At the conclusion of Week 17, every NFL team solidified their rank within each division which helps to determine the schedule for next season. The NFL uses a rotating schedule formula to determine each teams opponents and ensures every team will play one another within a four-year span.
Every team plays their divisional opponents twice per season. The Patriots will take on the AFC East that includes the Bills, Jets, and Dolphins. They will do battle both on the road and in Foxborough.
Along with playing their division, each team plays an entire division from both the NFC and AFC with the venue being the reverse of the previous rotation. According to the rotating schedule formula, the NFC East is up next for the Patriots. The Patriots will be traveling to Washington and Philadelphia while hosting Dallas and New York.
On the flip side, New England faces the AFC North in 2019. The Patriots will be traveling to Baltimore and Cincinnati to take on the Ravens and Bengals, respectively. That means they will be facing the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns in the friendly confines of Foxborough.
Since the Patriots play the entire AFC North, the last two opponents are a single team from the remaining AFC divisions based on rank within the division. The Patriots won the AFC East for the 10th consecutive year so they face the winners of the AFC South and AFC West. The Patriots will play the Kansas City Chiefs in New England and will travel to Houston to play the Texans.
There is still free agency and the NFL draft to come, so every team will change dramatically by the start of next season. We also won’t know the time and date of each contest until mid-April, but these three games already look like they could shape the Patriots’ next championship run.
Kansas City Chiefs vs New England Patriots
New England went into Week 6 performing well under their expectations. They were 3-2 and having trouble finding their identity. Now, they had the red hot Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes coming to town.
The game was built up to be the game of the year and it lived up to the hype. The Patriots got out to a big lead behind the steady play of Tom Brady and Sony Michel and the defense limiting the Chiefs to three field goals. New England lead 24-9 going into halftime.
Patrick Mahomes was able to pick apart the Patriots’ secondary in the third quarter to get Kansas City back into the game. He hit Kareem Hunt on a 67-yard touchdown pass and connected with Tyreek Hill on a 14-yard touchdown that brought the Chiefs within one point.
The fourth quarter became a shootout of its own as both teams combined to score 30 points to close out the game. The Chiefs were able to take the lead, but it didn’t last long, because soon Tom Brady slipped through two defenders on his way to a four-yard touchdown run. Kansas City answered as Tyreek Hill tied the game at 40 points on a 75-yard touchdown catch with three minutes left.
That was too much time to leave Tom Brady, though. He loves to have the ball to finish off a game. He swiftly directed the Patriots offense into field goal range in six plays. As time expired, Stephen Gostkowski nailed a 28-yard field goal to give the Patriots the 43-40 victory.
The Chiefs and Patriots were the best two teams in the AFC during the regular season and both earned first-round byes in the playoffs. Both teams handled their business in the early rounds, setting up a much-anticipated rematch in the AFC Championship game.
The Chiefs earned the top seed in the AFC, meaning the Patriots had to travel to Kansas City for the AFC Championship game. New England has notoriously played bad on the road during the playoffs and the Chiefs were looking to take advantage of that weakness.
Right out of the gate, New England marched down the field on an eight-minute and 15 play drive that resulted in a one-yard touchdown run by Sony Michel. The Patriots dominated the first half as they were able to keep the best offense in the NFL out of the end zone. Tom Brady added a 29-yard touchdown pass to Phillip Dorsett to go into halftime with a 14-0 lead.
Patrick Mahomes got the Chiefs on the right path after halftime with a quick touchdown strike to Travis Kelce to make it a seven-point game. New England added a field goal to go up 10 points. Then, Mahomes took over the fourth quarter.
Mahomes tossed two touchdown passes to Damien Williams that gave the Chiefs the lead. The score went back and forth on touchdown runs by Sony Michel, followed by Damien Williams, and finishing with Rex Burkhead to put the Patriots up by three. Harrison Butker tied the game with a 39-yard field goal at the end of regulation.
The Patriots won the toss in overtime and never looked back. Tom Brady repeatedly connected with Julian Edelman on third down to maneuver into field goal range. The Chiefs were unable to stop the Patriots, who were not going to settle for three points. Rex Burkhead ran the ball in from two yards out to finish off Kansas City and send the Patriots to the Super Bowl with a 37-31 victory.
Next season’s game will most likely be placed in a primetime slot for all eyes to be watching the young gun versus the GOAT. Patrick Mahomes had one of the most impressive seasons for a first-year starter and earned himself the league’s MVP honors. Tom Brady and the Patriots just won their sixth title and will be hungry for at least one more before Tom walks away from the game. This could be the last season that the best to ever play quarterback gets to face the new face of the NFL in Mahomes. This game should be placed late in the season on Monday Night Football so they have an extra day of preparation and it will mean something to the playoff picture. After all, this game is the definition of must-watch television.
New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The matchup against the Chiefs might be the most anticipated game by the fans, but the game versus Philadelphia will definitely be circled by many Patriots players. This will be the first time New England is facing the Eagles since their loss to them in Super Bowl LII.
The defense let the Patriots down in that game, plain and simple. The Eagles were able to move the ball up and down the field and routinely get in the endzone. Nick Foles threw for 373 yards and three touchdowns. He tore the secondary apart on his way to being named the game’s MVP.
Tom Brady and the offense actually played really well. They had their hiccups, but they continued to fight and keep the Patriots in the game. Brady finished the game with 505 yards and three touchdowns, with the final touchdown going to Rob Gronkowski. The score gave New England their first lead midway through the fourth quarter.
The defense was unable to stop Foles and the Eagles, who quickly regained the lead. Tom Brady had a devastating fumble two plays later when Brandon Graham stripped the ball out of his hands. The Eagles added a field goal to go up eight points and were able to keep Tom Brady from making another miraculous comeback. The score ended 41-33 with the Eagles winning and successfully stopping Brady from getting his sixth ring.
The biggest difference for Philadelphia will be the presence of Carson Wentz, who missed the Super Bowl with a knee injury. Nick Foles will likely no longer be with the team so Wentz will have the added pressure to prove he can take down Tom Brady just like Foles did. There’s little doubt that the Patriots will be jacked up for their chance at revenge. Brady and the Patriots know they should have seven rings and will look to make the Eagles pay for taking that away from them.
New England Patriots vs. Houston Texans
The Patriots and Texans kicked the season off against each other back in Week 1. The game went just as the Patriots wanted it to go. They took an early lead and never looked back as they continued to score touchdowns while limiting Houston to field goals.
Houston battled back to get the game within seven points at 27-20, but Deshaun Watson could not pull off the comeback. Watson was unusually bad in this game and it was apparent that he was shaking off the rust of an offseason surgery. He only threw for 173 yards and one touchdown, while adding an interception and a lost fumble.
Tom Brady kicked off the season with a steady 277 passing yards with three touchdowns and one interception. Gronk looked like a young man as he caught seven balls for 123 yards and one touchdown. The Patriots controlled the ball and got into Watson’s face. They looked like the better team from start to finish.
The Texans got off to a terrible start, losing the first three games of the season. Watson started to play like he was healthy and the Texans rattled off nine consecutive wins to take control of the AFC South. The appeal to next year’s game stems from the potential Houston has to become a dominant team over the offseason.
Much like the matchup with Patrick Mahomes, Brady will be facing one of the up-and-coming future stars at quarterback. No one knows how long Tom has left to play so this could be one of the last times Watson and Brady will face off. Watson has never beaten Brady, so he will definitely come out swinging.
But Brady isn’t ready to step down from the throne just yet. He will be ready.
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