The New England Patriots are in the thick of a tight divisional race as well as chasing the Denver Broncos for the AFC's top seed. With this in mind, every game is incredibly important with the Baltimore Ravens, New York Jets, and Miami Dolphins finishing out the year for the Patriots. Currently, the Pats hold a one-game lead over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC East while trailing the Broncos by one game in the AFC race.
However, the final game of New England's regular season just grew a bit more interesting with ESPN's Adam Schefter reporting that, "A major move in Miami: the Dolphins are benching QB Tua Tagovailoa and turning to Quinn Ewers as their new starting QB." This sets up the Patriots to be facing an unknown rookie in the final week of the regular season who is playing with nothing to lose after getting an unexpected chance.
Patriots Will Be Dealing with Quinn Ewers in Week 18
Ewers was drafted in the seventh round, making it clear that there were very few expectations for the signal caller. Still, New England fans understandably would far rather see Tagovailoa, who is a known quantity as a limited quarterback destined to offer up the ball to the defense at least once a game in a key spot.
This isn't to predict that Ewers is going to defy his draft stock or become a star player for the Dolphins, but rather to point out the reality of the unknown. Objectively, it is a negative for New England to potentially go into a must-win spot in the season's final weeks and be playing a rookie quarterback that has every reason to play freely and without fear.
Ewers is already a borderline roster piece and can only improve his standing with a strong finish to the season. Setting up a potentially nerve-wracking matchup for the Pats in the final week of the season.
The silver lining is that New England will be aided by the fact that the Bills and Broncos both have slightly tougher finishes to the 2025 season. Buffalo has a remaining matchup against the defending champion Philadelphia Eagles, while the Broncos play the Jacksonville Jaguars, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Los Angeles Chargers in the season's final three games.
This does paint a positive picture of New England's chances to both hold onto the AFC East while locking down the conference's top seed. Still, there should be a slight level of anxiety around the final matchup of the season and a close eye kept on the rookie quarterback over his next two starts. Regardless of that, head coach Mike Vrabel can't enter Week 18 and underestimate Ewers.
Doing so could not only send the Patriots into the postseason on a low note but also potentially harm their chances of ending the year as the AFC East Champions.