The Patriots did not play Sunday, so are still 2-5 on the year.
Many are divided on what the direction should be the rest of the season -- trying to grab one of the final playoff spots, or having an eye towards the future?
If making the postseason is what the team is still focusing on doing, Sunday was not a great day. Clearly, sitting three games below .500, the Patriots will need some help and on Sunday they did not get it.
Starting in the division, both the Bills and Dolphins had big wins -- perhaps the biggest of the year for both teams. Buffalo dominated Seattle, 44-34, to improve to 7-2 on the year. Then rookie Tua Tagovailoa was very impressive in his first NFL road start as the Dolphins beat the Cardinals, 34-31, and they are now 5-3 on the year.
The Patriots certainly have their work cut out for them the rest of the year to have any chance at the division and making things more difficult is it seems like both Buffalo and Miami are playing its best football of the year.
Then when it comes to a potential wild card spot, the runner up in the AFC East is already ahead of New England and then their opponent next week, Baltimore, is in good shape at 6-2 coming off a good road win over the Colts Sunday. The Raiders are also in a nice position at 5-3 following their win over the Chargers.
There are nine AFC teams with records of 5-3 or better, which furthers just how high the hill is that the Patriots need to climb to have any shot at the postseason -- even with the extra team this season.
