The Patriots had some anxious moments late, but when the dust cleared, New England had a clear path to the AFC East Division title and are still in the race for the top seed in the conference.
Sunday’s win left the Patriots at 8-2, while the Bills’ stunning loss to the Dolphins dropped Buffalo to 6-3.
That means the Patriots not only own the tie-breaker from having beaten the Bills head-to-head earlier, but they have a one-game lead in the loss column.
The Bills have already had their bye this season, while New England’s is next month.
The teams play each other on Dec. 14 at Gillette Stadium, which is now almost a must-win for the Bills. On top of that Buffalo has a much tougher remaining schedule.
The Bills face:
- Sun, Nov 16 — vs Tampa Bay
- Thu, Nov 20 — @ Houston
- Sun, Nov 30 — @ Pittsburgh
- Sun, Dec 7 — vs Cincinnati
- Sun, Dec 14 — @ New England
- Sun, Dec 21 — @ Cleveland
- Sun, Dec 28 — vs Philadelphia
- Sun, Jan 4 — vs NY Jets
The Buccaneers, Steelers, Patriots and Eagles all have winning records.
The Patriots face:
- Thu, Nov 13 —vs NY Jets
- Sun, Nov 23 —@ Cincinnati
- Mon, Dec 1 —vs NY Giants
- Sun, Dec 14 —vs Buffalo
- Sun, Dec 21 —@ Baltimore
- Sun, Dec 28 —@ NY Jets
- Sun, Jan 4 — vs Miami
Buffalo is the only Patriots opponent win a winning record and most of the others aren’t close.
The Patriots are tied with the Colts and Broncos at 8-2 for the No. 1 record in the AFC.
After a bye, the Colts are at Kansas City on Nov. 23. They still have two games with the playoff contending Jaguars, a road game at Seattle (6-2) and a home game against the 49ers (6-3).
The Colts’ full schedule is:
- Sun, Nov 23 — @ Kansas City
- Sun, Nov 30 — vs Houston
- Sun, Dec 7 — @ Jacksonville
- Sun, Dec 14 — @ Seattle
- Mon, Dec 22 — vs San Francisco
- Sun, Dec 28 — vs Jacksonville
The Broncos play the Chiefs twice and face the Jaguars, Chargers and Packers.
The Broncos face:
- Sun, Nov 16 — vs Kansas City
- Sun, Nov 30 — @ Washington
- Sun, Dec 7 — @ Las Vegas
- Sun, Dec 14 — vs Green Bay
- Sun, Dec 21 — vs Jacksonville
- Thu, Dec 25 — @ Kansas City
- Sun, Jan 4 — vs LA Chargers
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