The Patriots knew going into Thursday they had an uphill battle to make the playoffs, but following the 24-3 loss to the Rams they are going to need a miracle.
New England is now 6-7 on the year and with the No. 6 and 7 seeds only having four losses, the team is going to need a ton of help, along with winning the three remaining games.
According to FiveThirtyEight, the Patriots currently have a four percent chance of making the playoffs and even if they win out, the number only goes up to 24 percent.
So, how will the Patriots approach the final three games?
“We’ll take it one game at a time," Bill Belichick said. "Get ready for our next game and that is what we do every week. I don’t see any reason to do it differently.”
Devin McCourty added: “We’ll see how it works out. There’s no easy answer other than we’ve got three games left, the goal is still the same — try and win the remaining three games.”
Matthew Slater has only not made the playoffs once -- his rookie year in 2008 -- so this is all new territory for him, as this time of year is usually about fighting for first-round byes and determining playoff seeds.
“It’s challenging," he said. "It’s new territory for me as a pro and I am going to take it in stride. My message to the guys would be we have to finish what we start. There’s going to be things in life that you start and you envision them going a certain way and the don’t go that way. And that is apart of life. You just have to find a way to finish what you started and hopefully at the end of that you’re a better man, a better woman for it. I’m encouraging the guys to keep finishing, keep fighting to the finish and represent ourselves in the best way possible.”
The Patriots will travel to Miami in Week 15 before hosting Buffalo and New York to close out the season.
