New England Patriots - NESN.com
The New England Patriots secured a significant win over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, prompting DraftKings to boost the Patriots’ playoff odds to +130, the sixth-best in the AFC.
Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon is selling the Patriots’ playoff odds because he believes their roster is still rebuilding.
“You need to give me better odds than that, considering how much this roster is still working through as part of a rebuild,” Gagnon wrote Wednesday. “They laid an egg in their home opener and have almost no shot in the division, while the AFC North and West are much more likely to produce wild-card teams.”
The Patriots’ roster has some weaknesses, but they benefit from competing in the AFC East, where they will face the New York Jets twice and the Miami Dolphins one more time in games they are likely to win.
New England has one of the softest remaining schedules, with games against the Cleveland Browns, New Orleans Saints and Tennessee Titans still to come.
New England must secure wins against weaker opponents on its schedule, and if it does, it only needs to find three or four additional victories for the remainder of the season.
Selling off the Patriots’ chances of making the playoffs is premature, as they should be in a strong position to compete for a playoff spot if quarterback Drake Maye stays healthy.
