3 keys to a Bills victory vs. the Patriots in Week 17
The Buffalo Bills (9-6) take on the New England Patriots (4-11) on Sunday during a pivotal stretch of Buffalo’s season as the team is trying to hold on to their playoff hopes.
After beating the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 16, the Bills have a small margin of error the rest of the season. Buffalo has to win out or they’ll likely miss out on winning the AFC East… but even that is a long shot.
With the Bills’ playoff hopes now most likely resting on making it to the postseason as a wild-card team, they will have to play perfectly down the home stretch if they want to remain in the hunt.
Here are three keys to the Bills beating the Patriots in Week 17:
Stop playing down to opponents
The Bills have had a problem in 2023 which Sean McDermott has to address. His team has an issue with playing down to opponents.
Buffalo should beat New England. They should have the first time, too. They did not. And even just looking back to a week ago, the Bills beat the Los Angeles Chargers but it was a lot closer than most expected. The head coach has to address this.
Air it out again
While the Bills have relied on their rushing attack more often over the past few weeks. Running back James Cook should not be the focal point against New England. Instead, Buffalo should put the ball in Josh Allen’s hands like they previously did.
That comes down to one thing: The Pats have allowed only 59 rushing yards per game since Week 12. That’s the best in the NFL.
Allen to Stefon Diggs sounds good this week.
Get to the QB
The Patriots still have Ezekiel Elliott, but Rhadamore Stevenson was placed on injured reserve and will not play this week.
Plus, New England’s offense is really lacking playmakers for quarterback Bailey Zappe to get the ball to.
On top of that… it’s Zappe. If the Bills’ pass rush is relentless once again this week, it could be a really long afternoon for the Patriots offense.
