Patriots links 12/18/25: Ravens game a mental toughness road test

TEAM TALK

• Patriots-Ravens Week 16 Injury Report.
• Evan Lazar‘s Patriots Gameplan: 3 keys to victory in Sunday night’s showdown vs. the Ravens. Although winning the division by beating the Bills would’ve been nice, we’ll get a gauge of the Patriots mettle coming off a difficult loss. Vrabel: ‘It’s only a loss if you don’t learn from it’. More!
• Broadcast Info: How to watch/listen to Patriot at Ravens.
• Roster Move: Patriots sign LB Amari Gainer to the practice squad.
• Transcript: Drake Maye (Plus video)
• Press Conferences: Mike Vrabel – Stefon Diggs, Christian Gonzalez, Garrett Bradbury, Mack Hollins, Morgan Moses.
• The Journey: Mack Hollins’ path from special teams stand out to NFL wide receiver. (4 min. video)
• Patriots Unfiltered: Ravens preview, Vrabel presser/reaction, locker room report.
• Patriots Catch-22: Evan Lazar and Alex Barth recap Week 15 with 3 up/down vs. Bills, areas to improve, Ravens preview. (2 hours)

LOCAL LINKS

• Andrew Callahan explains how as the Pats’ defense and receiving corps struggle, the Patriots need Drake Maye to step up — now more than ever.
• Mark Daniels calls attention to the Pats defense missing 5 starters on Wednesday.
• Alex Barth is concerned about how thin the Patriots are at the linebacker position heading into Week 16.
• Tom E. Curran spends a bit of time explaining himself, then walks back his initial inference that Mike Vrabel was kicking rocks at Josh McDaniels’ play-calling vs. the Bills. He calls it “clarifying”.
• Jake Seymour hears from Mike Vrabel on the lessons the Pats are learning from the loss to the Bills.
• Sophie Weller spotlights Drake Maye sending a team-first message amid MVP conversation.
• Chris Mason relays Drake Maye on why he is thrilled Patriots-Ravens was flexed into prime time.
• Mark Daniels reports the Patriots signed Drake Maye’s former college teammate, veteran LB Amari Gainer
• Doug Kyed thought it was surprising to see Stefon Diggs take on a reduced workload vs the Bills. Diggs played just 26 of 52 offensive snaps against his former team. Here is how Diggs reacted.
• Pats Chat podcast: Doug Kyed and Michael Hurley break down some of the Patriots’ recent struggles ahead of their Week 16 matchup with the Ravens. (71 min.)

NATIONAL NEWS

• Ben Fischer (Sports Business Journal) ‘A true, true Patriot’: Nancy Meier prepares for retirement after 52 seasons in Foxboro.
• Zachary Pereles (CBS Sports) Ranking 10 of the most important remaining games that will shape 2025 postseason: With three weeks to go, 17 teams are fighting for 12 playoff spots. Pats-Ravens included.
• John Breech (CBS Sports) NFL Week 16 picks and score predictions. Ravens win 23-20. “I have no idea what the Ravens offense is going to look like on Sunday, because they’ve been so streaky all year, but on paper, this will be the stiffest test that New England has faced this season.” /Click for commentary.
• Pete Prisco (CBS Sports) Week 16 NFL picks....