The New England Patriots stared down a shaky first half against the Dolphins last Sunday, dealing with a ton of injuries, but they still pulled off the win! Seriously, they stormed back and won the game. So why are some “experts” out there still dropping them in the power rankings? The average of all these rankings hit 10.5, which feels reasonable, but some put them at 5th, while others slammed them all the way down to 14th. Makes no sense, right? Beating Green Bay this Sunday should definitely give them the boost they deserve.
Maye Is Playing Elite, And The Packers Are Next
Listen, I get it, injuries are brutal. The status of top players is still a huge question mark for the season, which is tough. But when you have a QB like Drake Maye tearing it up, you gotta pay attention. Over the last four games, Maye has been playing straight-up MVP-caliber football, tossing 11 touchdowns to just 1 interception! He’s crossing that 110 passer rating mark *every single game* in that stretch. That’s elite stuff.
And now they’re rolling into Week 9 hot, facing off against another hot team in the Green Bay Packers. Jordan Love is no slouch either, with 8 TDs and 3 INTs over his last four, averaging over 300 yards and 2 TDs per game with a strong completion percentage. The Packers are out there fighting for their lives in the NFC playoff race, so this isn’t some walk in the park. While the Dolphins may have been playing for pride, the Packers will be playing for everything. Even as 2.5-point road underdogs, Green Bay is a solid matchup for the Patriots on both offense and defense.
The Rankings Debate Is Wild
You’d think winning would get you some respect, right? Nate Davis from USA Today has them at a surprisingly high 5th, a three-spot jump, acknowledging their mean defense that’s given up more than 30 points only once this season, even though the offense has scored over 30 points just once because of those injuries. Then Vinnie Iyer at Sporting News and Ralph Vacchiano at FOX Sports both have them at 10th. Iyer pointed out they didn’t have A.J. Brown or TreVeyon Henderson to juice up the big-play offense, but Maye still cranked out 8.7 yards per attempt, and the team ground out 131 rushing yards to beat the Dolphins. Iyer knows the Patriots aren’t giving the Buffalo Bills much breathing room in the AFC East, and those Bills are currently 6-1, sitting atop the division with the Patriots at 5-3.
The AFC East is getting spicy with the Patriots at 5-3. This Sunday against the Packers is huge. If the Pats can keep it clean, cut out the turnovers and penalties, they can totally take this one by a touchdown. Get ready for a battle!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pats Pulpit.
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