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Buffalo Sports News

Bills-Patriots Could Spell End of Disastrous Tenure

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Bills Patriots

New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo is walking a tightrope ahead of Sunday’s regular-season finale against the Buffalo Bills. The former Patriots linebacker wants to prove he deserves another year leading the team, but a loss is the best result for an organization in pursuit of the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

Meanwhile, the Bills have clinched the AFC’s No. 2 seed in the playoffs. Their starters will rest for the majority of Sunday’s game. MVP frontrunner Josh Allen will play at least a few snaps to keep his start streak alive, which stands at 114 games including the postseason.

Those factors set the stage for what could be a weird Week 18 matchup at Gillette Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET on CBS.

Bills-Patriots Game Preview: The End of Jerod Mayo?

X-Factors

Bills: QB Mitchell Trubisky

Trubisky is in his second season backing up Allen. The 30-year-old Ohio native previously filled the role in 2021 before leaving to spend two seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. This is the first time he’ll receive extended playing time for Buffalo.

The 2017 first-round pick has put together a modest career. He’s completed 64.1 percent of his passes with 73 touchdowns and 48 interceptions in 77 games (57 starts) with the Bills, Steelers and Chicago Bears. His 85.8 passer rating ranks 28th among active quarterbacks.

Trubisky is under contract for next season, but Buffalo can save $2.5 million against the salary cap if he’s released before March 16, per Spotrac. It’s also possible the UNC product wouldn’t mind testing the free-agent market to see if he could compete for a starting role somewhere in 2025.

In turn, this is an important game for the veteran signal-caller. He’ll face off with a Patriots defense that ranks 15th in passing yards allowed per game (216.7). New England is the only team since Week 7 to keep the Allen-led Bills under 30 points. Buffalo won the first meeting, 24-21, in Week 16.

Trubisky will likely spend most of the game working with secondary targets, including Mack Hollins, Dawson Knox and Quintin Morris, but it’s still a chance for him to show he’s capable of making a positive impact when called upon.

Patriots: HC Jerod Mayo

New England will secure the No. 1 pick in April’s draft with a loss Sunday. If they beat Buffalo, however, the franchise could fall to fifth in the order depending on the week’s other results. That’s a major swing, and it’s reasonable for fans to hope for a loss given the situation.

Yet, Mayo made it clear Wednesday he’s not interested in tanking.

“I would say if players are healthy, they’ll be ready to go,” the first-year head coach told reporters. “As far as how much they play, how much they don’t, I’ve never been a part of a team, as a player or as a coach, going into a game not wanting to win. It’s not going to change today, so that’s my message to the team.”

Mayo, who replaced Bill Belichick in the offseason, has guided the Patriots to a 3-13 record. It’s led to rumors the organization could let him go at season’s end in order to pursue Mike Vrabel, another one of the team’s former defensive standouts and a top head-coaching candidate.

It’s always fascinating to think about the discussions being held behind the scenes. Is the Patriots brass, led by owner Robert Kraft and president Jonathan Kraft, making it clear to the coaching staff they’d prefer to lose this game? We’ll never know.

Ultimately, Mayo hasn’t created much confidence he’s the team’s long-time answer to lead the staff. He may be fired regardless of Sunday’s result if Vrabel is interested in the job. This is the one situation where a win may actually hurt his chances of being retained, though.

Key Matchup

Bills LB Joe Andreessen vs. Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson

Andreessen was one of the NFL’s best preseason stories. An undrafted rookie, who was born in the Buffalo suburb of Depew and attended nearby Lancaster High School, strung together enough strong performances to earn a spot on the Bills’ final 53-man roster.

“Buffalo Joe” has mostly operated on special teams, but the linebacker finally got a chance at some defensive snaps in last week’s blowout win over the New York Jets. He responded by recording a team-high eight total tackles in just a quarter of work.

Bills head coach Sean McDermott said the fan favorite has earned every opportunity:

Andreessen should play most of Sunday’s game with Terrel Bernard sidelined by a quad injury and Matt Milano likely rested. His play won’t impact his playoff role—Bernard, Milano and Dorian Williams are entrenched as the top three LBs—but it’s a great chance to show his development.

While it’s been a cool story, it has a chance to become more in 2025. Milano’s future is unsettled as his long history of injuries appears to have taken a cumulative toll. As a result, it’s possible Andreessen could at least compete for a starting spot next season.

His main task Sunday will be trying to slow down Stevenson. Although the Patriots running back has struggled at times, as highlighted by his career-low 3.9 yards per carry, he’s tallied a career-best eight total touchdowns through 15 appearances.

The Bills’ run defense has been the team’s most consistent weakness. The unit is allowing 4.7 yards per rushing attempt, which is tied for 25th in the NFL. So facing a punishing runner like Stevenson is good final test before the playoffs.

Andreessen was all over the field making plays against the Jets. Likewise, he’ll be expected to track down Stevenson on Sunday.

Final Score Prediction: 17-14 Bills

Talk about an unpredictable game. Mayo wants to win but the Patriots are better off losing. The Bills are more worried about avoiding injuries than the final result. It creates an environment where mistakes are probably going to decide the winner rather than highlight-reel plays.

A lot depends on whether Mayo and the Pats follow through with plans to feature their starters for the entire game. More specifically, New England likely becomes the favorite if quarterback Drake Maye plays all four quarters.

That said, don’t be surprised if plans change before Sunday afternoon. Whether that means Maye doesn’t play at all or is benched after a few series in favor of Joe Milton III. The same holds true for the team’s other key players, but he’s obviously the most important one.

The Patriots simply can’t afford to win this game. The downside of losing the chance to select Colorado two-way sensation Travis Hunter, or whomever else they decide is the class’ top prospect, is too great. There’s also no reason to risk a serious injury to impact someone’s availability for next season.

So, in the end, this game could very well become a battle of the backups. If that’s indeed the case, the advantage shifts back to Buffalo, which could win 14 regular-season games for the first time in franchise history.

Even though the contest itself may be ugly, it could still become a footnote in history. That’s possible either if Hunter changes to trajectory of the Patriots or if it becomes part of the Bills’ first Super Bowl season.

Main Photo: David Butler – USA Today Sports

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