This Ridiculous, Unlikely Path To Playoffs For Patriots Still Alive

The New England Patriots have fallen off in a big way this season, sitting at 2-10 and entering Week 14 on the verge of being eliminated from playoff contention.

With that being said, New England is not out yet, with the slimmest of paths still existing for the team to somehow reach the postseason.

It goes without saying that the Patriots would have to win out to even have a chance at this systematic miracle.

As outlined by CBS Sports, New England needs to win its final five games while getting some massive help around the league.

In this scenario, the Patriots would finish 7-10, joined by the Pittsburgh Steelers, Houston Texans, Cincinnati Bengals, Los Angeles Chargers, Denver Broncos and Buffalo Bills.

After doing their part, New England would need the Steelers and Texans to lose out with a series of other specific results from the other four teams involved.

In all seriousness, the likelihood of such a scenario is microscopic. For the fun of speculation, however, there is still a mathematical chance that the Patriots could emerge as a playoff team in 2023. Again, a very small chance at that.

First things first, the Patriots head to Pittsburgh to battle the Steelers in primetime on Thursday.