The Patriots looked like a meddling team through the first eight weeks of the 2022 NFL season, and that notion is reflected in Peter King's latest league power rankings.
New England appeared to be on the rise when it earned a pair of blowout wins over the Detroit Lions and the Cleveland Browns, but a horrific home loss to the Chicago Bears brought Bill Belichick's team back down to earth. The Patriots rebounded with a Week 8 win over the New York Jets, although the victory in the Meadowlands didn't inspire a ton of confidence in Mac Jones and company.
As such, King views the Patriots as the No. 15 team in the NFL at the unofficial halfway point of the campaign.
"The quarterbacking is surprisingly bad, and Pats won Sunday, in part, because of Zach Wilson's awfulness," King wrote in his latest Football Morning in America column for NBC Sports. "Plus, two of the last six games are against Buffalo. But you never know with this franchise."
It's imperative for New England to take care of business in Foxboro on Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts. After a Week 10 bye, the Patriots will host the Jets, visit the 6-1 Minnesota Vikings for a Thanksgiving night tilt and then welcome the juggernaut Bills to Gillette Stadium for "Thursday Night Football." The Patriots probably can't afford to be below .500 come December if they want to reach the playoffs.
With the Cincinnati Bengals losing to the Browns in Cleveland on Monday night, the Patriots moved to the No. 8 seed in the AFC. The top seven teams in the conference earn a trip to the postseason.
