High-flying New England face a mouth-watering test in opposition to Josh Allen’s Buffalo Bills Sunday, in search of a win over their AFC East rivals that might safe the Patriots a playoff berth and the divisional title.
The Patriots — who dominated the NFL beneath Tom Brady and Bill Belichick in the 2000s and 2010s — have been quietly rebuilding, and haven’t even reached the post-season for 4 years.
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But after successful 10 video games on the bounce, they’ve surpassed all expectations and boast the joint-best report in the NFL at 11-2.
Their eyes are actually firmly set on ending above the extremely rated Bills in the AFC East.
“They have won the division for five years — so we’ve got something we need to go take,” mentioned Patriots quarterback Drake Maye.
“There’s no better way to win the division than (beating) the team that’s fighting to crawl back and keep themselves as division champs,” he added.
Maye, 23, is an early favourite to win this yr’s Most Valuable Player — an accolade received final season by Bills quarterback Allen.
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The Bills have been closely reliant on Allen as soon as once more, struggling inconsistent type regardless of being among the many sizzling Super Bowl favorites.
Still, a street win in Boston would take the Bills to 10-4, nearly guaranteeing a post-season berth.
“Our main goal is to make the playoffs. We have an opportunity to put ourselves in a better position… playing in a really hostile environment against a really good team,” mentioned Allen.
Elsewhere, the Denver Broncos (11-2) can safe their very own post-season berth early in the event that they beat the Green Bay Packers.
So can also the Los Angeles Rams (10-3) in the event that they overcome the Detroit Lions. The matchup pits each quarterbacks — Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford — in opposition to their former groups, following a 2021 blockbuster commerce.
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– Chiefs ‘powerful actuality’ –
Meanwhile the Kansas City Chiefs’ season may very well be formally over if key fixtures go in opposition to Patrick Mahomes’ floundering facet.
They face a mountain to climb in opposition to their divisional rivals, the Los Angeles Chargers, who sit three wins forward in the AFC West.
“We understand we’ve gotta win… whatever it takes,” mentioned quarterback Mahomes, calling his workforce’s predicament a “back-against-the-wall spot.”
The Chiefs — with three Super Bowl wins from 5 current appearances — haven’t failed to succeed in the playoffs since 2014.
But even victory may not be sufficient to maintain them in the hunt, with simply 4 regular-season video games remaining.
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“Looking at the playoffs, this is a tough reality to be in, especially with how we’ve always found a way in years past,” mentioned Chiefs star tight finish Travis Kelce, on his “New Heights” podcast.
Also desperately battling to stay in competition are the Indianapolis Colts, who could also be pressured to name upon a quarterback who retired 5 years in the past and has been teaching high-school soccer since.
Philip Rivers, 44, might step in after the Colts misplaced Daniel Jones to a season-ending damage final weekend, solely to see his rookie alternative Riley Leonard endure a knee challenge.
The Colts topped the AFC South till final weekend, however their season now threatens to fall off a cliff, with a tricky go to to Seattle in opposition to the 10-3 Seahawks subsequent.
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“I wasn’t really hanging on any hope of playing again — I kind of thought that ship had sailed,” mentioned Rivers, who raced to Indiana early this week to go well with up along with his former workforce.
Rivers joked he’s “not sure” what he at the moment weighs, and mentioned his spouse was “nervous about the physical aspect” of his return to certainly one of sports activities’ most harmful positions after so lengthy away.
“All of us, even me… (are) a little scared, a little nervous,” he mentioned.
Other key video games embody the Baltimore Ravens’ close to must-win go to to a Cincinnati Bengals facet boosted by the return of star quarterback Joe Burrow, and Sunday night time’s conflict between the Dallas Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings.
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