The Patriots’ “Monday Night Football” victory over the Buffalo Bills earned them the top seed in the AFC with four games remaining on the schedule.
And with such a statement victory, with a unique game plan against a divisional rival that was a consequence of crazy weather — happening so late in the year, naturally a lot of the focus on Tuesday was on exactly how far this New England team can go.
ESPN’s Joon Lee tabbed the Patriots as the AFC champion during an appearance Tuesday on the network’s “Around The Horn,” but then took it further in a Tweet, adding that “The Patriots can win the Super Bowl.”
Here’s what Lee said on television:
“What they’ve been doing this season is what Bill Belichick has done throughout the course of his entire tenure with the Patriots, which has been taking what he has — a bunch of players who can do a bunch of different things — and they change the game plan every single week so that (it) becomes impossible to scout the Patriots.
“They change the game plan. This is a team that looked different when they played the Titans, this is a team that looked different when they played the Chargers. You don’t know what you’re getting on a week-to-week basis.
“And then they also don’t force Mac Jones to do things that he can’t do. A lot of rookie quarterbacks right now are trying to do too much. They’re trying to do the hero ball. With Mac Jones, they let him throw. They let him make accurate passes. Then they balance it out with Rhamondre Stevenson and Damien Harris, with a strong running game so the receivers are more open in the end zone.
“And then on top of all of that, you have a defense that has adjusted week-to-week, switching from zone to man. They’re the number one defense in the NFL and continue to get better on a week-to-week basis right now.”
Lee’s monologue wasn’t the only indication of changing perspectives regarding the Patriots’ postseason chances — sportsbooks had the Patriots as favorites in a number of postseason categories as of Tuesday evening.
