The New England Patriots will close out their 2022 regular season with an early-afternoon game in Buffalo.
Sunday’s Patriots-Bills game at Highmark Stadium will be played at 1 p.m. ET, the NFL announced Monday.
Here is the league’s full Week 18 schedule:
The Patriots remain alive in the AFC playoff race after beating the Miami Dolphins, 23-21, on Sunday. A win over Buffalo would clinch a playoff spot for New England. Lose, and Bill Belichick’s club only would get in if the Dolphins, Pittsburgh Steelers and Tennessee Titans all stumble, as well.
The Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars will play Saturday night, so the Patriots will know the result of that game before their regular-season finale. The NFL also chose to schedule the Kansas City Chiefs and Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday — a decision that could favor the Patriots.
If the Bills defeat the Cincinnati Bengals this week on “Monday Night Football” and the Chiefs lose to the Raiders, Buffalo would clinch a first-round playoff bye and home-field advantage, increasing the chances of head coach Sean McDermott resting quarterback Josh Allen and other starters against the Patriots.
The Patriots are 1-5 in their last six meetings against the Bills and have lost their last three, including a 24-10 result at Gillette Stadium last month.
