Silver Lining For the Patriots’ Disappointing Loss

Drake Vs Josh

The Patriots hosted the Buffalo Bills on Sunday for a chance to clinch the division title for the first time in six years. New England got out to a hot start and jumped out to an early 21-0 lead in the first half. However, the Patriots learned firsthand that no lead is insurmountable for Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills.

All eyes were on Foxboro, Massachusetts, as the Patriots had a chance to put the Bills’ AFC East title hopes to bed. They marched right down the field on their first drive and capped it off with an 8-yard run by Drake Maye. The Patriots’ defense also had a great start to the game. The Bills were held without a first down on their first two drives, and New England took advantage. Drake Maye put together a six-play 50-yard drive for a touchdown to extend their lead to 14-0.

The Bills were unable to respond again, and the Patriots were in full control of the game. Treyveon Henderson wanted to leave no doubt as he exploded for a 52-yard run for the Patriots’ third unanswered touchdown drive of the first half. The Patriots now had a 21-0 lead, and the only people who still thought the Bills had a chance to come back and win were the Bills themselves.

Bills Stun the Patriots

From that point, the Patriots were outscored 35-10, ultimately losing by a score of 35-31. Josh Allen stunned everybody in Gillette Stadium with another miraculous comeback victory. This game ended the Patriots’ ten-game winning streak and kept the Bills’ hopes of winning the AFC East alive. The Patriots had not lost a home game in which they led by at least 17 points in over 50 years. How could they collapse like this with the division title on the line?

The short answer is, there is no excuse. You cannot explain away a loss after leading by 21-0. There were questionable calls in this game. The Patriots did lose the turnover battle. They did have some key injuries. While all of that is true, it all goes out the window when you jump out to a  21-point lead. This loss was inexcusable. However, their season is far from over. So what can they take away from this game, and how will they respond?

Silver Lining

The Patriots were riding an incredible win streak and were getting all the media attention that comes with that. Drake Maye has been in MVP conversations, Mike Vrabel is a likely candidate Coach of the Year, and people were starting to take the Patriots for real. As disappointing as this loss was, everything is still in front of them. They still lead the AFC East and are only 1.5 games behind the Denver Broncos in the race for the #1 seed in the conference. Stefon Diggs had a very level-headed reaction to the loss. “I wouldn’t say we forgot (how to lose). You never know. We probably needed it… it’s good for us. I kind of said it at the beginning of the year. Lessons.”.

A loss like that can ground a team that has not faced much adversity in the past few months. They still control their own destiny in the AFC East. If they have goals beyond the division, the Buffalo Bills still stand in their way.

The Kansas City Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals were officially eliminated from the playoffs on Sunday, and the Baltimore Ravens have a 47% chance to make the playoffs per NFL.com. That means Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, and Lamar Jackson may all be out of the playoffs this year. That leaves Josh Allen as the last “superhero” quarterback standing in the AFC.

Per FanDuel, the Bills have the second-shortest odds to win the AFC Championship at +380, trailing only the Denver Broncos at +320. Josh Allen and Bills have the most playoff experience of any playoff team, and their mentality as a team has been “Super Bowl or bust” since the season began. They are the standard in the AFC. Knowing all of that, the Patriots have proved that they can compete with the Bills. They’ve split the season series with them, and the margin of victory for those games was a combined 7 points. They can hang with the best that the AFC has to offer.

Playoff Outlook

The Patriots are firmly in the #2 spot in the AFC. They have the easiest remaining schedule in the league. They still have to play the Baltimore Ravens, the New York Jets, and the Miami Dolphins. If they win those three games, the very worst they can finish is the #2 seed. There is still a chance they can overtake Denver for the #1 seed. However, the Broncos would need to lose two of their three remaining games. The three teams remaining on their schedule are the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers and Jaguars are both currently in the playoff picture.

As good as the Patriots’ season has been. The loss on Sunday should temper the expectations. Teams do not historically go from two back-to-back four-win seasons to winning the Super Bowl. A more realistic ceiling for this team is winning the AFC championship. Securing the #1 seed would award them a first-round bye week in the playoffs. That is the most realistic scenario for them to achieve their absolute ceiling. They should, however, want to win a playoff game. Going through the experience of playing in the playoffs and acclimating themselves to the heightened level of competition would be great for the long-term success of this team. They’ve learned how to win regular-season games that they are supposed to win. Now they need to learn how to win back-and-forth games in high-pressure situations. This postseason is the perfect opportunity for the Patriots to do so.