kansas City Chiefs (6-9)
Jacksonville Jaguars (11-4) at Indianapolis Colts (8-6)
Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6) at Cleveland Browns (3-12)
Los Angeles Chargers (11-4) vs. Houston Texans (10-5)
Baltimore Ravens (7-8) at Green Bay Packers (9-5-1)
Cincinnati Bengals (5-10) vs. Arizona Cardinals (3-12)
Tennessee Titans (3-12) vs. New Orleans Saints (5-10)
Las Vegas Raiders (2-13) vs. New York Giants (2-13)
2nd – Pete Prisco (CBS Sports): Drake Maye’s showing vs. the Ravens helps his MVP chances. Coming back from 11 points down is a good sign for this young team as they ready for the playoffs. [+2]
2nd – Eric Edholm (NFL.com): Down 11 points in the fourth quarter, on the road, with several key players injured, Drake Maye and the Patriots refused to die. Maye caught fire in the final quarter, leading two long touchdown drives, with Rhamondre Stevenson’s TD romp giving the Pats a lead they wouldn’t relinquish. The comeback win clinched a playoff berth for New England, moving the team into a dominant position to also claim the AFC East crown in the next two weeks. Losing Offensive Rookie of the Year candidate TreVeyon Henderson (concussion protocol) for any length of time would be a worry, and as mentioned above, that wasn’t the only notable health setback the Pats suffered in the game. They’re very thin on both lines of scrimmage right now but should eventually get help from players returning from IR, including OT Will Campbell and DT Milton Williams. They’ll be warmly welcomed back to a team that has outplayed all expectations and will be a fascinating case study in the postseason. [+3]
2nd – Ralph Vacchiano (FOX Sports): Drake Maye’s MVP candidacy went into overdrive with a 380-yard, 2-touchdown performance and comeback against the Ravens. Now they might have a chance to clinch the AFC East next week. [+2]
2nd – Vinnie Iyer (Sporting News): The Patriots went into more of an offensive slump in Baltimore with Drake Maye cooling and being contained again, putting their chances of stealing the AFC East in serious jeopardy. [+1] /Scratching my head over this one.
4th – Frank Schwab (Yahoo! Sports): It’s not like the Patriots blew out the Ravens, who didn’t have Lamar Jackson for most of the game, but a loss would have made things a little more worrisome for them in the AFC East race. The Patriots won and their chances to win the AFC East race are at 80.9% with two games to play, via DVOA. They still have a 31.3% shot at the No. 1 seed too. It wasn’t the easiest win, but Drake Maye’s monster 380-yard game saved them from a rough loss. [nc]
4th – NFL Nation (ESPN): Rookie of the year: Running back TreVeyon Henderson. He leads the team with 776 rushing yards on 146 carries (5.3 average), and has eight total touchdowns. Rookie left guard Jared Wilson described Henderson’s big-play threat this way: “Any time he touches the ball, it could end up in the end zone.” Henderson has four touchdown runs of 50 yards or more. The Patriots might be without him this week, however, as he exited Sunday’s game in the second quarter because of a concussion and didn’t return. — Mike Reiss. [nc]
4th – Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk): The loss to Buffalo was a wake-up call. [+1]
5th – Nate Davis (USA Today): QB Drake Maye had his first 300-yard passing game (380 actually) Sunday night, which included a career-high 31 completions. Definitely feels like the right time to put more on his plate. [+1]
5th – Conor Orr (SI): I was struck watching the Patriots’ post-game interview how in line the entire team was—even Stefon Diggs. He deliberately sidestepped a question about the team’s playoff aspirations in a toned-down Q&A that revealed the totality of the Vrabel effect for me. It’s simply bigger than one person. [+1]
5th – Diante Lee (The Ringer): The Patriots are ready for the playoffs. New England didn’t see the best version of Baltimore on Sunday night—especially after QB Lamar Jackson exited with a back injury—but we still saw an inexperienced Patriots team ward off the Ravens in a game with major stakes. After Baltimore’s defense sold out to stop New England’s run game, QB Drake Maye put the offense on his shoulders. His efficiency in the fourth quarter didn’t just get the job done this week, it’ll be the reason why the Patriots win games in the playoffs. [+1]
AVG RANK: 3.5 [-1.2]
