Predictions: New England Patriots Top Bills in Season Finale

Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

The New England Patriots will closeout the regular season on Sunday afternoon at Gillette Stadium against their AFC East rival Buffalo Bills. For the Patriots, the game holds no meaning, other than a chance to fine tune the operation ahead of their opening-round playoff bye.

Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and company are expecting a difficult contest with the Bills. There are several areas that do need a bit of work such as the offensive line play, the rushing attack and the need to get off to more effective starts.

It’s important to take into consideration the slew of injuries up and down the roster. It may not even be a wise choice to play the starters against a physical Bills defense. With that said, what should be expected come kick off?

Another week means another round of predictions. Here’s how our crew here at Chowder and Champions see the Patriots-Bills game unfolding…

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Matthew Rewinski’s Prediction:

When Tom Brady says he’s planning on using the regular season finale against the Bills as “…an opportunity to improve on last week’s performance”, the Bills are almost definitely coming out swinging this week, even if they’re already going to spend January playing golf anyway. Teams generally don’t take kindly to getting thrashed 37-22 in their own house, especially by a division opponent, so they’ll be rolling into Gillette Stadium hoping to exact some revenge.

There’s been tons of hype this week as to when second-round draft pick Jimmy Garappolo is going to take the field, but pump the brakes a second; if the offensive line plays like they did against the Jets last week, it won’t matter who’s slinging the rock. Buffalo’s defensive line, at times, has been an absolute brick wall against short plays and consistently finds ways to push offensive lineman around, so even if the Patriots have to go with a different O-line roster again, they’ll have a tough 60 minutes ahead of them.

Perhaps an easier task is ahead for New England’s defense. Buffalo has had a few explosive games this year, hanging 38 points on the New York Jets and beating Green Bay 24-13 just a couple weeks ago, but saying their quarterback issues are holding the team back is like calling water wet. EJ Manuel clearly hasn’t worked out like Buffalo hoped, and Kyle Orton has played like, well, Kyle Orton. (By the way, is anyone keeping track of these Florida State quarterbacks that get drafted high, then flame out in the NFL? EJ Manuel, Christian Ponder, Chris Weinke…I’m just saying.)

The Patriots should leave Foxboro on Sunday with their best record since the 2011 Super Bowl campaign – but don’t expect Buffalo to make it easy on them.

Final Score: New England 24, Buffalo 17

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Frank O’Laughlin’s Prediction:

The Patriots matchup with the Bills this week cannot be taken lightly. The Bills are certainly formidable AFC East opponent and I expect a dogfight Sunday afternoon at Gillette Stadium. New England is banged up, but they have something to prove to themselves ahead of the playoffs and that’s the fact that their offensive woes can indeed be rectified.

I expect Tom Brady and the offense to take the field with vengeance and snap out of their early-game funks that have plagued in recent weeks. After getting slammed around by the Jets defensive front last week, the offensive line better have a fire under their rear-end. The importance of keeping Brady upright and healthy is clear. This team’s success hinges on Brady’s ability to perform. Look for the five guys up front to rise to the occasion, handle the Buffalo front and silence the critics. Brady and Danny Amendola should get another chance to continue in building upon last week’s impressive showing considering Julian Edelman will likely sit.

Establishing an effective running game needs to be a point of emphasis as well. Jonas Gray has been ruled out, LeGarrett Blount and Shane Vereen are questionable to play, meaning Brandon Bolden could see a heavy workload. No matter who is in New England’s backfield, building momentum on the ground will help the Patriots control the game. It will open up the pass and help the offensive line build up some much needed confidence.

The Patriots defense was burned by Robert Woods and Scott Chandler in their last meeting in Orchard Park. Patrick Chung, in particular, is coming off the worst game of his season. He has a chance to redeem himself against Chandler in this one. I look for him to bounce back. The two-headed monster of Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller could present an issue. The duo was hindered by injury when the Patriots rolled over the Bills, 37-22. Bottling the two of them up will present a nice little test with postseason football around the corner.

When it’s all said and done though, I envision Bill Belichick playing his starters just long enough to show improvements in the areas I highlighted. Risking injury in this game is crazy. They’ll take care of business in a safe manner and move on to the bye week. Jimmy Garappolo and the reserves will likely take the field before the final horn blows.

Final Score: New England 27, Buffalo 17

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