Four Sunday Games Carry Major Patriots Implications In Week 1
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The New England Patriots will not play Sunday, but their coaches and players will have plenty to watch. New England opened its season Wednesday night with a 13-10 loss to the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. The Patriots now have an unusually long break before hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers at Gillette Stadium on Sept. 20.
That schedule creates a valuable scouting opportunity.
All three of New England’s AFC East opponents will play their season openers Sunday. The Steelers, meanwhile, will provide the Patriots with their first look at the team they must prepare to face in Week 2. New England would have preferred to watch those games with a 1-0 record. The Patriots instead will spend the weekend processing a frustrating defeat in which they lost a 10-0 lead and committed several costly mistakes during the fourth quarter.
Here are the four games carrying the greatest Patriots implications Sunday.
Buffalo Bills At Houston Texans
The Patriots’ pursuit of the AFC East begins with the Buffalo Bills, who visit the Houston Texans at 1 p.m. ET on CBS.
Buffalo’s opener represents an immediate opportunity for New England to avoid losing ground in the division. A Bills loss would leave every AFC East team within reach of the Patriots regardless of the other Sunday results. The game also should give New England a useful look at how Buffalo’s offense and defense have evolved entering the new season. The Patriots will not face the Bills until later in the schedule, but any weaknesses exposed by Houston could become important when the division rivals eventually meet.
New York Jets At Tennessee Titans
The New York Jets begin their season on the road against the Tennessee Titans at 1 p.m. ET on CBS.
New England will be interested in more than the final score. The Patriots can study how the Jets handle their first meaningful action of the season, including their offensive approach, defensive pressure packages and performance in late-game situations.
A New York victory would put the Jets one game ahead of New England. A loss would leave the rivals with matching 0-1 records after the opening weekend.
Miami Dolphins At Las Vegas Raiders
Miami plays the latest game involving an AFC East team Sunday when it visits the Las Vegas Raiders at 4:25 p.m. ET on FOX. The Dolphins have enough offensive speed to test any opponent, but a road opener against Las Vegas could reveal how successfully they can protect the quarterback and maintain drives.
New England’s defensive coaches should be particularly interested in how the Raiders attempt to limit Miami’s explosive plays. The Patriots will need their own plan when they face the Dolphins twice during the regular season.
MORE: Patriots’ Long Break Gives Josh McDaniels Chance To Rebuild Passing Plan
Atlanta Falcons At Pittsburgh Steelers
The most immediately useful game for the Patriots might have nothing to do with the AFC East.
Pittsburgh hosts the Atlanta Falcons at 1 p.m. ET on FOX, one week before the Steelers visit Gillette Stadium. New England’s coaching staff will have an opportunity to examine Pittsburgh’s entire Week 1 plan before beginning its own game preparation. The Patriots can study the Steelers’ preferred personnel groupings, protection calls, defensive fronts and third-down tendencies.
The extra preparation time becomes especially valuable after New England’s difficult offensive finish in Seattle. Drake Maye threw three fourth-quarter interceptions, while the Patriots placed wide receiver A.J. Brown on injured reserve Saturday because of the ankle injury he suffered during the opener.
New England must use the extended break to rebuild its offensive plan without Brown and eliminate the mistakes that cost it against Seattle.
Sunday’s games will not change the Patriots’ 0-1 record. They could, however, prevent New England from losing additional ground in the AFC East and provide valuable information about the opponent standing between the Patriots and their first victory.