Patriots can make the playoffs even if they lose to Bills, but it won't be easy
BOSTON -- For the Patriots, there are two paths to the playoffs.
The first one is as simple as simple gets: Beat the Bills, and they're in.
The second one ... well, the second one requires some help.
If the Patriots are not able to upset the Bills in Buffalo, they can still make the playoffs. They'll just need all three of these things to happen:
--Jets beat Dolphins
--Browns beat Steelers
--Jaguars beat Titans
That's not ideal, no, but it's still technically possible.
The Dolphins will likely be without Tua Tagovailoa and Teddy Bridgewater, meaning Skylar Thompson will be at quarterback.
The Jaguars are on a roll, while the Titans are in freefall, so that one's certainly believable, too.
The Browns and the Steelers, that one's a bit of a wild card. But Cleveland is coming off its largest margin of victory since Week 8. So there's that.
Currently, the Jaguars are 7-point favorites against the Titans, the Browns are 2.5-point underdogs against the Steelers, and the Jets are 3-point underdogs against the Dolphins. So the odds won't be in the Patriots' favor if they lose to Buffalo.
There is also one alternative break the Patriots could catch.
If the Bills lose on Monday night in Cincinnati, and if the Chiefs beat the Raiders on Saturday, then the Bills would enter Sunday knowing that they have lost the No. 1 seed and the first-round playoff bye. And if that's the case, the Bills won't be overly motivated to win on Sunday, knowing that they'll have an important playoff game to play the following weekend. Perhaps that could open the door for a Patriots victory. (It's unclear how much Buffalo will value being the No. 2 seed over the No. 3 seed.)
Obviously, both of those alternative paths require a few fortunate breaks for New England. The easiest way to the postseason remains a simple victory over Buffalo. But if that doesn't happen, some keen scoreboard-watching will be taking place on Sunday all around New England.