New England Patriots GameDay: 5 key players vs. Buffalo Bills
![CINCINNATI, OHIO - DECEMBER 15: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots against the Cincinnati Bengals as at Paul Brown Stadium on December 15, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) CINCINNATI, OHIO - DECEMBER 15: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots against the Cincinnati Bengals as at Paul Brown Stadium on December 15, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/61496107d4c3af2994759b284bc32ee4e30ac8b6ad354da642e3de121b873e44.jpg)
The New England Patriots (11-3) have a late-December AFC East battle on their hands as they take on the Buffalo Bills (10-4) at Gillette Stadium.
An important AFC East battle in late December? Who would’ve thought this Week 16 matchup between the New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills would have high significance this late in the season for both the division and playoff seeding, but here we are.
With both teams clinching playoff spots, what’s on the line Saturday afternoon at Gillette Stadium is the AFC East title, which the Patriots would still control with a loss and potential playoff seeding.
With a victory, the Patriots would not only clinch the AFC East, but would remain as the No. 2 seed in the AFC with slight hope for the No. 1 seed. Here’s sending special Christmas cards to the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers in hope they can knock off the Baltimore Ravens.
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First, Bill Belichick and his team have to take care of their own business against a very defensively sound Buffalo Bills team.
In the first meeting up there at Orchard Park, the Patriots escaped with a 16-10 victory. Both defenses got the job done, but Belichick’s crew got a touchdown on special teams which ended up being the difference in the game.
In this matchup, it will really be about Tom Brady and the offense making more plays than Josh Allen and the Bills running game. This is not your typical Buffalo Bills folks. Bill Belichick certainly knows it will be a challenge. Here is what the coach had to say on Tuesday during his conference call with the media, via Patriots.com.
"“We have a lot to get ready for. Some carry-over from the first game, but that was a long time ago and there’s quite a few differences between now and then. Some players we hadn’t seen, or didn’t see then that we’ll probably see now – [Devin] Singletary, or [Dawson] Knox, [Tyler] Kroft, so forth. So, that’ll be a big challenge for us here and hopefully we’ll have a good week and be ready to go.”"
How to watch Buffalo Bills vs. New England Patriots
Location: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, MA
Kickoff: Saturday, December 21, 2019 4:30 p.m. ET
TV: NFL Network (Check local listings)
Streaming: fuboTV
The defending Super Bowl champions have to be smart and effective offensively and sound defensively to herd this Buffalo Bills team hungry to make a statement. Here are 5 key players for the New England Patriots in this Week 16 matchup.